About Pâte à Choux 

The making of Chouquettes is in essence the making of a choux pastry – known in French as “Pâte à Choux”. The soft pastry dough is then piped into little mounds on a baking sheet and topped with pearl sugar before baking, to create chouquettes. Basic ingredients for a Pâte à Choux include butter, water, flour and eggs. There is no leavening agent (ie. baking powder). Instead, it is the high moisture of the dough (made with water) that creates steam and puffs the dough while it bakes at a high temperature. As a result, choux pastry puffs are light and hollow in the center. 

If you’re interested in French baking, Pâte à Choux is a great recipe to add to your repertoire. Pâte à Choux is the base dough for making classic Chouquettes, but also Classic French Profiteroles (Cream Puffs with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce), Nun’s farts, Eclairs and even savory Gougères (cheese puffs – a recipe you can find in my cookbook). 

If you’ve never made a Pâte à Choux before, make sure you read the recipe twice before you start, to familiarize yourself with the process. A Pâte à Choux does have a reputation for being an advanced technique, but I assure you it is not that complex. My tip: you want to make sure you have all your equipment prepared (saucepan, bowl, wooden spoon, piping bag, etc.) and all ingredients measured out in front of you before you start. A successful Pâte à Choux is all about moving quickly and precise timing. 

About Pearl Sugar 

The second key component of Chouquettes is pearl sugar, which gives them both their signature crunch and white-dotted appearance. A specialty sugar popular in European baking, pearl sugar is in essence sugar nibs made from crushing blocks of white sugar. The particularity of pearl sugar is that it doesn’t melt at normal baking temperatures. This means the sugar keeps its crunch and also serves decorative purpose. 

Pearl sugar is very common in French bakeries, where you find it sprinkled on Chouquettes and small brioche buns known as “brioches au sucre”. It is also well-known and used in Liege waffles, where the sugar is mixed into the waffle batter to provide a crunchy texture. 

You can find pearl sugar in European grocery stores and at Ikea (for Swedish pearl sugar – smaller sugar nibs). You can also source it online on amazon or King Arthur Flour. 

How to enjoy and keep Chouquettes (French Sugar Puffs)

Chouquettes are best eaten right away or within 3-4 hours of being made. I don’t recommend storing them on the counter or in the fridge for any longer, as they will soften and get “wet”. 

You can however freeze them. Once cooled down to room temperature, place them in a freezer bag and freeze them for up to one month. For enjoying, let them thaw at room temperature for a few hours and re-heat them quickly (max. 5 minutes) at 350°F (180°C) so they crisp up again. 

Notes: 

• For shaping the mounds of choux paste onto the baking sheet, it is much easier to use a piping bag. However, you can also use a cookie scoop or 2 large spoons to form little dollops and drop them onto the sheet. 

I hope you’ll love this Chouquettes (French Sugar Puffs) recipe as much as I do! If you have any questions, please leave a comment. 

You may also like:

• French Bakery Beignets
• Brownies with Pecans & Fleur de Sel
• Classic French Butter Brioche
• Roasted Hazelnut Financiers
• Overnight No-knead Bread

Chouquettes (French Sugar Puffs)

Print Recipe

Serves: 24 chouquettes Prep Time: 30 minutes Cooking Time: 25 Minutes 25 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 4.8/5

( 4 voted )

Ingredients

1 cup (250ml) water
¼ cup (62.5g) unsalted butter
¼ cup (50g) sugar
1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour
¼ tsp salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature

For topping:
About 100g pearl sugar
For the egg wash: 1 egg yolk + 1 tsp 2% milk.

Instructions

Make sure you have all your equipment prepared and all ingredients measured out in front of you before you start. 

Preheat your oven to 425°F(220°C) with a rack in the middle. Line two baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Step 1 - In a medium-sized saucepan, over medium heat, add the water, butter and sugar. Bring to a slow simmer and let the butter melt and sugar dissolve.

Step 2 - Remove from heat and immediately add in the flour and salt, all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a smooth dough forms; return the saucepan to low heat and keep stirring until the dough ‘dries out’ – meaning it pulls away from the pan and takes on a clean, glossy look (about 30 sec to 1 minute).

Step 3 - Remove from the heat and allow the dough to cool for 2 minutes. Still using a wooden spoon, beat the eggs thoroughly into the dough, one at a time. It is important each egg is fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next. If the dough separates, keep beating and it will come together again. In the end, you should have a semi-thick, slightly sticky batter.

Step 4 – 

Option 1 : Using a piping bag. Transfer the batter into a piping bag (optionally fitted with a plain round ½ inch tip). Hold the filled piping bag at a 90° angle, apply steady downward pressure, and pipe 1-inch wide mounds of batter onto the prepared baking sheets. Each mounds should be at least 1 inch apart.

Option 2 : Using two spoons. Scoop out a ½ tbsp-size ball of batter with a spoon and scrape if off with the other spoon onto the baking sheet. Continue until no batter is left, leaving at least 1 inch space between each mounds. 

Step 5 – Gently brush the top of each mound with the egg wash and sprinkle very generously with pearl sugar. Don’t be shy, the Chouquettes will puff a lot when baking so the sugar crystals will spread out. 

Step 6 – Bake each tray for 20-25 minutes, until the Chouquettes look puffed and golden-brown. Remove from the oven, let rest for 1 minute and transfer Chouquettes onto a cooling rack.

The post Chouquettes (French Sugar Puffs) appeared first on Pardon Your French.

Whether they’re the classic soft “Beignets”, the crisp “Bugnes” or “Oreillettes” from the city of Lyon, the “Ganses” from the city of Nice, “Shenkeles” from the Alsace region… you’ll find carnaval fried doughs with so many different shapes, textures and names in France.

But, some of my favorites are these little round puffs, knows as “Pets-de-nonne” (meaning “Nun’s Farts”). They’re most popular in my home region of Brittany. These small sugary puffs are heavenly little morsels, so tender and light. They’re bite-size, much smaller than the classic plump beignets and also hollow in the middle, which makes them less heavy on the stomach.

It’s a great recipe to make to wrap up a festive dinner or feed up a crowd during a birthday party. You eat them with your fingers, and it’s very hard to stop at one! 

Cooking notes:

• The making of Nuns’ Farts Carnaval Puffs starts with the making of a Pâte à Choux (choux paste – the same as when making cream puffs, eclairs, etc.) A Pâte à Choux does have a reputation for being an advanced technique, but I assure you it is not. You want to make sure you have all your ingredients prepared and measured out in front of you before you start. Once the saucepan is hot and the water/milk starts to simmer, it’s all about moving quickly.
• I like to flavor my beignet batter with cinnamon, vanilla extract and nutmeg. But you can also add some citrus zest (orange or lemon, ½ tsp).
• These are hollow beignets (very airy!). I like to keep them as is, but you can definitely fill them if you wish: whipped cream, chocolate/vanilla cream, jams, etc.
• Like most fried doughs rolled in sugar, these Nuns’ Farts Carnaval Beignets are best enjoyed freshly made and still warm.

Nun’s Farts Carnaval Puffs

Print Recipe

Serves: Makes about 24 Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cooking Time: 25 minutes 25 minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 4.6/5

( 8 voted )

Ingredients

1/3 cup + 1 tbsp  (100ml) water
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp  (100ml) milk (2% or whole)
1 tbsp (12g) sugar (+extra for dusting)
½ tsp cinnamon (powder)
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/3 cup (80g) unsalted butter
1 cup (125g) all purpose-flour
4 large eggs
Neutral oil, for deep-frying

Instructions

Make sure you read the cooking notes before you start.

In a medium sized saucepan, over medium heat, combine the water and milk. Add the sugar, cinnamon, vanilla extract, salt, nutmeg and butter. Bring to a simmer.

Remove from heat and immediately add in the flour, all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a smooth dough forms; return the saucepan to low heat and keep stiring until dough ‘dries out’ – meaning it pulls away from the pan and takes on a clean, glossy look. (about 30 sec to 1 minute).

Remove from the heat again, transfer the batter to a bowl and let cool for 5 minutes. Beat the eggs thoroughly into the dough, one at a time. It is important each egg is fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next. If the dough separates, keep beating and it will come together again. In the end, you should have a semi-thick, slightly sticky batter.

(photos here show the consistency of the batter after each egg addition). 

Line up a large plate with paper towels.

Fill a large pot with frying oil (at least 2-inch high) and heat up the oil. To test if the oil is at a proper frying temperature: Place the handle of the wooden spoon in the oil. The oil is ready when bubbles begin to appear around the tip of the handle.

Using a cookie scoop (or two tablespoons), drop ½ tablespoon-sized balls of dough in the oil and cook for 6-7 minutes until evenly browned. Work your way in small batches – do not fill the pot with more than 5-6 little beignets at a time or it will slow down the cooking process.

Transfer the beignets immediately to a plate and sprinkle them generously all over with sugar.

Best enjoyed within 2 hours.

If you try this Nuns’ Farts Carnaval Puffs recipe let me know!  Leave a comment or share a photo using #pardonyourfrench on Instagram. Bon Appétit!

The post Nuns’ Farts Carnaval Puffs appeared first on Pardon Your French.