SweetsJulius RamirezJanuary 03, 2021chocolate, pastry, choux, cream, vanilla, eclairs

Classic Chocolate Eclairs

SweetsJulius RamirezJanuary 03, 2021chocolate, pastry, choux, cream, vanilla, eclairs

Like many of you, this year the holidays was quiet and limited to those in your household. Although we missed all our families and friends, we know this was the necessary sacrifice to keep those we love (and ourselves) safe and healthy. That said, I wanted to challenge myself to make a fancy dessert, so I decided to make my version of the classic chocolate eclairs. This starts with the traditional choux pastry, which puffs up quickly in the oven, then finishes off at a lower temperature to get that golden crispy texture. These hallow pastries are filled with a luxurious pastry cream with tons of vanilla paste to ensure you get that awesome sweetness you just can’t get from sugar. Lastly the dark chocolate dip on the top allows for the bittersweet finish to complete each bite. It’s a bit of a labor of love, but definitely worth it! Peep out my bio for the recipe link.

Enjoy!

What you need

Pastry Cream

2 cups whole milk
3/4 tsp vanilla paste
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
5 tbsp cake flour
1/8 tsp salt
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Choux Pastry

1 cup water
1 stick unsalted butter
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons AP flour
3-4 large eggs (pending texture)

Chocolate Dip

Half bag of dark chocolate chips (5 oz)
4 tbsp unsalted butter (room temp)

The Deets

In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients together - sugar, cake flour, and salt. Once mixed, whisk in the eggs and egg yolks. Set aside.
Using a medium saucepan, lightly boil the whole milk and vanilla paste.
Once you have a light boil, cut the heat.
Slowly add the hot milk and vanilla to the egg and flour mixture, whisking constantly to ensure you bring the eggs to the temperature. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, continuously whisking until thick. This may take 5-6 mins.
Immediately strain the pastry cream through a fine sieve into a medium bowl.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400°

In a medium saucepan, bring the water, butter, sugar and salt to a boil over medium high heat. Remove the pan from the heat.
Add the flour and stir using a wooden spoon until the dough comes together and a film forms on the bottom of the pan.
Transfer the dough to a large bowl and beat at medium speed until slightly cooled.
Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each egg.

Place a non-stick pad on a baking sheet, then set aside.
Using a rubber spatula, scoop the pastry dough to a piping bag with a round tip.
Pipe eclairs onto a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Each eclair should be about 4-5 inches long.
After the 10mins, immediately reduce the oven temp to 325° and bake the pastry for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and place on cooling rack.

In a medium bowl, whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form.
Take out pastry cream from the refrigerator and carefully fold the whipped cream into the prepared pastry cream. Try not to over mix.
Place the pastry cream into a piping bag using a small round tip.

Assembly

Using the tip of a paring knife, carefully poke 2 holes on the bottom of each eclair, approx. 1inch from each end.
Pipe a healthy amount of pastry cream into each hole, filling the eclair. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, melt the dark chocolate chips in a microwave, using 30 second increments until it is almost completely melted. Stir in butter and continue to mix until you have a shiny smooth texture.