Chocolate Eclairs look very fancy and can be intimidating! But if you know how to make a Choux pastry and a pastry cream you are good to go! And if you don’t I’m gonna tell you!
Choux pastry can be scary if you’ve never made it. Tut trust me a child could make it! I use to make it when I was a kid with my grandmother. I loved adding the eggs one by one and stirring super fast so the egg wouldn’t cook. Since I have discovered that you can just put your flour mixture in the bowl of a stand mixer and the eggs one by one and the mixer will do the stirring for you!
Chocolate Pastry Cream to fill the Eclairs
Making Chocolate Eclair, or any kind of eclair, is a little time consuming so I like to start the day before by making the pastry cream and allowing it to cool down in the fridge. In the morning, when I am ready to use it I just give it a good stir, usually with my stand mixer so it’s soft and easy to use!
Here are a few tips to make the perfect pastry cream:
- Warm up the milk in a sauce pan but make sure not to bring it to a boil
- When adding the warm milk to the egg mixture, start with a tiny bit at a time so the egg mixture warms up without cooking! Otherwise you will end up with scrambled eggs!
- Stop baking the cream as soon as you see little bubbles.
Choux Pastry
As for the Choux Pastry, like I said, it’s pretty easy! All you have to do is melt the butter in the water with a little bit of salt in a sauce pan and add the flour. Stir until the dough doesn’t stick to the pan anymore, then cook for a few minutes longer while stirring. Dump that mixture in the bowl of your stand mixer at medium to high speed until it cools down. Then add the eggs one by one. Scoop your dough into a piping bag then give it the shape you want!
Icing for Chocolate Eclair
For the icing, you can buy fondant but I like to make everything from scratch so I boil 250g of sugar with 75g of water to 114 degree Celsius. Then a place it in the bowl of the stand mixer and stir until it becomes white. I roll it into a ball and keep it at room temperature.
So, get ready! It is time to make chocolate eclairs from scratch!
Chocolate Eclairs
Ingredients
Chocolate Pastry Cream
- 70 g (1/3 cup) Chocolate Chips
- 500 g (2 cups and 2 tbsp) Milk
- 4 Eggs Yolks
- 90 g (1/3 cup) Sugar
- 60 g (1/2 cup) Corn Starch
Choux Pastry
- 250 g (1 1/4 cup)Water
- 110 g Butter
- 5 g Salt
- 5 g Sugar
- 5 Eggs
- 155 g Flour
Icing
- 200 g Fondant
- 50 g Cocoa Powder
Instructions
Pastry Cream
- Warm up (don't boil!) the milk in a sauce pan.
- In a bowl, mix the eggs and the sugar until light yellow and foamy.
- Add the corn starch and mix well.
- Add the warm milk, starting by a tiny bit at the time and stir well so your eggs won't cook.
- Add the rest of the milk and stir.
- Pour the mixture back into the sauce pan on medium heat and stir continuously until you see a few bubbles.
- Pass trough a chinois to remove any cooked egg bits.
- Pour into a bowl with a plastic wrap right on top of your pastry cream and refrigerate for at least 1h or overnight.
- When you are ready to use, just give it a big stir with your stand mixer so it become soft again.
Choux Pastry
- In a sauce pan, add the water, butter, salt and sugar and bring to a boil.
- Add the flour all at once and stir until the dough doesn't stick to the pan.
- Cook for a couple of minutes continuously stirring.
- Place that mixture in the bowl of your stand mixer and mix on medium to high speed until the dough is cool.
- Add the eggs one at a time.
- Scoop the dough into a piping bag and pipe your eclair onto a baking sheet and bake then for 30 minutes at 350F (180C), until golden.
- Allow to cool down on a rack.
Icing
- Melt the fondant (see how to make it up in the post) to 37 degree C on a double boiler.
- Add the cocoa powder and stir until incorporated.
Make the Eclairs
- With a knife, make 2 or 3 little holes at the bottom of your Choux.
- Pipe in the pastry cream and refrigerate for 1h.
- Dump the top of your Eclairs into the icing and refrigerate for an 1h
