You haven’t enjoyed an Eclair until you’ve tried a fresh homemade eclair filled to the brim with pastry cream and topped with chocolate ganache. Watch the video tutorial, and you will master these French eclairs in no time.
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Classic Eclairs Recipe
Learn how to make classic and easy “choux pastry” dough (the same pastry used for Cream Puffs as well as Churros and even Zeppole Italian Donuts) and a decadent homemade vanilla bean pastry cream that will have you licking the spoon and the bowl.
Eclairs are best eaten the day they are made, but I do love that they can be fully assembled a day ahead.
Video: How to Make Eclairs
I’ll show you how to make the easy dough (don’t worry, it only sounds fancy, but it’s actually simple to make), the custard filling, and the easy chocolate ganache to give your eclairs that classic French look and taste.
Also, I’m so embarrassed that (due to my occasionally shaky hands), my eclairs looked mildly inappropriate when piped. I only realized it after the fact and I couldn’t stop laughing. And for those of you who never would have noticed otherwise, I am doubly embarrassed!
Tools for Making Eclairs
- Large Piping Bag – reuseable or disposable works fine.
- 1/2″ round piping tip or a 16mm open star tip – you need a large tip to pipe the eclair dough into strips.
- Baking Sheet – a half sheet works great
- Silicone Liner or Parchment Paper
- Bismarck tip (or a small sharp tip like Ateco #16 or #352) – you could use a number of tips to pipe the frosting into the eclair.
Tips for Making Pastry Cream
Pastry cream relies on corn starch and egg yolks to thicken and the end result is incredibly smooth – like a decadent vanilla pudding. Mixing the softened butter is the secret to the amazing texture – don’t skip it!
- Pastry cream can be made 3 days ahead which is perfect for holiday entertaining.
- If making ahead, cover the surface directly with a sheet of plastic wrap so it doesn’t form a film.
- You can substitute the real vanilla bean for vanilla extract. I love seeing those little vanilla flecks in the eclairs (see recipe notes)
Pro Tip:
Pastry Cream will thicken as it cools and to loosen it up for piping, whisk until smooth.
What is Choux Pastry?
Choux dough is a classic pastry made with super simple ingredients (milk, water, eggs, flour, butter, sugar and salt). The key is to continue mixing the dough in the saucepan to release excess moisture until a thin film forms on the bottom of the pan. Choux pastry is a soft dough that gets piped onto a baking sheet.
Getting the baking temperature right is the key to success. Starting the oven at 425˚F allows the pastry to rise beautifully, creating a hollow center for the filling. Choux pastry is then baked at a lower temperature to dry out the center.
Make-Ahead
- Eclair Shells – can be baked a day ahead and stored covered at room temperature for up to 2 days. Shells can also be frozen in an airtight conatiner up to a month then thawed at room temp for 30 minutes. To re-crisp shells, bake thawed shwells at 300˚F for 5-10 minutes then cool completely before filling.
- Filling (Pasty Cream) – can be made a day ahead. Cover with plastic wrap directly over the surface and refrigerate. Re-whisk before piping.
- Glaze – I find it’s best to make the glaze when assembling the eclairs since you’ll need to reheat it to loosen it up again which won’t save you any time.
How to Store Eclairs
Filled Eclairs are best enjoyed fresh or eaten the day of assembling since they will start to soften once you pipe the cream in and add the glaze, but you can store in the refrigerator in an airtght container for up to a day.
More French Desserts and Pastries
My husband and I were able to visit France this year, and we spent a fair amount of time visiting the boulangerie (bakeries that sell bread) and pâtisseries (that sell sweet treats), where we sampled the best French pastries and baked goods. It’s such a treat to recreate our favorites that remind me of our time in Paris.
- Homemade Croissants – I finally nailed it!
- Cherry Clafoutis – breakfast or dessert
- Easy Crepes – our go-to crepes
- Fruit Tart – with the best crust
- Peach Galette – the easiest ‘pie’
- Chocolate Souffle – restaurant copycat
- Easy Almond Croissants – French bakery copycat
- Raspberry Macarons – filled with raspberry cream
Now go forth and conquer homemade eclairs!
Classic Eclair Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients for Choux Pastry:
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 8 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
Ingredients for Pastry Cream:
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and scraped, (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup corn starch
- 1 pinch salt
- 4 large egg yolks
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
For the Chocolate Glaze:
- 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips, *
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
How to Make Choux Pastry
- In a Medium saucepan, combine 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup milk, 8 Tbsp butter, 1 tsp sugar and 1/4 tsp salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat then remove from heat and stir in 1 cup flour all at once with a wooden spoon.
- One flour is incorporated, place back over medium heat about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes stirring constantly (to release extra moisture and partially cook flour), or until dough comes together into a smooth ball and a thin film forms on bottom of pan.
- Transfer to a large mixing bowl and beat using an electric hand mixer on medium speed for 1 minute to cool the mixture slightly. Add 4 eggs, 1 at a time, allowing each egg to fully incorporate between additions. Beat until dough is smooth and forms a thick ribbon when pulled up.
- Pipe eclairs over baking sheet lined with silicone using a 1/2” round tip. Pipe 18-20 (4” long and 3/4” wide) strips, keeping them 1 1/2″ apart.
- Bake at 425˚F for 10 minutes. Without opening oven, reduce temp to 325˚F and, bake 30 minutes longer or until golden brown. Transfer to wire rack to cool while making pastry cream.
How to Make Pastry Cream:
- In a medium saucepan bring 2 cups milk, vanilla bean and scraped seeds just to a boil, stirring to prevent film from forming.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup corn starch and pinch of salt. Add 4 egg yolks and whisk until smooth, creamy and lightened in color – it takes a couple of minutes but it will get there.
- Gradually (so the eggs don’t curdle), while whisking constantly, add hot milk in a steady stream until all of it is incorporated. Pour mixture back into saucepan and bring to a boil while whisking constantly then whisk another 30 seconds until mixture is thick and pudding-like in consistency.
- Transfer pastry cream to a medium bowl (whisk in 2 tsp vanilla extract if using). Cut butter into pieces and quickly whisk into the custard until fully incorporated Cover with plastic directly over the surface of the cream, let it cool slightly then refrigerate 30 minutes or until cool.
- With a small pastry tip, poke 2-3 holes through the bottom of each cooled pastry. Pipe cream inside, scraping off excess. Refrigerate eclairs while making chocolate glaze.
How to Make Chocolate Glaze:
- Place 4 oz of chocolate chips into a small heat-safe bowl.
- Heat 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (in a saucepan or microwave) until it is just at a simmer then remove from heat and pour over chocolate chips. Let rest 2 minutes then whisk from the center outwards until smooth sauce forms.
- Dip the top half of filled and chilled eclairs into the chocolate sauce, allowing excess to drip off.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
I made these and they were delicious and really fun to make! I made a ton of mistakes but they came out well! I really love your recipes!
I’m so glad you enjoyed that!
Made these for the first time but I made them small creampuffs (round) instead of eclairs. I’ll never buy frozen creampuffs again. SO delicious! One suggestion; add “if using extract, wait until the last step to add”. I don’t know if it makes that much difference but I added the extract in step one. It was still amazing!
Correction…add vanilla in step 4
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite!
These are delicious! I made them last night and they were way better than I expected!
I’m so glad you enjoyed that Crystal!
I love eclairs, but my son is allergic to cocoa Are there any other type of ganches that I could try?? He can have some white chocolate.
Hi Marcia, honestly, the sky is the limit with your ganache of choice. You can really get creative with toppings.
hi can I use goat milk ? cows milk and I do not agree
Hi Joseph, I’ve looked through the comments and don’t see anyone trying it with goat milk. I have not either to advise. If you experiment however I would love to know how you like it.
Can you freeze these or does it not taste good after then?
Hi Elena, You can make the shells in advance and store them in an airtight container. Ours haven’t lasted long enough to try that but our readers have tried freezing them. I imagine a couple of days is fine in the fridge. I haven’t tried this but I read that it’s best not to freeze eclairs.
hi Natasha! I LOVE YOUR RECIPES BEST! But what is name on your counter hot plate ?{that’s not what you really call it, tho.} I am shopping for one.
Hi Sallyann, we use this single burner here.
The dough and filling were great. I think the chocolate could be improved upon. I had trouble piping in the filling so I just ended up slicing them partially open and piping the filling in. My first time making eclairs. Next time I will make bigger ones!
Thank you for that feedback Linda! I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe.
Would it be okay to fill the eclairs from the top? That way the chocolate ganache would cover the holes?
Hi Melanie! I bet that would work! If you test it I would love to know how you like that.
I’ve made eclairs and cream puffs many, many times over the years, but never with milk and water in the Choix. I really like the results. The other thing I like about this recipe that no other version had ever pointed out was to continue stirring the flour/butter mixture until the moisture reduced. That might be the key to getting them to rise and bake to a nice crispness. If the dough has too much moisture, they won’t dry sufficiently in the oven.
I didn’t pipe the eclairs because I wanted to shape them. You might want to add that note in your directions if a pastry bag isn’t available.
(I shaped mine into footballs for a Super Bowl themed party)
Thank you for that awesome suggestion, Debbie! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe.
What’s the number on the 1/2” round tip
Hi Linda, we used this tip here. It is a Wilton 1A.
Hi Natasha,
I tried making these, but they burned after being in the 425 degree oven for 10 minutes. I wasn’t even able to complete the recipe and got really dejected :/ The only part of the recipe I didn’t follow was use 1% milk instead of whole because that’s what I had on hand, though I don’t think that would cause the bottom to burn like that?
Hi Malak, I’ve never experienced burning before at 425˚F for 10 minutes. They should be just golden on the bottom. I suspect either your oven runs very hot or maybe you were doing this in a confection setting? A convection oven cooks everything faster so that could be the culprit. I used a conventional oven. I hope that helps. What a bummer!
Hi, I had the same problem with my pastry. I’ve made a lot of your recipes and the baking time is right on. This was a first that I found to be odd, my pastry looked already done after 10min on 425, I turned it down to 325 degrees and let it sit another 7min and they were already fairly brown.
Hi Jess, did you possibly bake on convection settings by mistake? This recipe is written for a conventional oven. I’m not sure why else that would be.
Delicious! This was my first time making eclairs, and the flavors were wonderful. The choux pastry piped nicely for both eclairs and cream puffs, and they seem to freeze well. 5/5 !
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Katie!
My husband and I are bringing these to our NYE party tomorrow! Can’t wait to try them.
I hope you love them! Happy New Year!
I made these for Christmas. The taste was there BUT my eclairs (most of them) were flat which made it hard to fill and when reading the instructions….the cream filling calls for butter but there’s nowhere in the instructions where to put it and how to use it.
Hi Nomiki, I am always happy to help troubleshoot. I have the butter there in step 4 “Transfer pastry cream to a medium bowl (whisk in 2 tsp vanilla extract if using). Cut butter into pieces and quickly whisk into the custard until fully incorporated Cover with plastic directly over the surface of the cream, let it cool slightly then refrigerate 30 minutes or until cool.” The butter is added to the cream last. I hope you had a chance to watch the video for confirmation on when to add it. Also, flat eclairs are usually due to either piping them too large or underbaking. Some ovens run a little cooler so you might bake an extra 2 minutes next time. I hope that helps!
Hi Natasha, I love this recipe! I was wondering how many days prior to making the eclairs, can i prepare the filling?
Hi Anita, You can make the shells inadvance and store in an air tight containers. Ours haven’t lasted long enough to try that but our readers have tried freezing them. I imagine a couple days is fine in the fridge. I haven’t tried this but I read that it’s best not to freeze eclairs.
I made these yesterday. A little harder than I thought it would be as I have never used a piping bag. Mine came out a little small but they were still good. Also, my ganache came out thin, but again, still really good. My next recipe of yours to try are the creme puffs. Those are my favorite. Thank you for sharing your great recipes.
Aren’t these the best, Debbie! We absolutely love them! Thank you for your feedback and awesome review!
Hi Natasha,
Lovely recipe and pictures, can’t wait to try and make them. I was wondering how I can make the cream inside the eclairs also chocolate flavored? Any help would be greatly appreciated and thank you in advance.
Hi Irina, that is a great question and I haven’t tested that to advise. I imagine some cocoa in the mixture would work but baking being a science I don’t know what you would need to change. If you experiment, please let me know how you like that.
These are the absolutely BEST ECLAIRS I’ve ever made and I’ve tried a lot of recipes! Perfect! Thank you, Natasha!
That’s just awesome, Polina! I’m so glad you enjoyed that and thank you for the 5 star review!
Hi!
How far in advance can i make the pastry? And should I keep it at room temperature on the counter covered or keep it in the fridge?
(not filled)
How long can I make the filling ahead?
What is the ideal amount of time to keep in the refrigerator once fully assembled?
Thanks!
Hi Lorilee, You can make the shells inadvance and store in an air tight containers. Ours haven’t lasted long enough to try that but our readers have tried freezing them. I imagine a couple days is fine in the fridge. I haven’t tried this but I read that it’s best not to freeze eclairs.