Beyond Our Sky

Gluten-free Choux au Craquelin

This choux au craquelin is filled with a vanilla crème pâtissière, topped with a coffee infused cream and finished with a dusting of icing sugar.

It took a bit of experimenting to get the gluten-free choux pastry right, and there are some important notes for each of the components. The choux pastry can also be used to make eclairs, chouquettes, profiteroles, cream puffs and many more French desserts, and I will provide the recipe for some of these variations below. I have made this video tutorial in the past for praline cream puffs, which has some useful tips for the choux pastry and assembly. I also have detailed information on choux pastry in this coffee eclair blogpost.

NOTES ON THE CRAQUELIN & CHOUX PASTRY

  • The craquelin uses rice flour in place of normal flour. The dough may at first seem very dry, and you will need to use the warmth of your hands to gently knead the dough and bring it together.
  • The flours used for the choux pastry are white rice flour, glutinous rice flour (also known as sweet rice flour) and cornflour. I do not recommend making any substitutions, and the xanthan gum cannot be replaced.
  • After the flours are added to the milk and butter mixture, the choux pastry dough needs to be cooked on the stove. Since the gluten-free flours behave and absorb the liquids differently to a normal flour, the butter may appear to be melting and releasing from the dough. Do not worry if this happens; it is perfectly fine.
  • The amount of eggs you add will vary depending on the size of your eggs, moisture of the choux dough, humidity and how well the dough absorbs the eggs. The mixture may curdle when the eggs are added one at a time, and needs to be mixed on high speed for at least one minute in between each addition.
  • This choux pastry will not turn out as smooth and glossy as a normal choux pastry, so do not worry if the dough seems too thick and do not be tempted to add any more eggs . It may be difficult to pipe and I recommend brushing the piped choux with an egg wash to help shape the dough into a more uniform circular shape.

NOTES ON THE COFFEE CREAM & CREME PATISSIERE

  • The coffee cream involves a cold steep that I recommend doing overnight. The amount of coffee you add depends on how strong you want it. I added a lot of coffee, and the bitterness of the cream was balanced out with the sweetness of the crème pâtissière.
  • The crème pâtissière is made using the typical method and is thickened with cornflour. After it has been refrigerated, the crème pâtissière will appear to be very set and thick. To break it up and make the custard more fluid and smooth, I mix it vigorously with a spatula.
  • Instead of a coffee cream, you can make a vanilla chantilly cream if you prefer. I have a recipe here, and again I will detail more variations in the recipe below.

These taste best the day they are made, as the craquelin tends to get soggy and lose its crunch. As mentioned above, the coffee cream needs to be started the day before. So I hope you enjoy the recipe, and please let me know if you have any questions.

 

Gluten-free Choux au Craquelin 

Coffee Cream

  • 400mL thickened cream
  • 3-5 tsp instant coffee
  • 2 tbsp icing sugar
  1. In a medium bowl, combine the cream and instant coffee. If you want a subtle coffee flavour, add less coffee (3 tsp) and if you want a stronger coffee flavour, add more coffee (5 tsp). Cover with cling film, and refrigerate overnight to allow it to infuse (the coffee granules will dissolve into the cream).
  2. After the cold overnight steep, add the icing sugar and whisk until stiff peaks form. Transfer the coffee cream to a piping bag fitted with a french piping tip, and refrigerate until ready to assemble.

Gluten-free Craquelin

  • 85g unsalted butter, softened (room temperature)
  • 100g brown sugar
  • 100g rice flour
  1. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until smooth and pale in colour. Add the frice flour and fold until a soft dough forms. At first it will appear very dry, but continue mixing and use your hands if necessary to knead until a dough forms.
  2. Place the dough between two pieces of baking paper, and roll the dough until it reaches a 2mm thickness.
  3. Place it in the freezer for 1 hour or until ready to use (will be needed before the choux pastry is baked).

Gluten-free Choux Pastry

  • 40g white rice flour
  • 25g glutinous rice flour
  • 15g cornflour
  • 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
  • 60g water
  • 60g milk
  • 50g butter
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2-3 eggs, room temperature (plus extra for egg wash)
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line a baking tray with parchment paper (optional: draw circles of desired cream puff size then flip paper over).
  2. In a small bowl, combine the white rice flour, glutinous rice flour, cornflour and xanthan gum. Set aside.
  3. In a large saucepan, combine the water, milk, butter, sugar and salt. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and immediately add the flour. Stir until there are no more streaks of flour and a dough begins to form. Place the saucepan back over medium-high heat, and cook for 1-2 minutes until the paste is pulling away from the sides of the pan.
  4. Transfer the dough into a stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, then mix on medium-low speed for 3 minutes to cool down the dough and evaporate the steam/moisture. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on high speed for at least one minute in between each addition. Depending on the consistency of your choux paste, you may not require all the eggs. So you are looking for a dough that is thick and still able to hold its shape when piped.
  5. Transfer the paste into a piping bag fitted with a plain, round nozzle (such as a Wilton 1A). Pipe the choux onto a lined baking tray (mine were around 3cm in diameter). Brush the dough with an egg wash to help shape the choux into a more round shape.
  6. Remove the craquelin from the freezer, and using a cookie cutter that is slightly bigger than the diameter of the choux, cut out circles. Place them on top of the piped choux pastry and gently press down.
  7. Bake in the preheated oven at 350°F/180°C for 25-30 minutes. Then turn the oven off and allow the choux puffs to cool for 20 minutes with the door ajar. Set aside to cool completely.

Crème Pâtissière

  • 5 egg yolks
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 35g cornstarch
  • 500g milk
  • 1 vanilla bean pod, split lengthwise and scraped
  • 20g butter, cold and cubed
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until pale in colour. Add the cornstarch, then mix until smooth and well incorporated. Set aside.
  2. In a medium saucepan, add the milk, vanilla bean pod and scaped seeds. Bring to a simmer, and it is ready when small bubbles form around the edge of the pan.
  3. Temper the egg yolks, by gradually pouring the hot milk over the egg mixture. You want to add this about 1/4 at a time to ensure the egg yolks don’t scramble. Remove the vanilla bean pod.
  4. Once all the milk is added, return the mixture to the stove and place over medium-high heat. Whisk continuously until thickened, then whisk for a further 2 minutes to fully activate the cornstarch.
  5. Remove from the heat, and add the cold butter. Mix until fully melted. Pour the pastry cream into a bowl, and cover with cling film ensuring it touches the surface so a skin doesn’t form. Refrigerate to cool completely.
  6. Once cooled, transfer the creme patissiere into a standmixer bowl fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the mixture on high speed to break up the set pastry cream and until it is smooth.
  7. Transfer the pastry cream to a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle. Set aside until ready to assemble.

 

Assembly

  • Icing sugar or pearl sugar to decorate
  1. Cut the tops of the choux puffs. Then pipe the crème pâtissière into the bottom cream puffs. Pipe the coffee cream on top. Place the cut-off choux top on the coffee cream.
  2. Finish it them off with a dusting of icing sugar or pearl sugar. Then serve and enjoy!

 

Variations 

  • For chouquettes, make a batch of choux pastry and transfer it to a piping bag with a round nozzle. Pipe small rounds that are about 2cm in diameter onto a lined baking tray, brush with egg wash and sprinkle generously with pearl sugar. Bake for about 20-25 minutes.
  • For cream puffs, make a batch of choux pastry and transfer it to a piping bag with a round nozzle. Pipe small rounds that are about 3cm in diameter onto a lined baking tray and brush with egg wash. Bake for about 25 minutes. Fill the choux with a vanilla chantilly cream.
  • For eclairs, make a batch of choux pastry and transfer it to a piping bag with a round nozzle. Pipe lines that are about 6-7cm in long onto a lined baking tray and brush with egg wash (optional: make the craquelin, cut it into rectangles and place them on top of the piped choux). Bake for about 20-25 minutes, and allow the eclairs to cool for 20 minutes with the door ajar. Set aside to cool completely. Fill the eclairs with crème pâtissière or vanilla chantilly cream, and coat the tops of the eclairs with melted chocolate (I use a mixture of light and dark chocolate).
  • For profiteroles, make a batch of choux pastry and transfer it to a piping bag with a round nozzle. Pipe small rounds that are about 2-3cm in diameter onto a lined baking tray and brush with egg wash. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Fill the profiteroles with crème pâtissière or vanilla chantilly cream, and drizzle with melted chocolate (I use a mixture of light and dark chocolate.