Easy chocolate eclairs

Easy chocolate eclairs. Photograph:  Harry Weir Photography
Easy chocolate eclairs. Photograph: Harry Weir Photography
Serves: 20
Course: Dessert
Cooking Time: 0 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

  • For the choux pastry:
  • 125ml milk
  • 125ml water
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1tsp sugar
  • 115g unsalted butter, cubed
  • 140g plain flour
  • 3 large eggs (about 165g in total)
  •  
  • For the vanilla cream:
  • 200ml cream
  • 1tbsp sugar
  • ½ vanilla pod or ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 50ml natural yoghurt
  •  
  • For the chocolate glaze:
  • 200ml cream
  • 20g unsalted butter
  • pinch salt
  • 150g dark chocolate, finely chopped
  •  

1 For the choux pastry: Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line two baking trays with parchment paper. Put the milk, water, salt, sugar and butter into a medium-sized saucepan over a medium heat. Once all of the butter has melted and the liquid is just coming to a boil, take the pan off the heat.

2 Tip the flour into the pan, and beat the mix vigorously with a wooden spoon. Place the pan back on the heat and continue to beat until you have a smooth ball and the dough has come away from the sides of the pan.

3 Put the dough into the bowl of a stand mixer, and mix using the beater attachment for two to three minutes, until the mix has cooled slightly.

4 Add one egg, and continue to beat until it is fully incorporated. Repeat with the remaining eggs. The dough should be a smooth glossy paste once all of the eggs have been added. Put the paste into a piping bag fitted with a large star or plain nozzle. Keeping the piping bag at a 45 degree angle, pipe four-inch strips on to the baking trays, leaving two inches of space between each.

5 Bake the eclairs in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then turn the oven down to 160 degrees and continue to bake for a further 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and prick the end of each with a skewer to release the steam. Leave to cool on a wire rack. Once cool, make two holes in the bottom of each eclair using the tip of a piping nozzle.

6 For the filling: Whisk the cream, sugar and vanilla together until soft peaks form. Fold in the yoghurt. Transfer the cream to a piping bag and place in the fridge until ready to assemble.

7 For the chocolate glaze: Put the cream, butter and salt into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and whisk together until the chocolate is fully melted. Keep warm until ready to dip the eclairs.

8 Pipe vanilla cream into each eclair. Dip each eclair into the glaze, shake off the excess, and place on a wire rack to set.

Aoife Noonan

Aoife Noonan

Aoife Noonan is a pastry chef and culinary consultant. She writes a weekly baking column for the Irish Times Magazine