Choux is one of those things I have been meaning to try but have been discouraged by one too many television disasters. If my first attempt is anything to go by, it really isn't hard, and given the relatively cheap ingredients making up the batter, you can afford to have a couple of goes if you aren't blessed with beginner's luck.
Since it was my first foray into choux I decided to go for the whole caboodle of a flavoured creme patissiere filling rather than simply whipping some cream. I personally much prefer this type since the cream filling is far to reminiscent of the supermarket version.
I used the basic recipes for choux and creme patisseire in Prue Leith's 'How to Cook' - a fantastic self teaching cook book that I would thoroughly recommend. The step by step photographs are particularly reassuring with something like choux pastry which, though not particularly difficult, requires a rather different technique and looks pretty strange/inedible at certain points!
The blueberry and violet flavour combination is excellent, with the potent berry taste of the icing faintly underlined with floral notes. These flavours can however, easily be substituted with whatever you like. I would quite like to experiment with a coffee and aniseed filling and chocolate icing next time...
See the recipe I used below (from Leith but with flavourings added) and an icing recipe of my own.
Since it was my first foray into choux I decided to go for the whole caboodle of a flavoured creme patissiere filling rather than simply whipping some cream. I personally much prefer this type since the cream filling is far to reminiscent of the supermarket version.
I used the basic recipes for choux and creme patisseire in Prue Leith's 'How to Cook' - a fantastic self teaching cook book that I would thoroughly recommend. The step by step photographs are particularly reassuring with something like choux pastry which, though not particularly difficult, requires a rather different technique and looks pretty strange/inedible at certain points!
The blueberry and violet flavour combination is excellent, with the potent berry taste of the icing faintly underlined with floral notes. These flavours can however, easily be substituted with whatever you like. I would quite like to experiment with a coffee and aniseed filling and chocolate icing next time...
See the recipe I used below (from Leith but with flavourings added) and an icing recipe of my own.
Choux Pastry Recipe (makes around 16 eclairs)
Ingredients:
220ml water
85g butter
105g plain flour, well sifted
105g plain flour, well sifted
a pinch of salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sugar
3 eggs, beaten
Method:
1. Put the butter (chopped into small pieces) and water into a saucepan. Heat slowly to melt the butter then turn up the heat and bring to a rolling boil. Sieve the flour, salt and sugar three times. (As soon as the rolling boil is reached you want to get the flour in to stop too much water evaporating, so have your flour, ready-sieved, ready in a jug to pour in as quickly as possible.)
2. When the mixture is boiling really fast, tip in all the flour with the salt and remove the pan from the heat.
3. Working as fast as you can, beat the mixture hard with a wooden spoon
(no electric mixers yet - and you might want to start with a few slower stirs to incorporate the flour rather than sending it puffing across the kitchen): it will soon become thick and smooth and leave the sides of the pan. This mixture is called the panade. (At first the mixture will look lumpy and vile. Within 20 seconds it looks thick and smooth.)
(no electric mixers yet - and you might want to start with a few slower stirs to incorporate the flour rather than sending it puffing across the kitchen): it will soon become thick and smooth and leave the sides of the pan. This mixture is called the panade. (At first the mixture will look lumpy and vile. Within 20 seconds it looks thick and smooth.)
4. Spread the paste (panade) over a plate with the wooden spoon in a thin layer to cool to room temperature. (This takes a few minutes only. You can wash up or get your eggs ready while you are waiting.)
5. When the mixture is at room temperature or thereabouts, return it to the pan and start adding the eggs a little at a time, beating after each addition. (This is where you use your electric whisk unless you want to build your biceps, or don't have one, or are a Leith's student, in which case use a wooden spoon).
You might not need all the eggs. The mixture should be of (reluctant) dropping consistency - not too runny. Dropping consistency means that the mixture will fall off a spoon rather reluctantly and all in a blob; if it runs off, it is too wet (start again), and if it will not fall off even when the spoon is jerked slightly, it is too thick (add more egg).
6. To cook the eclairs, heat the oven to 200 degrees celsius.
7. Put the mixture into a piping bag with a 7-8mm nozzle and sausages around 6-7cm long. There are quite a few useful youtube videos for this. Pipe the eclairs around 5cm apart from each other.
8. Bake in the top third of the oven for 20-30 minutes until well-risen and puffed, and a deep golden brown all over, checking after 20 minutes (no earlier or they may collapse). The choux buns should also be very firm to the touch on the base where they sit on the baking tray. If they are soft and pale golden, cook for longer.
9. Remove from the oven and lower the temperature to 170 degrees celsius. While hot, use a skewer to make a hole in the side about 5mm in diameter to allow the steam to escape. Place the eclairs back in the oven for 5-6 minutes to dry the insides. Take out and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely
Violet Creme Patissiere (makes 300ml)
Ingredients
300ml whole milk
2 tablespoons of violet liqueur (to taste)
3 medium egg yolks
2 tablespoons of violet liqueur (to taste)
3 medium egg yolks
50g caster sugar
15g plain flour
15g cornflour
Method
1. Put the milk in a saucepan. Scald, by gently heating until steaming. Just before it bubbles, take off the heat and remove any skin that forms
2. Put the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl and mix well. Add a splash of scalded milk, then the flours. Mix well to combine and ensure there are no lumps. Gradually stir in the remaining milk
3. Return the mixture to a clean saucepan and place over a low medium heat. Bring to the boil, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. It will go lumpy, but persevere and stir vigorously and it will become smooth. Turn the heat down and simmer for two minutes.
4. Remove from the heat and add the violet liqueur to taste (there is a huge variety in the strength of these so please take my measurement as a loose guideline only). Transfer the mix to a bowl and place a disc of greaseproof paper on top, in contact with the surface of the custard, to prevent a skin forming. Set aside to cool.
5. Once cool discard the greaseproof paper with the skin and whisk the creme patisseire until it is soft enough to pipe but still firm
Blueberry and Violet Icing
Ingredients
125g blueberries
2 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of violet liqueur (to taste!)
240g icing sugar
Method
Boil the blueberries down with the sugar, stirring occasionally and making sure they do not burn until you have a nice thick coulis. Sieve the blueberries for a smooth sauce. Add the violet liqueur and then work in the sieved icing sugar until you have an icing that will not run down the sides of the eclair when you dip it in (add more icing sugar if it is too runny)
Assembling the eclairs...
When the eclair pastry is cooked and cooled, pipe the mixture in through a hole in the side of the eclair. Finally, dip the eclairs in the icing for a smooth finish and leave the icing to set
Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs Flo and Elle Eclairs baking great british bake off bake off competition eclairs homemade eclairs1. Put the milk in a saucepan. Scald, by gently heating until steaming. Just before it bubbles, take off the heat and remove any skin that forms
2. Put the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl and mix well. Add a splash of scalded milk, then the flours. Mix well to combine and ensure there are no lumps. Gradually stir in the remaining milk
3. Return the mixture to a clean saucepan and place over a low medium heat. Bring to the boil, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. It will go lumpy, but persevere and stir vigorously and it will become smooth. Turn the heat down and simmer for two minutes.
4. Remove from the heat and add the violet liqueur to taste (there is a huge variety in the strength of these so please take my measurement as a loose guideline only). Transfer the mix to a bowl and place a disc of greaseproof paper on top, in contact with the surface of the custard, to prevent a skin forming. Set aside to cool.
5. Once cool discard the greaseproof paper with the skin and whisk the creme patisseire until it is soft enough to pipe but still firm
Blueberry and Violet Icing
Ingredients
125g blueberries
2 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of violet liqueur (to taste!)
240g icing sugar
Method
Boil the blueberries down with the sugar, stirring occasionally and making sure they do not burn until you have a nice thick coulis. Sieve the blueberries for a smooth sauce. Add the violet liqueur and then work in the sieved icing sugar until you have an icing that will not run down the sides of the eclair when you dip it in (add more icing sugar if it is too runny)
Assembling the eclairs...
When the eclair pastry is cooked and cooled, pipe the mixture in through a hole in the side of the eclair. Finally, dip the eclairs in the icing for a smooth finish and leave the icing to set
