Strawberry Glazed French Crullers are a delightful treat: light, airy choux pastry rings fried to a golden brown and finished with a bright homemade strawberry glaze and a dusting of strawberry sugar. They’re perfect for summer mornings, brunches, or any time you want a sweet, fruity pastry.
With strawberry season approaching, this recipe is a timely favorite. I first tested a strawberry-glazed cruller recipe in 2019 and after several rounds of adjustments it finally became a recipe I’m excited to share. It uses just ten ingredients—fresh and freeze-dried strawberries included—and the choux pastry comes together quickly with no chilling time required.
The result is a tender, hollow-centered cruller with a crisp exterior, dipped in a strawberry-scented glaze and sprinkled with strawberry sugar for extra flavor and color.
Table of Contents
- What is Choux Pastry?
- Tools You’ll Need
- Helpful Tips for Making Crullers
- More Breakfast Sweets to Enjoy!
- Strawberry Glazed French Crullers Recipe
What is Choux Pastry?
Choux pastry—pâte à choux—is a light dough made from water or milk, flour, butter, sugar, and eggs. It requires no yeast or chemical leaveners; instead, the high moisture content turns to steam during cooking, creating a hollow, puffy interior perfect for filling or frying.
Tools You’ll Need
For the crullers
- Food scale or measuring cups
- Medium saucepan
- Mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment
- Piping bag and large open star tip (e.g., Wilton 1M)
- Parchment paper
- Deep fryer, deep skillet, or large saucepan
- Candy or digital thermometer (if using a skillet or saucepan)
- Tongs
- Wire cooling rack and paper towels
For the glaze and strawberry sugar
- Mixing bowls
- Small food chopper or food processor
- Sifter (for the glaze)
Helpful Tips for Making Crullers
Here are practical tips to get the best results when making strawberry glazed French crullers.
Prep your ingredients and workspace. Measure or weigh everything ahead of time, have tools ready, and cut parchment squares before you start.
Use parchment squares for frying. Cut 4″ x 4″ squares to transfer piped rings into the hot oil. Lightly spray them so the dough won’t stick; they’ll lift off easily after about a minute in the oil.
Trace circles for consistent sizes. Use a glass to trace 3–3½” circles on the parchment (trace on the wrong side) to guide your piping so the crullers are uniform.
Beat the steam out. Use a stand mixer with a paddle to cool the dough and remove steam before adding eggs.
Add eggs one at a time. Incorporate each egg fully before adding the next for a smooth, elastic batter.
Test the choux. The finished paste should be glossy and elastic. It should stretch 1–2 inches between thumb and finger before breaking or form a V on the paddle when lifted.
Use a deep fryer if possible. A fryer maintains a steady oil temperature. If using a skillet or saucepan, monitor oil temperature with a thermometer—don’t guess.
Leave parchment on briefly. Keep the parchment on each ring for about 45 seconds after the ring enters the oil; removing it too early may pull batter away.
Have a container for used parchment. Place spent squares in a bowl so you’re not running to the trash with oily hands.
Cool briefly before glazing. Allow crullers to drain on a wire rack so excess oil drains off, then dip in glaze and sprinkle with strawberry sugar.
More Breakfast Sweets to Enjoy!
Small Batch Cinnamon Rolls
5 Ingredient Butterscotch Bundt Rolls
Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins
Mini French Breakfast Puffs
If you make these Strawberry Glazed French Crullers, please leave a star rating and share your thoughts in the comments. Thanks for visiting!
Strawberry Glazed French Crullers
Ingredients
French Crullers
- ½ cup Water
- ½ cup Whole Milk
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter
- 2 tbsp Granulated Sugar
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 1/3 cup Bread Flour
- 4 Large Eggs
- Vegetable or Canola Oil, for frying (enough for a deep fryer or to fill a deep skillet halfway)
Strawberry Glaze
- 2 cups Powdered Sugar, sifted
- ¼ cup Fresh Strawberries, mashed or pureed
- 3–4 tbsp Whole Milk
Strawberry Sugar (optional)
- ½ cup Freeze-Dried Strawberries, processed into fine bits
- ¼ cup Granulated Sugar
Instructions
French Crullers
- Cut parchment into 18 squares, 4″ x 4″. Optionally trace a 3–3½” circle on each square and set aside.
- Combine water, milk, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium-high until it comes to a boil, careful not to let it boil over.
- Remove from heat and stir in the bread flour vigorously until combined. Return to the heat and stir, pressing the dough against the pan until a thick, smooth paste forms and pulls away from the pan.
- Transfer the paste to a stand mixer fitted with a paddle and beat on medium until steam dissipates and the dough cools slightly (about 4–5 minutes).
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the bowl. The batter is ready when smooth, glossy, and elastic—it should stretch about 1–2″ before breaking or form a V on the paddle.
- Fit a large piping bag with a star tip and pipe closed rings onto the prepared parchment squares placed on a baking sheet.
- Heat oil in a deep fryer or a deep skillet to 370°F (use a thermometer if using a skillet). If frying in a skillet, fill with 2–3″ of oil.
- Carefully place 2–3 crullers (parchment side up) into the oil. Fry 45 seconds with the paper in place, then remove the paper with tongs.
- Fry each cruller 2–3 minutes per side until medium golden brown. Remove with tongs or a slotted spoon and drain on a wire rack lined with paper towels.
- When slightly cooled, dip crullers in the strawberry glaze, sprinkle with strawberry sugar if desired, and return to the rack to set.
- Serve immediately for best texture. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one day.
Homemade Strawberry Glaze
- Puree the fresh strawberries in a food chopper, processor, or mash them with a spoon.
- In a bowl, whisk together sifted powdered sugar, pureed strawberries, and 3 tablespoons milk to start. Add the additional tablespoon if needed to reach a dip-friendly consistency.
Strawberry Sugar
- Process freeze-dried strawberries into fine bits, then pulse with granulated sugar to combine. Store in an airtight container.
Notes
- Recommended frying time is about 2 minutes per side (4–6 minutes total) until crullers are medium golden brown and puffy.
- The listed 24-minute cook time assumes frying several crullers at once for roughly 4 minutes each. Actual times will vary with batch size and oil temperature.
- The strawberry sugar garnish is optional but adds color and concentrated strawberry flavor.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary based on ingredients used.