eclairs

Recipe with photos at Spoontang!

PATE A CHOUX (PASTRY SHELLS)

1 cup water
8 tbsp butter
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup flour
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 425. Heat water, butter, and salt in medium saucepan. Once fully melted, remove from heat and add flour all at once. Stir and replace on heat for 1 to 2 minutes or until mixture smooths and begins to form a ball. Add to mixer and allow to cool until warm but able to be touched. Mix with paddle, adding 1 egg at a time, until mixture smooths out and forms a velvety paste. Add to pastry bag and pipe 4-5" logs on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown and insides are dry and hollow.

TEMPERED CHOCOLATE

1 lb. chocolate, 60% cocoa

Prepare a double boiler. Melt 1/2 of the chocolate in the double boiler to 115 degrees. Remove from heat and stir while adding pieces of the remaining chocolate. Continue to do so until mixture has come down to 81 degrees. Replace on heat until mixture is at 90 degrees. Remove from heat and continue to stir for five minutes. Dip pastry shell tops in tempered chocolate. Allow to cool and set.

PASTRY CREAM

1.5 cups whole milk
1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 egg yolks
1 tbsp vanilla

Heat milk in saucepan to just under boiling. Whisk together remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Slowly, while mixing, add heated milk to mixture. Once fully added, return mixture to pan over medium heat and whisk constantly until thickened. Strain into separate bowl. Spread out on silpat or parchment and cover with plastic wrap to prevent forming a skin. Once cooled, place in pastry bag and pipe into eclair shells.

ICING

1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla

Mix all ingredients, adjust as necessary with additional milk or sugar until desired pourable consistency is reached. Drizzle over tops of eclairs.

bon appetit