French · Free recipe
Chocolate Eclairs
Crisp, hollow choux fingers are filled with a cool, thick vanilla pastry cream and dipped in a shiny dark chocolate glaze. Baking the shells until they are deeply golden and then venting them is the key to pastry that stays crisp once filled.
- Prep
- 1 hr
- Cook
- 45 min
- Total
- 1 hr 45 min
- Serves
- 12
- Level
- Hard
Method
-
Heat 2 cups milk until steaming, whisk the yolks, sugar, and cornstarch in a bowl, temper with the hot milk, then return to the pan and whisk over medium heat until it bubbles and thickens, about 2 minutes; off the heat, whisk in 2 tbsp butter and the vanilla, press plastic onto the surface, and chill 2 hours.
-
Heat the oven to 400F. Bring the water, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup butter, and salt to a boil, add the flour all at once, and stir over medium heat for 2 minutes until a smooth ball forms and a film coats the pan.
-
Transfer the dough to a mixer, beat for 1 minute to release steam, then add the beaten eggs gradually until the dough is glossy and forms a V shape that hangs from the paddle; you may not need all the egg.
-
Pipe 5-inch logs about 1 inch wide onto parchment-lined baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between them, and smooth any peaks with a damp fingertip.
-
Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven to 350F and bake 20 to 25 minutes more, until deep golden and firm; pierce each end with a skewer and return to the turned-off oven for 10 minutes to dry.
-
Whisk the cold pastry cream until smooth, spoon it into a piping bag with a small round tip, and fill each cooled shell through two holes poked in the bottom until it feels heavy.
-
Pour hot cream over the chocolate and corn syrup, let sit 2 minutes, then stir into a glossy glaze; dip the top of each eclair, let the excess drip off, and chill 20 minutes to set.
Zest note from the test kitchen
Resist opening the oven door during the first 25 minutes of baking; the steam trapped inside the shells is what puffs them, and a rush of cool air makes them collapse.
