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.
130 K 4/5 (24 reviews)
1 hour 45 min.
Average
12 pieces
4 IngredientsLast modified on: August 23th 2015
For 12 pieces, you will need:
- 1
300 g puff or flaky pastry (pâte feuilletée) - 2
600 g choux pastry (pâte à choux) - 3
300 g caster sugar - 4
600 g confectioner's custard (crème pâtissière, or french pastry cream) - Total weight: 1,800 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 300 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 | 590 RDI=230 % | 3,010 RDI=280 % | 1,980 RDI=300 % | 5,160 RDI=260 % | 21,600 RDI: 260 % |
| 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 12 pieces : 5.65 €
- Per piece : 0.50 €
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)
Confectioner's custard (Crème pâtissière, or French pastry cream)
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Pear and lime meringue pie, Strawberry Verveine Tart , Yvetot Douillons, Raisin breads (pains aux raisins), Strawberries with mint and cream, ... See them all 19
Choux pastry (pâte à choux)
You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Valay-Brest, Saint Honoré cake, Paris-Brest, Profiteroles, Pets de nonne, ... See them all 8
Caster sugar
Like these other recipes: Pears and caramelised walnut samosas , Clementine confectioner's custard, Apple custard tart, Toffee apple upside-down cake, Chocolate cream, ... 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: Chicken pie, Mirlitons, Cheese and tomato tart, Fine multi-tomato tart, Vol-au-vent cases, ... See them all 72
Other recipes you may also like
Pitta bread
This Lebanese speciality is made as a flat round pocket, which can be filled with all manner of things. January 8th 2025537 K 14.5 2 hours 50 min.
New tiramisu
This new version of tiramisu is easier, and in my opinion much better. You will certainly appreciate, like me, the light creamy taste, this time presented in brandy goblets. January 19th 2015408 K3.3 55 min.
Eggs Benedict
Soft-boiled eggs, served on toast with a slice of fried smoked ham, and the whole covered with Hollandaise sauce. April 8th 2023235 K4 1 hour 4 min.
Financiers
This delicious little cake gets its name from its shape, in the form of a gold ingot. April 14th 2020343 K 24.6 20 min.
French croissants
In this famous and highly technical recipe from a piece of yeast-based flaky dough we are going to cut and shape ("roll") croissants. June 26th 2019641 K 24.4 2 hours 35 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-09-21)
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.