Eclair's & Profiterole's

I've had been itching to make eclair's ever since they had the challenge on MasterChef a few weeks ago. Eclair's, if made right, are one of my favorite desserts. They're creamy, chocolately and not too sweet. I was a bit spoiled when I was in France last summer, and ever since then, I have a weakness for the fresh whipped cream center of these naughty little creations.

For this post, let me just say that for having made these for the first time ever, my little eclair's didn't turn out so bad. My cream puffs (aka profiterole's) turned out fabulous! 

Now, let's dive in.

For Eclair's you will need:

• 1 cups + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 cup water
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter 
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a medium saucepan, bring the water, butter, sugar, and salt to a rolling boil.
3. Once boiling, immediately add all the flour, and stir until combined.
4. Continue cooking until it forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the pan 
5. Remove from heat.
6. Allow to cool for a minute or two. 
7. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, stirring vigorously after each addition.
8. Put the dough into a pipping bag (or plastic bag with corner cut).
9. Pipe the dough onto baking trays. The trick with this part is how wide the tip is-- mine was a bit narrow which is why my eclair's ended up a tad thin.  These bad boys will puff up during baking so I separated each piece by an inch. I also created cream puffs by simply piling the filling into a little mountain. 
10. Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until dark golden brown.
11. When the eclairs  (and/ or cream puffs) are removed from the oven, cut small slits into the sides to allow steam to escape.
12. Let cool completely.

Easy Filling

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tbsp sugar

1. Put cream and sugar in a metal bowl. 
2. Whisk until cream has become thicker-- but be careful. If you wisk too much you'll have sugary butter.

Chocolate Glaze

• 1 cup semi sweet chocolate
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1. In a saucepan, heat the chocolate and heavy whipping cream until a smooth chocolate mixture forms.

To assemble the Eclairs

1. Cut slits into the sides of the eclairs (or just one in the cream puff)
2. Place the cooled whipped cream in a pastry bag (or plastic bag with corner cut), and then pipe into each slit until each cavity is filled.
3. Either brush or dip the eclairs into the chocolate glaze, then place on a baking rack and allow to sit until hardened. 
4. Enjoy!

Like anything in life, baking takes practice. I'm excited to perfect this little recipe and hopefully create Parisian-worthy eclairs and cream puffs some day...! x