Eclair Chocolate Pastry Glaze

These homemade French éclairs turn everyday ingredients into stunning pastries you'd swear came from a fancy bakery. The combo of airy choux shells, creamy vanilla filling, and smooth chocolate topping creates that perfect bite everyone's been crazy about for centuries.

I whipped these éclairs up for the first time when hosting dinner and didn't want to spend tons of cash. When everyone took their first bite, their faces lit up with pure joy, and I've been tweaking my method ever since.

Ingredients

• Milk and water: Creates the ideal moisture and gives a rich texture
• Unsalted butter: Builds the foundation and adds rich taste
• Granulated sugar: Brings just the right sweetness level
• Salt: Boosts all the other flavors and cuts sweetness
• All-purpose flour: Makes those perfectly puffy, light shells
• Eggs: Gives height, richness, and holds everything together
• Whole milk: The base for the smoothest filling
• Vanilla bean: Packs real flavor with those gorgeous tiny dots
• Sugar: Sweetens the filling to balance the chocolate top
• Cornstarch: Makes the filling thick but still smooth
• Egg yolks: Adds that luxurious texture and golden color
• Butter: When mixed in at the end, makes the filling extra smooth
• Semisweet chocolate chips: Easy to use and gives reliable results
• Heavy cream: Creates that shiny, perfect dipping topping

Step-by-Step Instructions

Prepare Choux Pastry:

Mix the wet stuff with fats. Put water, milk, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. This mix creates steam that makes your pastry puff up big in the oven.

Add flour and cook:

Take the pot off heat, dump in all flour at once, and mix hard until it's all combined. Put it back on medium heat and stir non-stop for about 2 minutes. Look for a thin layer forming on the pot bottom—that shows your dough has the right amount of moisture.

Cool and add eggs:

Put dough in a mixing bowl and use an electric mixer for 1 minute to cool it down a bit. Add eggs one by one, mixing each one completely before adding another. When done, the dough should look shiny and make a thick ribbon when lifted.

Pipe and bake:

Put dough in a piping bag with a 1/2 inch round tip. Pipe 4 inch lines onto a silicone-lined baking sheet. Bake at 425°F for 10 minutes, then turn down to 325°F without opening the oven door and bake 30 more minutes until they're golden brown.

Make Pastry Cream:

Warm milk. Get milk and vanilla bean almost to a boil, but don't let it burn. The vanilla bean gets its amazing flavor into the milk this way.

Prepare egg mixture:

Mix sugar, cornstarch, salt, and egg yolks until light and fluffy. You'll need to whisk hard for about 2 minutes to make the base for your cream.

Combine and cook:

Slowly pour hot milk into egg mixture while whisking like crazy to keep eggs from cooking. Pour everything back into the pot and cook until it's thick, always whisking. It should end up like pudding.

Finish and cool:

Take it off the heat, stir in butter chunks until they melt in, then cover with plastic wrap touching the surface so no skin forms. Chill at least 30 minutes.

Fill Éclairs:

Get shells ready. Make 2 or 3 tiny holes in the bottom of each cold éclair shell using a small tip or knife so you can fill them.

Fill with cream:

Put cold pastry cream in a piping bag with a small tip and squeeze into each shell until it won't take anymore. You'll feel it push back when it's full.

Make Chocolate Glaze:

Ready the chocolate. Put chocolate chips in a bowl that can take heat. Heat heavy cream just until bubbles form at the edge, then pour over the chips.

Create glaze:

Let it sit for 2 minutes then stir from middle to outside until smooth and shiny. The cream's heat does all the work melting the chocolate.

Finish éclairs:

Dip the top half of each filled éclair into the chocolate, let extra drip off, then put on a wire rack to set.

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You Must Know

• Eat these éclairs the same day you put them together for best taste
• This dough works great for cream puffs, profiteroles, and cheese gougères too
• You can add different flavors to the cream with extracts or liqueurs
• Don't rush the cooling times or you won't get the best results

The vanilla bean is what makes this recipe special to me. Those tiny black dots in the cream not only look fancy but taste way better than any extract could. I can still remember buying real vanilla beans for the first time and how everyone said they'd never tasted such amazing pastry cream before.

Make Ahead Options

You don't need to do everything on serving day to make perfect éclairs. Break up the work by making parts ahead of time. Empty shells can stay in an airtight container at room temp for a day or in the freezer for a month. Just warm them in a 325°F oven for 5 minutes before filling. The cream stays good in the fridge up to 3 days if you press plastic wrap right on top to keep a skin from forming.

Troubleshooting Choux Pastry

New bakers often struggle with choux pastry. If your shells aren't puffing up, your oven might not be hot enough or your dough's too wet. Make sure to cook the dough on the stove long enough to get rid of extra moisture before adding eggs. If they fall flat after baking, they needed more time in the oven. Try leaving them in the turned-off oven with the door cracked open for 5-10 minutes after baking to dry them out.

Creative Variations

The classic chocolate-topped éclair is amazing, but don't stop there once you get the hang of it. Try making pistachio cream and top with white chocolate and crushed pistachios. Coffee cream goes great with the usual chocolate topping. For something fruity, mix raspberry extract into the cream and cover with raspberry-flavored chocolate. During Christmas, add peppermint to the cream and sprinkle with crushed candy canes for a holiday twist.

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Frequently Asked Questions

→ What’s choux dough typically used for?

Choux dough is great for making eclairs, cream puffs, and other light pastries because its hollow inside can hold delicious fillings.

→ How can I keep my choux from collapsing?

Don’t open the oven door while baking, and make sure it’s golden and fully baked for a strong structure.

→ Can pastry cream be prepped ahead?

You can prepare the cream up to 2 days prior. Cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

→ How do I store eclairs after filling them?

Put filled eclairs in a sealed container in the fridge, and finish them within 2 days for the best flavor and texture.

→ What kind of chocolate works best for a glaze?

Semi-sweet chips or good-quality baking chocolate melt perfectly for a smooth, rich finish.