Book of Yum

1) In a heavy bottomed medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the
boil.

2) Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add all of the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium
and start to stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon. The dough comes together very
quickly. Do not worry if a slight crust forms at the bottom of the pan, it�s supposed to. You
need to carry on stirring for a further 2-3 minutes to dry the dough. After this time the dough
will be very soft and smooth.

3) Transfer the dough into a bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using your
handmixer or if you still have the energy, continue by hand. Add the eggs one at a time,
beating after each egg has been added to incorporate it into the dough.
You will notice that after you have added the first egg, the dough will separate, once again do
not worry. As you keep working the dough, it will come back all together again by the time you
have added the third egg. In the end the dough should be thick and shiny and when lifted it
should fall back into the bowl in a ribbon.

4) The dough should be still warm. It is now ready to be used for the �clairs as directed below. Once the dough is made you need to shape it immediately.

Baking the eclairs (directions for making about 10 eclairs and freezing 10 for later):
� Cream Puff Dough Recipe (above), fresh and still warm

1) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Position the rack in the lower half of the oven. Line two baking sheets with waxed or parchment paper.

2) Prepare a large Ziploc gallon or quart freezer bag by cutting out 2/3 of an inch slice out of the lower corner of the bag. Fill the bag with the warm cream puff dough and pipe the dough onto the baking sheets in long, 4 to 4 1/2 inches (about 11 cm) chubby fingers.
Leave about 2 inches (5 cm) space in between each dough strip to allow them room to puff. The dough should give you enough to pipe 20-24 �clairs. Put ONE of the baking sheets in the freezer and then once the eclair dough is frozen, put them in a plastic bag back in the freezer and wash the baking sheet.

3) Slide the OTHER baking sheets into the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet so that the front is in the back and the back is in the front. Bake for another ten minutes or until eclairs are golden and sound hollow when you tap on them. It is really important that they not be undercooked as they will deflate if so. Turn off the oven and open the door, letting them cool slowly in the oven. Place on a rack to finish cooling.

Notes:
1) The �clairs can be kept in a cool, dry place for several hours before filling, or stored in a tupperware overnight, making sure they are completely cool before you close the lid. If you store them overnight, re-crisp them in the oven for 5 minutes and let cool again before filling.

Assembling the �clairs:

1) Slice the �clairs horizontally, using a serrated knife and a gently sawing motion. Set aside the
bottoms and place the tops on a rack over a piece of parchment paper.

2) The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 � 104 degrees F or 35 � 40
degrees C, as measured on an instant read thermometer). Spread the glaze over the tops of
the �clairs using a metal icing spatula. Allow the tops to set and in the meantime fill the
bottoms with the pastry cream.

3) Pipe or spoon the pastry cream into the bottoms of the �clairs. I made half with Vanilla pastry cream and half with Espresso pastry cream. Make sure you fill the bottoms with enough cream to mound above the pastry. Place the glazed tops onto the pastry cream
and wriggle gently to settle them.