eclairs
We love all things choux and eclairs fall in that category - for sure. These can be filled with pastry cream or your favorite jam. We used cherry jam for this recipe. This recipe should make about 18 eclaris, 2 batches of 9.
Happy Barking!
Recipe
Eclairs
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1 egg, for egg wash
Bada Bing cherries for garnish
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sour cherry jam
1/2 cup white chocolate melting wafers
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Trace 9 five-inch lines onto a piece of parchment paper. Flip the parchment paper and add to a baking sheet.
Combine butter, sugar, salt, and 1 cup water to a saucepan.
Bring to a boil. Once at a boil, remove from the heat.
Using a wooden spoon, quickly stir in the flour until combined and return the pan to the stove.
While stirring continuously, cook the mixture until it pulls away from the sides. A film will form on the bottom and it will still take about 3 minutes.
Remove from the heat, add to the bowl of a stand mixer, and allow to cool for 3 minutes.
With the paddle attachment, mixing on low, add the eggs, one at a time. Allow one minute between mixing to ensure each egg is incorporated.
Transfer the pâte à choux to a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch plain round tip (or gallon size ziplock bag with no tip but a corner cut off).
Pipe onto the traced line with a couple of inches between each one. To pipe, hold the pastry bag upright and keep pressure consistent. TIP: pipe a small amount of dough onto the corners of the baking sheet under the parchment to keep the parchment from sliding.
Once your eclairs are made, whisk the remaining egg with a pinch of salt, and brush each eclair with the egg wash.
Bake 10 minutes at 425. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees and bake 30 minutes more.
After 30 minutes, open the oven, pierce top and sides to release steam, and prop door open to allow the eclairs to dry out for 1 hour.
Transfer each eclair to a wire rack and let cool completely. Repeat step 10 - 13 for the second batch, remember to re-pre-heat your oven to 425.
If desired, you can melt the white chocolate wafers in a heat-proof bowl over a pot with one-inch of boiling water (a makeshift double boiler). Allow to cool for 1 - 2 minutes. Dip the tops of the eclairs into the melted white chocolate, return to the wire rack, and allow to cool.
For the filling: whip heavy cream to stiff peaks in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add jam to the whipped cream. Transfer to a pastry bag, or a ziplock bag, and pierce 2 small wholes on the bottom of the eclairs. Fill each eclair until you meet resistance and some of the jam mixture starts to come out.
