1 ounce cream cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 + 1 tablespoon cup heavy cream
Steps
Place a rack in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
To make the pate a choux, combine the water, butter, and salt in a medium saucepan, over medium heat and bring to a rolling boil.
Remove the pan from the heat, and add the flour and sugar all at once, using a spatula to stir quickly and vigorously.
Return the pan to the burner and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture smooths to a glossy consistency and pulls away from the sides of the pan. The mixture will also steam and cook off some of the water.
Remove the pan from the heat, and let the mixture cool for 10 minutes. The mixture will still be warm but place in a medium bowl. Use a spatula to stir the mixture around the bowl to release some of the heat and steam
In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or with an electric hand mixer, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing for 1 full minute between each addition. The mixture will look curdled with the first egg. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure all of the ingredients are mixed evenly. The batter will be smooth and glossy after the last egg is added. Beat for another minutes after adding the last egg.
Spoon the batter into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. I used Ateco #869. Pipe into 2 1/2 or 3-inch logs set about 2-inches apart.
Bake for 16-18 minutes, rotating the pan after 10 minutes of baking if necessary. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
While the pastry bakes, make the whipped cream. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a clean bowl with an electric hand mixer beat cream cheese around a bowl to ensure it is softened. Add 1/4 cup of heavy cream and beat to slowly incorporate the cream cheese into the heavy cream. Add an additional 1/4 cup heavy cream and mix. Followed by all of the remaining crew, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Beat to stiff peaks.
To make the ganache bring heavy cream to a simmer. Pour the cream over the chocolate chips in a small bowl and allow to sit for 5 minutes before whisking to smooth and glossy.
I like to fill the eclairs no more than 1 hour before serving. To fill the eclairs, fill a piping bag (fitted with a filling tip if you have one) with whipped cream. Insert the top all the way into one end of the eclair, squeeze the piping bag while slowly removing the tip.
Dip the top of each eclair into the chocolate ganache and allow to rest on a baking sheet until serving. Refrigerate the eclairs to set the chocolate if you’d like.
Reviews
Peter on 2022-02-12 (5 stars): Love your casual writeup of one of my all-time favorite desserts (or breakfast, or lunch, etc). I never thought to try and make this myself. Preheating the oven now...
Sue on 2022-02-12 (5 stars): Small batch chocolate eclairs are just the right recipe for a Valentine's Day treat. Instead of making them elongated in shape I will take the pate a choux dough and bake it into the shape of small hearts. Your email provided the ideal recipe and idea for a heart shaped cream puff. Thank you.
Katie on 2022-02-12 (5 stars): I’ve made these for years, my late grandmother’s recipe is quite similar! Love the addition of cream cheese in the whipped cream! Will tuck that golden nugget away! For my grandmother’s birthday, we made one HUGE round eclair on a pizza stone. Then slice thru the middle to fill. No worries about a clean cut. The filling and topping take care of the rest. Talk about a show-stopper! Thanks, Joy! You brought back some joyful memories with this one!
Susan on 2022-10-15 (5 stars): First time making eclairs and the recipe was so easy. I need to work on piping but they turned out great! Next time I’ll do the more traditional filing but I love a small batch recipe!
