Precious Art By Precious People

Ingredients:

• ½ cup water
• 8 tbsp. unsalted butter, cubed
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 eggs, at room temperature

 Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine the water, butter and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat until the butter has melted, and bring to a rolling boil. Remove the pan from the heat, and add the flour all at once, stirring vigorously. Return pan the burner and cook over medium heat, stirring all the while, until the mixture smooths out and follows the spoon around the pan; this should take less than a minute. Remove the pan from the heat, and let the mixture cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a mixer, and beat in the eggs one at a time; it will look curdled at first, but when you add the last egg it should become smooth. Beat for at least 2 minutes after adding the last egg. Drop the thick batter onto prepared baking sheets in 3-4 tbsp. mounds. Space the mounds about 3 inches apart to allow for expansion. Bake in the preheated oven, and reduce heat to 350 degrees, and bake for 35 minutes. Do not open the door while the pastries are baking. Remove the pastries from the oven. Make a small slit, and return them to the oven for 5 minutes, until pastries are a medium golden brown.

 Cream Puff Filling

 Ingredients:

• 6 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
• 3 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

 Beat the cream cheese, sprinkle in the sugar gradually. As the cream whips add the lemon zest and vanilla.

 Pipe filling into pastries. Top with powdered sugar.

 Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

 THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com