Classic Eclairs Recipe

An éclair is one of the most popular French desserts out there. This sweet treat is similar to a Boston cream doughnut in the sense that it's a pastry filled with custard and topped with a delicious glaze (which is chocolate in this case). If you're looking for a fancier spin on the average doughnut, then the éclair should be right up your alley. 

Recipe developer Eric Ngo came up with this recipe for classic éclairs that tastes better than the stuff you'd purchase at a bakery. "I like how versatile this recipe is. Once you master the basic pâte à choux and pastry cream recipe, you can easily change the shape and flavor of this dessert," he shares. "For example, you can also make cream puffs, cheese puffs, [or] cut the éclairs opens and add a fruit filling. Ngo suggests adding various decorations as well.

Ngo explains the skill level it takes to make this all-time favorite, "This is an intermediate-advanced level type of recipe." It requires "... certain steps [that] must be respected in order to achieve the right consistency [and] texture of the dough, and that piping the perfect shapes takes practice." But practice makes perfect, right? 

Keep reading to find out how to make these classic éclairs.

Every recipe starts with a trip to the grocery store. For this one, you will need white sugar, cornstarch, eggs, water, milk, a vanilla bean or vanilla extract, heavy whipping cream, unsalted butter, salt, flour, and dark chocolate chunks.

Once you have the ingredients ready, you can make these classic chocolate éclairs.

The first part of the prep work is to mix up the vanilla cream that goes inside the éclairs. Grab a small or medium bowl, add the sugar and cornstarch, and then whisk well to combine. Add one egg to the bowl and continue whisking until smooth.

The next element of the vanilla cream requires tempering the egg mixture. Adding just a portion of the hot milk heats the egg slowly and prevents a scrambled egg (via MasterClass), which is never fun with pastries.

Begin by adding the milk to a saucepan. Scrape the vanilla bean seeds or pour the vanilla extract into the milk. Place the pan on your stove, turn the heat to medium-high, and bring the mixture to a boil. Once you see bubbles reach the surface, pour half of the hot milk into the egg mixture bowl and stir it for 10 seconds. Then, pour the tempered egg back into the saucepan of milk and continue heating until it starts to boil again.

Take out a large plate and pour the hot custard over it. Cover the plate with plastic wrap, pop it in the fridge, and let it sit there until it gets nice and cold.

In the meantime, whip ½ cup of the heavy cream until it gets stiff. Once the vanilla cream is cool, remove it from the fridge and combine it with the heavy cream.

Now, you can make the pâte à choux, which is the French pastry dough that makes éclairs great. All you need to do is grab a medium-sized pan and add the water, unsalted butter, and salt. Place the saucepan on your stove and turn the heat to low. Continue heating the mixture until the butter starts to melt.

Once it has melted, turn the heat to high and bring the mixture to a rolling boil. Once you see the water rising, add the flour and mix with a wooden spatula until the mixture achieves what Ngo describes as a "mashed potatoes" consistency.

Now that the mixture looks like mashed potatoes, you can reduce the heat to medium. Continue mixing for a minute, and then turn off the heat.

In a different bowl, mix the three remaining eggs with a fork. Then, slowly add the egg mixture to the potato-like dough, about half at a time. Once you add the first half, give it a good mix, and when the eggs a fully incorporated, go ahead and add the rest.

You can move to the next step when the dough gets smooth and shiny.

Preheat the oven to 350 F and take out a nonstick baking tray or silicone mat to pipe the éclairs. Be sure to use a #15 round piping tip on your pastry bag. "Squeeze with your dominate hand while providing stability with your other hand, and sync your pressure with how fast you pull back," Ngo explains. "Pulling back too quickly will result in very skinny éclairs, and pulling back too slowly will result in fat éclairs." 

Then, pop the pastries in the hot oven for 35 minutes, and resist opening the range while the éclairs bake. "Be careful not to underbake these. If you do, the éclairs will be very fragile when you try to fill and glaze them," Ngo notes. "The éclairs should be crispy on their way out of the oven." 

Once finished, transfer the éclairs to a baking rack to cool completely.

We're in the home stretch! To make the chocolate glaze, begin by melting the dark chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. Add the remaining ½ cup of heavy cream to a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Then, combine the melted chocolate and warm cream, and continue mixing until smooth.

Now, the chocolate glaze is good to go.

To fill the éclairs with that delicious vanilla cream, poke a couple of small holes on the underside of each of the éclair. Fill your clean piping bag with the vanilla cream, and pipe slowly it into the holes. Then, add the chocolate glaze to the top. "The chocolate glaze for this recipe is considered a ganache," Ngo shares. "To glaze, place the warm ganache in a narrow container and dip the filled éclairs halfway in, set aside [for] the glaze to settle." 

You can either serve these éclairs immediately or pop them in the fridge for a little while until the glaze gets nice and firm. "Éclairs are a good option for an afternoon or evening dessert," Ngo suggests. "They are perfectly fine on their own, as they are often eaten on the go." Yum! 

We're not sure if you will have any leftovers, but if you do, store them in the fridge. They should last for two days.