Eclairs step by step recipe. Choux pastry for eclairs: step-by-step recipe

In this article we will talk about how to make homemade eclairs. Read the step-by-step recipe below. But first, a little theory. Products from are numerous. Among them, there are three types of baked goods: eclairs, profiteroles and shu. What makes them similar is their dough base. It is brewed in a special way. When baking, the dough swells due to moisture evaporation, and internal voids form. The increase in size of the product gave the name to profiteroles (profit means “profit”). And the word “eclair” is translated from French as “lightning.” Probably, the buns were given this name because they inflate very quickly. Profiteroles and eclairs are always stuffed with filling, often sweet (custard, protein, butter cream, condensed milk, chocolate). But you can find products stuffed with cottage cheese, mushrooms, and minced meat. Shu, due to its small size (up to two centimeters in diameter), is served with broths and soups without filling - like bread or crackers.

Dough for eclairs at home: preliminary steps

Even a novice cook can make it. An important condition for good choux pastry is that you should never open the oven door when baking. Another key to success are eggs. They should be at room temperature. Therefore, a few hours before we start kneading the dough, we will put four eggs out of the refrigerator. Now let's start looking for two pans of suitable diameter. It is required that one can completely enter the other and be stably placed at its bottom. In this case, the small saucepan should contain all the dough. You probably already guessed that preparations are underway for a water bath. We will use this culinary technique to make eclair dough at home.

Steaming

Fill a large saucepan two-thirds full with water. Set it on fire. We immerse the smaller one in it. Water should not overflow the edges of this container. Pour water into a small saucepan too. But the quantity specified by the recipe is two hundred and fifty milliliters (a glass). Cut one hundred grams of butter into pieces. Add a pinch of salt. We wait until the heated water from the large pan melts the butter in the small one. This technique will prevent the fat from burning. The oil will come into contact with the water. Don't take out the small saucepan. Pour two hundred grams of white wheat flour into it. This is where the hard part begins. We need to mix hot oil water with flour so that not a single lump remains. This should be done with a wooden spatula. You can also use an immersion mixer. But they need to act very carefully so that the whisks do not spread splashes and flour throughout the kitchen. Numerous homemade recipes agree on one thing: the dough should be homogeneous, without lumps.

Kneading

As soon as the flour has completely combined with the oil liquid, remove the saucepan from the boiling water. Knead the dough again. We work with a wooden spatula for about five minutes. This way, firstly, the dough will cool faster, and secondly, it will become more elastic. Now it's time to beat in the eggs. We do this strictly one at a time and constantly knead the mass until completely homogeneous. Making dough for eclairs at home is not a problem, the main thing is to take your time and be patient. The mass should not be either liquid or too stiff. The dough will spread when you try to shape it, but it will also stretch slightly with the spoon. By the time the kneading is finished, the oven should already be preheated. Turn on the heat to two hundred degrees. Cover the baking sheet with parchment paper.

Planting

Now we begin to bake our eclairs (we have already mastered the dough recipe). We remember that we got ours from the ability to rapidly increase in size. Therefore, we place them on a baking sheet in such a way that in the oven the products do not stick together into a single lump. Profiteroles can be placed on parchment paper using a regular tablespoon. But eclairs should have the elongated shape of sticks ten centimeters long. Therefore, we cannot do without a pastry bag. Don't have such a device in your house? No problem: it will replace a regular durable cellophane bag. Fill it with dough. We clamp the edges. Cut off the tip at the cone. Voila! The pastry bag is ready to use. Squeeze the dough out onto kitchen paper. We form sticks five to seven centimeters long, leaving approximately the same distance between them. Place the eclairs in the oven for ten minutes. After this, reduce the temperature to one hundred and eighty degrees. Bake for another twenty minutes. Only after this is it permissible to open the oven door.

Semifinished

Thus, we got hollow buns. They should be evenly golden, dry on all sides, and when tapped, the dough should make a dull sound, indicating the presence of voids inside. These “blanks” can be stored for quite a long time - several months - in the freezer in an airtight container. In case of unexpected guests, all you have to do is prepare the cream and fill the finished eclairs with it. The dough recipe will allow it to remain fresh for several days - if you place the dough in a tightly tied bag. But in any case - whether you prepare the cakes for serving immediately, or hold them for the time being - the finished products need to be completely cooled. Because the cream, once in a hot environment, may behave unexpectedly.

Preparing the filling

Classic eclairs contain custard in their delicate cavity. But this is not a hard and fast rule. You can prepare cakes with any other filling, fill them with boiled condensed milk, jam, chocolate and nut mixture like Nutella. The ideas are countless. Let's look at the recipe for Italian meringue. This cream is so gentle, almost weightless. With meringue you will get very tasty eclairs. It is very easy to do, but you will need four hands. Mix one hundred thirty grams of sugar and forty milliliters of water. Cook the syrup until it becomes extremely thick, when caramel threads begin to trail behind the spoon. The second person at this time beats two egg whites with a mixer. The foam should be stable, but without hard peaks. Pour the syrup into the whites in a thin stream, without ceasing to work with the mixer at the same speed. When the meringue becomes dense and shiny, you can add some kind of flavoring - vanilla or essence.

Serving

Making the cream is half the battle. Now they need to stuff the hollow buns. Recipes for eclairs at home offer two options. The first one is the simplest. Cut the bun in half lengthwise and spread the eclair with cream like a sandwich. The second method requires the presence of And the cream in this case must be sufficiently elastic. Make a hole in the crust and add filling. And the final touch is the icing. It can be chocolate, sugar, caramel. You can decorate the surface of the products with coconut, meringue or jelly.

Yulia Vysotskaya: eclairs from a culinary star

How does the famous chef suggest we make cakes? She prefers to replace water with milk. In this case, you can do without a water bath - just heat all the ingredients for the dough over low heat. We also add a little vanillin for flavor. When the dough becomes thick, remove it from the heat and, kneading constantly, add four eggs one at a time. Such buns need to be baked at two hundred and twenty degrees for the first ten minutes, and then kept at one hundred and ninety Celsius for another quarter of an hour. When creating eclairs step by step, you should pay attention to the cream. We have already said that there are many recipes for it - from classic custard to pistachio or lemon. Vysotskaya suggests making it from corn flour (25 g), three yolks and powdered sugar (fifty grams). Beat all these ingredients until white thick foam. Dilute with a glass of milk. Place on the fire and bring to a boil. We fill our eclairs with this warm cream. Delicious!

Choux pastry for eclairs can be prepared in different ways - with water, milk or a mixture of both. Adding milk makes the dough more tender, so experienced confectioners advise preparing it in a 50/50 mixture. Ready-made profiteroles and eclairs made from this dough are softer, more tender and melt in the mouth.

It is this kind of choux pastry using a mixture of milk and water that we will prepare today. The recipe, as always, with step-by-step photos.

Products:

• 100 g butter
• 150 g flour
• 100 ml milk
• 100 ml water
• 4-5 eggs

Recipe for making choux pastry for eclairs and profiteroles with photos.

Pour milk and water into a deep cup

Put butter there

Add salt and put on fire

Prepare the flour in a separate cup, since the entire amount of flour must be poured out at once.

As soon as the water-milk-oil mixture boils, pour in the entire volume of flour and quickly mix with a spoon or wooden spatula. The flour should be poured in one fell swoop. Stir quickly until it is completely brewed.

We do all this right on the fire.

Reduce the heat and brew the dough for another 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.

Then remove the cup with the dough from the heat and cool slightly, but not much.

How will it cool down to such a temperature that it won’t burn your fingers (stick your finger in the dough, if it’s hot, wait a little longer).

Take a mixer and start beating in the eggs one at a time.

In principle, 3 eggs can be broken at once and mixed with a mixer, but beat in the rest one at a time and monitor the consistency.

The correct choux pastry should not be too thick or liquid and should flow from the spoon in a wide ribbon or, as they say, a “triangle”

It's more like a very thick cream.

It took me 4 whole eggs and 0.7 fifths. I broke the fifth egg into a mug and beat it with a fork until smooth, poured 1 teaspoon into the dough, beat it and looked at the consistency. Although chicken eggs are category 1, they are all different in size, so part of the fifth egg was needed for the dough.

If you don’t have a pastry bag, simply place profiteroles and eclairs by the teaspoon on baking paper or a special silicone mat.

For profiteroles, 1 teaspoon of dough is enough

For eclairs - 2 teaspoons.

If there is a bag, then take a nozzle with teeth and plant with it

During the baking process, the dough swells and the finished profiteroles and eclairs increase in volume by 3 times, which is why they need to be placed at a distance of 2-3 cm from each other

How to bake eclairs and profiteroles from choux pastry:

A baking sheet with eclairs or profiteroles should only be placed in a heated oven to 190-200 degrees.

Bake at this temperature for 10 minutes and reduce the heat to 150 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes to dry them.

Do not open the oven door during baking! Especially the first 20 minutes. Otherwise, the dough will settle and you will end up with a product that is flat as a sole.

If your oven bakes unevenly and the baked goods burn on the bottom, place a metal cup of water as soon as you turn on the oven.

In a gas oven, you often cannot set the temperature, but you can only see the indicators.

I bake the eclairs in a preheated oven on maximum heat for 15 minutes, and then immediately reduce the flame to low and bake for another 15-20 minutes.

I bake with a cup of water; according to experience, eclairs baked in moist hot air turn out more tender. You can simply spray the bottom of your oven with water from a spray bottle as soon as you place the pan in the oven.

You can do it differently. Bake at maximum temperature until “blush” appears and immediately turn off the oven and leave until cool. The residual heat is enough to finish (dry) the eclairs from the inside.

Choose the method of baking eclairs from choux pastry to suit your taste.

As soon as you bake eclairs or profiteroles for the first time, you will experimentally understand which baking method you like best, and perhaps invent your own, adapting it to your oven.

Profiteroles turn out hollow inside and golden brown on the outside, do not settle and keep their shape well both warm and hot. This cavity is filled with various fillings, snacks and creams.

That's all. Now you have a step-by-step photo recipe for choux pastry for eclairs, profiteroles and cakes.

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The family of choux pastry products is numerous, as befits a family with traditions. However, with all the variety of “representatives”, we most often encounter three main ones - profiteroles, shu and eclairs. All of these hollow buns have the same base - a dough that is made by boiling water, butter and flour and then adding eggs to it. This technology makes it possible to provide the products with a durable shell, which, inflating due to evaporating moisture (the water content in choux pastry is quite high), remains intact thanks to the eggs.

However, there are differences in the general cooking technology.

PROFITROLES
- These are small round buns with a diameter of up to 5 centimeters. Their name comes from the French word “profit”, which means “profit, benefit”. And this is quite logical: when inflated, the product significantly increases in volume and, thereby, visually deceiving the mind, still brings in “income”. Traditionally, profiteroles are filled with fillings - both sweet and non-sweet. To make them more attractive, they are covered with glaze or sprinkled with one or another crumb.

SHU
- miniature buns that are often served with soups, stews, and gravies instead of bread. Shape – round, diameter – up to 2 centimeters. Due to its miniature size, shu is rarely filled with fillings.

ECLAIRS
Translated from French, the word “eclair” means “lightning” - there is a version that this name was given to these cakes for their ability to quickly increase in size. Eclairs are easy to recognize due to their elongated shape. These are also products made from choux pastry, but baked in the form of sticks with an average length of 10 centimeters. The traditional filling is sweet. Eclairs are always covered with glaze on top, sometimes sprinkled with nuts, waffle crumbs and other sweet additives.

Choux pastry for eclairs. Eclair recipe

Using this recipe, you can prepare products that can be easily stored for up to three days in a tightly tied bag and up to three months in an airtight package in the freezer. If you bake the eclair preparations in advance, you will always have at hand a fairly quick version of a great dessert - homemade, stylish and tasty.

Ingredients for the dough recipe

• 250 ml water;
• 100 g butter;
• 200 g flour;
• 4 eggs;
• a pinch of salt

How to prepare the correct choux pastry for eclairs

WHAT EGGS SHOULD BE. To prepare the perfect dough for eclairs, the eggs must be at room temperature - remove them from the refrigerator 2-3 hours before starting work. WATER BATH MODE. First of all, we look for two pans of a suitable size - the smaller one should be firmly located in the larger one and be of sufficient volume to accommodate a portion of choux pastry. So, fill a large saucepan with water to about 2/3 of its volume, place it on the stove and turn on the gas. Pour 250 ml of water into a smaller saucepan and cut the butter into cubes. Add a little salt and place in a large saucepan.

PROCESS. In a water bath, let the butter melt completely, the water and butter boil, bubble, then immediately add all the flour, without removing the pan from the water. Knead vigorously - the flour should be all combined with water and oil, there should be no lumps.

WHAT TO KNEAD. It is most convenient to work with a wooden spatula, however, be prepared for the fact that this manipulation will require a certain application of physical strength from you. If you can't handle some effort, you can use a mixer - the downside is that its whisks, when stirring the flour, break the mixture into small lumps that scatter throughout the kitchen. If this moment does not bother you, feel free to neglect the pleasure that you can get from manual work - use the services of mechanized assistants.

INTRODUCING EGGS. Now you need to add eggs to the brewed flour mixture. This is done strictly with one egg at a time, and the dough is kneaded each time until perfectly homogeneous. To make your task a little easier, you can beat the eggs into a separate bowl and mix - do not beat, but just mix the whites with the yolk. After this, the egg mass should be added to the dough in portions and - don’t forget! – Stir each time until completely homogeneous.

CONSISTENCY OF READY DOUGH. The finished dough will not be thick and at the same time not liquid. It will stretch behind the spoon and blur slightly when you try to give it one shape or another.



Preparing eclairs (forming and baking stage)

The next stage is working with a pastry bag. If in the case of profiteroles you can get by with an ordinary tablespoon, placing the dough in small pieces on a baking sheet and giving them a round shape, then this option will not work with eclairs. These cakes require an even oblong shape, which is almost impossible to achieve without a pastry bag. However, in the absence of a bag, you can use a regular plastic bag. It is worth keeping in mind that it must be very strong - the dough can easily find a loophole and tear its walls. Nothing irreparable, of course, will happen, but there is also nothing pleasant in the process of searching for another package and transferring dough from one “container” to another.



So, put the dough in a pastry bag and place sticks 5-7 centimeters long on a baking sheet, leaving sufficient distance between them (do not forget that the dough increases significantly in volume during the baking process).



Place the baking sheet in the oven, preheated to 200 degrees and bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 180 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes. Do not open the oven door - the cakes may settle.

After the specified time, we check the eclairs for readiness - the dough should be evenly golden, dry on all sides and make a dull sound when tapped.



Before filling the eclairs with filling, you need to wait until the dough has cooled completely. If you are going to store the products in the freezer, they should also be completely cooled before packing.

How to fill with filling? You can do it in two ways. The first is to cut the eclair in half, fill the hollow part with filling and connect the halves. The second is to fill with cream without destroying the integrity of the eclairs, like profiteroles. To do this, make a neat hole and press the cream into it using a pastry bag.



But that's not all. The final touch is decorating the eclair with glaze. But we got ahead of ourselves. We’ll talk about how to prepare the cream and what kind of glaze it might be when we’re done with the dough for the eclairs. But this question still holds intrigue.

How to make eclairs with whole grain flour

The general principle of preparing dough for eclairs with whole grain flour is the same as in the classic version. The finished products are denser, “stricter” and more restrained in taste. The presence of whole grain flour in this recipe is also interesting from the point of view of the concept of healthy eating.

INGREDIENTS:

• 100 g whole grain wheat flour;
• 200 ml water;
• a pinch of salt;
• 2 eggs;
• 2 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.

Turn on the oven so that it heats up to 200 degrees.

We prepare the dough more simply - without a water bath: pour water and oil into a saucepan, add salt, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and pour out all the flour. Stir well until smooth – without removing the pan from the heat.

Turn off the heat, let the brewed mixture cool slightly and add the eggs one at a time, after each one knead the dough until completely smooth. The dough will be viscous, not thick.

We transfer it into a pastry bag or syringe and place strips 5-7 cm long on a baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, the finished eclairs should be evenly brownish and make a dull sound when tapped on the bottom.

Eclairs - recipe made from rye flour

Choux pastry with the addition of rye flour is used primarily for making profiteroles, which are planned to be filled with unsweetened cream. However, it can also be very interesting for eclairs in the dessert version - the products turn out to be sour in taste and even a little rough. Such eclairs will sound good in the company of mascarpone-based creams, curd mass with prunes and any other “cheese” options.

INGREDIENTS:

• 100 g whole grain rye flour;
• 200 ml water;
• a pinch of salt;
• 2 eggs;
• 2 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.

We prepare the dough for eclairs with rye flour in the same way as the version described above with whole grain flour - preheat the oven, brew the flour with butter, water and salt in a saucepan, remove from heat, let cool for a couple of minutes, then stir in the eggs, transfer the dough to the pastry case bag and place on a baking sheet. Bake until done, fill with cream after it has cooled completely. Decorate with glaze.

Eclairs with a crispy shortcrust pastry cap

This is perhaps the richest, most festive and elegant version of eclairs - the choux pastry is carefully covered with a strip of shortcrust pastry before baking, and then put into the oven. The result is a hollow, soft product with an amazing crispy crust on top. The option is somewhat labor-intensive, however, the end result is definitely worth the effort.

Ingredients for shortcrust pastry:

• 100 g butter;
• 125 g sugar;
• 125 g flour;
• a pinch of salt.

Ingredients for choux pastry:

• 100 g milk;
• 120 g flour;
• a pinch of salt;
• 80 g butter;
• 4 eggs.

Prepare shortbread dough - chop chilled butter with sugar, salt and flour, collect the resulting crumbs into a ball, place on a sheet of cling film, cover with a second sheet and roll out into a layer about 10-12 cm wide. Place in the refrigerator for about 1 hour, then then remove the top layer of film and cut the dough into rectangles measuring approximately 12x2 cm. Put it in the refrigerator again for 1 hour.

Recipe for homemade eclairs made from shortcrust pastry

Turn on the oven to warm up to 180 degrees.

We take two pans that will fit comfortably into one another. Fill the larger one 2/3 with water and put it on the fire. Place milk, salt and butter in the smaller one and place in a larger saucepan. After boiling, add flour and stir vigorously until smooth. Remove from heat, wait a few minutes for it to cool slightly, then add the eggs one at a time. The dough will turn out thinner than regular choux pastry, and that’s how it should be.

Place the dough in a pastry bag and place sticks up to 10 cm long on a baking sheet. Carefully cover each strip of choux pastry with a strip of shortcrust pastry. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 10 minutes without touching, then open the oven door 2-3 mm, releasing steam, and cook in this way for about 30 minutes - the cakes should turn out golden, dry and very pretty. Transfer them to a wire rack and wait until they are completely cool before filling with cream.

Fillings for eclairs

Depending on your taste preferences, eclairs can be filled with almost any cream. To understand which option seems best to you, you just need to cook and try.

Classic custard for eclairs

The classic version of custard involves mixing a milk-egg mass, thickened with flour or starch, with butter. However, if you need a more dietary option, you can simply omit the butter from the recipe.

The main difficulty in making custard is to get a smooth mass without a single lump. However, don’t let this moment scare you - even if you don’t succeed in preparing the perfect cream the first time, you can always correct the situation using an immersion blender or a regular sieve.

INGREDIENTS:

• 500 ml milk;
• 200 g butter;
• 1 cup of sugar:
• 2 tbsp. l. flour;
• 1 egg;
• any flavoring to taste.

Bring the milk to a boil, set aside. In a separate saucepan with a thick bottom, mix sugar, flour, add the egg, and grind thoroughly. Strain the milk into the resulting mass in small portions and stir until smooth. Place on the stove, low heat. With constant stirring, we bring the cream to a puffing state - if everything is done correctly, it will not boil, it will just “puff”. Remove from heat, add a little flavoring if desired - vanilla, lemon essence, a couple of spoons of rum or cognac. After cooling completely, beat the cream with softened butter. Ready.

Light curd cream for eclairs

This is far from a classic cream for eclairs, however, it is very successful - the fresh-tasting choux pastry goes well with the rich taste of cottage cheese.

INGREDIENTS:

• 200 g fat cottage cheese;
• 100 ml whipping cream (fat content not less than 33%);
• 2/3 cup powdered sugar.

Whip the cream into a stiff, stable foam, and finally add half the powdered sugar. Grind the cottage cheese through a fine sieve twice and mix with the remaining powdered sugar. If desired, use a blender instead of a sieve. Mix cream with cottage cheese. You can fill eclairs.

Classic cream - no surprises. The taste is moderately chocolatey; lovers will certainly appreciate it.

INGREDIENTS:

• 200 g butter;
• 1/2 can of condensed milk;
• 3 full tbsp. l. cocoa.

Place softened butter in a bowl and pour in condensed milk. Beat the cream until it becomes smooth and shiny, add cocoa, mix again. If desired, you can add a tablespoon of cognac or other aromatic alcohol to the cream. Can be used.

Pistachio cream

Nuts are always a winner when it comes to desserts. If you have a handful of pistachios, the solution immediately becomes ingenious - the cream turns out to be incredibly interesting, original, and unusual.

INGREDIENTS:

• 350 ml milk;
• 2 tbsp. l. corn starch;
• 100 g sugar;
• 100 g peeled chopped pistachios;
• 100 g butter;
• 150 g heavy cream for whipping.

Take a couple of spoons of milk and mix with starch. Stir the rest of the milk with sugar and bring to a boil. Add the starch mixture in a thin stream, stirring constantly. Bring the cream to a “puffing” state, turn off the heat. After cooling completely, beat the mixture with softened butter, then mix with nuts. Separately, whip the cream and mix with the milk-starch mixture. The cream is ready.

Cream based on Italian meringue

Light, delicate, weightless - this cream is ideal if your task is to prepare the most exquisite eclairs you have ever prepared.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 squirrels;
• 130 g sugar;
• 40 ml water.

Mix sugar with water, bring the syrup to a boil, reduce heat and cook until caramel threads appear (syrup temperature - 121 degrees). At the same time, beat the whites - when the mass becomes airy, but not stable or elastic, begin to gradually pour in the syrup in a thin stream, while the mixer operates as before, it should be turned off only after the cream becomes shiny, dense, and elastic. If desired, it can be mixed with flavorings or cocoa. Get started.

Glazes for eclairs

Ready-made eclairs can be served simply by filling them with cream of your choice, however, the cakes will take on a finished look if you cover them with icing on top. In addition, you can sprinkle ground nuts, poppy seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, and sesame seeds on top of the glaze. The waffle crumbs also look interesting.

Lemon glaze

INGREDIENTS:

• 100 g powdered sugar;
• 2 tbsp. l. lemon juice.

Mix powdered sugar with lemon juice and use the finished glaze immediately.

Chocolate ganache

INGREDIENTS:

• 50 ml cream;
• 100 g chocolate.

Mix cream and chocolate and bring mixture over low heat until smooth. Cover immediately.

White chocolate frosting

INGREDIENTS:

• 200 g white chocolate;
• 20 g butter;
• 2 tbsp. l. milk.

Mix all the ingredients, put on the fire, stirring constantly until smooth. Cover the eclairs immediately.

That's all, there is essentially nothing complicated in the secret art of making eclairs. A little effort, a little experience, just a little diligence - and you will have wonderful cakes on your table, prepared with your own hands.

By the way, did you know that June 23rd is Chocolate Eclair Day? Let June 23rd happen often in your life!

For many, the ability to prepare delicious eclairs at home is the pinnacle of culinary skill, which seems elusive and complicated. In fact, the process of creating a delicacy is not tricky or long, and anyone can handle it if they want.

How to make eclairs?

Each recipe for eclairs at home consists of simple and accessible rules, the observance of which presupposes obtaining the desired result:

1. Initially, choux pastry for dessert is prepared.
2. Portions of the flour base are placed on a baking sheet and the pieces are baked for the first 20 minutes at 200 degrees and then until golden brown at 180 degrees.
3. For filling, a cream is prepared, the recipe for which can be chosen from the variations presented below.
4. Fill baked custard eclairs with cream using a pastry syringe or bag.
5. If desired, prepare glaze for eclairs and cover the surface of the products with it.

Dough for eclairs

To cook, you will need a saucepan, stewpan or cauldron with a thick bottom and walls, as well as a convenient spatula for stirring the mass while brewing. The finished dough should be scooped up with a spoon and placed on a parchment sheet lined with a baking sheet, at some distance from each other, taking into account the doubling of the dough during the baking process.

Ingredients:

• water – ½ cup;
• margarine or butter – 150 g;
• flour – 1.5 cups;
• eggs – 4 pcs.;
• salt - a pinch.

Preparation

1. Add some salt to the water, add margarine or butter, and let it boil.
2. Add all the sifted flour at once, mix the mixture intensively with a spoon until smooth and remove from the stove.
3. After cooling to a warm state, add one egg at a time to the dough, ensuring homogeneity each time.
4. Spoon the resulting dough onto parchment.
5. Bake eclairs at home for 20 minutes at 200 degrees, until golden brown at 180 degrees and allow to dry and cool a little with the oven turned off.

Recipe for eclairs with custard

An ideal option for filling products would be custard for eclairs, the classic recipe for which is outlined below. If desired, you can reduce or increase the amount of butter, and instead of vanilla, use lemon zest, essence for flavor, or even add a couple of spoons of rum or cognac.

Ingredients:

• milk – 500 ml;
• egg – 1 pc.;
• flour – 2 tbsp. spoons;
• sugar – 150 g;
• vanilla sugar – 1 sachet;
• butter – 150 g.

Preparation

1. Pieces are baked from the dough.
2. Grind the egg with sugar, add flour, mix and pour in milk.
3. Place the container on the stove and heat until thickened and boiling.
4. Remove the bowl from the stove, stir in vanilla sugar and cool the mass under the film.
5. Add soft butter and beat the cream until smooth.

Recipe for eclairs with protein cream

Along with custard, it is no less popular for eclairs. Products with such filling turn out surprisingly tender, light and airy. Even the most demanding eaters will be delighted with such a delicacy. Before filling the eclairs, the cream must be kept in the refrigerator for about half an hour.

Ingredients:

• water – 100 ml;
• sugar – 1 glass;
• proteins – 3 pcs.;
• vanillin and citric acid - a pinch each.

Preparation

1. Breads are baked from the dough.
2. Syrup is made from granulated sugar and water, achieving a temperature of 120 degrees or a positive test in water for a soft ball.
3. Beat the egg whites with a pinch of citric acid and vanilla until stiff peaks form.
4. Pour in the syrup in a thin stream and beat the cream until it cools.
5. Eclairs are filled with protein mass at home.

Eclairs with cottage cheese

In this case, the filling for eclairs is made from cottage cheese. For a more fluffy texture, cream is added, the fat content of which should be at least 30%. Before whipping, the product must be well cooled on the refrigerator shelf. Eclairs are prepared and baked from classic choux pastry.

Ingredients:

• cottage cheese – 250 g;
• cream – 200 ml;
• powdered sugar – 200 g;
• vanillin.

Preparation

1. Initially, eclairs are baked from dough at home.
2. The cottage cheese is broken with a blender until the grains disappear.
3. Whip cold cream until thick, adding powder in portions at the final stage.
4. Combine the cottage cheese and cream mixture and beat again.
5. Fill the blanks with cream and sprinkle powder on top.

Eclairs with condensed milk

The following dessert recipe is for true sweet tooths. with condensed milk it turns out sweet, rich and surprisingly tasty. Often, crushed, pre-roasted peanuts or walnuts are added to this filling variation. The filling will be less fatty if you replace a portion of the butter with whipped cream.

Ingredients:

• boiled condensed milk – 1 can;
• butter – 200 g.

Preparation

1. The dough pieces are initially baked.
2. For the cream, take out the ingredients from the refrigerator in advance.
3. Beat the butter a little, and then add condensed milk in portions.
4. Fill eclairs with cream.

Eclairs with whipped cream

Eclairs with cream are no less easy to prepare at home. Having coped with the dough and baking the pieces, all that remains is a small task - just beat the ingredients for the cream with a mixer. For this purpose, you need to choose cream with a high percentage of fat content and cool it well before processing. Vanilla is often added as a flavoring, but other additives can be used to choose from.

Ingredients:

• cream – 500 ml;
• powdered sugar – 150 g;
• vanillin.

Preparation

1. Brew the dough according to the classic recipe and bake the eclairs in the oven.
2. Beat cold cream with a mixer until it has a thick texture.
3. Sweeten the cream for eclairs with powder, add vanilla and beat again.

Chocolate eclairs

The following recipe for making filling for eclairs will especially please fans of chocolate baking. The cream is prepared with the addition of melted chocolate, which can be replaced with a portion of cocoa powder if desired. A pinch of vanilla or a bag of vanilla sugar will not be superfluous, which will give the dessert a subtle aroma and make its taste even brighter.

Ingredients:

• milk – 250 ml;
• sugar – 80 g;
• starch - 4 tbsp. spoons;
• yolks – 2 pcs.
• chocolate – 100 g;
• vanillin.

Preparation

1. Breads are baked from the dough.
2. Heat the milk until it boils.
3. The yolks are ground with sugar and starch and added to the pan with continuous stirring.
4. Melt the chocolate and add it to the milk base, stirring.
5. Heat for the eclairs for another minute and let cool.

Eclairs with craquelure

The classic eclair cake can be made more refined and original by preparing it with a delicious craquelure crust. The simple but troublesome technology of creating delicacies will require a lot of time and patience, but the result is worth the effort. The contrast between the soft cream, delicate dough and crispy top coating creates the most vivid impression on tasters.

The article offers you a recipe not only for delicious choux pastry for eclairs, but also recipes for unusual and classic fillings for cakes.

Eclairs are world-famous cakes made from delicate dough with delicious custard. What is known is that eclairs appeared a long time ago, back in the 18th century in France in the kitchen of George the Fourth. The classic cake has an oblong shape and in addition to the filling, the eclair has a glossy glaze.

INTERESTING: There are two modern types of eclairs in the world: “profiteroles” and “shu”. They differ only in the filling method and shape (round, approximately 3 cm in diameter), the top of the shu is cut off and the cake inside is filled with cream, and the shu is filled with a cooking bag. Both types can be coated with white or chocolate glaze.

But, despite the many different recipes, any pastry chef will tell you that the eclair must be at least 14 cm in length, have an ideal and even shape, which only an experienced professional can recreate.

There are several important rules that must be followed when baking eclairs:

• Cold eggs(it is not fundamentally important how fresh they are, the main thing is to keep them in the refrigerator for several hours before cooking).
• Mixer or blender, with which you can beat all the ingredients well. You won't be able to beat it with your hand or a whisk.
• Should only be used high quality butter, which cannot be replaced with margarine or spread.
• The dough should not be too thick - this way you will not be able to achieve tenderness, in turn, the batter will not rise.

For the perfect test you will need:

• Oil (73-86%) – 100 g (soft, leave it to soften at room temperature in advance).
• Flour (choose only high grade) – 200 g (it should be sifted and it is best to do this twice).
• Eggs - 4 things. (large ones, it is advisable to choose homemade ones - they are more tasty and have a rich yellow color).
• Water – 250 ml. (refined, cold, not carbonated)

IMPORTANT: Sugar is not added to the dough, as the unleavened dough should complement the taste of the sweet cream and glaze.

How to mix:

• Place the butter in a bowl over a steam bath and gradually melt it completely.
• A pinch of salt and cold water are added to the liquid oil, everything is thoroughly mixed with a whisk, without removing from the steam bath.
• Add flour gradually, in small portions (1 tablespoon) and at this time mix the mixture thoroughly with a whisk or mixer. Continue adding flour until it's all gone. Make sure that the mass is homogeneous and without any lumps.
• The eggs should not be added to the mixture all at once, but one at a time, mixing each one completely with a mixer. The uniformity of the dough must be perfect.
• While you are kneading the dough, you should preheat the oven well at 190-200 degrees.
• The dough should be baked on parchment; it is easy to remove the pieces from it and they will not burn.
• You should pour the dough onto the sheet using a pastry bag, so the shape of the cakes can be correct and neat.
• After you put the sheet in the oven. Reduce temperature to 140-150 degrees. Do not keep the cakes for long, 15-20 minutes will be enough for them, watch how they take their shape, rise and brown.

Classic eclair

Profiteroles

Shu cakes

Eclairs: at what temperature and how many minutes should they bake in the oven and slow cooker?

The dough for eclairs is very tender and capricious. It requires a certain temperature in the oven in order to remain baked and not spoil. Before putting the eclairs on a sheet into the oven, preheat the oven at high temperatures and only then reduce to 140-150 degrees.

This way you can ensure that the cakes rise gradually but surely, without burning on top or remaining raw inside. Some housewives have learned to bake eclairs in a slow cooker. This is quite possible, but this process is very lengthy, because each eclair should be baked separately, maximum - 2 pcs.

IMPORTANT: Eclairs should be baked in a multicooker in the “baking” mode 30 minutes. During this time, you cannot open the lid of the multicooker. During this time, the dough will rise and brown.

How should you bake eclairs?

Custard for eclairs: recipe

Another secret to delicious cakes is properly prepared delicious cream. You can fill the cakes with any cream, but in the classic recipe this is done using custard.

You will need:

• High fat oil -
• Sugar -
• Egg -
• Flour -
• 1 small sachet

Brewing:

• The required amount of sugar and vanillin should be dissolved in the hot mass, try to see if you like it to taste.

Delicious filling for classic eclairs

Curd cream for eclairs: recipe

Curd cream can be not only a tasty filling for an eclair, but also healthy. These cakes can be treated to children and people who adhere to proper nutrition.

You will need:

• Homemade cottage cheese– 500 g (you can also use store-bought cottage cheese, but full fat or cheese mass).
• Sour cream– 200-250 g (it is advisable to use homemade separating sour cream, but you can also use 30% fat store-bought sour cream).
• Sugar– 200-300 g (focus on the preferred sweetness of the cream).
• Vanilla sugar– 1 small bag

Cooking:

• The cottage cheese should be ground through a sieve or crushed in a blender bowl so that it becomes fine-grained and the cream mass is homogeneous.
• If you use curd mass for cream, you should not grind it.
• Add sugar and sour cream to the cottage cheese (already ground), start mixing in a blender or mixer, adding vanillin.
• Fill eclairs with whipped cream

Curd filling for eclairs

Protein cream for eclairs: recipe

Protein cream is an ideal filling for eclairs, both classic and small round ones. The cream is as delicate as the dough, and therefore the dessert will delight you with airiness, lightness, and soft sweetness.

You will need:

• Egg whites – several pieces (focus on the required amount of cream).
• Sugar or powder - a few tbsp. (adjust the sweetness and elasticity of the cream yourself by adding sugar 1 tbsp).
• Fresh lemon juice - 1 tsp (can be replaced with a pinch of citric acid).

Cooking:

• Pour the cold whites into a bowl, add fresh lemon juice and start beating the whites by turning on the mixer at high speed (you can also beat with a blender with a whisk attachment).
• When the mass becomes fluffy and white, you can gradually add sugar to it, but not all at once, but in small portions and wait for it to completely dissolve.
• Prepare a steam bath (pour boiling water into a saucepan and place a bowl on top so that the steam heats it up).
• Smoothly transfer the protein mass to a steam bath and continue whipping, so you can achieve the elasticity of the cream.
• After whipping, the finished eclairs can be immediately filled with a cooking bag or syringe.

Eclair filling made from protein cream

Butter cream for eclairs: recipe

Buttercream is suitable for desserts of any type: cakes, pastries, baskets, fruit jelly and much more. Eclair is no exception. The cream perfectly emphasizes the tenderness of the choux pastry and becomes an excellent sweet addition.

Cooking:

• Preparing buttercream is very simple, much easier than custard or even protein cream.
• The secret of a delicious cream is properly selected and whipped cream.
• Buy the heaviest cream in the store, at least 30%.
• Add sweetness to the cream not with sugar (the crystals may not completely dissolve), but with powder.
• First of all, pour the cream into a bowl with high sides and start whipping (with a mixer or blender). Whisk long enough until the cream becomes thick and elastic.
• The amount of powdered sugar depends only on your preference for the sweetness of the cream; add it gradually and in small portions.
• When the cream becomes thick and sweet, you can fill the eclairs with them.

Creamy filling for eclair

Chocolate cream for eclairs: recipe

Recently, “assorted eclairs” have become increasingly popular. This is a kind of box with a set of several oblong cakes, each filled with a certain cream (all different). In addition, for a change, you should definitely try the chocolate filling in eclairs, which is no less tasty and ideal for delicate choux pastry.

You will need:

• Oil - 1 pack (choose high fat content and good quality oil without vegetable fats).
• Sugar - a few tbsp. (the sweetness of the cream should be adjusted independently, depending on the amount of cocoa and your taste).
• Cocoa - a few tbsp. (the more cocoa you add, the more sugar you should add, as cocoa gives a bitter taste).
• Heavy cream (30%) – 100 ml. (you can also do without them, but they will add lightness and creamy flavor to the cream).

Cooking:

• The oil should be left to sit for several hours until it becomes soft at room temperature.
• At this time, try to thoroughly whip the cream until it becomes elastic and dense. Stir sugar into the cream and dissolve it completely.
• The butter should be gradually added to the creamy mass, without ceasing to beat it with a mixer.
• After the cream becomes homogeneous, begin to gradually mix in cocoa and taste the cream until it acquires the necessary richness and taste of chocolate.

Chocolate filling for eclairs

Cream for eclairs with mascarpone: recipe

Mascarpone cheese is very delicate, with a soft creamy taste and creamy density. It can easily become the basis for filling eclairs. You can add powdered sugar to the cheese and beat the mixture with a blender or mixer to make it fluffy. Sugar should not be added, as it will leave an unpleasant graininess due to undissolved crystals. Mascarpone cream is well complemented with fresh fruits or berries, which can decorate the eclair on top.

Video: “Buttercream with mascarpone cheese”

Sour cream for eclairs: recipe

Sour cream can also complement eclairs, shu or profiteroles. It is only important to know that such a cake cannot be stored for long and should be eaten as soon as possible. In addition, it is best to choose full-fat sour cream for the cream (ideally, homemade separator), which will make a dense and fairly thick cream.

IMPORTANT: Preparing sour cream is quite simple. To do this, you just need to beat the sour cream with powdered sugar with a blender or mixer (the sugar may not dissolve completely and leave crystals that will “crunch” unpleasantly on the teeth). You can also add a packet of vanilla or vanilla extract to the cream for flavor.

Video: “Sour cream: very simple”

Cream for eclairs with condensed milk: recipe

Cream with condensed milk is one of the most favorite fillings for choux pastries. To fill eclairs, it is best to prepare it using boiled condensed milk “Iriska”; it has a pleasant melted taste and thick consistency, but with regular condensed milk the cream is no less tasty.

The advantage of the cream is that its preparation does not require a large number of ingredients, but only condensed milk and butter. The butter is softened by defrosting and mixed with a mixer along with the “Toffee”. There is no need to add sugar, as condensed milk is quite sweet. For variety, you can add chopped dried fruits, raisins or coconut to the cream.

Video: “Cream from condensed milk and butter”

Lemon cream for eclairs: recipe

You will need:

• Full-fat milk (3.2% or homemade) – 500 ml. (you can also use 10% cream).
• Lemon – 1 PC. (fresh, medium size)
• High fat oil - 100-120 g (only natural, without vegetable fats).
• Sugar - 100-120 g (try, adjust the amount yourself).
• Egg - 2 pcs. (the cream turns out delicious if you use homemade eggs).
• Flour - 3-4 tbsp. l. (look at how the cream turns out: liquid or thick).
• Vanilla sugar or vanillin - 1 small sachet

Brewing:

• The butter should be placed in a steam bath and melted to a liquid state, mixed with milk. Whisk the mixture without removing from the bath.
• The required amount of sugar and vanillin should be dissolved in the hot mass; try it to see if you like it.
• Add flour 1 tablespoon at a time, constantly whisking the mixture with a whisk or mixer - this will prevent the formation of lumps.
• When all the flour has been dissolved in the creamy mass, add eggs 1 pc at a time, also completely mixing and beating.
• Grate the lemon on a fine grater to obtain the zest. Add the zest to the cream.
• Squeeze the lemon juice and grind it with sugar, add the syrup to the cooled cream and mix thoroughly. You cannot add lemon juice to hot and not yet brewed cream, otherwise the milk will curdle.
• Remove the cream from the steam bath, but continue whisking for a few more minutes. Let the cream cool and only fill the cakes when cold.

Lemon filling for eclairs

Eclairs with pistachio cream: recipe

Pistachios are deservedly considered the most delicious nuts due to their unusual creamy taste, pleasant fat content and aroma. To prepare the cream, you should use pistachio paste, but if it is not available in stores (this happens quite often), you can use the nuts themselves.

Simply put, pistachio paste is nuts ground into flour with butter. In order to crush the nut, you need a special processor, because it is quite difficult to do it manually. Pistachio flour is mixed with butter, powdered sugar and whipped heavy cream are added to the mixture.

IMPORTANT: You can also use pistachio ice cream to make the cream. It should be melted and mixed with whipped cream or butter.

Pistachio eclair

Eclairs with whipped cream: recipe

The easiest way to fill eclairs or profiteroles is to use a can of whipped cream. You can buy this ingredient at the grocery store (in the dairy refrigerator), it is very easy to use, thanks to the convenient spout-nozzle that can penetrate inside the eclair and fill it.

Another plus is that you can choose cream with any flavor: vanilla, banana, strawberry, chocolate, and so on. The disadvantage of this filling is that the cake must be eaten immediately; after a while, the whipped cream settles and simply becomes wet.

Whipped cream for filling eclairs

Chocolate glaze, cocoa eclair fondant: recipe

A classic eclair is always topped with chocolate glaze, which sparkles in the light with beautiful glossy reflections. Some cakes combine several types of icing (chocolate, white, colored), others are strewn with crushed nuts, fruits, coconut and chocolate chips.

Making chocolate glaze is quite simple. It is important that the glaze dries, and this requires very few ingredients: cocoa, powdered sugar (about 100 grams). The glaze is mixed with water or milk (several tablespoons), into which the powder dissolves, and cocoa thickens the mass.

Video: “Chocolate icing in 5 minutes”

White glaze, fondant for eclairs: recipe

White icing is much easier to prepare than chocolate icing. The simplest recipe is to dissolve a large amount powdered sugar in a few tbsp. milk or egg white. A more complex recipe suggests using white chocolate:

• The chocolate is heated in a steam bath (be careful, white chocolate simply burns in the microwave!).
• Milk is added to soft chocolate
• The mass is thickened with bud sugar
• Eclair is covered with hot glaze
• The glaze dries out as it cools.

Video: “Icing sugar: fondant”

Snack eclairs: recipes for savory fillings

In addition to pastry eclairs, snack profiteroles are very popular in cooking. As you know, choux pastry for eclairs is prepared without sugar and therefore it can be filled not only with sweet cream, but also with other interesting fillings:

• Liver pate(boiled chicken liver, chopped with butter or cream, seasoned with spices).
• Farshmak(herring fillet, chopped in a blender with onion and butter, supplemented with green onions).
• Spike(pork lard, boiled and blended with garlic and spices).
• Canned fish(chopped into a pate with onions and spices, you can add an egg).
• Cheese salad(for this, creamy processed cheese with finely grated egg is crushed).
• Mushrooms(fried with vegetables, chopped in a blender with butter).

Video: “Snack profiteroles”

How to fill eclairs with cream and decorate: photo

If you do not have culinary skills and special tools (a pastry syringe or bag), you can only fill the eclair by cutting it. Otherwise, use these tools to maintain the shape of the cake and completely fill the voids in the eclair.

You can decorate the eclair not only with glaze, but also with:

• Nut crumbs
• Coconut flakes
• Cream
• Watering
• Glaze patterns
• Fresh fruits and berries
• Mint leaves
• Kurd
• Chocolate chips
• Cookie or biscuit crumbs
• Caramel mesh
• Chocolate figurines
• Confectionery powder
• Topping
• Sweet sauce

Beautiful assortment of eclairs

A creative approach to decorating eclairs

Professional decoration of eclairs

Eclairs and profiteroles: what's the difference?

The only difference between these two products is their shape. The dough is kneaded the same way, but the eclair always has an oblong shape, while the profiterole is round. In addition, profiteroles can be baked much faster due to their small size.

How many calories are in eclair with custard?

Eclair is not a dietary food and, of course, high in calories. However, you can indulge yourself from time to time, as it is delicious and it can be quite difficult to refuse such pleasure.

Video: “Eclair”