Key Lime Eclairs

By MJH

Ingredients

• Pastry:
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
• 1 TBS granulated sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup plus 1 TBS all purpose flour
• 4 large eggs, whisked
• Key Lime Cream:
• 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup key lime juice
• 1 cup heavy cream (COLD)
• Glaze:
• 2 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Details

Adapted from confessionsofacookbookqueen.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 400.
Butter a baking sheet or spray with nonstick spray and set aside.

Start your filling:
In a medium saucepan, whisk together sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and key lime juice.
Cook until it's very hot but not boiling, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and strain through a sieve into a bowl.
Refrigerate about an hour, until cooled and thickened.

In a medium saucepan, heat butter, sugar, salt and water over medium heat until the butter is melted. DO NOT BOIL.
Add all the flour and stir until it forms a stiff batter.
Keep stirring until the mixture starts to look more like a dough.
Keep stirring for several minutes until it becomes matte and leaves a film on the bottom of the pan.

Transfer dough to the bowl of a stand mixer.
Mix on medium low for one minute. Add the whisked eggs gradually.
Once they've all been added, change the mixer speed to medium high and beat just until dough is glossy.

Using a pastry bag with a 1 inch round tip (you could also just cut a wide opening), pipe strips that are about 3 inches long and 1 inch wide onto prepared baking sheet.
Bake for about 15 minutes, until the pastries start to turn golden brown, then turn oven down to 325 and continue baking until they are entirely brown.

Remove and poke a small hole in each pastry to let steam escape.
Let cool completely on the pans set on wire racks.

Place a metal mixing bowl and your mixer's whisk attachment in your freezer for about 5 minutes.
Pour the cold cream in the bowl and whisk on high speed until a thick whipped cream is formed.
Fold into the chilled key lime custard until no streaks remain.

Split eclair shells and fill with key lime custard.
In a microwave safe bowl, microwave chocolate and cream for about a minute, stirring every 20 seconds until completely melted.
Add powdered sugar and whisk until smooth. Let cool and thicken slightly, then spoon over eclairs.

Notes:
Keep uneaten eclairs stored in refrigerator.