Can you make Pate a Choux ahead of time?

[Ufimizm]

I have been volunteered to make Cream Puffs next week. Unfortunately the day I need to make them, my time is very short between when I get one with work and when they need to be ready. I know I can make the puff ahead of time and just fill them before I need to take them, but I prefer to have them as fresh as possible.

Would it be possible to make the Pate a Choux the night before and then bake them when I need to? Has anyone ever tried this before?

[therippa]

Yes, you can make it, portion it, and freeze it. I don't know if refrigeration would work though because of retrogradation...they might not puff as much.

[JeanneCake]

You can freeze the baked choux and then recrisp it in the oven for 5 minutes; then cool and fill.....

My favorite recipe for choux comes from Pichet Ong; it gets a beautiful medium brown and tastes amazing, even when it's not filled. His "secret" is the sweetened condensed milk in the recipe. It's great! This recipe freezes and recrisps well.

[Mjx]

You can freeze the baked choux and then recrisp it in the oven for 5 minutes; then cool and fill.....

My favorite recipe for choux comes from Pichet Ong; it gets a beautiful medium brown and tastes amazing, even when it's not filled. His "secret" is the sweetened condensed milk in the recipe. It's great! This recipe freezes and recrisps well.

I'd go this route, too. I've often frozen the shells, and the results are good, plus it takes very little time to re-heat and crisp them.

I'd save discovering how using refrigerated or frozen paste plays out for when you don't have anything at stake, since unknown factors related to the paste being cold/thawing times could make for some really awkward and frustrating surprises, under the circumstances.

[LindaK]

I've alwaya had good results following Julia Child's pate a choux recipe in MTA v. 1 and here's what she says about making it ahead of time:

“If it is not used immediately, rub the surface with butter and cover with waxed paper to prevent a skin from forming…beat it vigorously in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat for a moment until it is smooth and free from lumps and is barely warm to your finger…Pate a choux may be kept under refrigeration for several days or it may be frozen. Reheated gently as just described, it will produce a good small puff…”

I've tried it and it does work. The puff is not as high as when it's fresh. This technique doesn't let you form the individual puffs ahead of time, though.

Since the baked puffs freeze and reheat so well, I'd agree with others that that's the route to take if don't want to make and serve the puffs the same day.

[savvysearch]

What I do is pipe them into eclairs/puffs etc, freeze the trays, then pick them off and refreeze them bagged. You take out as many as you need and thaw them an hour before baking. They thaw quickly.