This éclair is the ultimate treat with a light choux pastry, filled with whipped cream and topped with a thick layer of caramel glaze.
The secret to these caramel eclairs is to treat the pastry like you would a profiterole. Making a small hole after cooking will help maintain the shape and texture.
Ingredients
Caramel icing
Method
1.Preheat oven to 220°C/425°F.
2.Pour condensed milk into a medium shallow baking dish; cover with foil. Place dish in a large baking dish; add enough boiling water to large dish to come halfway up sides of dish. Transfer to oven; bake, uncovered, about 1¼ hours or until condensed milk is golden brown and caramel. Cool to room temperature. Whisk caramel until smooth.
3.To make choux pastry, combine the water, butter and sugar in a medium saucepan; bring to the boil. Add flour; beat with a wooden spoon over medium heat until mixture comes away from base of pan. Transfer pastry to a medium bowl; beat in two of the eggs, one at a time. Whisk remaining egg with a fork, beat enough of the egg into the pastry until it becomes smooth and glossy but still holds its shape.
4.Spoon pastry into piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm plain tube. Pipe 8cm lengths, about 5cm apart, on greased oven trays.
5.Bake éclairs 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 180°C/350°F; bake 15 minutes. Using serrated knife, cut éclairs in half, remove any soft centres; return to trays, bake a further 5 minutes or until éclairs are dry. Cool on trays.
6.Meanwhile, make caramel icing. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Add brown sugar and milk; cook, stirring, over high heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 1 minute. Remove from heat; cool 10 minutes. Whisk in sifted icing sugar.
7.Beat cream in a small bowl with an electric mixer until firm peaks form. Spoon cream into pastry bases, top with caramel. Top with éclair tops; spread with caramel icing.
