Review: Chocolate Pistachio Eclairs

For my sisters birthday, I sprang at the opportunity for a more challenging bake.

Choux pastry was a first. Since the oven quit on me halfway through preparing for this bake, I packed the baking sheets and pastry bag and drove a few miles up the road to my aunts new apartment to bake Samantha’s Chocolate Pistachio Eclairs.

I wasn’t familiar with her oven so I got a very uneven bake. However, the overall results were well received by all party-goers. Although the flavors were so-so, I’d prefer a bit more sweetness, the aesthetic was impressive and a true joy to create.

This recipe comes from her latest publication, BakeSmart.

Here’s some insights:

• Cut the tip of pastry bag wider instead of using a 1 inch pastry tip (I did not own).

• As the recipe suggests choux needs rotating halfway through baking time but I’d go a step further. Depending on your oven you may need to switch the baking sheets from top to bottoms racks as well.

• Try salted pistachio in the pastry cream for a unique blend of sweet and salty.

It was hard not to smile as these slender pastries puffed in the oven. I felt like a real pastry chef dipping them in chocolate ganache and sprinkling the nuts atop!