These Chocolate Cream Puffs are light, crisp and filled with a rich and creamy chocolate custard. While this classic French dessert is super impressive, it’s also surprisingly easy to make and absolutely delicious.
I’ll show you how to make pâte à choux cream puff dough like a pro as well as my easy chocolate custard recipe. Finish with a bit of powdered sugar or dip in melted chocolate for a real treat.
Homemade Chocolate Cream Puffs
Whether you are planning a special get-together, have a sweet spot for French desserts, or just want to try something new, these chocolate cream puffs are the perfect recipe to make. They may seem intimidating, but once you have made them once, you’ll see just how easy it is to whip up cream puffs in your very own kitchen.
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This recipe uses the exact same pâte à choux dough as our classic Cream Puffs, but they are filled with silky smooth chocolate custard instead. You can finish them off with a dusting of powdered sugar or even dip the tops into melted chocolate for a decorative little touch.
Below, we’ve given you instructions on how to make this dessert ahead of time as well as a few tips, tricks and answers to your most frequently asked questions. Let us know how it goes.
Key Ingredients
- Butter – use unsalted butter for this recipe. You will need some for the pate a choix and some for the chocolate filling.
- Water – water creates steam in the oven which is what helps cream puffs rise. You could also use half milk and half water.
- Sugar – just a touch of sugar is all you need.
- Flour – all-purpose flour works great for pâte à choux.
- Eggs – make sure your eggs are at room temperature and not cold so they will be easier to incorporate into your soft dough. You will need whole eggs for the dough and egg yolks for the custard.
- Milk – for the chocolate custard, whole milk works best because it has the highest fat content.
- Cornstarch – this helps to thicken the custard.
- Cocoa Powder – for the best chocolate flavor, use a high quality brand of cocoa powder such as Ghirardelli.
- Heavy Whipping Cream – this will be whipped separately and folded into the finished custard.
How to Make Chocolate Cream Puffs
- Cook the dough. In a large saucepan over medium high heat, add the butter, water, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and add the flour. Stir constantly and vigorously using a wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan, then continue to cook for an additional 1 minute.
- Transfer to a stand mixer bowl. Immediately transfer the cooked pastry dough to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on medium speed using the paddle attachment to release some of the steam.
- Add the eggs. Begin adding the eggs one at a time, slowly mixing until the dough is smooth and forms a thick ribbon texture.
- Pipe. Then transfer the pâte à choux dough to a piping bag with a large round (or star) ½” inch piping tip. Pipe 1 ½”-2″ rounds onto your prepared baking sheet, keeping them about 2″ apart. Wet your finger and smooth out the tip on each round to ensure even baking and color.
- Bake. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 without opening the oven door and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until the cream puffs are golden brown. Cool completely.
- Boil the milk mixture. In a saucepan over medium heat, add the sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder, salt, and milk. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking frequently. Once it reaches a boil, whisk and cook for 1 minute, or until the mixture thickens.
- Temper in the eggs. In a separate large mixing bowl, add the egg yolks and whisk. With one hand, stream about 1/3 of the hot pudding mixture into the bowl while whisking constantly with the other hand. Slowly add the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan while whisking. Whisk the entire custard over medium heat until it comes to a boil.
- Cool. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla. Transfer the hot custard to a large bowl or baking dish and cover the surface of the chocolate pudding with plastic wrap. Place in the fridge until completely cooled.
- Add whipped cream to the filling. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the heavy cream and whip until soft peaks form. Remove the cooled chocolate custard from the fridge, giving it a couple of stirs, then carefully fold in the whipped cream using a rubber spatula. The chocolate for cream puffs should be light and fluffy.
- Fill and finish the Cream Puffs. Transfer the cream puff filling to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. Poke a small hole on the bottom of each baked choux pastry using the end of a thermometer, a large skewer or a small paring knife. Fill each cream puff, then dust the filled cream puffs with powdered sugar before serving.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Try dipping the tops of the chocolate cream puffs into melted chocolate, then add sprinkles, shaved chocolate or any other decorations that you would like.
- Feel free to serve your cream puffs directly out of the freezer as they are delicious this way and taste like they are filled with ice cream!
- Cream Puffs are a great make-ahead dessert. The shells can be baked up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container at room temperature. The filling can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge. It then takes just minutes to reassemble once you are ready to serve.
- You can fill these little guys with just about anything that is sturdy enough to pipe. All sorts of flavors of creams and custards taste amazing inside cream puffs.
- If you fill your cream puff shells with ice cream, you’ve suddenly made profiteroles!
Recipe Variations
Once you’ve mastered these chocolate cream puffs, try one of these fun twists:
- Chocolate-dipped tops. Dip the tops of the filled cream puffs in melted chocolate and let set. Add sprinkles or chopped nuts before the chocolate hardens.
- Double chocolate. Replace 2 tablespoons of the flour in the choux dough with unsweetened cocoa powder for chocolate shells.
- Mint chocolate. Stir ½ teaspoon of peppermint extract into the cooled custard. Top with crushed candy canes for the holidays.
- Mocha. Whisk 1 tablespoon of instant espresso powder into the milk mixture for a coffee-chocolate filling.
- Chocolate hazelnut. Fold 2 tablespoons of Nutella into the finished filling.
- Raspberry chocolate. Tuck a fresh raspberry into each cream puff before piping in the filling. It’s perfect for Valentine’s Day!
- Profiteroles. Fill the shells with vanilla ice cream and drizzle with warm Hot Fudge Sauce.
- Chocolate éclairs. Pipe the dough into 4-inch logs instead of rounds, bake the same way, and fill with chocolate custard.
- Classic vanilla. Prefer a vanilla filling? Try my classic Cream Puffs.
Frequently Asked Questions
The main difference between a cream puff and an eclair is the shape. They are both made with choux pastry dough and generally filled with lightened creams and custards. However, cream puffs are round in shape, while eclairs are long and rectangular.
Nope, any unfilled Chocolate Cream Puff shells can be wrapped in plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Pâte à choux (pronounced pat-ah-SHOO) is the French pastry dough used to make cream puffs, éclairs, and profiteroles. It’s cooked on the stovetop before baking, and the steam from the eggs and water makes the shells puff up and become hollow inside, perfect for filling.
They most likely weren’t baked long enough. Bake until they’re deep golden brown and feel light and dry, not just lightly golden. Don’t open the oven door during the first 20 minutes. For extra insurance, poke a small hole in the bottom of each puff when they come out, then return them to the turned-off oven with the door cracked for 10 minutes to dry out.
The most common causes are dough that’s too runny or an oven that isn’t hot enough. Add the eggs one at a time and stop when the dough is smooth, glossy, and holds a soft peak. Make sure the oven is fully preheated to 425°F before baking.
They should be puffed, deep golden brown, and feel light and hollow when you pick one up. If you cut one open, the inside should look mostly dry, not wet or doughy.
For the crispiest shells, fill them up to 4 hours before serving and keep them in the fridge. You can fill them up to a day ahead, but the shells will soften. For make-ahead convenience, bake the shells and make the filling up to 3 days ahead, then fill right before serving.
Yes! For a shortcut, use a small box of instant chocolate pudding mixed with half the milk called for on the package. Let it set, then fold it into 1 cup of whipped heavy cream.
No. You can beat the eggs into the dough by hand with a wooden spoon. It takes some elbow grease, but it works great. Beat in each egg until the dough comes back together before adding the next.
This recipe makes about 24 cream puffs, or 2 per serving. Larger puffs will make fewer and need a few extra minutes in the oven.
Yes! Freeze unfilled shells in an airtight container for up to 2 months, then re-crisp them in a 325°F oven for about 5 minutes. Filled cream puffs can be frozen too. Serve them straight from the freezer for a treat that tastes like an ice cream puff!
Storing and Freezing Instructions
- Refrigerator: filled Chocolate Cream Puffs can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 days. You can also store the chocolate cream puff filling in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Frozen Cream Puffs: frozen cream puffs with chocolate filling taste amazing, almost like they are filled with ice cream. You can also freeze both the baked pâte à choux dough and the cooled chocolate pastry cream for up to 2 months.
- To Thaw: pull the choux pastry out to room temperature for a few hours, or overnight. The filling can be thawed overnight in the fridge. You may want to refresh the pastry in a 325 degree oven for about 5 minutes to remove any moisture, then let it cool completely before filling with the thawed cream puff filling.
Chocolate Cream Puffs with Chocolate Custard Filling
Ingredients
Choux Pastry
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
Chocolate Custard Filling
- 2 cups milk
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 4 egg yolks
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For Assembling
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
Pâte à Choux Pastry
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large saucepan over medium high heat, add the butter, water, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and add the flour. Stir constantly and vigorously using a wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan. Continue to cook for an additional 1 minute in order to remove a little more moisture and cook the flour.
- Immediately transfer the cooked pastry dough to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on medium speed using the paddle attachment to release some of the steam. Reduce speed to low, then begin adding the eggs one at a time, letting each egg incorporate into the dough before adding the next. Continue to mix until the dough is smooth and forms a thick ribbon texture when stirred with the paddle.
- Transfer the pâte à choux dough to a piping bag with a large round (or star) ½" inch piping tip. Pipe 1 ½"-2" rounds onto your prepared baking sheet, keeping them about 2" apart. Wet your finger and smooth out the tip on each round to ensure even baking and color.
- Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 without opening the oven door and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until the cream puffs are golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Cream Puff Filling
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the milk, sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking frequently. Once it reaches a boil, whisk and cook for 1 minute, or until the mixture thickens.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, add the egg yolks and whisk. With one hand, stream about 1/3 of the hot pudding mixture into the bowl while whisking constantly with the other hand. Slowly add the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan while whisking. Whisk the entire custard over medium heat until it comes to a boil.
- Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla, stirring until the butter is melted. Transfer the hot custard to a large bowl or baking dish and cover the surface of the pudding with plastic wrap. Place in the fridge until completely cooled.
Assembling Chocolate Cream Puffs
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the heavy cream and whip until soft peaks form. Remove the cooled custard from the fridge, giving it a couple stirs, then carefully fold in the whipped cream using a rubber spatula.
- Transfer the cream puff filling to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. Poke a small hole on the bottom of each baked choux pastry using the end of a thermometer, a large skewer or a small paring knife.
- Fill each cream puff, then dust the filled cream puffs with powdered sugar before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Did you make this?
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More of the Best Chocolate Desserts To Try
- Chocolate Bundt Cake
- Homemade Chocolate Syrup
- Best Chewy Fudge Brownies
- Chocolate Pudding
- Mint Chocolate Fudge
- Easy Homemade Chocolate Fudge
- Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Chocolate Cream Pie
- Best Chocolate Rice Krispies Treats
- More Classic Dessert Recipes
- More Reader Favorites
These Chocolate Cream Puffs are super impressive but surprisingly easy to make. They’re light, crisp and filled with a creamy chocolate custard.
Categories:
Christmas, Desserts, Holiday Favorites, Nut-Free, Reader Favorites, Valentine's Day, Vegetarian,
