Chocolate Eclairs

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C and line a baking sheet with baking paper. Make the choux pastry. In a saucepan put the water, milk, butter, sugar and salt and bring to a boil. Take off the heat and fold in the flour with a wooden spoon until smooth.
2. Return to the stove over medium heat and stir for 2 minutes until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan. Remove from the heat and whisk in the eggs, one at a time until the batter is a smooth dropping consistency.
3. Spoon the batter into a piping bag with a half inch plain nozzle and let the batter rest for 5 minutes (I had to stick mine in the fridge as it was too thick for piping).
4. Pipe 10 sausage shaped eclairs 6 inches long onto the baking sheet 2 inches apart. Bake for 25-20 minutes until golden brown and place on a wire rack to cool (don't open the oven while they're baking).
5. Make the Creme Patisserie. Split the vanilla pod and scrape out the beans. Add them and the pod with the milk in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and remove the pod.
6. In a large bowl whisk the yolks and sugar until light. add the cream, flour and cornflour and whisk until smooth. Slowly pour in the hot milk and whisk.
7. Return the mixture to the saucepan and bring to an almost boil. Keep whisking and simmer for 5 minutes over a low heat. Pour into a bowl.
8. Melt the chocolate over a double boiler and once melted pour into the creme patisserie and whisk in the cocoa powder. Cover with cling film and let cool.
9. Once cool transfer the filling to a piping bag with a 1/2 inch nozzle. Use the tip to pierce the underside of the eclair in three places and squeeze the filling in evenly.
10. Make the glaze. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Once melted add the sugar and butter whisking until shiny. Once cool dip in each eclair and smooth with a spatula.