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Lemon Filled Cream Puffs
Nothing says summer like cream puffs! They are so simple to make and with a little creativity, they can be filled with delicious creamy delights! I made these recently on a whim and because I needed a dessert and only had certain things in the house. It made me wonder why I don’t make them more often. These Lemon Filled Cream Puffs were delicious, creamy and a light lemon taste. They look lovely on a plate as well!
Choux Pastry
Choux pastry (also known as pate a choux) is a classic French pastry batter that is utilized for many different applications. Once you master how to make choux pastry you can tackle a wide array of pastry components both sweet and savory. It’s really simple to make and requires only 5 ingredients, a heat source and a wood spoon. If you have a mixer, it helps for the muscle part of the mixing (but think of the arm workout here:))
With this pastry, you can make Cream Puffs, whether large or small (you know those little frozen ones from Costco that everyone pops in their mouths at wedding receptions) Eclairs and Profiteroles. I learned something today while writing (and doing a bit of research) What I made are not Lemon Filled Cream Puffs, they’re actually Lemon Filled Profiteroles! It appears Cream Puffs are only filled with whipped cream. When they’re cut in half and other fillings are used they are then referred to as Profiteroles.
Good to know. I’m not changing the name. When looking on Pinterest, people are going to search for Cream Puffs or Cream Puff Filling so calling them Profiteroles will have crickets singing and no one appearing. Sigh:)
Cream Puffs
Simple. Ingredients. That’s what I said earlier.
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- 1 Cup Water
- 1/2 Cup Butter
- 1/8 tsp Salt
Melt the butter, water and salt over medium heat until the butter is melted and the mixture comes to a boil.
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- Add 1 Cup of sifted flour all at once
With a wooden spoon stir and stir until the flour is incorporated and it forms a ball, coming off the sides of the pan. Remove from heat. This is the part where you can keep it in the pot or add it to a mixing bowl with a paddle attachment.
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- Add 4 eggs, one at a time.
Add your eggs, ONE at a time, mixing after each addition until it’s creamy. Add the additional eggs, one at a time. When getting ready to add the last egg, crack it in a small bowl and stir it up. You will want to check the consistency of the batter. If it’s not really creamy and slowly dripping off the paddle or the wooden spoon, add a little of the egg at a time, stirring or beating. If the dough is soft and creamy, you’ll get a nicer puff.
You can drop them by spoon onto a lightly greased baking sheet or parchment covered baking sheet. This will give you larger puffs. If you like to pipe them, using a pastry bag and a large round tip (you can also just cut a hole in your bag) pipe them onto the baking sheet, leaving a little space between each one as they puff when baked. You can do either large or small blobs here. It will make about 8-10 large puffs and 12-15 smaller puffs (about 8 eclairs)
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- Bake at 425° for 10 minutes, then turn it down to 350° for an additional 15-20 minutes. Do Not Open the Oven! Check how brown they are and bake longer if you like. You can open the oven near the end to check the color
**The larger ones will take longer to bake than small ones.** - Let them cool on a rack or dish towel
- Bake at 425° for 10 minutes, then turn it down to 350° for an additional 15-20 minutes. Do Not Open the Oven! Check how brown they are and bake longer if you like. You can open the oven near the end to check the color
Lemon Cream Filling
You’ll want to make the filling prior to making the cream puffs as you want it to cool before adding it in the puffs. Mix the ingredients for the Lemon Cream filling as per the recipe. Chill for 20 minutes to 1/2 hour (you can make it a few hours before but it doesn’t taste as good the day before as whipped cream is folded in and it becomes heavier)
Cut the Profiteroles (I just wanted to use the name again) in half and drop a large tablespoon of filling onto the center of the puff. Put the top back on. Continue until they’re all filled.
Lightly dust the tops with powdered sugar. And voila, you can’t speak french now but you can certainly eat like the French! I got the original recipe from Tastes of Lizzy T but made some changes to it:)
Bon Appétite!
Cheryl
Ingredients
- Cream Puffs:
- 1 Cup Water
- 1/2 Cup Butter
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1 Cup Sifted Flour
- 4 Eggs
- Lemon Cream Filling:
- 1 Cup Heavy Cream (Whipping Cream)
- 8 oz Cream Cheese (let it soften)
- 1/3 Cup Powdered Sugar
- 1/3 Cup Milk
- 2 TBSP Lemon Juice (squeeze a lemon)
- Zest from 1 Lemon
- 1/4 Cup Powdered Sugar (set aside for dusting)
Instructions
- Cream Puffs:
- Preheat Oven to 425 and either lightly grease 2 baking pans or cover with parchment paper
- In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, bring water, butter and salt to a boil (making sure the butter is melted.
- Add the flour all at once
- Stir with a wooden spoon until it forms a ball and comes off the sides of the pan. Continue to mix for another 30 seconds
- Take off the heat
- **You can keep it in the pot or move it to a mixer with a paddle attachment**
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
- **You want the mixture to be creamy and thick, yet dripping slowly off the paddle or spoon.**
- After adding the 3rd egg, check the consistency. If you need more egg, crack one into a small bowl and lightly stir it up. Add a bit of egg at a time, stirring and checking the consistency. It amy take the whole egg.
- At this point, you can drop large spoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking sheet or you can use a pastry bag with a large tip. (Or you can use a disposable pastry bag and cut the end off (or a ziplock bag will work in a pinch too)
- Large spoonfuls will yield a large puff, small will yield smaller puffs
- Bake for 10 minutes at 425. Turn down to 350 and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes (DON"T be tempted to open the oven. Look through the window)
- Let cool on a wire rack or a cloth on the counter and then fill.
- Lemon Cream Filling:
- Whip the cream until stiff peaks form. Set aside
- With the soft Cream Cheese, beat it in a bowl (mixer) with the powdered sugar until creamy. Slowly drizzle in the milk until soft and creamy.
- Add the lemon juice and mix
- Fold in gently the whipped cream adding the lemon zest near the end
- Cut each Cream Puff in half and gently add 1 heaping tablespoon of the lemon mixture into each puff.
- Put the top back on and fill the rest
- With the powdered sugar and a fine sieve, dust the tops of the Cream Puffs with powdered sugar.
Want to remember this? Post Lemon Filled Cream Puffs to your favorite Pinterest board!
