Making the Pate a Choux which is the shell for the eclairs is very easy and can be made ahead of time and frozen until you decide to fill them. You could even add cheese to the hot dough and make a savory shell, great for dipping into melted cheese or your favorite vegetable dip. I make Eclairs at the bakery all the time and usually fill them with a bavarian cream and top them with chocolate ganache. Today I’ve decided to make a chocolate filling that you can make right at home and a chocolate ganache to top them with. The finished product should be a nice crunchy shell with a smooth filling topped with that great chocolate ganache.
Pate a Choux (dough)
1 cup water
1/2 cup unsalted butter (one stick)
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees and line a 1/2 sheet pan with parchment paper
In a medium sauce pan add the butter, water, salt and sugar and bring to a boil. Quickly add in the flour and whisk, mix well until incorporated and the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove from the heat and place the dough in a stand mixer fitted with a whip and begin to mix at a low to medium speed. Allow the dough to cool and mix for approximately 5 minutes (you don’t want to cook the eggs) When cooled add the eggs one at a time until a sticky dough like batter forms. In a pastry bag fitted with a star tip Wilton 1M begin to pipe out 3 1/2″ dough strips rocking slightly to form your eclairs onto the prepared sheet pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 – 20 minutes (should have almost doubled and turned slightly brown on the edges) Then reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake another 20 minutes (the second heat is to allow the dough to dry out and form that crunchy exterior). Place on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
Chocolate Pastry Cream
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 1/2 cup milk
4 egg yolks
3 tablespoons unsalted butter cubed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
In a medium sauce pan whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder, egg yolks and milk. Heat over a medium to high heat whisking until you form a smooth thick consistency. (8 – 10 minutes) Remove from the heat and add in the vanilla, salt and butter, stirring until the butter is melted and incorporated. Remove from the pan and place into a small bowel and cover with plastic wrap pushing down slightly to make contact with the mixture. (this will help avoid a skin layer from forming) Refrigerate and allow to cool completely.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with filling tip Wilton 230 with the chocolate pastry cream and fill each shell from both ends.
Topping
1/2 Cup heavy cream
1/2 cup semi – sweet chocolate chips
In a small heat proof bowel add the chocolate chips. In a small sauce pan heat the cream until its begins to boil. Pour it over the chocolate and allow to stand until you see the chocolate melting. Whisk to form a nice smooth mixture.
Dip the tops of your filled eclairs and allow to cool. Keep refrigerated until serving
Enjoy
Chef Brian Klauss
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