Choux pastry, also known as pȃte à choux, is a twice-cooked hollow French pastry. It’s made from choux paste and is typically eaten cold. A sweet version is normally filled with cream and garnished while a savory version can be filled with shellfish, vegetables, cream cheese and foie gras to be served as hors d’oeuvres. Choux pastry dough can be used to make eclairs, buns, cream puffs, profiteroles, crullers, beignets, churros, funnel cakes and many other shapes.
Pantanelli, the head chef of Catherine de Medici of Florence, invented choux pastry after moving to France in 1540. That pastry named after him was, essentially, a hot dried paste with which he made gateaux and pastries which spread across France. Its irregular shape after baking earned it the name ‘choux’ (French for cabbage). Further refinement and perfection were introduced in the 19th Century by Antoine Careme.
Unlike short crust, flaky or puff pastry, choux pastry dough is made from water and flour which is further enriched and lightened through the incorporation of eggs while beating the paste. Baking results in a crisp shell with a thin, moist lining of cooked paste and a hollow centre. There is no leavening agent in choux pastry. Instead, these pastries rely on the steam produced during baking to puff up and form the hollow center. Choux pastry can be shaped prior to baking to make a variety of products.
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