Four different varieties of cream puffs featured at Farm Technology Days

Tim Brunk makes cream puffs every day at the Pine Cone Restaurant, Johnson Creek, squeezing the shells out by hand. To make 10,000 for Jefferson County Farm Technology Days (FTD) like that would take him six or seven days. 

Luckily, Brunk, the only man on the FTD food committee, has a baker from Milwaukee helping him who has a machine to drop the pastry shells in six to seven hours. From there a crew of ladies from the cream supplier will be on hand to stuff the pastries.  

Hold on though. These are no ordinary cream puffs. Well, one is — and that basic cream puff will be available each day of the three-day farm event. 

Brunk, who has been a baker for 23 years, knew cream puffs were popular in Johnson Creek "because we sell a lot of them." Not satisfied with the standard pastry for this event however, Brunk decided to "ramp it up and do something a little different" for one of the biggest agriculture events in the state coming to Jefferson County this year. 

He came up with a "bunch of different flavors" and the committee decided on three to feature at FTD — Bavarian creme, raspberry and maple. Each day a different flavor will be featured, along with the standard cream puff. Tuesday, July 23, visitors can taste the raspberry cream puff, Wednesday, July 24, it's the maple cream puff and Thursday, July 25, will be Bavarian cream puffs. 

While Brunk said the cream puffs he makes at the restaurant are "four times the size" of those that will be at FTD, I had a hard time finishing the one I tasted during a media day for the event back in June. I can attest to the sweet, sticky goodness of the maple cream puff.

Every good baker knows how much kids love cookies. The FTD food committee has the perfect solution for busy parents wheeling through FTD with stroller and kids in tow — cookies in a cup, milk chocolate chip cookies and candy cookies. 

Two gas ovens will be fired up every day making fresh cookies on site, according to Brunk. 

"Cookies will be in a cup so it's easy to take with them," said Brunk. "Our main thing is we were trying to make it convenient for everybody."

On a hot summer day, an ice cream sundae is great for cooling off while satisfying your sweet tooth. The food crew has the answer for that also. Three flavors of sundaes made with Mullen's ice cream. 

A strawberry fields sundae made with what else, but strawberries, a dirt sundae with Oreos and chocolate, and the Walter sundae with candy corn, candy pearls, Oreos and chocolate, in honor of the Walter Grain Farms and the crops.

"Corn and soybeans are the main items they grow, so we thought we’d make a sundae after them," said Brunk. 

From cream puffs to cookies in a cup, there will be plenty of treats to satisfy any sweet tooth at FTD. There to greet FTD attendees and guide them to the cream puffs will be Cravin' Cream Puff, the Jefferson County FTD mascot, who will be "highlighting all things cream puff," said food committee chair Tracy Brandel.

Carol Spaeth-Bauer at 262-875-9490 or carol.spaeth-bauer@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at cspaethbauer or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/carol.spaethbauer.