kyheirloomer
Well-known member
I’m back from my Florida trip. And ohmigosh! You people have been busy. Almost the entire first page is new postings, so I have a lot of catch-up to do.
But I promised, before leaving, that I’d start a discussion on puff paste. So here goes.
Technically called pate a choux, puff paste can be made either sweet or savory. Sweet uses includes such things as cream puffs, éclairs, and profiteroles. When made savory, the finished pastries are called gougeres.
Here’s a basic recipe:
In a saucepan, bring to boil 1 cup cold water, 1 stick butter cut in pieces, 1 tsp salt, and a dash of pepper. Add 1 cup flour all at once and cook the paste over low heat, stirring well, until it forms a ball and leaves the sides of the pan.
Remove the paste from the heat and beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add ¼ pound grated Swiss or Gruyere cheese and a pinch of dry mustard. Let the mixture cool.
For a sweet version, milk is usually substituted for the water, and various amounts of sugar are added. Plus, of course, the cheese is left out.
In my original post I included a recipe for rye puffs, with uses half regular flour and half rye flour, along with a corned-beef filling to create mini-Reubens. Obviously, all sorts of variations on that theme can be run.
Choux paste is most often baked, at high heat. 400 degrees F. is the average temperature used. In the above recipe I bake for ten minutes at 425, lower the temp to 375, and bake another 20 minutes. But I’m piping them into larger sizes (see below). In the rye puff recipe I originally posted, straight 400 degrees is used for 18-20 minutes, which is more typical.
Pate a choux can also be deep fried (which is how beignets are made). Or it can even be boiled (as in the Austrian apricot dumpling). Boiling produces a totally different texture, however, and the paste doesn’t puff up.
When baking, the paste is dropped by spoonful onto a cookie sheet. Depending on desired size, anything from a teaspoon to a tablespoon can be used. A less known technique is to use a pastry bag and large tip to pipe the paste into various shapes. You could, for instance, make rounds, triangles, crescents, even rectangles.
A really nice party-tray is to make various shapes, then use different fillings for each one. For instance, you could put my Gorgonzola Chicken Salad in the rounds; deviled ham in the triangles; tuna in the crescents; and pimento spread in the rectangles. Make one batch with the rye puffs and corned-beef filling, and you have quite a spread.
While nice anytime, this sort of platter lends itself especially well to a luncheon or tea. And is perfect for a buffet-type party.
Piping the paste also lets you build larger puffs, both by the dimensions and by piping a second layer onto the first. By doing this you can create puffs large enough to serve as a main course or full dessert.
But I promised, before leaving, that I’d start a discussion on puff paste. So here goes.
Technically called pate a choux, puff paste can be made either sweet or savory. Sweet uses includes such things as cream puffs, éclairs, and profiteroles. When made savory, the finished pastries are called gougeres.
Here’s a basic recipe:
In a saucepan, bring to boil 1 cup cold water, 1 stick butter cut in pieces, 1 tsp salt, and a dash of pepper. Add 1 cup flour all at once and cook the paste over low heat, stirring well, until it forms a ball and leaves the sides of the pan.
Remove the paste from the heat and beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add ¼ pound grated Swiss or Gruyere cheese and a pinch of dry mustard. Let the mixture cool.
For a sweet version, milk is usually substituted for the water, and various amounts of sugar are added. Plus, of course, the cheese is left out.
In my original post I included a recipe for rye puffs, with uses half regular flour and half rye flour, along with a corned-beef filling to create mini-Reubens. Obviously, all sorts of variations on that theme can be run.
Choux paste is most often baked, at high heat. 400 degrees F. is the average temperature used. In the above recipe I bake for ten minutes at 425, lower the temp to 375, and bake another 20 minutes. But I’m piping them into larger sizes (see below). In the rye puff recipe I originally posted, straight 400 degrees is used for 18-20 minutes, which is more typical.
Pate a choux can also be deep fried (which is how beignets are made). Or it can even be boiled (as in the Austrian apricot dumpling). Boiling produces a totally different texture, however, and the paste doesn’t puff up.
When baking, the paste is dropped by spoonful onto a cookie sheet. Depending on desired size, anything from a teaspoon to a tablespoon can be used. A less known technique is to use a pastry bag and large tip to pipe the paste into various shapes. You could, for instance, make rounds, triangles, crescents, even rectangles.
A really nice party-tray is to make various shapes, then use different fillings for each one. For instance, you could put my Gorgonzola Chicken Salad in the rounds; deviled ham in the triangles; tuna in the crescents; and pimento spread in the rectangles. Make one batch with the rye puffs and corned-beef filling, and you have quite a spread.
While nice anytime, this sort of platter lends itself especially well to a luncheon or tea. And is perfect for a buffet-type party.
Piping the paste also lets you build larger puffs, both by the dimensions and by piping a second layer onto the first. By doing this you can create puffs large enough to serve as a main course or full dessert.
