The blog has reached its 4th year last Friday! Be honest, I never thought I/it would have lasted this long. It has been an amazing journey to be able to share my lives, stories and recipes. I am thrilled to have many supports from all of you, readers! Thank you! I am excited to continue exploring and cooking different kinds of food and share with you for many years to come.
Other than the blog’s birthday, my birthday was on Monday. With the condo’s situation, I really wasn’t in the mood to celebrate. But thanks to the warm wishes from friends and families. I feel a lot better. Bryan gave me a surprise by bringing me a giant slice of chocolate cake from my favorite bakery, SusieCakes. That really made my day! I am not going to get upset over the condo thing any more. It is a small hiccup in life. I shouldn’t be complaining. With love and support, I know we will get through it without a problem. 🙂
A double birthday deserved a special dessert! May I present to you these adorable raspberry cream puffs? These little puffs were baked to deep golden brown and filled with a sweet and tart raspberry whipped cream filling. Crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. The little tart and fruity flavors from the raspberry made the puffs extra special. They are also in a perfect bite size. Bryan like to pop the whole puffs in his mouth. I like to eat the top shell first, then enjoy the bottom shell with the generous amount of cream filling. They are great party food and sure will impress your guests. To spice it up, make and use a few different flavors of whipped cream filling, like chocolate, mocha, and lemon. Everyone will discover their favorites and everyone will be happy! Enjoy!
Raspberry Cream Puffs (Adapted from Bon Appetit and Joy of Baking)
35 – 38 cream puffs
Ingredients:
– ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons water
– ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk
– 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (cut into ½-inch dices)
– ¼ teaspoon salt
– ¾ cup sifted all purpose flour
– ½ teaspoon sugar
– 3 large eggs
– powdered sugar (optional)
Raspberry Whipped Cream:
– 1½ cup cold heavy whipping cream
– ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
– 2 tablespoons sugar
– 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 425˚F (220˚C). Arrange racks in lower and upper thirds of the oven. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment papers.
- In a medium bowl, add flour and sugar. Whisk together.
- In a heavy medium saucepan, add water, whole milk, butter and salt. Place the pan over medium heat, melt the butter and bring to a boil, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. Add the flour mixture all at once and stir until dough forms into a smooth ball and pull away from sides of the pan. Keep stirring until thin-film forms on the bottom of the pan, about 1 – 2 minutes.
- Transfer the hot dough to a large mixing bowl. With an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cool the dough for 5 minutes, mixing on low-speed every once a while to release hot steam. Add 1 egg, mix on low-speed until blended. Add remaining eggs, one at a time. Make sure the mixture is blended after each addition. Beat until the dough is smooth and shiny, 2 – 3 minutes.
- Pour the dough into a pastry bag and pipe out 1 – 1¼-inch mounds on prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. To smooth out the sharp tops, push down slightly with a wet finger.
- Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back for even baking. Reduce the oven temperature to 350˚F (180˚C). Continue to bake until puffs are deep golden brown and firm, 30 – 35 minutes longer. Half way through baking, rotate the baking sheets once again from top to bottom and front to back. Keep an eye on the puffs. If necessary, reduce the oven to 325˚F (165˚C). Once cooked, turn off the oven and leave the oven door slightly ajar. Let the puffs cool in the oven for at least 30 minutes.
- Before making the whipped cream, place a large mixing bowl in the freezer for 15 – 30 minutes. Once it is cooled, add heavy cream, vanilla extract and sugar. With an electronic mixer with whisk attachment, beat until the cream starts to thicken. Add jam and beat until it holds stiff peak, scraping down the side of the bowl every once a while.
- To assembly the cream puffs, split the pastry shells in half with a sharp knife. Remove any soft dough with fingers. Dust the top shells with powdered sugar. Fill or pipe a good amount of whipped cream into the bottom shells. Top with the top shells. Serve right away or for better results, keep the finished puffs in the fridge for 2 – 3 hours before serving.
Tips:
- I prefer piping the whipped cream to the puffs instead of using a spoon. It is easier and faster.
- You can make any flavored whipped cream to go with the cream puffs. We have tried regular sweetened, mocha and of course raspberry. Our favorite is raspberry, but mocha is good too. Regular whipped cream is just a bit too simple.
- Letting the puffs sitting for a while before serving will help to soften the inside of the pastry. That is the way I prefer.
Happy Birthday my dear friend!!! Hope all your wishes will come true! Congratulations on your blog 4th anniversary! Time flies, isn’t it?! You got me with these raspberry cream puffs…they look amazing!
Thank you sooo much, Oana! You are so sweet! Yea, time sure flies. I can’t believe I have been writing blog for that many years! 🙂
Happy Belated B-day girl! The puffs so adorable and delicate, love the light touch of confectioner’s sugar on top. 🙂 I just checked out Susie Cakes–wow, so retro…will have to stop by one of the OC locations soon!
Thank you very much Bonnie! Powered sugar makes everything look better. 😛
SusieCakes sells good old fashion cakes. My favorite is their chocolate cake. Super moist. We like to order sliced cakes from them. They are huge in size! Take the two of us two days to finish.
Birthday celebrations all around! Definitely need extra treats for a double birthday. These cream puffs look delicious!
Thanks Liz! Yes, need to eat double the portions too!
So sorry I missed your birthday! Happy Birthday!!! And congratulations on the 4 year blog anniversary! Whoo hoo! It’s a long time. I also didn’t expect the blog to last 4 years too. I gave myself 4 years when I started it and that 4 years is coming! Your cream puffs are the best desert to celebrate double birthdays. So beautiful!
Thank you, Nami! Early congrats to your 4th year too! You have definitely achieved something incredible! 🙂
Yay for your birthday and for your blog birthday!! Many more happy years of good eats and good living to you! : )
I love the pretty raspberry spin on your cream puffs. So elegant! I hope you kept some back to make profiteroles by stuffing them with ice cream and some chocolate fudge sauce! haha. All the best and hope all is smooth with the condo soon!
Thank you for the wishes, Monica! I finished all the puffs with the raspberry cream. I really should save some for ice cream and chocolate fudge next time! Great idea!
Congratulations on the 4th blogiversary and happy birthday! (sorry for being late)
The condo situation sounds frustrating but hope you’ll get it fixed soon and do not let it affect your celebration!
The raspberry cream looks cute and wonderful. I always love to indulge myself with a nice puff and seldom challenge to make it at home. Would like to try this out for my birthday too! 🙂
Thank you for the sweet comment, Maggie! These bite size cream puffs are perfect for birthday celebration! Let me know if you try it.
These look DIVINE! I absolutely love raspberry desserts. I am not sure I am ready to tackle cream puffs yet, although your recipe looks very do-able.
Thanks, Kate! Raspberry desserts are my favorite too! Fruity and tart! Cream puffs are actually not hard to make, and it doesn’t require too many ingredients. If you try it, let me know how it goes. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Happy happy birthday and 4 years blog anniversary – so sorry for missing them both! Sorry to hear about your condo too 🙁 That must be so frustrating – hopefully it gets fixed soon. These cream puffs are gorgeous! Love the raspberry whipped cream – they are perfect for a celebration 🙂
Thank you Kelly! It has been a few tough months. I am just hoping things will get done soon and we can move in. When we move in, I am going to make these cream puffs for my housewarming party. 🙂
Happy Birthday. This looks easy enough to attempt.
Thank you Edith! Yea, this is not hard at all. And it sure can wow your guests! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Hi Edith, You mentioned that it’s good to let these sit a little while with the cream in them, I was wondering how long is “a while” and if you have ever put the cream in the night before? I’m making them for coffee time tomorrow morning and it’d be easiest if I could completely prepare them tonight, but I don’t want them to get too moist.
Hi Pam, what I mean for “a while” is about 2 – 3 hour(s). In your case, I would say bake the puffs the night before. After they are cool, keep them in an air tight container in the fridge over night. Whip the cream in the morning. Whipped cream would deflate or weep after about 4 hours.