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+ servings
Half of a chocolate eclair on top of other 3 eclairs
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5 from 3 votes

Eclairs Recipe

Chocolate Eclairs Recipe, a classic French dessert made of choux dough, vanilla cream filling and topped with chocolate glaze. These éclairs are a big hit with my family, and it's a dessert we always enjoy at special occasion. Absolutely delicious, and so easy to make. 
Prep Time40 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 40 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Servings: 15 eclairs
Calories: 325kcal

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 250 ml water
  • 150 ml sunflower oil
  • 250 g flour
  • 5 eggs
  • a pinch of salt

For the filling:

  • 500 ml milk
  • 120 g sugar
  • 7 tablespoon plain flour
  • 80 g butter
  • 1 vanilla seeds from a vanilla pod or vanilla extract

For the glaze:

  • 100 g icing sugar
  • 3 tablespoon cocoa powder
  • 3 tablespoon sunflower oil
  • 4 tablespoon boiling water

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. (350 Fahrenheit).
  • To make the pastry, mix the water, oil and salt into a pan and bring it to the boil. Remove the pan from the heat, add the flour mixing quickly with a spatula. You will get a dough-like texture. Leave it to cool.
  • Add the eggs one by one and mix well until you get a smooth texture.
  • Line 2 or 3 large baking trays with greaseproof paper.
  • You can either use a piping bag or just a spoon to scoop the mixture onto the baking trays. Make sure you leave about 2 cm between each of the pastries.
  • Bake them at 180 degrees C for 20-25 minutes or until golden.
  • To make the filling, boil half of the milk with the sugar and vanilla seeds or extract.
  • In a separate bowl, mix the flour with the other half of milk.
  • Pour the milk and flour mixture over the sugar one and simmer them until the cream thickens.
  • Allow the cream to cool a bit, then add the butter and mix well. The cream will become really smooth and delicious.
  • For the glaze, mix all the ingredients together.
  • Once the pastries are ready, transfer them to a rack and allow them to cool. Half each of the pastries and fill them with cream and glaze with the cocoa powder mixture.

Video

Notes

  • Click on the US Customary link to see the measurements displayed in cups and ounces.
  • The servings can be adjusted by clicking the number next to Servings.
  • The amount I have listed below give you a pretty large batch, about 15 eclairs, depending on their size. So you will have to use 2 or 3 baking trays to make the choux pastry, or the dough.
  • Note! Do leave plenty of space between them, otherwise they might stick to each other.
  • The cream filling, if you happen to have any leftover, can be easily used for any tarts. Or just sandwich some crackers together, dip them in chocolate sauce, and you've got a dessert in seconds.
  • When you make the chocolate topping, do leave it to cool down, preferably in the fridge, so it can get a chance to harden a bit, otherwise it won't really top the chocolate eclairs, and you'll end up with really messy hands when you eat them.
  • Don't worry if the choux pastry is crispy when they come out of the oven, the soften nicely once they are refrigerated. And here you have, an indulgent dessert to treat yourself with no matter the occasion.

Nutrition

Calories: 325kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 69mg | Sodium: 75mg | Potassium: 102mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 266IU | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 1mg