Sunday, November 12, 2006

Cream Puffs with Double Filling


Cream Puffs with Whipping Cream and Chestnut Cream Filling

This was my very first time making cream puffs. Believe it or not, I didn’t make a disaster. Oh, I’m serious. I really expected a disaster, because I’ve heard a lot of sad stories about cream puff shells that “did not rise,” or “rose but fell after a short while.”



You know where I got the recipe for the shells? A calendar hanging near the bathroom in my apartment. My boss gave it to me in the beginning of this year, and it has beautiful photos of sweets with recipes. “Cream puffs with chestnut cream filling” was on its October page, and I dreamed about trying it out, staring at the photo while brushing my teeth. Finally, I bought a can of chestnut cream at my favorite store MARCO yesterday, and started my project early this morning. The can says the cream is imported from France. Is this a popular brand over there?



To my surprise, the puff shells came out of the oven alright and did not fall. The only thing was that the bottom part was a little tough. But not too bad for a first try… I think.

The filling was a combination of vegetable whipping cream and chestnut cream. I added a little whipping cream and rum to the chestnut cream, which probably made the cream a little too runny. But the taste was VERY satisfactory. :)



These cream puffs in the autumn afternoon sunshine... And the steam drifting up from the teacup... Oh, it was so very healing.
Too bad these photos are not showing how they actually looked. Please use your imagination. ;)


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21 comments:

Plume said...

I'm french and I never saw this brand of chestnut cream, but that doesn't mean it's not a good one...
Your cream puffs look delicious!

Anonymous said...

they look great Obachan! I am very jealous. I don't have an oven, so these will have to wait until I return to Australia. So many great things you make I can't - I have to be content with window shopping. Or should that be site shopping?

Serene said...

ur cream puffs looks really yummy~ XD

Anonymous said...

Your cream puffs looks absolutely sinful! Makes me very hungry. :P How do you make them? What recipe did you use?

Anonymous said...

I love cream puffs, and yours look beautiful! Great job!

Anonymous said...

they are oh-so-beautiful!

Chubbypanda said...

I've never tasted chestnut cream before. I'll have to try it out.

Most of my exposure to chestnuts have been the ones I roast over an open fire and salt. Mmm... Delicious!

- Chubbypanda

Anonymous said...

Obachan, save me one, I'll be right over. They look sooo good! I'm also intimidated, but, just maybe, you've given me courage to try.

Anonymous said...

wow! these look great!

Anonymous said...

Obachaaan! They are B e a uuuutifuuuul! My mom loooooves cream puffs and the fla filling (or whatever the filling is), if she sees these ones of yours, Im sure she'll go oooohs, and aaahs, hahaha. Good job! ^^
K-Nina

obachan said...

plume
So, sounds like this is not a popular brand over there. Oh well. The cream tasted OK so it’s OK for me.

CG
Oh, feel free to site-shop at my blog anytime ;) And if you feel like buying an oven, I guess they have a sale of oven-cum type microwaves in Den-Den Town in winter (around “bonus season.”)

sing yin @ serene
Thank you. :) I think they were not bad for the first try.

lysithea
Thanks. The recipe was from my calendar, and I found this recipe pretty close -- I mean, proportion-wise.
But the recipe I used called for a little less water and slightly more flower.

amanda
Thank you. :)

c(h)ristine
Thanks. I wish you could have been here to see how they really looked in the sunshine from the balcony window. The inside color of the puff shells turned into soft and bright yellowish beige when backed by the sunshine, and it was so healing.

chubbypanda
Oh, chestnut cream IS sinful, let me tell ya. ;)
I love roasted chestnuts, too.

june
Sorry! They are all gone now! And last night I made banana and chestnut cream parfait with the leftover whipped cream and chestnut cream, with roasted almond slices on top. If you can come here by the tea time today, you can share it with me ;)

k & s
Thanks. :)

K-Nina
Thank you. Please say hi to your mom. :)

Anonymous said...

Obachan,
they're beautiful and seem sooooo yummy! I love cream puffs (in Italy they're called "bignè") but I never thought about filling them with chestnut cream, it's a great idea, I'll try them! :)

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

Those cream puffs are magnificent, Obachan! great work there...

Anonymous said...

mmm... I always liked creme puffs, and those look positively delicious. I wonder where I can find that Chestnut cream over here? Oh well..

Unknown said...

These have to be some of the best looking creme puffs I have ever seen!

obachan said...

pip
Thanks. I’m sure you’ll like the chestnut cream version. Enjoy! :D

rosa’s yummy yums
Thank you.

fruit seasons
Thank you for the info. It’s a very useful and informative site.

sirpaul
Hope you can find the cream somewhere…

lannae
OMG, thank you for the compliment. :D

cookiecrumb said...

Beard Mama!!
xxx

obachan said...

Hi cookiecrumb! Nice to hear from you :D
Hey, it took me a while to get this.
I didn't know this originally started in Osaka, Japan, even though I was living in Osaka in 1999.
OK, so, maybe I can be a better cream-puff maker if I stop shaving...???

Anonymous said...

Your cream puffs look better than the pics I have seen in my books of recipes. My husband has been telling me that he yearns for cream puffs and eclairs, but I have not had the gumption to try. Please share your recipe! I sure would want to have a good chance of ending up with CPs as good as yours!

obachan said...

Thank you so much. As I wrote above in my comment to lysithea, this recipe is pretty close to what I used for making the puff shells. And I whipped the cream following the instruction on the whipping cream package.
Hope this helps. :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Obachan, I love looking at your recipes ! I also live in France, and Sabaton exists here, too, but the packaging is different, which must be why Plume didn't recognize it : http://www.amazon.com/Chestnuts-Marrons-Confiture-Spread-Sabaton/dp/B001B3Z7PI
But it's true that the ultimate standard is Clément Faugier (or maybe Bonne Maman).. still, yes, it's genuinely French ^_^
Take care !