Caramel Eclairs
MAKES 18 PREPARATION & COOKING 2 HOURS, 15 MINUTES
395g can sweetened
condensed milk ½ cup water 60g butter, chopped 1 tablespoon dark
brown sugar ½ cup baker’s flour 3 eggs 2 cups thickened cream CARAMEL ICING 30g butter, chopped ¼ cup firmly packed
brown sugar 1 tablespoon milk
1 / cup icing sugar 3
1. Preheat oven to 220°C. Grease two large oven trays.
2. Pour condensed milk into a medium, shallow baking dish.
Cover with foil and place dish in a larger baking dish. Add enough boiling water to the large dish to come halfway up sides of medium dish. Transfer to the oven and bake for 1¼ hours or till condensed milk is golden-brown and caramel. Cool down to room temperature, then whisk caramel until smooth.
3. Combine water, butter and brown sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil. Add flour and beat with a wooden spoon over medium heat until mixture comes away from base of pan. Transfer choux 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 a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm plain tube. Pipe 8cm lengths, about 5cm apart, on trays.
5. Bake eclairs for 10 minutes. Reduce oven to 180°C and bake for a further 15 minutes. Using a serrated knife, cut eclairs in half and remove any soft centres. Return to trays and bake for 5 minutes or until eclairs are dry. Cool on trays.
6. CARAMEL ICING. Melt butter in a small saucepan, then add brown sugar and milk. Cook, stirring, over high heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool for 10 minutes. Whisk in sifted icing sugar. If icing becomes too thick to spread, stir in 2 teaspoons boiling water.
7. Beat cream in a small bowl with an electric mixer until firm peaks form.
8. Spread caramel into eclair bases. Top with whipped cream. Position eclair tops on cream. Spread tops with caramel icing.