Cream Puff “Crack Buns” (Choux au Craquelin)

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Description

These gorgeous cream puff “crack buns” were inspired by the Great British Baking Show, which is currently my favorite thing on television. Speaking of favorite things, Boston cream pie is one of my all-time favorite desserts, and this was basically an individually portioned, probably superior version of that. These would be great filled with all kinds of things, but it’s hard to beat vanilla bean pastry cream (see footnote).

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons butter, softened
  • ¼ cup light brown sugar
  • 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 pinch salt
  • ½ cup cold water
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 pinch salt
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 (4 ounce) bar dark chocolate, chopped, or as needed (Optional)

Instructions

  1. Mix butter
  2. brown sugar
  3. flour
  4. and salt together in a large bowl using a spatula. Place dough between two sheets of waxed paper or inside a zip-top bag. Press or roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Trim off the edges slightly to get a rectangular shape
  5. if desired. Freeze crust until ready to use.
  6. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat.
  7. Combine water
  8. butter
  9. and salt in a saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add flour; stir with a wooden spoon until mixture comes together into a smooth dough and pulls away cleanly from the bottom of the pan. Transfer to a bowl and spread out with a whisk to speed up cooling. Cool until warm
  10. about 10 minutes.
  11. Whisk eggs
  12. one at a time
  13. into the pastry
  14. mixing well after each addition. Finish mixing with a spatula. Scoop pastry into a pastry bag and pipe into 6 to 8 buns on the baking sheet. Smooth out tops with a wet finger.
  15. Use a cookie cutter to cut crust into circles about the diameter of the buns. Lightly push crusts onto the buns
  16. just enough to secure them.
  17. Place buns in the preheated oven. Immediately reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and bake until browned and fully puffed
  18. 30 to 40 minutes. Transfer buns onto a cooling rack and place rack back on the baking sheet. Place in the turned-off oven
  19. leave door partially open
  20. and let cool completely
  21. at least 20 minutes.
  22. Melt chocolate in a microwave-safe glass or ceramic bowl in 15-second intervals
  23. stirring after each interval
  24. 1 to 3 minutes.
  25. Spread a few teaspoons of melted chocolate onto the bottom of each bun. Gently press each chocolate base back on the baking sheet to spread it evenly. Let chocolate harden
  26. about 1 hour.

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 2 hrs 20 mins

Servings: 8

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