Jessica made these swans and we had fun taking pictures of these fun Eclair Swans and they taste yummy too. I hope you will make some for your next family party or baby/bridle shower, etc……..
Pastry Cream Eclairs and Swan Eclairs
Pastry Cream
Cream Mixture:
*1/2 quart Whipping Cream
*2 ounces Sugar
Whisk together in a sauce pan the whipping cream and sugar and bring just to a boil on medium heat and remove from heat.
Egg Mixture:
*3 Egg Yolks
*2 Whole Eggs
*1.3 ounces Cornstarch
*2 ounces Sugar
*1 ounce Butter, room temperature
*1/2 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
In a mixing bowl whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, cornstarch and sugar until smooth. Then whisk this egg mixture while slowly tempering the egg mixture by slowly adding hot cream mixture to the egg mixture, making sure to whisk the whole time.
In a stand mixer add the above combined mixture and add the butter, vanilla and whip on medium until smooth. Cool Pastry Cream Quickly, pouring pastry cream in by 9×12 glass baking dish, we placed glass dish with pastry cream out in the snow (or you could use a sink or larger bowl with just enough ice to set the glass dish on) covered with Saran Wrap/plastic film so it doesn’t develop a crust. After cooling, pour the cooled pastry in a airtight container in the fridge until ready to fill eclairs. Pipe the pastry cream into pre-made eclairs using a pastry bag with round tip. (Poke the round pastry tip into eclair and fill eclairs with chilled pastry cream.)
Recipe adapted from Professional Baking, Wayne Gisslen
Eclair Paste
Recipe adapted from On Cooking Cook Book
Preheat oven 425*F.
*1 cup Milk
*1 cup Water
*1 teaspoons Salt
*2 teaspoons Granulated Sugar
*14 tablespoons or 7 1/2 ounces Butter
*1 cup All-purpose Flour
*6-9 Eggs, add one at a time until mixture is shiny and forms strains that don’t break while mixing, so you may not need all 9 eggs. (We only needed 6, it depends on the moisture level in the air and flour.
In a medium sauce pan on medium heat bring to a boil the milk, water, salt, sugar and butter, having the butter being completely melted before removing from heat. Add the flour all at once. Stir until it forms a soft ball of paste.
Using a disposable pastry bag with a hole size that is used when adding on a tip to your pastry bag (cutting the tip off a new disposable pastry bag, about 1/2 inch or as desired for the eclair size of your choice). Place pastry paste into pastry bag and pipe sized desired onto cooking sprayed or Silpat covered half baking sheet. (We piped round shapes for the swan bodies.)
**See below to make Swan Heads
Bake the Eclairs at 425*F. for 10 minutes. Then reduce heat to 375*F. for 10 more minutes and then bake 10 more minutes at 325*F. for 10 minutes. Do not open oven door during cooking time. After the full 30 minutes check to see if they have golden brown edges and then if needed, check by touch. (Ours needed an extra 6 minutes.) Continuing baking as needed at 325*F. until done.
Remove Eclairs from oven and poke each eclair with knife or poke a few holes with toothpick to release moisture from Eclairs, leave on the baking sheet to cool, or turn off oven and place Eclairs back in oven for 15- 30 minutes with oven door opened slightly. Then remove and cool completely before filling with pastry cream. Hopefully no collapsed Eclairs. (Remove some of the inside of the Eclairs if desired.)
Slice off the very top of the eclairs and (cut the top in half again If making the swan, for the wings) add small amount of the ganache to the eclair bottom and then fill with the pastry cream and top with pipped whipped cream. Replace eclair cut swan wings and the tops for the round or rectangle eclairs) . Sprinkle swans with powdered sugar and ganache for the top of round or rectangle filled Eclairs.
Whipped Cream Topping
*2 cups whipping Cream
*1/4 cup Powdered Sugar
*1 teaspoon Clear Vanilla
Whip with the above ingredients on medium speed in a bowl/stand mixer until the mixture is whipped and forms stiff peeks. Scoop whipped cream into tall glass with pastry using the star tip. (We use a tall glass placing inside the glass the pastry bag with tip and fold the top of the bag over the edge of the glass for easy filling of the whipped cream until bag is 2/3 full, twist end and pipe onto filled Eclairs.
Ganache
Chocolate Ganache
*3/4 cup Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
*1/2 cup Heavy Cream or I used Whipping Cream and it turned out great
*1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Put the above ingredients in a double boiler (except for vanilla extract) on medium low heat until melted and chocolate looks glossy then add vanilla extract. Let cool and Spoon or drizzle in bottoms and on top of Eclairs
**Swan Head
To make swan head make a tiny small oval eclair using a small round tip and pastry bag filled with eclair paste and pipe an “S” Shape attaching to the oval shape onto Silpat and baking just until done about 5-10 minutes.
Enjoy!
Jessica and Lindy
