I love teaching students how to make desserts that look elegant, but sound difficult!  After learning about The History & Science of Cream Puffs, they are always surprised to learn how simple they are to actually make. Read on to learn how to incorporate this into your pastry or dessert unit.

Set

• Create a Flippity WordMaster game template using the word CHOUX to introduce this pastry.  After students have figured out the word, ask if anyone is familiar with it or has eaten a form of it. My students did not know it by the term, however, many had eaten cream puffs before.
• To learn more about cream puffs, assign students The History & Science of Cream Puffs where they use the provided resources to answer the questions. Resource #1: History of Cream Puffs & Resource #2: Cream Puff Science.

Materials

• iPad or Laptop
• Projector & Screen
• Silicone Baking Mats (affiliate link)

Activities

• To better prepare students for the lab, I have them complete the pre-lab questions associated with the recipe.  After going over the answers, students fill out their lab sheets with their kitchen group, assigning prep and clean-up jobs.
• The next day students prepare and bake a small batch of the cream puff shells and mix up their vanilla pudding filling, storing them properly overnight. 
• The following day students fill and garnish their cream puffs with powdered sugar and sauces before eating. As part of their lab grade, I have them take a picture of their plated dessert and share it with me on Google Classroom.  Many students also think this is an Instagram worthy dessert to share with their followers and are pretty proud of their finished products!

Attachments

• The History & Science of Cream Puffs (PDF)
• Small Batch Cream Puff Recipe & Pre-Lab Questions (PDF)

Photo by ofer dahan on Pexels