To begin, gather your ingredients. You will need one cup of uncooked pasta (preferably small-sized), one and a half cups of whole milk, one-third cup of sugar, one teaspoon of vanilla extract, one egg yolk, and two tablespoons of cornstarch. You will also need a piping bag and a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Pour the milk into a saucepan and heat it over medium heat until it begins to steam. Once you see steam rising from the milk, add the uncooked pasta and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until the pasta is tender and cooked through.
While the pasta is cooking, prepare the cream filling. Combine the sugar, vanilla extract, egg yolk, and cornstarch in a mixing bowl. Simply whisk these ingredients together until well combined. Once the pasta has finished cooking, remove it from the heat and add the cream mixture to the saucepan. Heat the mixture again and whisk it constantly until it thickens, for about 10 minutes. You can add a bit more cornstarch if the mixture does not thicken enough.
Once the mixture has thickened, remove it from the heat and let it cool completely. Once it’s cool, transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a tip. Pipe the mixture onto the parchment-lined baking sheet in the shape of small cream puffs, each about the size of a standard chocolate chip cookie. You can use a spoon to do this if you don’t have a piping bag.
Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C) and bake the cream puffs for about 20 minutes, or until they are puffy and golden brown on top. Once they are golden brown, remove them from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack.
Your delicious pasta cream puffs are now ready to serve! You can dust them with powdered sugar or drizzle them with chocolate sauce for extra flavor. These pasta cream puffs make a unique and surprisingly tasty dessert that is sure to impress your guests, and they’re so easy to make. You might even find yourself making them for every dinner party!