Hi All! So, this past month has been STRESSFUL to the max. I mean, these are the days when I could seriously sit in a corner and eat an entire gallon of chocolate ice cream by myself. I tend to eat my feelings. Yeah, I know, not healthy. But, life has been super hectic with moments that were wonderful and happy and then some that were incredibly hard. One of the hardest parts was the loss of my mom last week. She battled with and suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease for years and while it was very hard to lose her it was also a tremendous relief to know that she could be happy and rest for the first time in a very long time. Anyone who has lived through Alzheimer’s with a loved one knows that you don’t just lose that person once and grieve. You lose them every day for years and grieve for the duration of their battle. The final breath can seem more like a sigh of relief. So, this post, like many of my writings will feature Mom and her cooking.
I’m sure that I mentioned this before, but I have a large family. What I might not have explained is that my siblings and I are spread out in age by quite a bit. My sisters were teens by the time I came along. They all married and had kids when I was still small. They stayed close to home with their own families, so we got to see them pretty much every weekend. It was common for everyone to be at our house all day on Sunday. The guys would mess around on the farm and the girls and the kids would play around the house and watch old movies on tv. Mom would cook a big meal for everyone on Sunday at noon or (more likely) in the evening. That was a lot of people to feed so she would make dishes that went a long way. Often, it was fried chicken or spaghetti. The picture below shows one of those dinners. That’s Mom at the end of the table next to the babies. I am the little girl standing behind the highchair. I think that one of my sisters still has some of those brown plates.
One of the desserts that I remember most from those days was cream puffs. She made them from scratch with a vanilla custard filling and a sprinkling of powdered sugar on top. Man, they were good! And, to a little girl, they seemed like something that a princess would eat. That was a very special dessert. A couple of years ago, my sisters and I went on a search for Mom’s recipe books and cards. Unfortunately, some of them have been lost. The cream puff recipe was luckily found, and copies made for all of us. I had not attempted to make her recipe before now. I have made cream puffs once before that I can remember, and they turned out okay but not as good as Mom’s. I have been thinking about Mom a lot recently and about those days on the farm. I dug through my old tin recipe box and found the copy of her card. I made them up with a vanilla custard recipe that I already had. I don’t have her custard recipe but this one tastes identical, so I was happy with the result. I did make mine much smaller than Mom did if my memory is correct. Next time, I will definitely make the puffs larger, so I can fit more of that luscious custard inside. Yummmmmmm. These delicious pastries have a beautiful, flaky shell with a silky custard filling.
You do need to plan ahead for this wondrous dessert. After you bake the cream puffs you need to let them cool completely. The vanilla custard recipe that I am using says to chill but if I remember correctly, Mom used to serve it slightly warm. I suspect that it was out of necessity. She had to make such a large batch to feed everyone and I doubt that it would have fit in our frig. So, anyway, plan accordingly.
For the cream puffs, you will need 4 eggs, ⅛ teaspoon salt (a pinch) ½ cup butter (cubed), 1 cup flour and 1 cup water. My mom wrote a scant cup of flour. I’m not sure what she considered scant, but I just used a cup that was almost level and it worked out fine.
Bring the water and butter to a rolling boil. Add the flour all at once and stir quickly with a sturdy spoon until the mixture sticks together and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool for about 20 minutes. Add this dough ball to a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer and beat in the eggs one a time. Beat for 5 more minutes on medium speed.
Drop the dough in large mounds (at least the size of a tennis ball) on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees.
When the puffs are a golden-brown color and sound hollow when thumped they are ready to remove from the oven. Immediately poke some holes in the sides of the puffs with a wooden skewer or toothpick to allow the steam to escape. This helps prevent the puffs from becoming soggy inside. Allow the puffs to cool completely.
For the vanilla custard filling, you will need 3 egg yolks, 3 cups milk (I used whole), 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup cornstarch, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 2 teaspoons vanilla. This recipe can be doubled if you want to be sure you have plenty of this filling. It can also be eaten alone if you have any leftovers.
You can make this filling at the same time as the puffs and chill or you can make it shortly before serving. I kind of like the filling to be a little warm but that’s just me. So, let’s get started on this decadent and delicious custard. Beat the egg yolks in a medium bowl until frothy. Gradually, stir in the milk and beat until blended. Set aside. In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan with no heat, mix the sugar and cornstarch. Add a small amount of the milk mixture and stir until you can make a smooth paste. Slowly add the remaining milk mixture and stir until blended. Now, you can turn on the heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and comes to a full boil. This will take 20 minutes or more so plan accordingly. Once the custard begins to boil continue cooking for 1 minute, making sure to keep stirring. Remove from the heat as soon as the minute is up. Stir in the vanilla and transfer the custard to a large bowl. You can leave this on the counter for a bit to cool or if you are in a hurry you can set the bowl in cool water in your sink or a larger pan. Just be careful not to get water in the custard.
To keep a skin from forming on the custard, press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the top of the custard while it is cooling. If you want to chill the custard, place it in the frig for at least an hour. Don’t put a lid on it to prevent condensation from collecting on the custard. I apologize for not including pictures of the custard-making process. I had to keep stirring and so could not get any shots. But, it is an easy recipe to follow, anyway.
When you are ready to serve the cream puffs you can either cut the top third of the puff off with a serrated knife and then spoon the custard into the nearly hollow inside of the puff. Or, you can poke a small hole into the side of the puff and use a pastry bag filled with the custard to fill the puff. Place the filled cream puffs onto serving plates and sprinkle them with powdered sugar. Sink your spoon into the flaky and delicious pastry and silky, creamy center and enjoy.
I always felt like a princess eating this dessert when I was a kid and can still appreciate that feeling of luxury. I intend to make Sunday Best Cream Puffs more often and when I do I will always think of Mom. I can still picture her standing at the kitchen counter with her sleeves rolled up to the elbows working her culinary magic to feed a bunch of hungry people, laughing and talking all the while. She will be missed but definitely not forgotten.
Sunday Best Cream Puffs with Vanilla Custard Filling
These delicious pastries have a beautiful, flaky shell with a silky custard filling.
Ingredients
- For the Pastries:
- 4 eggs
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup water
- For the vanilla custard:
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 cups milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Directions
- Step 1 To make the puffs, bring the water and butter to a rolling boil.
- Step 2 Add the flour all at once and stir quickly with a sturdy spoon until the mixture sticks together and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for about 20 minutes.
- Step 3 Add the dough ball to a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer and beat in the eggs one a time. Beat for 5 more minutes, after the last egg, on medium speed.
- Step 4 Drop the dough in large mounds (at least the size of a tennis ball) on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. When the puffs are a golden-brown color and sound hollow when thumped they are ready to remove from the oven.
- Step 5 Immediately poke some holes in the sides of the puffs with a wooden skewer or toothpick to allow the steam to escape.
- Step 6 To make the custard, beat the egg yolks in a medium bowl until frothy. Gradually, stir in the milk and beat until blended.
- Step 7 In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan with no heat, mix the sugar and cornstarch.
- Step 8 Add a small amount of the milk mixture and stir until you can make a smooth paste. Slowly add the remaining milk mixture and stir until blended.
- Step 9 Turn on the heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and comes to a full boil (20 – 30 minutes).
- Step 10 Once the custard begins to boil continue cooking for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat as soon as the minute is up. Stir in the vanilla and transfer the custard to a large bowl.
- Step 11 To keep a skin from forming on the custard, press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the top of the custard while it is cooling.
- Step 12 Chill the custard in the refrigerator for at least an hour or serve slightly warm.
- Step 13 To assemble the cream puffs, either cut the top third of the puff off with a serrated knife and then spoon the custard into the nearly hollow inside of the puff. Or, you can poke a small hole into the side of the puff and use a pastry bag filled with the custard to fill the puff.
- Step 14 Place the filled cream puffs onto serving plates and sprinkle them with powdered sugar.
