For some reason although I like Eclairs I always find that they aren't as satisfying as I think they should be, now whether this is because shop brought ones are not all that good or the filling isn't the best I'm not sure. To remedy the situation I though I'd have a try at making some, I'd known that Choux Pastry was a little bit of a faff to make so I thought it might be a little bit of a challenge. This recipe is based on one from the Bouchon Bakery.
It turned out not to be as hard as I had though it was, however it does take quite a bit of time and lots of messing about between bowl, saucepans and mixers. Also as I'm finding out a stand mixer does really make life a lot easier. The recipe below is just for the Eclairs, you can fill them with and sort of cream filling, I used vanilla whipped cream and creme patisserie topped with melted chocolate. You could however use other filling such as creme patisserie au chocolate or top with caramel, chocolate fondant etc.
Eclairs
Ingredients
- 175 g Plain Flour
- 33 g Sugar
- 250 g Eggs, approximately 5 medium
- 240 g Water
- 120 g unsalted butter
- 2.5 salt
Instructions
- Mix the water, salt and butter in a medium pan gently heat until the butter has melted
- Bring to a simmer then remove from the heat
- Stir in the water and sugar until it forms a paste (about 2 minutes)
- Return to a medium-high heat and keep stirring for another 2 minutes
- Transfer to a mixer and mix on low for 30 seconds
- Slowly mix in the eggs a bit at a time until all have been combined
- Mix for a further 15 seconds
- Transfer to a piping bag and refrigerate until cold
- Heat the oven to 190 degrees
- Pipe out the Eclairs onto slipat on a baking tray (you may wish to have a template underneath to get even Eclairs)
- Place in the oven and turn down to 170 degrees for 40 minutes turning halfway through
- Turn the oven down to 10 degrees and bake for a further 20 minute
- Finally turn the oven down to 150 and bake for a final 10 minutes
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 165Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 99mgSodium: 153mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 0gSugar: 3gProtein: 4g
Jo Bryan
Wow just wow!! They are perfect and a favourite of mine. Must make some! Over from Recipe of The Week!
bubbleless
They came out really well and tasted great, much better than shop brought.
Jo Bryan
Oh a question already are the templates easy to come by?
bubbleless
The template is just lines 6" long 2" apart that you can put under the silpat.
Lou @ Crumbs + Corkscrews
I can definitely say they tasted as amazing as they look!! x
Julie
They look a real treat.
Alison
I have always been scared to try choux pastry, these look lovely
bubbleless
It wasn't as hard as I had thought it would have been, just time consuming, well worth the effort though.
Javelin Warrior
I remember watching an episode of the French Chef where Julia Child made pate choux and it's such a fascinating dough and such a simple ingredient list. These eclairs sound wonderful and I'm sure much tastier than shop-bought...
Bunny Eats Design
These look great. I used to make what we call cream puff which are basically bite sized chocolate eclairs and instead of piping out a line, you just use a tablespoon and drop spoonfuls into a tray. I avoid piping bags where possible!
Liz Posmyk (Bizzy Lizzy's Good Things)
Your eclairs look delicious! I have always loved them!
Emily @amummytoo
I am now craving eclairs at 1 in the morning. D'oh! They look fabulous. Thank for joining in with #recipeoftheweek. I've pinned and tweeted this post and there's a fresh linky live now. I hope you'll pop over and join in again this week, if you haven't already!
Lucy Bakingqueen74
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Lucy - BakingQueen74 (@Bakingqueen74)
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patisseriemakesperfect
These eclairs look so good. Great piping! #PerfectingPatisserie
Lucy @ BakingQueen74
Thanks for linking up with #PerfectingPatisserie.
Lili
Really nice choux pastry and perfect éclairs! 🙂 I really appreciate my stand mixer too now (had it less than a year) ... like the way you can do stuff and wash up while it's working! 🙂