These are the best homemade Chocolate Eclairs you will ever have. It’s an original French recipe! Light and airy Pâte à Choux filled with super creamy chocolate cream filling and topped with delicious chocolate ganache.
Bonjour! Comment ça va mon ami?
Chocolate Eclairs are a French classic. French baking goods are exquisite and very special. Don’t you think? Croissant, Crème brûlée, Chocolate Soufflé, and so on and so on. Everything super delicious and unique.
France is playing in the top baking league. There is no doubt.
What are Chocolate Eclairs?
Maybe you know Chocolate Cream Puffs? It is almost the same thing. The puff pastry is the same and also the ganache. Just the filling is different and also the shape.
I can’t tell for sure whether I prefer Cream Puffs or Chocolate Eclairs. I love both. Both are super delicious. But I grew up with Chocolate Eclairs. So maybe I like Chocolate Eclairs a tiny little bit more.
I had a lot of Chocolate Eclairs in my childhood. I remember like it was yesterday, how happy I always was when my mother brought some Chocolate Eclairs from our favorite bakery in town. It’s really hard to describe how awesome they were.
The chocolate filling was like a creamier version of pudding. The puff pastry was light and airy with its strong characteristic taste. And the chocolate ganache was glossy and soft.
The only difference between original French Chocolate Eclairs and the ones we got in the bakery is that the Chocolate Eclairs in the bakery had an Austrian twist.
In Austria, it is very popular to add apricot jam underneath a chocolate glaze. Like in a Sachertorte. So the Chocolate Eclairs had a thin layer of apricot jam under the chocolate ganache.
The sour taste of the apricot jam is a good fit to a sweet chocolate ganache or glaze. But I didn’t add apricot jam under the ganache because I wanted to make them authentic French and not Austrian style.
Just the 1/2 tbsp corn syrup in the ganache is not original French. It is an optional ingredient, and I added it just to get the super glossy finish. You can leave it out if you want to.
Please don’t be afraid of trying this recipe. I know that making Chocolate Eclairs can be intimidating. When you follow the directions carefully and watch the video step by step, you will master this recipe!
I got a super lovely email from a reader, and she sent me some snaps of her 10 and 7-year-old kids baking my Chocolate Cream Puffs recipe completely independently. And they looked exactly like mine! So talented and gifted!
She said that the recipe was good to follow and this enabled the kids to make them without her help, and they were a great success.
It’s definitely not the easiest recipe on my blog, but you can master it!
Just make sure that you bake the puff pastry long enough that it doesn’t collapse. Read here my 4 crucial tips for failproof puff pastry.
In the end, you will be very happy that you faced your fear and tried this Chocolate Eclairs recipe because they are
- chocolatey
- creamy
- light
- airy
- something special and unique
- super delicious
What is your favorite French baking recipe? Tell me in the comments below!
If you try these Chocolate Eclairs recipe rate it and tag a photo #alsothecrumbsplease on Instagram! Would love to see your snap!
These are the best homemade Chocolate Eclairs you will ever have. It's an original French recipe! Light and airy Pâte à Choux filled with super creamy chocolate cream filling and topped with delicious chocolate ganache.
- 4 large egg yolks
- 3/8 cup granulated white sugar (75g)
- 3 tbsp cornstarch (24g)
- 2 cups milk (480ml)
- 1+1/8 cups milk chocolate, melted (7oz / 200g)
- pinch of salt
- 2+1/2 tbsp butter (35g)
- 1 cup water (240ml)
- 1/2 cup butter (113g)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (120g)
- 4 large eggs
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp water
- 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped (4.6oz / 130g)
- 3/8 cup heavy whipping cream (90ml)
- 1/2 tbsp corn syrup (optional for extra gloss)
Make the chocolate filling: In a bowl whisk egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch to combine. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan bring milk over medium-high heat to a simmer. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir about 1/2 cup of hot milk into the egg yolks to slowly warm it. Then pour warmed egg mixture slowly into the saucepan, whisking constantly. Cook until filling is thick, for about 1-2 minutes. Whisk continuously. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate and salt until smooth and fully combined for about 1-2 minutes. Pour through a mesh strainer into a bowl and let cool for about 5-10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add butter and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent forming a skin. Refrigerate at least 1-2 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375°F / 190°C. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
Make the Pâte à Choux: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan bring water, butter, sugar, and salt to a boil. With a wooden spoon stir in flour and cook for about 2-3 minutes until it starts to form a film on the bottom of the pan. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and let cool about 2 minutes.
Stir in one egg at the time. After every egg, the dough will separate. Keep stirring until the dough comes together again. In the end, the dough will be sticky and firm enough to hold a stiff peak.
Make the egg wash: In a small cup stir egg and water to combine. Set aside.
Transfer Pâte à Choux to a piping bag fitted with a star tip (I used the Wilton 1M tip) and pipe about eight to ten 4-inch long and 3/4-inch wide (10x2 cm) strips on the 2 prepared baking sheets with enough space in-between (about 2-3 inches) and spin the tip. You can stick a bit of dough on the baking sheets underneath the parchment paper to fix the paper. Press down the tip with wet fingers that they don't get too brown or burn. Lightly brush with egg wash. Bake one baking sheet at the time for about 30-35 minutes until puffed and golden brown. Don't open the oven while they are baking or the eclairs will collapse. I baked mine for 33 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
Fill the cream puffs by cutting the eclairs in half horizontally. Pipe the chocolate filling into the eclairs. Set aside.
Make the chocolate ganache: Place chopped chocolate in a large heatproof bowl. Microwave heavy whipping cream until very hot but not boiling for about 1-2 minutes. Pour over chocolate and let stand 1-2 minutes. Stir until smooth, and the chocolate is completely melted. Add corn syrup and stir until combined. Let stand for about 5 minutes.
Place eclairs on a wire rack. Spoon chocolate ganache (about 1 tbsp of ganache per eclair) on top of the eclairs and let dry. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days.
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