Puits d'amour
This delicious little cake's charming French name means "well of love". It is made up of layers of puff and choux pastry, assembled with a light caramel and filled with vanilla confectioner's custard.
124 K 4/5 (24 reviews)
1 hour 45 min.
Average
6 pieces
4 IngredientsLast modified on: August 23th 2015
For 6 pieces, you will need:
- 1
150 g puff or flaky pastry (pâte feuilletée) - 2
300 g choux pastry (pâte à choux) - 3
150 g caster sugar - 4
300 g confectioner's custard (crème pâtissière, or french pastry cream) - Total weight: 900 grams
Change measures:
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 60 min.
Cooking: 45 min.
All in all: 1 hour 45 min.
If you start now, at , you will finish around : ?.Change start time
To finish around 7pm, you'll need to have started before: .Change end time
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 5 min.
Preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C).
Roll out the puff pastry thinly, cut out circles 6 cm (2 inches) in diameter and put these on a baking sheet.
Prick all over with a fork, then lay a second baking sheet or wire rack on top to prevent them puffing up too much.
Roll out the puff pastry thinly, cut out circles 6 cm (2 inches) in diameter and put these on a baking sheet.
Prick all over with a fork, then lay a second baking sheet or wire rack on top to prevent them puffing up too much.
Stage 2 - 15 min.
Stage 3 - 5 min.
Place a sheet of cooking parchment on a baking sheet and draw circles 6 cm (2 inches) in diameter.
A cutter of the right size is ideal for this.
A cutter of the right size is ideal for this.
Stage 4
Cover the sheet, but be sure to leave space between the circles.
Stage 5 - 10 min.
Turn the sheet over and pipe rings, using a forcing bag with a size 6 nozzle, over the circles you have drawn.
Stage 6 - 3 min.
Tidy up the circles if necessary by pushing the choux pastry into place with a small spoon dipped in milk.
Stage 7 - 20 min.
Bake for around 20 minutes, until golden.
Stage 8 - 10 min.
Prepare a light caramel with 150 g caster sugar. Stand the caramel pan on a folded cloth within easy reach.
Stage 9
Begin assembling the puits d'amour: place a circle of puff pastry in front of you (tip: work on a sheet of cooking parchment; then, if the caramel runs over the edge, it won't stick).
Stage 10
Dip a choux-pastry ring into the caramel (use tongs if you can to make this easier).
Stage 11
And stick this quickly onto the puff pastry.
Stage 12
Do this with another ring and stick it on top of the first one...
Stage 13
...then add a third and final ring.
Stage 14 - 30 min.
You can see how to do it in this short video.
Build all your puits d'amour "wells" like this.
Build all your puits d'amour "wells" like this.
Stage 15 - 5 min.
Finish by filling the wells with confectioner's custard.
Stage 16
Refrigerate until needed, but do not serve too cold.
Remarks
Puits d'amour do not keep. To eat them at their best, while they still have both crisp and soft textures, they should be eaten the day they are made, ideally within 2 hours.
Keeping: An hour or two, not much longer.
Source: After Gaston Lenôtre.
Nutritional information
| Proteins (gr) | Carbohydrates (gr) | Fats (gr) | Energy value (in k-calories) | Energy value (in k-joules) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole recipe | 300 RDI=110 % | 1,500 RDI=140 % | 990 RDI=150 % | 2,580 RDI=130 % | 10,800 RDI: 130 % |
| Per 100 g | 30 RDI=10 % | 170 RDI=20 % | 110 RDI=20 % | 290 RDI=10 % | 1,200 RDI: 10 % |
| Per piece | 50 RDI=20 % | 250 RDI=20 % | 160 RDI=30 % | 430 RDI=20 % | 1,800 RDI: 20 % |
How much will it cost?
- For 6 pieces : £2.40
- Per piece : £0.40
Change currency: 
Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
This recipe uses (among others)
Choux pastry (pâte à choux)
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Gougères, Paris-Brest, Saint Honoré cake, Chouquettes, Valay-Brest, ... See them all 8
Confectioner's custard (Crème pâtissière, or French pastry cream)
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Pistachio cream, Pear verbena tarts, Fraisier (French strawberry cake), Pear and chocolate tart with a hint of mint, Peach and green tea tart, ... See them all 19
Caster sugar
Like these other recipes: Prune Far, Panettone, Pears and caramelised walnut samosas , Checkerboard biscuits, Stewed apricots, ... See them all 361
Puff or flaky pastry (pâte feuilletée)
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Maroilles cheese quiche, Courgette tart with mint, Caramelised apple pie, Vegetable rosette tart, Mushroom tart, ... See them all 72
Other recipes you may also like
French custard tart
Custard pie is made with a shortcrust pastry base, and filled with an egg vanilla "custard" mix (prepared beforehand). Filling and pastry cook together in the oven. It's a great classic of the French bakery, found in all good shops.July 13th 2022447 K 234.3 1 hour 10 min.
Artichoke hearts forestier
This recipe is not very complicated, but does involve some work: an artichoke heart with a layer of mushroom duxelle, a layer of fried bacon, topped with a poached egg and cream sauce. Everything can be prepared in advance (the day before for example), but the final assembly should be done just...May 10th 2023272 K5 1 hour 50 min.
Fougasse with bacon and Comté
This is a richer version of the traditional Mediterranean recipe (originaly, it was a simple olive oil bread).October 24th 2017343 K4.1 3 hours 9 min.
How to prepare a bain-marie
A bain-marie is the best way to cook or heat a preparation gently without risk of burning.July 5th 2013519 K5 7 min.
Mexican ceviche
Ceviche is typical of South American cuisine, made with avocados, tomatoes and fish fillet cured in lime juice. This is a personal version of Mexican-style ceviche.October 13th 2010371 K 15 3 hours 9 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-07-06)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Follow this recipe (as 2 people already do)
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.