Earl grey and white chocolate éclairs

Tea is one of an infinite number of flavours that can be paired with chocolate, and a combination that I was convinced I had invented until I typed it into google and realised that many, many other people had all had exactly the same idea. And what a very good idea it is – there are so many ways to combine different kinds of chocolate with different kinds of tea that it opens up a whole new world of possibilities for patisserie and chocolate making.



I had a few issues with the white chocolate ganache icing that I used for these, so ended up going for an ‘informal’ look: in other words I tried to swirl the icing around a bit so it was clearly intentionally messy, rather than just bad icing skills, which may in fact have been the case! The ganache becomes translucent when the chocolate is melted which made me think it needed a really thick layer, but actually once it set I realised that dipping the éclairs in just a thin layer of the ganache would have looked much better.

Even with these icing issues, I was so happy with the finished éclairs: the flavour was delicate and not at all too sweet – the earl grey somehow prevents the white chocolate flavour from becoming cloying and all in all they were very refined pastries indeed.



Things I have learnt from making these éclairs:

I’m so pleased I discovered the clever trick of snipping off the dough with scissors as you are piping; it makes it so much easier to keep the éclairs an even thickness all the way along. Just remember to hold the scissors in your right hand and the piping bag in the left (I’m right handed, so it’s probably the opposite for lefties) as every time I’ve tried it so far I ended up picking them up the wrong way round and having to swap mid-pipe!

The éclairs would look much prettier with a thin even layer of the ganache. Try pouring the ganache onto a plate to make it easier to dip the éclairs.

Normally choux pastry is only good the day it’s made, but I found that these had retained their crispness to the next day, partly because I cooked them for a really long time and partly because there isn’t much liquid in the crème pâtissière. If storing overnight keep them refrigerated.


Earl grey and white chocolate éclairs: makes 8

Earl grey crème pâtissière:
150ml milk
150ml cream
2 earl grey tea bags
3 egg yolks
50g caster sugar
1 tablespoon plain flour
75g white chocolate, chopped

• Warm the milk and cream over a medium heat until it begins to boil
• Add in the two earl grey tea bags and set aside for 20 minutes or so to infuse
• In a large mixing bowl whisk together the egg yolks, caster sugar and plain flour
• Remove the tea bags from the milk then reheat until just beginning to simmer
• Pour the hot infused milk over the egg yolks, whisking constantly
• Tip the mixture back into the saucepan and continue to whisk over the heat until the mixture becomes very thick
• Remove from the heat then stir in the chopped white chocolate
• Transfer to a bowl and cover the surface with cling film

Choux buns:
2 egg batch of choux pastry

• Make the choux pastry as per the instructions in the link above
• Preheat the oven to 200°C and line a baking tray with greased parchment
• Transfer the dough to a piping bag with a plain nozzle and pipe 6-8 long thin strips, snipping off the end of the dough with scissors as you finish piping each éclair
• Bake in the oven for 40 minutes until dark golden brown and very crisp
• Switch the oven off and leave the choux buns to cool in the oven with the door propped open by a wooden spoon

White chocolate ganache icing:
100g white chocolate, chopped
75ml double cream

• Put the chocolate and double cream in a heat-proof dish
• Heat in very short bursts in the microwave (if you over-do it the chocolate may become grainy and split)
• Once half the chocolate is melted just keep stirring and the rest of the chocolate should melt to form a smooth ganache

Assembling the éclairs:

• Put the crème pâtissière in a piping bag with a 0.5cm plain nozzle and make small holes in the ends of each éclair
• Pipe the éclairs with the crème pâtissière until they are all full, piping from both ends and checking they are not overflowing
• Dip the tops of the éclairs in the ganache icing and add sprinkles of your choice