1243. How to Glaze Eclairs with Chocolate.
—Put in a saucepan one pound and three quarters of granulated sugar and a gill of cold water. Place on the stove, and with a spatula mix well until the sugar is thoroughly melted, and when boiling remove from the stove, and pour it gradually on a marble slab, on which it will spread about three feet square. Let it cool off for ten minutes. Then cut two ounces of cocoa into small pieces; put them on a plate, and leave them at the oven door to melt. With a spatula begin working the sugar that is on the marble as rapidly as possible in every direction until it begins to whiten; then add the melted cocoa, mixing it thoroughly again until it becomes hard; remove the spatula, and detach the preparation quickly from the marble with a knife. Put it into a vessel, and covering it with a damp cloth, let it rest for thirty minutes. Then place half of it in a saucepan on the hot stove, and with the spatula mix thoroughly and slowly until it is lukewarm, meanwhile adding a teaspoonful of cold water. Take the éclairs, one by one, and with the hand dip them into this preparation. Lay them on a pastry-grate; let them cool off for five minutes; dress on a dessert-dish with a folded napkin, and serve.
Keep the rest of the preparation for further use. When laid aside in a cool place, and properly taken care of, it will be as good in two weeks’ time as when freshly made.
1244. Eclairs au Café.
—Have a pâte-à-chou ready, as for [No. 1240]; then proceed to make the éclairs. Bake, and fill them with a crême patissière ([No. 1242]) exactly as for the chocolate éclairs; glazing them the same as for [No. 1243], only instead of cocoa use half a gill of coffee essence ([No. 1263]). Serve precisely the same.
1245. Eclairs à la Vanille.
—Prepare a pâte-à-chou as for [No. 1240]. Make the éclairs, bake, and fill them with a crême patissière, as [No. 1242]. Glaze them as for [No. 1243], only substituting two teaspoonfuls of vanilla essence for the cocoa, and serving them the same.
1246. Choux à la Crême.
—Prepare a pâte-à-chou as for [No. 1240], and put it into the bag. Press it down onto a baking-sheet into six round, equal cakes, about two inches high. Glaze the surface of each with beaten egg. Bake in a moderate oven for thirty minutes. Watch them carefully, and when they are of a good golden color, remove from the oven and let cool for half an hour. Make an incision on one side, about half-way in the cakes, using a pair of scissors. Fill the insides with crême patissière ([No. 1242]), and close them again. Dredge well with powdered sugar, and dress on a dessert-dish, with a folded napkin, before sending to the table.