Croquembouche – Gluten-free version

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Choux Pastry

1. 1
   In a pot, bring the water to a boil with the butter and salt.

   StovePot
2. 2
   Add the gluten-free flour blend all at once and stir over the heat for 1–2 minutes, until the dough comes together into a ball and pulls away from the sides.

   Stove

   💡Cooking on the stove dries the dough: that way it absorbs more eggs, and their steam puffs it up in the oven.
3. 3
   Let cool 5 minutes and add the eggs one at a time, beating hard after each, until the dough is smooth and glossy.

   💡Add the next egg only after the previous one is fully absorbed: dough that gets eggs too fast turns runny and won't hold its shape.
4. 4
   Pipe 40 balls 3 cm across onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spaced apart. Wet a finger and flatten the pointed tips.

   Piping bagBaking panParchment paper
5. 5
   Bake in an oven preheated to 200°C (390°F) 10 minutes, until the pastries puff up. Lower the heat to 180°C (355°F) and bake 15–20 more minutes, until golden. Don't open the oven partway through.

   ⚙ BakingOvenBaking pan

   💡Opening the oven partway through lets the steam out and the pastries collapse. Open it only when they are golden and firm.

   💡Check by the cue (until…), not just the clock: every oven bakes a little differently.

For the Cream Filling

1. 6
   Heat the milk to just below a boil.

   StovePot
2. 7
   In a bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar and starch.

   BowlWhisk
3. 8
   Pour the hot milk in a thin stream into the mixture, whisking constantly.

   ⚙ Tempering eggsWhisk

   💡The hot liquid goes into the eggs slowly while whisking, and only about a third of it in the first batch: that way they warm gradually and don't turn into scrambled eggs.
4. 9
   Return to the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the cream thickens and bubbles in the center, then cook 1–2 more minutes.

   StovePot

   💡Stir nonstop until it bubbles: only then does the starch thicken fully, and the cream won't turn runny later.
5. 10
   Add the vanilla and butter and stir until the butter melts.
6. 11
   Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap touching the surface of the cream and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

   BowlPlastic wrapRefrigerator

To assemble

1. 12
   Let the puffs cool completely on a rack.

   Cooling rack
2. 13
   Pipe cream into each puff through a small hole in the bottom.

   Piping bag
3. 14
   Melt the sugar with the water in a pot over medium heat, without stirring, until it turns amber.

   StovePot

   💡Don't stir: stirring makes the sugar crystallize. If needed, swirl the pot gently. The color changes fast, so don't walk away.
4. 15
   Take the caramel off the heat and carefully dip the puffs in it using a fork: the caramel is very hot.
5. 16
   Assemble right away, while the caramel is still liquid: arrange a ring of puffs on a serving plate and build layers on top that narrow toward the top, with the caramel gluing them together.

   Serving platter
6. 17
   Decorate with the strawberries.
7. 18
   Serve within 4 hours of assembly: moisture from the cream melts the caramel, so don't make the tower a day ahead.