Yummy Experiments: September 2008

ECLAIRS! I love eclairs but never thought I'd attempt them, they just seemed so difficult. It was a great first challenge for me with this excellent bunch of bakers. Since we moved here to Seattle we don't have most of our stuff, which meant I had to make this recipe (like all of our others :( ) with hardly any kitchen equipment. I didn't even have measuring spoons.
Well, the first attempt at the pastry itself failed miserably. I'm pretty sure it was because I didn't beat the dough properly while and after cooking it. I tried a different recipe (had to find something vegan and gluten free online) but it didn't work either. It seemed like that failed because the recipe itself was too buttery (dripping butter oil, ugh) so I was back to square one. I retried the first recipe but beat the dough longer and more thoroughly than before, and also cooked the eclairs only in the center rack instead of rotating top to center. It worked wonderfully, although I didn't get as many eclairs out of the recipe as most people.
For the pastry cream I used a veganized recipe for a plain cream, and added melted chocolate and maple syrup. Unfortunately it turned out more like pudding than pastry cream so I shan't be using it the next time I attempt eclairs. It tasted yummy though. :)
The dark chocolate glaze was awesome. I just melted some Earth Balance with chocolate chips, maple syrup, and a bit of brown sugar. It really saved the whole experiment. I will definitely be making it in the future.

Now, finally, pics!