- Joined
- Nov 26, 2016
- Location
- central NC
(Public Domain)
“If a list had to be made of the articles of pastry held highest in popular esteem,
cream puffs would be found somewhere near the beginning.”
~ The American Pastry Book by Jessup Whitehead, 1894
This is the original recipe taken from Practical Housekeeping: A Careful Compilation of Tried and Approved Recipes by Estelle Woods Wilcox (1883):
Cream Puffs – Boil ½ pt of water & 2/3 cup of Butter together, when boiling stir in two cups Flour, when cool add 5 well beaten eggs.
Bake 30 minutes – Boil qt of milk add 2 eggs 1 cup sugar 1 of flour mixed together boil two or three minutes and small piece of butter
Split the puffs when baked and pour in the custard.
This recipe will definitely need some tweaking in modern times. For starters, I think you'll need to use less flour and butter. I'd also suggest baking the puffs first in a very hot oven for a short amount of time, and then lowering the temperature and cooking for a longer time. The filling will also need some tweaking – specifically using less milk and flour than the original recipe. This should help create a thicker, richer custard.Bake 30 minutes – Boil qt of milk add 2 eggs 1 cup sugar 1 of flour mixed together boil two or three minutes and small piece of butter
Split the puffs when baked and pour in the custard.
I found the recipes for Dixie Cream Puffs and Boston Cream Puffs in the Dixie Cook- book published in 1833. Check out this link - pages 81 & 82.