Choux pastry with vanilla custard

As if the baking demons were released yesterday and still running around the kitchen today, my baking mood has yet to waver. So I decided to make a childhood's favourite snack of my family.. choux pastry! My mom used to bake a lot of these and filled them up with Neapolitan ice cream, or sometimes, cheese-y custard. Those were the days....

Today, instead of ice-cream, I decided to make vanilla-rhum custard for a more 'adult' version. But, first... hmm... where are the eggs?

Choux pastry - makes 36 medium sized choux

200 g plain flour

150 g butter/ margarine

a pinch of salt

400 ml water

6 medium sized eggs

1. Pre-heat the oven to 205C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper, set aside.
2. Pour the water into a pan, add butter & salt in. Heat on medium heat until the mixture boils.
3. Gradually add plain flour as you lower the heat slightly and stir the mixture with a wooden spoon until the batter doesn't stick to the sides of the pan anymore. Turn off the heat.
4. Pour the batter into a large bowl (preferably stainless steel), let cool.
5. Stir in the eggs one by one into the cooled batter, whisking with a large metal whisk/ rubber spatula until completely blended.
6. With the aid of two teaspoons, get a heaped spoonful of batter and rounding each one with the other spoon, put it onto the prepared baking tray.
7. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes (middle of the oven), reduce the heat to 190-195C and bake further for 12-15 minutes (until it's a nice golden colour & hollow inside), set aside to cool.

Baked, unfilled choux

Vanilla-Rum Custard

4 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract or 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste

1 tbsp Bundaberg Rum

80 g custard powder

20 g plain flour

175g caster sugar

700 ml milk

1. Sieve custard powder & plain flour together, set aside.
2. Put the egg yolks & sugar, beat using an electric mixture until white & fluffy.
3. Add in vanilla & milk into the egg mixture gradually, while alternating with the flour mixture.
4. Heat a double boiler with the bottom part filled with 1/3 of water (or you can just use a pan) on a medium heat, pour the content of mixing bowl into the double boiler bowl (or if using a pan, pour the custard mixture into a large stainless steel bowl & place atop of the pan of boiling water). 
5. Stir the custard mixture with metal whisk until it thickens & bubbles; stir continually to ensure the custard doesn't become lumpy.
6. Set aside the custard to cool, but not refrigerated, covered with plastic clingwrap to get rid of air bubbles on the surface. Once the custard is cooled a little, mix in the rum with spatula. 

Vanilla custard

To assemble, cut a part the side of the choux pastry diagonally (easier done with scissors), then, get a heaped spoonful of custard to fill in the choux with. Sprinkle the top of the choux pastry with icing sugar if desired.

Finally it's ready to be eaten!!