To look at these little beauties, you wouldn’t think that you could whip up a batch in just over half an hour. Chouquettes (pronounced shoo-kets) are French pastry sugar puffs and can also be made into profiteroles (French cream puffs) if you’re feeling fancy.
It’s that magic pâte à choux dough recipe again, the very same one used to make savory gougères, like these with Gruyère and black pepper. But instead of cheese and pepper, you’ll add a little sugar to the dough and a generous sprinkle of pearl sugar to the top.
Making the dough is simple, you’ll bring most of the recipe ingredients to a boil then add the flour all at once and stir like crazy until it’s smooth and pulls away from the sides of the pan. After the dough cools for a few minutes, you’ll whisk in the eggs one by one (As I mentioned in my gougère recipe, I have been known to impatiently add all of the eggs at once, which works, but assures a moment or two of panic. This time I behaved myself.)
I take a rustic approach to forming these, scooping them out in heaps with a spoon, but you can certainly pipe them onto the baking sheet if you want more uniform puffs.
Chouquettes bake into lightly brown little pastries that are crisp on the outside, creamy and tender on the inside with a sweet crackle in every bite from the pearl sugar. They’re wonderful snacks or party fare and perfect for an edible gift, wrap them up in a little paper sack as they do in Paris boulangeries.
Note: The swoon-worthy copper basket in the first photo was a gift from my sweet, Francophile friend, Beeta. If you haven’t checked out her blog, Mon Petit Four, you must!
Homemade Chouquettes (French Pastry Sugar Puffs)
Simple to make and absolutely delicious, chouquettes are lightly sweet pastry puffs that make a wonderful snack and perfect party fare.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- pinch fine salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour 135 grams
- 4 eggs
- 1/4 cup pearl sugar
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375ºF.
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Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Heat water, milk, sugar, salt and butter in a saucepan until boiling. Add flour all at once, stirring vigorously, until dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove from heat.
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Let dough cool for 3 minutes then whisk in eggs, one at a time, until shiny and smooth.
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Scoop a heaping teaspoon of dough (walnut-size) out and, with a second spoon scrape onto prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, spacing the dough mounds evenly apart, giving them a little room to spread. (Or pipe dough onto baking sheet with a 1/2-inch round tip.)
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Sprinkle dough mounds generously with pearl sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.
Recipe Notes
These freeze beautifully. To reheat: preheat oven to 350ºF then turn oven off. Arrange frozen chouquettes on a baking sheet and, after you turn oven off, place in oven for 3 to 5 minutes or until warm. Serve.
Do the butter and eggs need to be at room temp before adding them?
Hi Izzy, you’ll melt the butter, so no worries about temperature. On the eggs, I typically take them out of the refrigerator before I begin so they’ve warmed a bit, but I haven’t specifically brought them to room temp.
I made these today and while tasty, they burned on the bottom after 20 minutes of bake time and fell flat almost immediately on being removed from the oven. Help! I thought I followed this to a tee!
Hi Kris…Oh no! I’m so sorry that happened! I haven’t had them burn before or fall flat. The only thing that comes to mind is that your oven temperature could be off? If you have a separate thermometer, you might try testing it.
We made these tonight for my daughter’s high school French class. They were fairly easy to make, though a challenge to drop on the cookie sheet. My only complaint is they smell and taste like eggs. I suppose that is how they are supposed to taste?
Hi Carol, yes at 4 eggs to a cup of flour, eggs are the star. They always remind me of almost a custard flavor which I love!
Hello!
Thank you so much for the recipe. You save the French Cuisine Day at the school of my son and daughter.
Great thanks from Bulgaria /South-Eastern Europe/!
You are so very welcome! Thank you for coming back to let me know!
These truly are lovely. They look just like the ones I remember seeing in paris!
Thank you so much, Jessie! xo
These look divine! My 10 year old daughter is always looking for French dessert recipes. I look forward to making these with her. Did I happen to miss the mention of how many eggs should be used? Thank you for sharing this gem!
Best,
Vanessa
Hi Vanessa! Well that’s kind of an important detail I left out, isn’t it? 😉 Thank you so much for catching that! It’s 4 eggs. I love that you and your daughter are going to make these together, totally made my day.
I don’t make these nearly often enough! You’re right, they couldn’t be easier to make and they are so yummy. I love the use of pearl sugar here, so pretty!
Thank you, Faith! xo
I love these guys, especially savory ones with CHEESE! These however are most tempting and that crunchy exterior sugar addition is wonderful. Just beauties!
aww, thanks so much Kevin!
These are so pretty! I love chouquettes, and just adore pate a choux in general. Fabulous job, my dear! P.S. great use of the basket! 😉
Thank you so much, Beeta! Love my copper basket…xoxo
You can really make these in half an hour? That encourages me because I always steer clear of things like this, thinking they’ll take ages and be a total disaster.
The hubs LOVES profiteroles, so I’m sure he’d love these too.
ALWAYS ENJOY your European recipes, Marissa!
You’ve got to try this some time, Helen! I promise that it’s a snap (of course you don’t have to admit this to your hubs. 😉 )
So don’t judge me, but the worst part of culinary school for me was that dayum pâte à choux dough . Seriously, I could NOT get it right. Everything else in culinary school was a breeze for me, but that dang dough eluded me. I’m thinking you need to come over and make these beautiful puffs for me, because I want a few baskets of these fluffy beauties!! They look just perfect, Marissa! Cheers! <3
What!? Cheyanne, you are such a talented cook, I can’t imagine you’d have trouble with almost any recipe. If you lived anywhere near by, I’d be hopping in my car so we could whip up a batch at your place. 😉 Hope you’re having a wonderful weekend! xo
These look absolutely delightful Marissa! I have some of that pearl sugar and am always trying to think of ways to use it.
I know what you mean, a little goes a long way! 🙂
Less is More!
So all I will say is YUM!
Maybe I should repeat myself -YUM!
Well said, my friend! 🙂