Gluten-Free, Coconut Cream Puffs
Servings: 12–24 servings
Preparation Time: 1 hour
Ingredients:
Basic Puff Shell:
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup organic salted butter
- 3/4 cup sweet rice flour
- 1/2 cup organic brown rice flour
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 3 eggs, (large) (OR 4 medium eggs)
- homemade custard (see recipe below)
- 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate pieces, melted
- organic powdered sugar, to garnish
Homemade Coconut Custard:
- 1/2 cup granulated whole sugar
- 3 tablespoons organic cornstarch
- 4 egg yolks
- 3 cup coconut milk* (OR 6 tablespoons Coconut Cream Concentrate plus 2 3/4 cups water)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 teaspoons organic vanilla extract
Directions:
Puff Shells:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare baking sheet with parchment paper or baking mat.
In a medium saucepan, heat water and butter to rolling boil. Stir in flour, beating well until it pulls away from the pan and forms a ball, about 1–2 minutes; then add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Fully incorporate mixture until batter is smooth.
Drop by heaping tablespoon onto greased baking sheet or silicone baking mat–lined pan. Batter should be fairly stiff so that when you scoop it onto the baking sheet, it stays firm and doesn’t spread out. If it is too runny, add additional sweet rice flour in small amounts until batter holds its shape on the baking pan.
Bake 30–40 minutes at 400 degrees F or until golden and dry.
Remove from oven and cool until you are able to handle them. Then cut off top of each puff and scoop out any excess soft dough from inside, if necessary, to form a shell for the cream filling. Replace top for each puff and allow to cool completely.
Coconut Custard:
In a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, bring sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, and coconut milk (or Coconut Cream Concentrate plus 2 3/4 cups water) to a boil, whisking constantly until thickened (approximately 15–20 minutes), being careful not to scorch mixture on bottom of pan. Remove from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla. Place in a container with a tight-sealing lid in refrigerator to cool. Chill 2 hours until set.
Assembly: Fill puffs using a pastry bag or spoon carefully into cream puff shells, and then replace top of puff. Sprinkle with powdered sugar to garnish and drizzle with melted chocolate, if desired.
Melt chocolate pieces in a glass/stainless steel bowl set over a small saucepan with simmering (not boiling) water. Drizzle puffs with melted chocolate. Serve or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
*For the freshest coconut milk, make homemade coconut milk. (See video at this link.)
Recipe and photo submitted by Deanne, Glendale, AZ.
