Just a few simple ingredients combine to make the most luscious tea time treat. If you prefer the classic chocolate éclair, simply melt 100g dark chocolate with a spoonful of golden syrup and 20g unsalted butter, cool until thickened then spread over the top of the éclairs.
Makes 10. Ready in 1 hour, plus cooling.
Ingredients:
- 50g butter
- 65g plain flour
- 2 medium eggs, beaten
- 300ml double cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 100g icing sugar
- 1 tbsp cold strong black coffee
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 220°C, 200°C fan, Gas 7. Place the butter and 150ml water into pan and heat gently until the butter melts. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil then quickly tip in the flour and a large pinch of salt and beat with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms a smooth ball that comes away from the sides of the pan. Cool for 2-3 minutes.
- Gradually add the beaten eggs, beating well after each addition, until the mixture is firm and glossy. You may not need to add all the beaten egg.
- Spoon the mixture into a large disposable piping bag fitted with a large plain nozzle and pipe 10 x 9cm lengths of the pastry onto a large dampened baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until the pastry is risen, golden and crisp. Pierce each éclair with the tip of a knife to allow the steam to escape and bake for a further 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- Halve each cold éclair. Whip the cream and vanilla extract together in a bowl until softly peaking and drop spoonfuls into the bottom halves of the eclairs.
- Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and beat in the coffee to make a smooth icing. Gently dip the top half of each éclair in the icing. Carefully sandwich the éclairs back together.
Top Tip:
To dampen the baking sheet just sprinkle about tsp of cold water over it – this will create extra steam in the hot oven which will help the choux pastry to rise.
