Name: Step by Step Homemade Cream Puffs with Berries
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter; 1 tsp sugar; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour; 4 extra large eggs; 1 cup water; 2 cups fresh blueberries; 2 cups fresh strawberries; vanilla ice cream; 1 cup whipping cream; 1/2 cup icing sugar (confectioners sugar); 1 tsp vanilla extract; dusting icing sugar; 1/2 cup chocolate chips

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This cream puff recipe is easy to make because of the step-by-step instructions. Cream Puffs are one of those recipes that seem to be set aside for “the good bakers” and I was shy to try my hand at making them. But they aren’t really all that hard to make, you just really need to watch the consistency of the dough, and I am sharing exactly what the different stages look like to show you.

We will be using my mother’s easy recipe for choux pastry. My Mom could whip together cream puffs like she was making butter icing, no fuss, no muss, and poof done. It came from years of farm living with lots of free cream and 4 hungry boys. I can still remember her doing it in like five minutes in one pot.

She found it so easy to whip up that I found it hard to follow her example. Over time I learned the secret is knowing the stages the dough goes through, and finishing the chou pastry with a mixer. You will see the stages I am talking about later on in the post.

Homemade cream puffs being served on a white plate with fresh whipping cream and berries.

Homemade Cream Puff Recipe

The basic recipe for cream puffs is a simple choux pastry made with simple ingredients. You can then fill them with a wide assortment of fillings. Traditional cream puffs are made with homemade pastry cream, and my Mom used sweet whipped cream. Let’s start with making the simple choux pastry shells, and then the different ways you can vary the fillings.

For one dozen medium-sized cream puffs you will need:

Choux Pastry Dough Ingredients

1/2 cup butter

1 tsp sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

4 extra large eggs

1 cup water

Dessert Filling and Toppings Choices

Berry and Ice Cream Filling Ingredients

2 cups blueberries

2 cups strawberries

Vanilla ice cream

Vanilla Ice Cream

1 tsp vanilla

dustings of icing sugar

Sweet Whipping Cream Filling Ingredients

1 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

dusting of icing sugar

Equipment Needed

Ungreased baking sheet

Parchment paper

Heavy saucepan

Large mixing bowl and electric mixer

Piping bag fitted with small piping tip (optional)

Making the Homemade Cream Puffs

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the butter, water, salt, and sugar. Place over medium heat until the butter is melted and the water comes to a rolling boil.

While waiting, measure out the flour. As soon as the water boils, remove the saucepan from the heat, add all your flour at once, and quickly beat it together.

Once blended place back on the heat.

Cooking choux pastry over a stove top, stirring with a wooden spoon.

Note: The dough is not very appealing at this stage, it kind of reminds me of flour paste.

Stir the mixture constantly with a wooden spoon. In about three minutes it will start to leave a layer on the bottom of the pot and pull away from the sides of the pan. Remove from the heat.

Note: You will see it’s a bit smoother, less like paste and the best description I can think of is more like sugar cookie dough.

Partially cooked choux pastry being stirred inside a heavy saucepan.

Transfer the dough to the large bowl of a stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment. Mix in on low speed for one minute allowing it cool.

The beater keeps running as you add each egg, so I suggest breaking each egg into a separate bowl first, checking for eggshell, and then pouring it into the dough.

Increase the mixer to medium speed and add one egg, beat for about a minute, making sure the egg is incorporated.

Add the second egg, and mix until incorporated, about a minute.

Note: With each egg, your mixture binds a little bit more, you may notice it, but the change is subtle.

Add the third egg, and let it beat until incorporated for about a minute. By now your dough will start to bind together and look similar to a bowl of messy egg noodles.

Choux pastry being mixed in a bowl with eggs.

Finally, add the fourth extra large egg, beat for a minute and the dough will emerge into something recognizable as a dough.

The smooth dough stage of choux pastry being mixed.

Use the cream puff recipe dough immediately. Start scooping it out onto the parchment lined baking sheet.

Using a metal tablespoon scoop out your dough. Use a plastic spatula to help slide the dough off the spoon onto your pan. (Each spoonful is about 1/3 cup)

A tray of cream puff shells being made for cream puffs.

Place the cream puffs into a preheated oven at 375F until lightly golden brown, for about 25 minutes. The bake time may vary depending on the size of your cream puffs, so watch them closely while baking. The choux pastry dough will expand in size and become light airy cream puffs.

Cream puffs cooling to room temperature on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Remove the cream puffs from the cookie sheet and let cool to room temperature, it will take at least an hour.

If you want to serve the cream puffs the next day, you can store the cooled empty cream puffs in an airtight container or zip-lock bag and serve them the next day.

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Fillings for Cream Puffs

Cream puffs can be filled with instant vanilla pudding mix, a vanilla custard pudding, or just whipped cream of course. Because it’s summer I added berries, but you could use peaches or fresh apricots. You can even cover them with a drizzle of chocolate ganache. This cream puff recipe is very versatile, you can even make the cream puffs tiny and fill them with cream cheese.

To Fill with Fruit and Ice Cream

With a serrated knife cut off the top 1/3 of your cream puff shells to expose the light airy center.

A cream puff shell with the top cut off for adding a berry filling.

Place fresh well-drained berries in the bottom of each puff and top with ice cream. Once filled place the top back on. Add a little dollop of sweet cream and some berries for garnish. Sprinkle with icing sugar.

A cream and berry filled cream puff recipe being served on a white plate with ice cream for summer.

To Fill with Sweet Whipping Cream

Prechill your beater and bowl, and keep heavy cream (whipped cream) in the fridge. Chilling helps the cream whip up into a lighter consistency. Make sure to you heavy cream or whipped cream, the other types of cream won’t whip.

Place the heavy whipping cream into the chill bowl and start whipping. Beat until it begins to thicken.

Then add the icing sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until soft peaks form.

When filling a cream puff with whipped cream you can cut the top third off, and fill it with a dollop of sweet whipped cream, before replacing the top back on.

Alternatively, take a large pastry bag filled with sweet whipped cream. fitted with a small tip. Insert the tip of the pastry bag into the side of the cream puff piercing the outer crust. Squeeze to add the whipped cream inside the cream puff, then dust with icing sugar.

Chocolate Drizzle

This is a simple chocolate drizzle made with just chocolate chips. I don’t use chocolate drizzle on cream puffs, but if you’re a chocolate lover it’s very easy to do.

Add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips to a small microwavable container, and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. if not melted, microwave for another 15 seconds, stirring in between. Repeat until smooth.

an easy chocolate chip melted chocolate drizzle for use on cream puffs.

Please comment and let me know how you like the post. Did you find it helpful? Have you made cream puffs before and have additional hints I could add? It would be great to hear from you, I love your feedback.

Fresh cream puff with berries and whipping cream.

Step by Step Homemade Cream Puffs with Berries

Homemade cream puffs recipe filled with fresh berries, whipped cream, ice cream and an optional chocolate drizzle. A fantastic show stopper summer dessert.

Print Recipe

Prep Time:30

Cook Time:25

Total Time:55

Equipment

1 baking sheet
parchment paper
Heavy saucepan
large mixing bowl on electric mixer
Piping bag with small piping tip