Mini Eclairs

Mini Eclairs 

Perfect for a Sunday Tea and very easy to make.  Start with the choux pastry early in the day so that you have enough time to cool and fill these.  I used whipped cream to fill these instead of Creme Patissiere or Custard.  The icing was just a simple icing sugar glaze - coloured and flavoured/

Recipe

Choux Pastry:

1 cup plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup water

4 large eggs

Cream filling:

250ml whipping cream

1 tbsp icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Icing:

250g icing sugar

Flavouring of your choice

Food colouring of your choice

Edible decorations of your choice

1. Preheat the oven to 200C. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a melt the butter with the water. Bring to the boil.
3. Dump the entire flour and salt into the butter and water mix and beat with a spoon until it forms a dough and leaves the side of the pan. 
4. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly
5. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition till the mixture forms a shiny and thick paste.
6. Spoon the pastry mix into a piping bag pipe small lengths onto the baking sheets.  
7. Leave room in between each one to allow them to expand
8. Bake the eclairs for 20 minutes at 200 C and then turn down the over to 170 C and bake another 10 min. until they have risen and are crisp and golden. 
9. Remove from the oven, then using a skewer, make a small hole in each end of the eclairs so that the steam can escape. 
10. Leave to cool
11. In the meantime, whip the cream along with the sugar and vanilla until you have soft peaks. 
12. Fill a piping bag with the cream and then once the eclairs are completely cool pipe the cream into each one, Pop them into the fridge to chill while you make up the icing.
13. Sieve the icing sugar into a bowl and add just enough water so that you have a runny icing that is still thick. i divided this into 2 lots and added mint flavouring and a little green colouring to one and strawberry flavour and pink colour to the other.
14. Using a spoon drop some on top of each eclair and let spread.  Sprinkle decoration of choice. 

Serve with a hot cup of coffee