Ptysie (Stuffed Swirls)

Ptysie are Poland’s answer to French profiteroles, but stuffed savory instead of sweet. These golden choux pastry puffs get piped through a fluted nozzle, baked until crisp, then hollowed out and filled with a rich sauteed mushroom and onion mixture bound with sour cream.

The choux dough follows the classic method: water, butter, and salt brought to a boil, flour added all at once, then stirred hard until the dough pulls away from the pan in a smooth ball. Eggs go in one at a time. Each egg loosens the dough before getting absorbed, creating the structure that lets these puffs balloon in the oven with hollow centers.

The double bake is the key to crispy shells. First bake puffs them up and sets the structure, then after filling, a second shorter bake warms everything through and re-crisps the pastry so it shatters when you bite into it.

Pro Tips

• Stir the dough vigorously after adding the flour; a weak arm here means gummy, dense puffs
• Make sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next or the dough will be lumpy
• Hollow out the soft interior dough after the first bake so you have maximum room for filling
• Mince the mushrooms and onions finely so the filling is spoonable and doesn’t spill out

Variations

• Fill with a ham and cheese mixture instead of mushrooms for a heartier option
• Add a pinch of dill or caraway seeds to the mushroom filling for a more traditional Polish flavor
• Make them sweet by filling with whipped cream and dusting with powdered sugar