Q: What is choux pastry, and how do you make it?

A: Choux pastry is a basic French dough from which many sweet and savory pastries are made. The full French name is pâte à choux (pronounced PAHT ah shoe). Choux means “cabbage” in French; the dough got its name because cream puffs, which are made from it, resemble cabbage heads. In English, it’s also called cream-puff pastry or choux paste.

It’s a very versatile pastry and can be used to make not only cream puffs but éclairs, cheese puffs (gougères) and small cream puffs (profiteroles). Profiteroles can be dipped in caramel and formed into a croquembouche, a tall cake. Choux pastry also can be combined with other ingredients to make dumplings and gnocchi.

To make choux pastry, bring a mixture of water, salt and butter quickly to a boil. Remove the mixture from the heat and beat in flour by hand until the mixture is smooth. Return it to the heat briefly, and then take it off the heat and gradually beat in eggs. The result is a thick, eggy paste.

To use the mixture, pipe it through a pastry bag onto baking sheets into the desired shapes (logs or puffs) and then bake. (You can also shape the mixture by hand.) The heat of the oven creates steam inside the elastic dough, resulting in irregular puffs. When cooled, the puffs can be split open and filled with sweet or savory fillings.

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