Choux Rings with Vanilla Cream

Instructions

1. 1

   Mark your rings and heat the oven

   Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C) with a rack in the middle. Using a glass or cookie cutter as a guide, trace eight 3 1/2-inch circles onto two sheets of parchment, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Flip the parchment pencil-side down onto two baking sheets so the marks show through but never touch the dough.

2. 2

   Melt and boil the liquid

   Combine the water, milk, butter, granulated sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Let the butter melt completely before the liquid reaches a boil, swirling the pan rather than stirring. If it boils hard while the butter is still in lumps, you lose water to steam and the paste ends up too stiff.

3. 3

   Cook the panade

   As soon as the mixture comes to a rolling boil, take it off the heat and dump in all the flour at once. Beat hard with a wooden spoon until no dry streaks remain, then return the pan to medium heat and keep beating for 2 to 3 minutes. The paste should pull into a smooth ball, leave a thin film on the bottom of the pan, and smell faintly nutty rather than raw.

4. 4

   Cool, then add the eggs

   Scrape the paste into a stand mixer bowl with the paddle (or a wide bowl for hand mixing) and beat on low for 1 to 2 minutes to release steam. When it is just warm to the touch, around 120°F, add the beaten eggs in five or six additions, letting each one disappear completely before the next. Hold back the last couple of tablespoons until you see how the paste is behaving.

5. 5

   Check the consistency

   The finished paste should be glossy and should fall from the paddle in a thick V-shaped ribbon that slowly folds back on itself. Drag a spoon through it: the furrow should close over lazily. Too stiff and the rings bake short and dense, so add the reserved egg a teaspoon at a time. Too loose and they spread, which you cannot fix, so go slowly.

6. 6

   Pipe the rings

   Fit a piping bag with a large open star tip, about 1/2 inch across, and fill it while the paste is still warm. Dab a little paste under each corner of the parchment to anchor it. Pipe a continuous ring over each traced circle in one smooth motion, finishing where you started, then pipe a second slightly smaller ring just inside the first so the two touch. Smooth any peaks with a wet fingertip, brush lightly with egg wash, and scatter with sliced almonds.

7. 7

   Bake hot, then lower

   Bake one sheet at a time at 400°F for 20 minutes without opening the door, which is when all the rise happens. Reduce the heat to 350°F (175°C) and bake another 20 to 25 minutes, until the rings are deep golden brown all over and feel light and rigid. Pale choux collapses, so take the color further than feels comfortable.

8. 8

   Vent and dry

   Pierce the side of each ring in two or three places with a paring knife or skewer to let the trapped steam escape. Turn the oven off, return the rings with the door propped open on a wooden spoon, and leave them 10 minutes to dry out. Cool completely on a rack before filling.

9. 9

   Whip the cream and fill

   Whip the cold cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla to firm peaks that hold their shape on the whisk but still look smooth, not grainy. Slice each ring horizontally with a serrated knife, pipe or spoon the cream generously onto the bottoms, set the tops back on, and dust with powdered sugar. Fill within an hour or two of serving.

10. You did it! Help us bring baking back home by selling your delicious baked goods on Homebaked!

Baker's Tips

• 1.

  Weigh your ingredients if you can. Choux lives or dies on the ratio of liquid to flour to egg, and a heavy-handed cup of flour is the most common reason rings bake up squat.

• 2.

  Number of eggs is a guideline, not a rule. Egg size, how hard you boiled the liquid, and how long you dried the panade all change how much egg the paste will take, so always judge by the ribbon test.

• 3.

  Opening the oven in the first 20 minutes vents the steam that is doing the lifting, and the rings will sink. Use the oven light instead.

• 4.

  Piping a double ring gives you a sturdier, more generous pastry than a single rope, and the two strands fuse into one wide ring as they bake.

• 5.

  Unfilled shells crisp back up beautifully. If they have softened, five minutes in a 325°F oven and a full cool will bring the snap back.

• 6.

  For a praline version in the spirit of Paris-Brest, fold a few tablespoons of hazelnut paste into the whipped cream before filling.

• 7.

  Baked, cooled shells freeze well for up to a month. Reheat from frozen at 325°F for about 8 minutes, cool, then fill.

Equipment

• Medium heavy-bottomed saucepan
• Wooden spoon or sturdy spatula
• Stand mixer with paddle attachment, or a hand mixer
• Two rimmed baking sheets
• Parchment paper
• Large piping bag
• 1/2-inch open star tip
• Serrated knife
• Wire cooling rack

Storage