Chocolate Eclairs

Chocolate Éclairs:

Basic Choux Recipe for the Éclairs

ingredients:

1 cup water
1 stick butter (1/2 cup)
1 cup all purpose flour
1 good pinch of salt

1 Tbs honey

3 Tbs sugar
1 cup eggs (4 large eggs)
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of whipped cream (homemade or bought)

directions:

Preheat oven 425F.

1. In a medium pot, bring the water, honey, sugar and butter to a simmer on medium heat. Add salt. Add the flour and with a wooden spoon or spatula, stir very quickly in one direction. Carefully watch and you'll see that the flour starts absorbing the liquid -- and a dough will form. Keep stirring to continue cooking the flour and cook off some of the water, another minute or two.

2. Transfer the paste to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or to a bowl if you're using a hand mixer. Let cool 4-5 minutes.

3. Add the eggs one at a time mixing rapidly until each is combined into the paste. The paste will go from shiny to slippery to sticky as the egg is incorporated. The pâté a choux can be cooked immediately at this point or refrigerated for up to a day until ready to use.

4. Spoon the dough into a large gallon-sized plastic bag (or piping bag.) Use your hands to squeeze dough towards the bottom corner. With kitchen shears, snip off just the tippy tip of the bag, about 1 ½ " of the tip. Pipe onto a baking sheet into 5 inch lines, keeping them 2-inches apart. Bake at 425F until brown, slightly darker than golden brown. If they are not cooked all the way, they will deflate when they come out of the oven.

Vanilla Pastry Cream Recipe:

1 ¼ cups whole milk

3 large egg yolks

¼ cup sugar

2 Tbs flour

2 Tbs cornstarch

1 tspn vanilla extract

In a heat proof bowl, blend sugar and egg yolks together. Whisk the flour with the cornstarch and then add to the egg mixture, blend until you get a smooth paste. Meanwhile, in a saucepan bring milk just to a boil (just until the milk starts to foam up). Remove from heat and add slowly to the egg mixture, whisking constantly to prevent curdling. Then pour the mixture into the saucepan and cook over medium heat until boiling, whisking constantly. When it boils, keep whisking for another 30-60 seconds until the cream becomes thick. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Pour the cream into a clean bowl and immediately cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a crust from forming. Cool to room temperature then refrigerate until firm. Whisk before using to get rid of any lumps that formed. I added 1/4 cup of homemade whipped cream to thin it out a little and make it lighter.

Chocolate Glaze:

Ingredients:

½ cup heavy cream

4 oz semi sweet chocolate chopped

Place the chopped chocolate in a heat safe bowl. Heat the heavy cream just to boiling over low-medium heat and removed from the heat immediately. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and stir until it forms a thin, smooth consistency. Set the chocolate glaze aside at room temperature for a few minutes to allow it to thicken.

Now you are ready!

Take a pastry bag fitted with a medium sized plain tip and fill it with the vanilla cream. Insert the tip into the end of an éclair and pipe about 2 ½ Tbs of cream into it. Gently dip the top half of your éclair in the melted chocolate. Then set your éclairs on a pan and put in the refrigerator to allow the chocolate to harden. Now you are ready to eat!!