Chocolate Eclairs

I remember vividly being a small child on a trip to Paris with my mother and sister, standing slack-jawed at the glass display cases of Stohrer, the oldest pâtisserie in the city. brimming with chocolate-glazed éclairs. Try making these delicious chocolate eclairs. Your family will love you for bringing a taste of France home. Eclairs are only slightly harder than making basic brownies. Only because there are 3 components to prep instead of simply 1. You will need a few tools like sil pats, pastry bags, and star tips to make this, but the results will be worth it.

Choux pastry takes a little practice to cook perfectly; you will need to cook it longer than you think to fully dry the pastry out. Pour yourself a glass of wine, put on some relaxing music and let's jump right in. The first step is to make the choux pastry as per the recipe below. It is fairly straight forward and impervious to failure as long as you follow my instructions and use common sense as your guides. There are two key parts to getting it right; first is to cook the dough fully after the flour has been added. You will continue to cook the dough till it pulls cleanly away from the sides of the pan. Secondly, after you pipe the dough out, you will need to bake it fully. Choux pastry is the great pretender, it will look done and if you fall for its bluff the pastries will collapse on your counter.

Eclairs will keep for two days BUT are best eaten on the same day. Enjoy! If you make this recipe please share with us! We love to see your creations on social media #pistouandpastis!

Chocolate Eclairs

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or buttered sheet of parchment paper. Put a large star tip into a pastry bag and fill with your choux paste. Pipe 3-inch long strips spaced 2 inches apart onto the silpat,

2. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350°F and continue cooking for 25 minutes. At this time the dough should be nicely brown and puffed, lulling you into believing it is done quicker than I said. Resist temptation and leave in the oven another 15 minutes to fully dry the center out. Remove from the oven.

3. Make both the pastry cream and chocolate glaze. When the pastry cream is room temperature you are ready to finish your eclairs. Put a small plain pastry tip into your pastry bag, and fill with pastry cream. Use a sharp paring knife to poke a small hole in the bottom of the eclair. Jam the tip of the pastry bag into the hole and fill with your luscious pastry cream.  Repeat until all the eclairs are at this point. Dip the top of eclairs into chocolate glaze and allow it to cool. Eclairs will keep for two days BUT are best eaten on the same day.

Choux Paste

An easy to master base with many applications from sweet eclairs to savory gougeres.

• 4 ounces unsalted butter
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 large eggs

1. In a large stainless steel saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the butter, water, sugar, and salt. Bring to a rapid boil, stirring to combine as the butter melts. Reduce the heat to medium and, using a wooden spoon, stir in the flour all at once. Cook, stirring constantly, until the dough dries out slightly, about 1 minute. This is important—excess moisture will cause your puffs to collapse. Remove the pan from the heat and let the dough cool for 5 minutes.

2. Stir in the eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated before adding the next. You can mix in the eggs with a mixer, food processor, or a wooden spoon to get a workout.

Pastry Cream

One of my favorite pastry books is Mastering the Art of French Pastry written by Bruce Healy in 1984. His recipe for pastry cream is what I have used ever since I first saw it.

• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature)

1. In a large stainless steel saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the milk and vanilla to a boil, then remove from heat. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, yolks, sugar, flour, and cornstarch together. Add half of the milk and whisk until smooth.

2. Pour back into your stainless steel pot and bring to a gentle boil, whisking constantly about 3 minutes. Immediately pull off of heat and whisk in butter. Let the pastry cream cool to room temperature. You will need to stir occasionally, otherwise, the pastry cream will form a skin. If it forms a skin you can simply puree in a food processor.

Chocolate Glaze

A quick and easy chocolate glaze

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips

1. In a large stainless steel saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the cream to a boil. Pour hot milk over chocolate chips and stir until smooth, about 2 minutes. Keep warm until you are ready to use it. If it gets solid just microwave until liquidy again.