Eclairs

Source: dianasdesserts.com

About Eclairs  In French, the word eclair means a flash of lightning. This is the oldest recipe for eclairs. Source: Boston Cooking School Cook Book, Mrs. D.A. Lincoln [1884] (p. 389).

Ingredients: Eclairs: 1 cup (8 oz.) hot water 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup (1 stick/4 oz./113g) butter 1 1/2 cup pastry flour 5 eggs, yolks and whites beaten separately Custard: 1 pint (2 cups/16 oz/473mL) milk, boiled 2 tablespoons cornstarch 3 eggs, well beaten 3/4 cup granulated or superfine baker's sugar (caster sugar) 1 teaspoon salt, or 1 teaspoon butter

Instructions: For the Eclairs: Boil the water, salt, and butter. When boiling, add the dry flour, stir well for five minutes, and when cool add the eggs. This is such a stiff mixture, many find it easier to mix with the hand, and some prefer to add the eggs whole, one at a time. Bake mixture in pieces four inches long and one and a half wide. .(Bake at 425degrees)When cool, split and fill with cream. Ice with chocolate or vanilla frosting For the Custard: Wet the cornstarch in cold milk, and cook in the boiling milk ten minutes. Beat the eggs; add the sugar and the thickened milk. Cook in the double boiler five minutes. Add the salt or butter, and when cool, flavor with lemon, vanilla, or almond. Note: The custard filling can be substituted with a sweetened whipped cream filling, if desired. Makes 4-5 servings. Other Filling Options: Marshmallow Butter cream as seen on Martha Stewart online 1 stick softened butter 1 jar of marshmallow cream, 7-8oz splash of vanilla powdered sugar, to taste, up to 1 cup Cream the butter with a hand mixer and then beat in the marshmallow cream. Flavor with vanilla or another extract of your choice and add powdered sugar to increase sweetness to your taste, possibly up to a cup. Use for cupcake or cake filling or as a frosting. Very easy and pretty tasty.   Chocolate Glaze: as seen on Martha Stewart online 1/2 cup heavy cream 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped To make the glaze, heat cream in a small saucepan. Pour over chocolate in a small bowl. Let stand until chocolate is melted, stir until smooth. Dip top of each eclair into glaze; let excess drip off before turning over. Transfer to a wire rack to allow glaze to set. Serve, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 day.