dark chocolate eclairs

I had to make two types of eclairs here, because I wanted some filled with dark chocolate custard, but Mum required some with whipped cream and raspberries. Heartbreaking, isn't it?



The pastry shell used, choux pastry, is the same for both. I just filled one with creme patisserie (the traditional eclair filling) that I added cocoa powder and melted dark chocolate into, and filled the other sort with homemade whipped cream and some fresh raspberries. I topped both with melted dark chocolate. 



This post in another entry in my stuff-the-protagonist-bakes collection; I'm baking every baked good mentioned in a story written by gyzym. This post answers the prompt "dark chocolate eclairs."



Dark Chocolate Eclairs and Whipped Cream Eclairs
adapted from pastry cook by Catherine Atkinson, gyzym's story "I've Got Nothing To Do Today But Smile (The Only Living Boy in New York)," and Joy of Baking's Pastry Cream Recipe.

9 Tb flour
1/4 C butter
2/3 C water
2 eggs

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Melt the butter in the water in a small pot on the stove. Bring the butter and water to a boil, then remove from the heat and dump in the 9 Tb of flour. Stir vigorously until combined, then put back on the heat. Continue to stir for about 2 minutes. It will get a little shinier and pull away from the sides of the pot instead of sticking to them. Don't worry too much, just stir for a minute or two and then take it off. I think you're just cooking the flour a little bit so that it doesn't taste too raw. (If anyone else has any other theories about the science behind this brief cooking period, let me know).

Take the pot off the heat and let it cool for a minute or two. Then add the two eggs, which should be lightly beaten before you add them if you're a conscientious cook, or just cracked directly in and stirred quickly if you're lazy like me. Stir the eggs and pastry for a couple minutes, until everything is smooth and a little thicker. At first it will look like it won't combine, but just keep stirring. It will come together.

Spoon the slightly stiff batter onto a cookie sheet and shape however you like. Cream puffs tend to be ball-shaped; eclairs tend to be longer. Bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

While the eclairs bake, you'll want to make the fillings.



chocolate creme patisserie
3/4 C milk
1/2 C heavy cream
3 egg yolks
1/4 C sugar
2 Tb cocoa powder
2 Tb cornstarch
3/4 C chocolate, dark
1/2 Tb brandy
1 tsp vanilla

Beat the egg yolks and sugar together. Next, beat in the cocoa and cornstarch. Meanwhile, bring the milk to just barely simmering on the stove. Don't boil the milk, it doesn't like it.

When the milk is hot spoon a little into the egg mixture, whisking the egg until combined. Spoon a little more in, whisk. Continue until you've got about half of the hot milk in there, then pour the egg-and-milk into the rest of the milk and stir. Return mixture to a boil and boil for a half a minute or a minute. It should thicken. Remove from the heat and add the liquor, vanilla and the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is all melted. Let it cool before you fill the eclairs.




whipped cream
1 C whipping cream
1/8 C sugar

Whip the cream and sugar together until soft peaks form, about eight minutes or so (depending on your mixer).

To fill the eclairs, you can either put the filling into a bag and snip off the tip, then poke that end of the bag into the eclair and squeeze in the filling, or you can slice the eclair along one side and spoon the filling in. I chose the latter,  as I am (as previously stated) lazy and the second way doesn't involve any extra hardware but for the spoon.



Melt chocolate with a dash each of oil and cream and then spoon it over the top of each eclair. (The darker, thicker chocolate shown on the whipped cream eclairs is more chocolate and cream, less oil. The thinner chocolate on the chocolate-filled eclairs had more oil. Your choice).