21-ounce squares chocolate (I used 1/2 c. chocolate chips)
2cupssugar
1cupwhipping cream
Instructions
For the pastries:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a medium to large sauce pan, heat the water and butter to boiling.
Remove from the heat and the flour all at once, stir constantly until mixture is smooth and forms a ball.
Let cool for 5 minutes.
Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, fully incorporating before adding the next.
When the eggs are all mixed in, mix well until the mixture is no longer shiny (about 1 minute). Place the dough into a pastry bag.
On a greased cookie sheet, pipe out dough in thick lines to form the eclairs.
Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until light brown.
Set aside to cool.
For the filling:
While the pastries cook, make the filling. In a medium saucepan, prepare filling by whisking together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt.
Whisk in about 1 cup milk and cook over low heat, stirring often, until thickened, about 2 minutes.
Add the rest of the milk.
In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs.
Slowly add a ladle-full of the hot milk mixture to the bowl of eggs and stir to combine and then add the egg mixture back to the sauce pan on the heat, whisking as you pour it in.
Continue to cook and add the vanilla.
Set in the fridge to cool.
To assemble and make icing:
With a serrated knife, slice pastry puffs lengthwise, but not all the way through.
Pipe or spoon the custard mixture into the center.
To make the icing, add the chocolate, cream, and sugar to a medium sauce pan.
Cook over medium heat, stirring often. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes. Let cool and beat until smooth.
Ice tops of the eclairs.
Cool or serve right away.
Store leftovers separately covered in the fridge.
Notes
Letting the dough of water, butter and flour cool is crucial. If it's too hot, the eggs will cook and you will have bits of scrambled eggs in the choux pastry.
You can use a long metal tip (like the ones used for filling doughnuts) on a piping bag to fill each eclair from the bottom instead of splitting them open.
The icing adds more chocolate flavor but you can skip it if you don't want to make it or dust them with powdered sugar if you would like.
If it's your first time making eclairs, be sure to read the recipe thoroughly and gather everything you're going to need before you begin and then take it one step at at time to ensure success.