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Ingredients
- FOR THE ECLAIRS:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 eggs
- FOR THE PASTRY CREAM:
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- FOR THE GLAZE:
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 6 ounces high quality milk chocolate
Preparation
Step 1
To make the eclairs: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats.
In a medium sauce pan set over medium heat, combine the butter, water, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter is evenly melted. Once the butter is melted, bring the mixture to a boil. Remove from heat and add the flour, stirring well with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms a dough.
Return the pan to the heat and cook, while stirring, for another minute. There will be a fine film of dough on the bottom of the pan.
Transfer the dough to the bowl of a standing mixer and beat on medium speed for about a minute to cool it. In a small bowl, beat the eggs thoroughly. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs in three additions, mixing well between each addition. Once all of the eggs are added, stop the mixer and scrape the bowl, then mix for another 30 seconds to combine the mixture thoroughly.
At this point, the batter should pass the “string test.” Pinch a small amount of batter between your thumb and fore- or middle finger, then pull apart. The batter should stretch into an elastic string. If it doesn’t, beat another egg in a small bowl and slowly add a little bit at a time until the batter passes the string test.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip with the påte à choux. Pipe straight lines of batter about 4-inches long, by 1-inch wide, by 1/2-inch high onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each one.
Bake the eclairs for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and rotate the pans from top to bottom and front to back. Bake for another 20 minutes. Finally, reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake for 10 minutes more, until the eclairs are golden brown. Transfer the eclairs to a wire cooling rack and allow them to cool before filling and glazing.
To make the filling: In a medium saucepan set over medium high heat, bring the milk just to a boil, remove from heat. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg, egg yolks, sugar, and cinnamon until combined. Thoroughly whisk in the flour until the mixture is smooth. In a slow, steady stream, and whisking constantly, add about half of the milk into the egg mixture. Slowly pour the egg mixture into the pan with the remaining milk and whisk well to combine. Whisking constantly, bring the mixture to a boil and cook for about a minute to thicken. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla until combined. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl.
Cover the cream with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic to the surface of the cream. Place the pastry cream in the refrigerator and chill for about 30 minutes, or until it is room temperature or slightly cooler.
Fill the eclairs: Fit a pastry bag with a Wilton #7 tip (or comparable) and fill the bag with the cream. Press the pastry tip into the bottom of the eclair, about 1-inch from one end, and squeeze the cream into the eclair until you feel it push back against the tip. Repeat the step at the opposite end of the eclair until the cream just starts to come out of the other hole. See illustration above, if necessary.
To make the glaze: In a small saucepan set over medium heat, gently bring the cream to a simmer. Place the chocolate in a small bowl and pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Let sit for 1 minute, then whisk until thoroughly combined. Let the glaze cool for 10 minutes before dipping the eclairs.
Gripping the filled eclair by it’s base, gently dip the top half of the eclairs into the glaze and allow the excess to drip off before returning the eclairs to the cooling racks or cool baking sheets. Allow the glaze to dry for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.