Description
A stunning cream puff cake (Croquembouche) made with homemade choux pastry, filled with creamy vanilla pastry cream, and drizzled with rich chocolate ganache. Perfect for celebrations!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (240ml) water
- 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (120g) all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 cups (480ml) whole milk
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (30g) cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 large egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 8 ounces (227g) semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar (optional)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter, and salt. Place the saucepan over medium heat and bring the mixture to a rolling boil. Make sure the butter is completely melted before the water boils. This is crucial for the pastry to rise properly.
- Once the mixture is boiling, remove the saucepan from the heat and immediately add all the flour at once. Using a wooden spoon or a sturdy spatula, vigorously stir the mixture until it forms a smooth ball that pulls away from the sides of the pan. This step is important to cook the flour and prevent a gummy texture.
- Transfer the dough to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer). Let the dough cool for about 5 minutes, or until it’s just warm to the touch. This is important because adding the eggs while the dough is too hot will cook them.
- With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. The dough will initially look curdled, but keep mixing, and it will eventually come together into a smooth, glossy batter. The batter should be thick enough to hold its shape but still soft enough to pipe. If the batter seems too stiff after adding all four eggs, you can whisk an extra egg in a separate bowl and add a tablespoon or two at a time until you reach the desired consistency.
- Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Transfer the choux pastry batter to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip (or just cut the tip off a disposable piping bag). Pipe about 12-15 mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving some space between each mound. The size of the mounds will determine the size of your cream puffs. Aim for about 2-3 inches in diameter.
- Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the cream puffs are puffed up and golden brown. Do not open the oven door during the first 20 minutes of baking, as this can cause the cream puffs to deflate. After 20 minutes, you can peek through the oven door to check on them. If they are browning too quickly, you can lower the oven temperature slightly.
- Once the cream puffs are baked, turn off the oven and crack the oven door open slightly. Let the cream puffs cool in the oven for about 30 minutes. This will help them dry out and prevent them from collapsing. After 30 minutes, remove the cream puffs from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat until it’s just simmering. Be careful not to let it boil.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. This will help prevent lumps from forming in the pastry cream.
- Add the egg yolks to the sugar mixture and whisk until pale and smooth.
- Slowly pour about 1/2 cup of the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. This prevents the eggs from scrambling when you add them to the hot milk.
- Pour the tempered egg yolk mixture into the saucepan with the remaining hot milk. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the pastry cream thickens and comes to a boil. Continue to cook, whisking constantly, for 1-2 minutes more to ensure the cornstarch is fully cooked and the pastry cream is stable.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla extract until the butter is melted and the pastry cream is smooth.
- Pour the pastry cream into a clean bowl. Cover the surface of the pastry cream with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate the pastry cream for at least 2 hours, or preferably overnight, to allow it to cool completely and thicken further.
- In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream over medium heat until it’s just simmering. Be careful not to let it boil.
- Place the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Pour the hot heavy cream over the chocolate and let it sit for 1 minute to allow the chocolate to melt.
- Gently stir the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate is completely melted and the ganache is smooth and glossy.
- Stir in the butter until it’s melted and incorporated into the ganache. This will add shine and richness to the ganache.
- Let the ganache cool slightly before using it to glaze the cream puff cake. If the ganache is too hot, it will be too thin and runny. If it’s too cold, it will be too thick and difficult to spread.
- Using a serrated knife, carefully cut each cream puff in half horizontally.
- Spoon or pipe the chilled pastry cream into the bottom halves of the cream puffs. Be generous with the filling!
- On a serving platter or cake stand, arrange the filled cream puffs in a circular pattern to form the base of the cake. You can use a small amount of pastry cream to help hold the cream puffs in place.
- Continue to stack the filled cream puffs in layers, creating a cone-shaped cake. You may need to use fewer cream puffs in each layer as you go up to maintain the cone shape.
- Once the cream puff cake is assembled, pour the slightly cooled chocolate ganache over the top, allowing it to drip down the sides. Use a spatula or spoon to spread the ganache evenly over the entire cake.
- Refrigerate the cream puff cake for at least 30 minutes to allow the ganache to set.
- Before serving, you can dust the cream puff cake with powdered sugar for a decorative touch.
- Slice the cream puff cake with a serrated knife and serve immediately. This cake is best enjoyed fresh, as the cream puffs can become soggy if stored for too long.
Notes
- Making a Croquembouche is a multi-step process. It’s best to break it down into stages. You can make the choux pastry and pastry cream a day ahead.
- Don’t open the oven door while the choux pastry is baking, or they may deflate.
- Make sure the pastry cream is completely cooled before filling the cream puffs.
- The ganache should be slightly cooled but still pourable when you glaze the cake.
- For a more stable Croquembouche, you can use caramel to glue the cream puffs together instead of pastry cream.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes