Don't be intimidated by cream puffs. Combine a few simple ingredients and let your oven produce magic. If you've never made cream puffs, you are about to experience a culinary miracle. You start with a simple dough of flour, water, salt, butter and eggs.
Some recipes also call for a bit of milk and a pinch of sugar.
Mix it up and pile it into tiny mounds on a baking sheet. Pop them into the oven, and the tiny blobs are magically transformed into golden clouds of pastry to fill with all sorts of savory or sweet goodies. Homemade cream puffs are impressive presentations, yet they are surprisingly easy and fun to to make. They can also be made several days in advance of serving, which makes them great for parties or special occasions. It also refers to the dough that has been a basic of French pastry since the early 16th century.