Xuxos or nuggets of cream

How to make xuxos or pepitos of pastry cream.

This has been one of my latest quirks, culinary speaking.

In our dessert recipes you could not miss these xuxos, which are fried dough canes that are filled with pastry cream or even chocolate cream .

You will hear them with many names depending on the region in which we are. In the Canary Islands, pachangas , in Albacete susos , in Catalonia xuxos and thus a long list of different nomenclatures for this juicy, sweet and more than addictive cake.

Another difference between one and the other is the type of dough, in some places this is the famous choux dough , such as that of profiteroles , which instead of baking is topped by frying it.

In the recipe that I leave you today, the dough is more similar to that of stuffed sedans , type donuts . Be that as it may, we use one or the other dough, it is a popular snack in almost all the Spanish geography that, to me personally, returns me to childhood.

I remember perfectly how on Saturdays, with the few coins I had to pay, I did not hesitate to spend them in one of the confectioneries that were in the San Lázaro park in Ourense. Among all that was exhibited there, without hesitation, my choice was a xuxo or cream cheese, my moment of enjoyment.

Preparation of the dough of the pepitos. Kneaded and shaped

1. In a saucepan we infuse the milk with the orange peel and 4 or 5 crushed cardamom seeds. For this we heat the milk with these ingredients for 4 or 5 minutes.
2. Remove from the heat and let the milk temper. We also remove the orange peel.
3. Mix in a bowl the rest of the ingredients, the flours, the warm milk, butter in the ointment, the fresh crumbled yeast, the sugar, the egg and a pinch of salt.
4. We knead until we see the dough come off the walls. If you have a food processor, I advise you to use it. This dough is quite sticky and difficult to work with, the appliance will make our work much easier. Knead for about 10 minutes.
5. Cover the bowl with transparent paper and let the dough rest in a warm place for 1 hour, until it has doubled in volume.
6. I usually leave the dough, in these times of rest, inside the oven previously tempered and turned off. So I make sure it ferments perfectly.
7. We flour a work surface and work the dough to eliminate all the air bubbles that have formed inside, we degas.
8. We divide the dough into portions of about 60 gr. each and we give it the characteristic elongated shape of the cream juices.
9. We place them on a vegetable paper in a tray and let them rest again until they have doubled in volume. I have put them back in the warm oven. 30 minutes will be enough for the dough to grow again.

Frying the pepitos

1. In a deep saucepan, heat plenty of oil for frying.
2. When it is hot we add the portions of dough helping us from the vegetal paper on which it rests, since if not, when handling the dough, it would lose body and volume.
3. We fry each one of the juices over medium heat, not excessively hot, so that it can cook inside without burning excessively.
4. We remove the buns from the oil and leave them on a kitchen paper to remove the excess oil. Still hot, we coat them in sugar and reserve.

Preparation of the pastry cream and filling of the Xuxos

1. In 3 or 4 tablespoons of milk we dilute the corn starch and reserve.
2. In a saucepan, pour the rest of the milk and infuse it by heating it. It has to boil with the cinnamon stick and a strip of orange peel.
3. When the milk rises we remove from the heat, remove the cinnamon stick and the orange peel. Let the milk slightly temper for a few minutes.
4. We beat the egg and add it to the milk. With the help of some rods, incorporate into the milk.
5. We put the saucepan back on the fire and add the starch that we have reserved and diluted.
6. We stir continuously, at medium temperature, until we see that the cream has thickened. Let it cook for a few minutes and remove from the heat.
7. We continue to stir from time to time until it has cooled. In this way we avoid the formation of a hard surface layer and we ensure that the cream is bound once it is cold.
8. Fill a pastry bag with the cream and fill the juices, once cold.
9. Cut them lengthwise and fill them with the pastry cream. If we do not have a pastry bag we can always use a plastic bag to cut one of its tips.

You can see all the step-by-step photos of this Suso or Xuxos recipes filled with pastry cream in this album. Do not miss any detail and they will be perfect.

Tips for some chubby creamy nuggets

• As always in this type of fried dough preparations, the ideal is to enjoy them the same day of their preparation.
• Its texture is fluffy, very tasty and, accompanied by a homemade pastry cream filling, second to none. These xuxos are perfect for indulging in a category, you will tell me.