Strawberry Matcha Cream Puffs

The Origin of Cream Puffs

Cream puffs have their own national holiday on January 2nd, but why are these treats special enough to get their own day? The main star of the cream puff is a dough called pate a choux which is where our brief history lesson begins. Catherine de Medici’s pastry chef created the dough in 1540’s France for her husband, King Henry II, and used it make a gateau. Over time the recipe developed, and, using the same dough, his successor eventually created popelins (modern day profiteroles) to mimic the shape of a woman’s breasts. Cream puffs did not enter the chat, however, until a cream puff using the same dough appeared on American menus in the 1850’s. Source and source.

How to Make Strawberry Matcha Cream Puffs:

What are Strawberry Matcha Cream Puffs Made Out Of?

These strawberry matcha cream puffs are made with three components and can be a challenging recipe, especially if you are unpracticed in the art of pate a choux. The first component is the pate a choux which is a French pastry batter that uses a lot of eggs and science on the amount of liquid cooked out and added back in. The second component is the strawberry compote using fresh strawberries and vanilla. And the final component is the matcha cream filling using pure matcha powder and whipped cream. The perfect spring recipe.

Make the Strawberry Compote:

Strawberries are super fruity but are juicy without a lot of natural pectin. To prevent a watery mess when filling the cupcakes, we need to use cornstarch as a thickener. To use cornstarch as a thickening agent you need to whisk it into liquid first before adding (called a slurry), and cornstarch must be cooked to be activated as a thickening agent. When adding the slurry, make sure to work quickly to evenly disperse, and allow to cook for 1-2 minutes while stirring to thicken and cook out the texture/flavor of cornstarch. This compote should be cold before filling, so it may be a good idea to prepare a day or two before.

Make the Pate a Choux Roux:

Making pate a choux can be a very technical, and requires good understanding of the process. Instead of utilizing a leavening agent such as baking soda or powder, pate a choux relies on a high percentage of moisture to create steam while baking and thus giving significant rise to the pastry. There are two main shortfalls to concern yourself with: ensuring you cook out enough moisture when cooking the roux and ensuring you are adding enough back in when adding the eggs.

The first step is making the roux which is boiling the liquids with the butter then cooking in the flour. The key here is cooking the flour to evaporate out enough moisture without separating it. A good technique is taking the pot off the heat, dump in the flour, mix until combined, and return to heat. Cook the roux for for three to five minute, and watch for the tell tale signs.

Look for a thin film forming at the bottom of your pot. However, if using a non-stick pan, look for oil droplets forming on the bottom of the pot. Another sign is if a solid dough forms with no flour lumps that cleanly pulls away from the side of the pot. Once you notice these, you are good to go for the next step. However, make sure the dough cools to no hotter than 165*F otherwise you will cook your eggs when adding.

Add Eggs to the Pate a Choux:

The second step is adding in eggs. Depending how well you cooked your roux will depend how many eggs to add. Add them in one by one except for the last one because you can always add more eggs but you can’t take away eggs. Mix each egg addition until thoroughly incorporated before adding in the next. At first it will look slimy and like scrambled eggs but keep mixing until a smooth dough forms.

Before adding in the last egg, check for 3 signs of proper moisture. First, look at the dough to check for sheen. If it is a light glossy look then it has enough moisture. If it’s dull then it needs more eggs. Second, run your finger through the dough. If the trough collapses then it has too many eggs, but if it stands on its own, then it has enough. And last, dip your spatula in the batter and slowly pull it straight out. A V shape should form at the end of the spatula. Too many eggs and will flow off the spatula, too little and it will clump on the spatula.

Based on the three tell tale signs of enough eggs, use your judgement on whether you need the last egg. I will usually whisk that last egg, add in half, check for the signs, and reassess. It’s also okay to use more than the directed amount of eggs if that’s what the dough needs. If your dough is good, it’s time for piping!

Pipe and Bake the Pate a Choux:

I always recommend using a piping bag and tip for pure ease and consistency. Pipe a ball that is roughly two inches in diameter and roughly one and half inches high. Hold the bag and tip straight up and pipe in a continuous motion while pulling the bag up. DO NOT swirl the bag otherwise they puff up in a real funky way. Sprinkle or spray with water push any spiky peaks of dough down with a wet finger. Now baking the choux is very important and make or break your dough.

First and foremost, DO NOT open the oven for the first 35 minutes or else you will give them the opportunity to deflate. Start the bake at a high temperature for the first fifteen minutes to give the first initial poof. Then, reduce the temperature for the next twenty minutes to allow the steam further expand and hollow out. Once this time is up, remove from the oven and prick a very small hole in the top to allow more steam to escape. Turn the oven off and place them back in to continue to hollow out and stay hollowed out for the final thirty minutes. Remove from the oven, and allow to cool before filling.

Whip Up the Matcha Whipped Cream Recipe:

While the choux is baking you can make the strawberry matcha whipped cream recipe. Its a simple matter of whipping the heavy cream with the match and sugar. If your matcha is SUPER clumpy, I would recommend sifting before to break up the clumps instead of having them in the cream. Please note that you should only make this the day of serving otherwise the whipped cream will fall.

Assemble the Strawberry Matcha Cream Puffs:

Slice the tops off of the pate a choux. I usually slice off the top quarter and the push down any webs or windows of baked dough in the shell. Pipe or scoop in the matcha whipped cream, then spoon in the strawberry compote, then pipe or scoop more matcha whipped cream on top until it’s about an inch above the edge. Cover with the top of the pate choux and, if you’d like, sift matcha or powdered sugar on top. Serve same day and enjoy this French classic.

Troubleshooting Strawberry Matcha Cream Puffs:

• My pate a choux is really loose! You added too many eggs! There’s no saving this, so you will need to start over. Don’t add all the eggs, and check for the tell tale signs of proper egg additions before adding that last egg.
• My cream puffs didn’t rise in the oven! There are many things that could have gone wrong here from the roux not being cooked enough or too much to too many eggs added to improper baking temperatures and technique. Read over my successful tips section before attempting again!
• My cream puffs fell when I took them out of the oven! There are many things that could have gone wrong here from the roux not being cooked enough or too much to too many eggs added to improper baking temperatures and technique. Read over my successful tips section before attempting again!

**If you’re having a lot of trouble with your pate a choux dough, I would check out this site which really explains in deep details how to make the perfect mate a choux.

Something else going wrong? Reach out and we will troubleshoot together!