Saturday, September 20, 2008

As if I didn't love eclairs enough already...

and now I can make them on my own (I'm in trouble).








I followed the recipe as is. (*Note to self: when the recipe says use "waxed or parchment paper" don't automatically think that the Silpat would do better because if your pan shifts from the heat -it did- your eclairs will think it's a Slip-N-Slide). If I make these again I will definitely go with a creamy, whipped vanilla filling because that is my favorite flavor of eclair.
I decided to spread the work over the course of 2 days. I made the Pastry Cream and the Chocolate Sauce yesterday and let them sit in the refrigerator overnight. Reading through the forums (and Lis' blog) I was prepared for my pastry to come out flat from the oven and to be a little raw in the middle, but I just did the best that I could: I used my KitchenAid and made sure the eggs were well beaten into the dough, I made small eclairs and I baked them a little longer than the recipe required (I also checked out a YouTube video on making eclairs). It turned out better than I expected.









I decided to omit making the Chocolate Glaze and just to use the Chocolate Sauce only since it worked for some other DBers (and more importantly, I'm just lazy). That part was O.K. If I had made the Glaze it probably would have set up better. The sauce was a little runny but it tastes just fine.










All in all, this recipe was not cumbersome at all (although I confused myself a number of times but that has nothing to do with how the recipe was written) and it was a lot of fun to see how it all came together. Each challenge is building up my baking confidence. Great challenge!

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