Difficulty: Average
Make Ahead
Serves 12
Ingredients:
Eclairs
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 4 eggs
Filling and Glaze
- 1 package (3-1/4 ounces) vanilla pudding mix
- 1-1/2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 package (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons shortening or margarine
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 400°.
- Combine water with 1/2 cup butter and salt in a large saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat until butter melts and water boils.
- Lower heat, add flour and beat vigorously until mixture leaves sides of pan and forms a smooth ball.
- Remove from heat; beat in eggs one at a time until smooth.
- Beat dough until very smooth and satiny.
- Drop onto large ungreased cookie sheet by heaping tablespoons 2″ apart in rows 6″ apart.
- Spread each into 5″x 1″ rectangle. Straighten sides, round ends, smooth tops.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes until brown.
- Cool on wire rack.
- Prepare pudding according to directions, except use only 1-1/2 cups milk.
- Place wax paper on top and refrigerate.
- When pudding is cold, whip cream.
- Beat pudding until smooth and fold in cream.
- Cut eclairs lengthwise, fill with pudding, replace tops.
- In double boiler over hot (not boiling) water, melt chocolate with shortening until smooth. Spoon and spread over eclairs.
- Refrigerate until serving.
Note: Eclairs and filling may be made ahead but not assembled until day of serving.