(Mom)
3 egg quantity Cream Puff Pastry
Vanilla Pastry Cream
Chocolate icing
Preheat oven to 400. Prepare Cream Puff Pastry as directed then shape into eclairs.
Pastry bag: Spoon pastry into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch pain tip. Lightly grease a baking sheet. Pipe pastry in fingers about 1 ¼ inches wide and 5 inches long. Leave about 2 inches between fingers.
By Hand: Spoon about ¼ cup pastry on sheet and with a small spatula shape about 1 ¼ inches wide and 5 inches long.
Bake 40 minutes or until golden brown, including any cracks that form while expanding. Cool. About 2 hours before serving spoon Vanilla Pastry cream into pastry bag fitted with a ¼ inch tip. Make a small hole in each end of the éclairs with a knife point. Pipe cream into éclairs through the holes. Ice with about 1 T chocolate icing. Chill. Makes 8 servings.
VANILLA PASTRY CREAM
½ cup sugar
2 T cornstarch (if not thick enough use 3 T).
¼ t salt
4 egg yolks
2 cups milk
½ t vanilla
Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan. Combine egg yolks and milk. Gradually stir into sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a full boil. Cook and stir 1 minute. Stir in vanilla. Chill at least 2 hours. After pudding is cold fold in 1 cup whipped whipping cream, sweeten if desired. Chill.
CHOCOLATE ICING
In a small saucepan, melt 2 oz. Semi-sweet chocolate and 1 T butter over low heat. Stir in ½ cup powdered sugar and 1 T hot tap water. Stir until smooth. Add more hot water, ½ t at a time until the mixture drops from a spoon in a thin ribbon. Use immediately.
