Friday Night Cooking Class/Strawberry Chocolate Eclairs

Instructions

Pastry

1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. Line two baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper.
3. In a large saucepan, bring the water, butter, sugar, and salt to a rolling boil.
4. Remove the saucepan from the heat and immediately dump in the cup of flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together to form a dough.
5. Put it back on the heat for 30 seconds, continuing to stir.
6. Remove the pastry to a mixing bowl of a mixer with a paddle attachment.
7. Start mixing at medium speed, add the eggs in one at a time scraping down the sides after each addition and mixing well.
8. Mix until the pastry is glossy and smooth.
9. Place pastry into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip and pipe long fat lengths of pastry onto the Silpat lined cookie sheet leaving 2″ of space between.
10. Whisk the egg and water together. Brush the tops of the eclair with the egg wash.
11. Bake at 450F for 15 min. and then reduce heat to 375F and bake about 20 min. more or until light golden brown. I used the convection setting and baked for 12 min. and then at the reduced heat 15 min. more.
12. Let cool on a wire rack.
13. Place the chocolate shavings in a pie plate.
14. Heat the cream over medium heat in a small saucepan until simmering.
15. Pour over the coarsely chopped chocolate and stir until melted.
16. Dip eclairs in the chocolate mixture. Let set for one hour in the refrigerator.
17. Slice each eclair in half but not all the way through.
18. Whip cream and sugar together to form stiff peaks.
19. Spread inside the sliced eclair and insert 3-4 sliced strawberries.