Choux Pastry

Ratio: 2 parts water, 1 part butter, 1 part flour, and 2 parts egg (plus salt for flavor)

Ratio by volume: 1 cup water : ½ cup butter : 1 cup flour : 1 cup egg

Basic Pâte à Choux 

From Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking by Michael Ruhlman

8 ounces water

4 ounces butter (1 stick)

½ teaspoon salt

4 ounces flour (a scant cup)

8 ounces eggs (4 large eggs)

Bring the water, butter, and salt to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, add the flour, and stir rapidly. The flour will absorb the water quickly and a dough will form and pull away from the sides. Keep stirring to continue cooking the flour and cook off some of the water, another minute or two. Remove your pan from the heat and let it cool slightly, a few minutes, or cool off the pan itself by running cold water over its base. You don’t want the eggs to cook too quickly, but the choux paste needs to be warm to hot. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring rapidly until each is combined into the paste; it takes  a few seconds – at first it will seem as f the dough won’t accept them. The paste will go from shiny to flat, slippery to furry, when the eggs are fully in. Alternately, transfer the butter-flour paste to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle and mix in the eggs one at a time.

The pâte à choux can be cooked immediately or refrigerated for up to a day until ready to use.

Yield: About 20 ounces or 24 gougeres or profiteroles

Profiteroles, Cream Puffs, and Eclairs

Reduce the total salt to 1/8 teaspoon and add 1 tablespoon of sugar to the eater in the Basic Pâte à Choux ingredients.

On a parchment- or Silpat-lined baking sheet, pipe or spoon out golf-ballsized portions or, for éclairs, pipe out 4- to 5-inch logs. Place in an oven preheated to 425F for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350F to complete their cooking, 10 to 20 minutes longer.