Éclairs

Here's the recipe for the éclairs I brought to coffee hour on Wednesday, more or less adapted from a cream puff ring recipe in Dorie Greenspan's totally kickass Baking: From My Home to Yours.

For the choux pastry

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup whole milk
8 tablespoons (=1 stick) butter
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

For the pastry cream

2 cups whole milk
6 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened and cut into bits
2 tablespoons rum (optional, but delicious)

For the glaze

4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon corn syrup

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Make the éclair shells:

Bring the water, milk, butter, sugar and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the flour all at once and mix it in with a wooden spoon, then keep stirring until the dough comes together in a shiny mass. Cook for another couple minutes, stirring constantly, than transfer the hot dough to the bowl of a stand mixer or another large bowl.

Beat in 3 of the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Whisk the remaining egg in a small bowl and gradually add enough to form a dough that is shiny and thick.

Working quickly, pipe or spoon the dough into twelve logs on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake 15 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees F and continue baking until the shells are puffed, brown, and firm. Transfer to a rack and cool completely.

Make the pastry cream (see below for chocolate alternative):

Whisk the yolks together with the sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Bring the milk to a boil and drizzle a small amount into the yolk mixture to temper; add the remaining milk slowly, whisking constantly, to avoid curdling. Put the pan over medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens to the desired consistency, then remove from the heat.

Add the vanilla extract and the rum if you're using it. Let the cream cool slightly, then add the butter, stirring until fully incorporated and the pastry cream is smooth.

Scrape the cream into a bowl, and either cool over an ice bath (if you want to fill the éclairs right away), stirring occasionally, or press a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the cream - the seal must be airtight to prevent a skin from forming - and refrigerate until cold. I strongly recommend preparing the pastry cream a day ahead, particularly if you're using the rum, as chilling overnight improves the flavor in my opinion.

The pastry cream keeps up to 3 days in the fridge.

Fill and glaze the éclairs:

To fill the éclairs, you can either poke a hole in each shell and pipe the pastry cream inside, or slice the éclairs in half and fill them like sandwiches. I prefer the sandwich route - it's easier, I can tell exactly how much cream I've piped into each éclair, and they're always filled evenly.

Make the glaze by carefully melting the chocolate with the cream and corn syrup in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over very low heat, or in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. (Be careful not to overheat the chocolate and separate it.) Spoon, drizzle, or pipe the glaze over the filled éclairs, and toss them in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes to firm up the ganache.

Makes 12.

Alternate filling - chocolate pastry cream:

2 cups whole milk
4 large egg yolks
6 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
pinch of salt
7 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
2 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened and cut into small pieces

Whisk the yolks together with the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring the milk to a boil and drizzle a small amount into the yolk mixture to temper; add the remaining milk slowly, whisking constantly, to avoid curdling. Put the pan over medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens to the desired consistency, then remove from the heat.

Whisk in the melted chocolate. Let cool slightly, then whisk in the butter, stirring until fully incorporated and the pastry cream is smooth and silky. Scrape the cream into a bowl, and cool either over an ice bath (if you want to fill the éclairs right away), stirring occasionally, or press a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the cream and refrigerate until cold.

The cream can be kept covered for up to 3 days. If it tightens, use a fork or whisk to whip it back into creamy submission.