Not-so-egg-free Choux

After several failed attempts at creating egg-free choux (granted I've still yet to try out the EnerG egg replacer), I was starting to have doubts.

Doubts as in, "Are the eggs (or lack thereof) really the determining factor here?  Or is it that (*gasp!* Heaven forbid!) I've gotten rusty in my choux-making skills????"  

So just to check to make sure my skills are up to par, I did exactly what I've been doing in  making the egg-free choux pastry, but put in actual eggs instead of the substitutes.  I piped them out, put them in the oven, and monitored what happened.


A few minutes into baking.  No sign of puffing yet...

Few minutes later.  The top is getting dry and starting to crack.

 

Woohoo!!  They puffed into golden perfection!
Here are the pics of a bigger choux, about 3" in diameter.

Conclusion:  yes, eggs are indeed the determining factor whether the choux puffs up into an airy globe or not.

But something similar can be made sans eggs:  egg-free popovers.  Egg-free popovers (use EnerG instead of eggs in a regular popover recipe) are definitely less complicated than choux.  Just mix everything together in a blender, portion into muffin pans, and bake.  But again, it will be more like a muffin, and probably won't form those air pockets.
Maybe try scooping out the insides of the egg-free popovers, and fill the resulting cavity with egg-free cream....behold.... A faux puffs!