Gluten Free Cream Puffs

by - January 31, 2018

Cream puffs are a dessert that pretty much has it all.  The delicate and airy choux pastry paired with the smooth and sweet cream makes the perfect sweet treat.  These are perfect for any dinner party and will impress all your guests.  They will be floored once you tell them that they are gluten free.  No one would ever be able to tell that these puffs are gluten free because they taste exactly how they should. The choux pastry puffs wonderfully in the oven leaving just the right amount of space for the pastry cream.

When I first decided to try my hand at these, I was a bit terrified.  I was sure that there was no way that these would actually puff up in the oven.  I had lots of nightmares when trying to think about these and no one was more surprised that they puffed up than me! I might have ran around the house making everyone in my family come and observed them in the oven.  This recipe works!

They puff perfectly but the only thing that you do need to remember is to NEVER open the oven to check on them while they are baking.  Choux pastry needs the steam in the oven in order to get that perfect puff and if you open the oven too early or during the middle because the steam will escape and they won't puff up.
The pastry cream is great too because it is easy and will work every time.  The cornstarch gives it a great base and holds that cream together.  It is not fussy and will work for you .  I usually make this a couple days before just so I'm not trying to do everything in one day.  Spreading it out over a couple days makes it so much easier and it won't seem like such a big project.
When I pipe the pastry cream into the puffs I usually take a toothpick in order to make a hole in the bottom so that it is a bit easier to pipe in.  Be careful to not pipe too much in or you might make the cream puff explode a bit, which I have done.  Once you do a few, you get the hang of it and you know how much you should be piping into each puff.  I hope that you gives these a try because they are so worth it! The video on how I make these is down below and make sure to check out my YouTube channel for more great recipes and product reviews.

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Gluten Free Cream Puffs
Light and airy puffs filled with a delicious and easy pastry cream.
Ingredients
  • PASTRY CREAM
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • CHOUX PASTRY
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup gluten free flour blend (I use Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour)
  • 1 cup water
  • 6 large eggs
Instructions
1. Make pastry cream. Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk together milk and egg yolks in separate bowl. Add milk mixture to the saucepan, along with butter. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Let boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add vanilla.2. Strain pastry cream through a fine-mesh colander into a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days. Just before using whisk until smooth.3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line with two baking sheets with parchment paper.4. Make choux pastry. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine butter, sugar, salt and water. Bring to a boil and quickly stir in the gluten free flour with a wooden spoon. Continue to stir and cook for about 1 minute.4. Remove from heat and transfer contents into the bowl of a mixer. Add eggs, one at a time letting the egg fully incorporate before adding another one. 5. For egg wash, whisk together the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon of water. Set aside.6. Transfer the pate a choux to a large pastry bag with a 5/8-inch plain tip. Pipe 1-1/2 inch rounds into prepared pan. Gently smooth the pointed peaks with moistened finger, rounding tops to ensure even rising. Brush tops with reserved egg wash. Bake until puffs rise and are golden brown, about 30 minutes. Do not open the oven until the pastry is completely cooked. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Puffs can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 day.7. Transfer pastry cream to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/8-inch plain round tip. Insert the tip into the opening of each pastry and pipe to fill with pastry cream. Serve immediately.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: about 28 puffs

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2 comments

  1. Hello! I love your blog and I signed up for your newletter! You are a girl after my celiac heart lol. I was dx. 12 years ago (fun fun since I was almost 38, Sicilian, and you can imagine the rest!
    I have been making cream puffs the past few weeks, trying to perfect an excellent GF one. I know that for the most part a Choux Pastry is basic - 1 cup milk/water or water, 1 stick unsalted butter, 1 cup of flour (I have used Cup4Cup and Bobs Red Mill 1:1. My problem is that the last few batches have been awful! The main problem is there is alot of melted butter that is "left over" for lack of a better word? I have tried everything - I sifted the flour, I forgot to sift the flour, forgot salt added salt (im sure you get the picture). I have gone up to six eggs, I have used 5, 4 - Only once did they all come out good!
    Any idea what I am doing wrong? I'm thinking either less butter or just water? This last choux I made last night, is now in the oven and they're not rising :(. I'd love to hear from you!! Can't wait to make your pastry cream (husbands request)! Thanks so much!

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    Replies
    1. Oh my goodness, I just saw this comment! I'm so sorry that it has taken so long for me to respond to you. I can't for the life of me think what is going wrong when you are making your choux pastry. I have never had that happen to me. Have you tried cooking the butter, sugar, salt, water mixture a little bit longer? Maybe boil it for a couple minutes while making sure that it doesn't burn. It is so frustrating when it doesn't work and choux can be super picky. It sounds like you aren't getting enough moisture into your dough because you are having leftover liquid and that could be why it isn't rising in the oven. The moisture from the dough creating steam in the oven is how it rises. Gosh, I am stumped. I wish I could just have you over and we could figure it out together but it is so hard when we are separated by computers. I will think more about it and try to ponder on why it is doing that.

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