Classic Eclair Recipe
This Classic Eclair recipe is a Pate a Choux based hollow pastry shell filled with creamy custard, then dipped into a shiny chocolate glaze. This is a simple, yet sophisticated and all-around delicious Chocolate Eclair Recipe!
Here you’ll learn the tips and tricks on how to make eclairs. You’ll love this recipe for eclairs with the perfect hollow shells and the creamiest custard filling.
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I love eclairs, the taste of the pate a choux with the custard is a heavenly combination. We have a local French boulangerie that sells eclairs and we always get one when we are there.
One day, I just had to recreate them and came up with this homemade eclair recipe. These delicious pastries may take some time, but they are so worth it in the end! Trust me!
They taste even better with the pretty crystallized mint. 😉 Keep reading to find out how to make these delicious chocolate eclairs, and the crystallized mint. The mint leaf is optional though, so add it if you want, but don’t feel like you have to.
Do you have a step by step photo tutorial of the pâté a choux recipe?
Well yes, I’m glad you asked! Click here to see just how simple the process is. Once you see the step by step pictures, everything becomes so much more clear!
What is the difference between Eclair and Profiterole?
They taste the same, they’re made with the same ingredients, so why the different name? It’s all in the shape. The round-shaped, custard or sometimes whipped cream filled pâté a choux pastries are called profiteroles, and the log-shaped ones are called éclairs.
Types of Fillings for Chocolate Covered Eclairs
There are two types of custards that you can fill éclairs. One with a gelatin-based cream, and one that’s just custard-based one. I went with the non-gelatinized one this time. I figured most people don’t have unflavored gelatin just lying around the house, but definitely, do have some all-purpose flour.
What other fillings for Eclairs can we use?
- Try this Mousseline Cream, or this Coffee Flavored Custard, as a substitute for the Classic Custard filling.
- The Eclair below is filled with the Dulce de Leche Mousseline Cream.
What is your favorite filling for Eclairs?
Other DESSERTS to enjoy:
- Maple Glazed Coffee Eclair – The combination of the coffee custard with the maple glaze made into delicious eclairs.
- Cream Puffs – Light as air pate a choux shell, filled with lightly sweetened vanilla whipped cream – it’s a match made in heaven!
- Basic Macarons – Italian Meringue Method – A deliciously simple recipe for macarons!
This recipe has been adapted from “Chocolate Desserts” by Pierre Herme
Classic Éclair
This Classic Eclair recipe is a Pate a Choux based hollow pastry shell filled with creamy custard, then dipped into a shiny chocolate glaze. Simple, yet sophisticated and all around delicious chocolate eclair recipe!
Ingredients
Custard Ingredients
- 6 egg yolks
- 2 cups whole milk
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean emulsion
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 oz unsalted butter
Pate Choux Pastry
- 1/2 cup whole milk (125 g = 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup water (125 g = 1/2 cup)
- 4 oz unsalted butter
- 1/4 tsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (1 cup = 140g all-purpose flour)
- 5 large eggs at room temperature
Shiny Chocolate Glaze
- 4 oz chocolate chopped
- 3 oz unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp corn syrup
Mint Leaf Decorations
- Mint leaves washed, dried
- 1 egg white
- 1/8 tsp salt
- granulated sugar
Instructions
How to Make the Custard
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Whisk 6 egg yolks & 3/4 cups sugar and 1/4 cup flour together in a large bowl, add a little bit of milk if the mixture is too thick and difficult to whisk.
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Bring 2 cups of milk to a boil.
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Slowly pour the milk into the egg yolk mixture, continuously whisking. This is called ‘tempering the yolks’.
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Pour the mixture back into the pot and bring to a boil, continuously stirring and going along the bottom of the pot in zigzag motion with a rubber spatula, to prevent scorching. It WILL stick if you stop.
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Cook for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat.
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Add 1 tbsp vanilla extract & 2 oz butter. Allow the butter to melt and stir for it to incorporate.
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Cover the custard with plastic wrap it touches the custard. To speed up the process you can transfer the custard into a jelly-roll pan, spread it thin, covering with plastic wrap will avoid skin formation. Refrigerate until ready to use.
How to make Pate a Choux
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Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
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Fit a pastry bag with plain 1/3 inch tip nozzle and drape the bag over a large glass.
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Preheat oven to 425°F.
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Whisk 5 eggs together.
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In a heavy bottom, saucepan combine 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup water, 4 oz butter, ¼ tsp sugar & ¼ tp salt. Bring to a boil.
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Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add 1 cup flour all at once, reduce heat to medium and start mixing the dough with a wooden spoon vigorously. Continue doing so for another 2-3 minutes to evaporate some of the moisture.
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Transfer the dough to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and start stirring the dough on medium speed for 1-2 minutes to cool it down slightly.
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Add the eggs to the mixture in 4-5 additions, each time allowing the mixer to incorporate the eggs fully before adding more. The dough might separate at first, but it will come back together as you continue stirring and adding more eggs. The mixture should be thick but still fall off the paddle attachment in a thick ribbon. You might not add all eggs before this happens. It is ok.
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Transfer the warm dough to the piping bag and pipe out 2-3 inch logs, about 2 inches apart. Place the first baking sheet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375°F and continue baking until golden in color, about 25 minutes. DO NOT open the door before the éclairs are golden, they will deflate.
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Keep the other sheet with piped logs in the freezer or refrigerator until the first sheet is out of the oven.
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Allow the éclairs to cool.
How to make the Chocolate Glaze
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Combine all ingredients in a heatproof bowl, set over a pot of simmering water. Bottom of the bowl should not touch the water.
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Warm up the mixture and allow the chocolate to melt, stirring it occasionally. Do not overheat. The mixture should only be warm, not hot.
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Take off the heat and allow the chocolate to completely melt, stirring it every couple of minutes until chocolate melts.
Mint Leaf Decoration
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Wash and dry thoroughly each leaf.
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Set egg whites in a heatproof bowl, over simmering water and heat, stirring continuously until 140 degrees, or pretty hot to the touch.
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Allow the egg whites to cool.
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Dip each leaf into the egg whites, allowing most of the egg whites to drip off. The leaves should only be damp with egg white.
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Dredge each leaf in the sugar on both sides and set on a paper towel or a cooling rack for sugar to harden up.
Fill and Decorate the Classic Eclair
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Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain 1/4 inch star/plain tip with custard.
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Fill each éclair with custard by inserting the tip into the top of the pastry in 3 places, closer to both ends and in the middle, and squeezing the custard in until it almost starts to come out. Wipe off excess. Leave for 15 minutes for the skin to form in the places where you inserted the custard.
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Carefully, dip top of each éclair into the chocolate glaze.
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Top with 1 mint leaf as a decoration.
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Refrigerate until ready to serve.
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Marina | Let the Baking Begin
Can you add whipped egg whites to the custard cream when it’s cooled down?
I wouldn’t as they wouldn’t add stability and make the custard thin down. Also, there’s the question of adding the raw egg whites.
hello, can i bake Pate Choux Pastry in advance? and how to store them?
You can bake it several days ahead and freeze them in a ziplock until needed, so they stay fresh. Then, just remove from the freezer and thaw at room temp and then fill.
Can we skip the corn syrup in the glaze? What difference would it make ?
Hi Huma, yes you can skip it, but the corn syrup makes the glaze shinier and more smooth.
1st attempt at anything like this, biggest problem aside needing a proper piping bag, very moreish…
Thanks, great instructions.
Love this recipe!
Worked perfectly and they were super Delicious!
Thank you for this recipe and many others that you have done.
Sincerely,
Wendy
I made these, and they were easy enough, and taste beautiful. Everyone loved them.
the only problem that I had, was that when i followed the instructions for size and cooking time, they would have ended up very overcooked if i had not spotted that they were getting overdone early in the cooking process, and turned the oven down, and taken them out a fair bit earlier. next time i will make a larger version and adjust cooking time to suit.
thank you for this recipe. I will definately be making them again
Hi Brenda,
Thank you for your feedback and the star rating! Each oven is different, so it’s not calibrated properly it might need more or less time than indicated in the recipe. I’m glad you were able to figure out proper timing for your oven – good job!
As long as the eclairs are baked until they hold their shape and don’t collapse when they are removed from the oven, they’re done.
These were delicious! I whipped up 1/2 cup heavy cream and added it to the custard to lighten it up. I think it just adds a nice lift to the cream, although it is of course delicious without the cream as well. I used Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips for the chocolate glaze. Yum! Also, they aren’t as hard to make as you might think! Just time consuming. Lots of fun to make with a baking buddy!
Thank you Katherine for using my recipe and for sharing your feedback! I just made them this past weekend and also added some whipped cream))
My first time trying to make eclairs! They turned out so well! Thank you for an easy to follow and delicious recipe!
Thank you so much Rebecca for your feedback! I’m glad it all went well!
I made eclairs for the first time yesterday! Your recipe was easy to follow, and they taste great!!
This recipe looks delicious!! Am I able to use an electric mixer? I don’t have one of those big fancy ones yet! Thank you.
Hi Kay,
Sure thing, any mixer will work. In fact, for this recipe even a spoon or a whisk will work.
Every time we go to Vegas I want to come home and make eclairs. I have been wanting to try your recipe for quite a while and tonight I finally did. I am so happy with the results!! They are better than I expected! I will be making them again soon and will definetly make some coffee flavored. Thank you so much for another great recipe! You are my go to for sweets:)
Oh thank you so much for your nice comment, appreciate it much! I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe! I hope you give the coffee flavored eclair a try, next.
I came looking for a recipe that would use up my leftover egg yolks from making macarons and I stumbled across your recipe. I was very pleased with the outcome and it tasted delicious (although I got lazy and opt for nutella as the chocolate glaze lol). The recipe was easy to follow and make, thank you!
That is a pretty genius idea, must’ve been delicious!
This pate choux recipie is too wet. Less eggs, more flour. They rise well but are too soft. Needs more chew. Pastry cream is too loose and flour adds a raw flavor, even when cooked well. I have had years in the business and should have just texted my pastry chef.
Sous Chef Brandon is angry!!!!!!
Hi Brandon,
I’m sorry things didn’t work out. I think there were a couple things that you did wrong an that’s why you got the results you did. Before I explain what I mean, I wanted to mention that he recipe for the eclair shells is by Pierre Herme, a famous french pastry chef who has a very successful bakery in France and business overall, so before I even tried this recipe I knew it was going to be a good one.
If the choux recipe seemed too wet, it could be that you should have stirred the dough a little longer to evaporate more moisture before adding the eggs.
The pastry cream, as evidenced by the pictures you see with the recipe, can not be too loose as it holds itself inside the shell when cut in half, without oozing. The looseness and the raw flour flavor, could come from the fact that the cream should have been cooked a couple minutes longer. When you work with pastry cream with flour as the thickener, the cream needs to be cooked until it has thickened and until the raw flavor dissipates.
These look great! I don’t mean to be rude, but it’s “tempering” the eggs, not tampering.
Yeap, you’re right! Thanks for catching that!
Hello, how many grams are 1/2 and 2/3 of stick butter?
1 stick butter is 113 grams, so 1/2 is about 56 gram, and 2/3 is about 82 grams.
Can you freeze these?
Hi Amber!
I have not tried freezing them, but if you do try it let me know how it goes 🙂
These look great!! How long will they keep for?
Hi Kerri!
Because custard contains eggs, I would not leave it for more than a couple days.
These look perfect, although somewhat complicated to make. Pinned!
It’s not a simple recipe, but when you want an Eclair you do what you got to do to get your hands on one)))
What a beautiful addition the candied mint leaf makes! Your eclairs look perfectly delicious!
Thanks Mercedes! It was a last minute addition that was pretty affective as far as presentation goes 🙂
Oh they look stunning! I could definitely go for one homemade eclair!
Thanks Julia!