{"id":2083,"date":"2013-10-06T17:54:09","date_gmt":"2013-10-06T15:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/?p=2083"},"modified":"2015-02-16T23:20:56","modified_gmt":"2015-02-16T22:20:56","slug":"eclair-paste-what-is-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/pastry-culture\/eclair-paste-what-is-it","title":{"rendered":"\u00c9clair paste\/Choux pastry: what is it?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A <strong>fundamental<\/strong>, incredibly <strong>versatile<\/strong> dough in pastry is the <strong>\u00e9clair paste<\/strong>, also known as choux pastry or under the original <em>French<\/em> name of <strong>p\u00e2te \u00e0 choux<\/strong>. You can find the <a title=\"Recipe: \u00c9clair paste (P\u00e2te \u00e0 choux)\" href=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/recipes\/pate-a-choux\/recipe-eclair-paste-pate-a-choux\">basic recipe here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>What can I make with \u00e9clair paste?<\/h3>\n<p><strong>P\u00e2te \u00e0 choux<\/strong> can be used to make very different products, both <strong>sweet and savoury<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_2089\" style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-16.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2089\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2089\" src=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-16.jpg\" alt=\"Cream puffs - Just baked\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-16.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-16-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-2089\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Cream puffs &#8211; Just baked<\/p><\/div>\n<p>They can be divided in two categories:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Baked<\/strong>: <em>cream puffs (choux), profiteroles, fingers (\u00e9clairs), Paris-Brest&#8230;<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>Deep-fried<\/strong>: <em>churros, beignets&#8230;<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Since the finished \u00e9clair paste products are usually &#8220;<strong>hollow<\/strong>&#8220;, they are <strong>filled with creams and ice creams<\/strong>. They are also <strong>traditionally glazed with fondant, mirror glazes<\/strong> or sprinkled with icing sugar.<\/p>\n<h3>What is the procedure to make \u00e9clair paste?<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>Combine the <strong>liquid<\/strong> ingredients and<strong> diced butter<\/strong> and bring to a <strong>boil<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Add all the flour<\/strong> in one time and stir until the liquids are absorbed<\/li>\n<li>Continue cooking the dough to &#8220;<strong>dry<\/strong>&#8221; it for a few minutes on the heat<\/li>\n<li>In a clean bowl, let the dough cool down slightly then start adding the <strong>eggs one by one<\/strong> until you obtain the right smooth and <strong>dense consistency<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Pipe the batter<\/strong> with a piping bag<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bake or fry<\/strong> the batter. In case of baking, prefer relatively <strong>high temperatures<\/strong> (180\u00b0-200\u00b0) and <strong>slightly open the oven door<\/strong> only after the p\u00e2te \u00e0 choux has risen enough (i.e. usually <strong>in the second half of the baking period<\/strong>).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>What is special about \u00e9clair paste? Why happens during the baking process?<\/h3>\n<p>P\u00e2te \u00e0 choux is, dare I say, <strong>unique<\/strong> among doughs because <strong>it is cooked<\/strong> (in a saucepan) <strong>before baking<\/strong> in the oven (or frying).<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-04.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2087\" src=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-04.jpg\" alt=\"Eclair-paste---Pate-a-choux---Step-04\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-04.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-04-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\nIts recipe contains an<strong> important percentage of liquids<\/strong> (usually water and\/or milk) and we can identify several key steps that concur the formation of the finished product:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The <strong>flour<\/strong> is added when the liquids boil: this process breaks down the starches in the flour, allowing them to absorb the liquids, <strong>speeding gelatinization<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Adding the <strong>eggs<\/strong> in the dough one at a time: this helps <strong>forming the structure<\/strong> of the final product; the final batter must be<strong> smooth and shiny but not too runny<\/strong>. The eggs are added little by little to prevent the formation of lumps and also because it might not be necessary to add them all: our objective is to have a <strong>batter thick enough to be piped<\/strong> so, no matter what the recipe says, we should <strong>stop adding eggs when we achieve the right consistency<\/strong>, <em>which depends on the strength of the flour among other factors<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Steam<\/strong>: it is the major <strong>leavening agent<\/strong> in \u00e9clair paste. The <strong>liquids<\/strong> in the recipe are <strong>transformed into steam<\/strong> when they evaporate during the baking phase. Evaporation means that liquids apply an <strong>upward pressure<\/strong> on the dough: this causes the typical rising, which is stopped when the heat makes the dough set.<br \/>\nIn other words, after the initial upward rise, the <strong>air gets trapped under a thin layer<\/strong>, formed after the gelatinization of starches, with the help of gluten and <strong>coagulating egg whites<\/strong>.<br \/>\nFinally, the baked product has to be dry, so it is advisable to<strong> let the steam escape<\/strong> completely by leaving the<strong> oven door slightly open<\/strong> after the first half of the baking period. This results in a hollow product with a relatively thin exterior.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"attachment_2095\" style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/illustration-pate-a-choux.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2095\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2095\" src=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/illustration-pate-a-choux.jpg\" alt=\"Explanation of why the p\u00e2te \u00e0 choux rises resulting in a hollow product\" width=\"640\" height=\"260\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/illustration-pate-a-choux.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/illustration-pate-a-choux-300x121.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-2095\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Explanation of why the p\u00e2te \u00e0 choux rises resulting in a hollow product<\/p><\/div>\n<p>For this reason, it is very important to <strong>carefully follow the quantities<\/strong> and steps in a recipe of \u00e9clair paste. For example, recipes usually call for <strong><em>diced butter<\/em><\/strong>, because the latter <strong>must melt before the water boils<\/strong>: if water has to boil longer than needed, it will start evaporating, changing the proportions and compromising the recipe.<\/p>\n<p>The same reasoning applies to the <strong>eggs<\/strong>, which must be<strong> weighed to the gram<\/strong> (and then maybe the quantity can be adjusted roughly depending on the absorption rate and strength of the flour) and not added whole.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-10.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2088\" src=\"http:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-10.jpg\" alt=\"Eclair-paste---Pate-a-choux---Step-10\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-10.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Eclair-paste-Pate-a-choux-Step-10-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Different proportions<\/strong> of liquids, flour and fats can definitely <strong>alter the final product<\/strong>, making it either soft, hard, wet, dry, with a thick or thin exterior, high-rising, or <strong>tragically collapsing after baking<\/strong>. Anyway, there is no standard formula for the best p\u00e2te \u00e0 choux: different versions of \u00e9clair paste can be created for different uses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A fundamental, incredibly versatile dough in pastry is the \u00e9clair paste, also known as choux pastry or under the original French name of p\u00e2te \u00e0 choux. You can find the basic recipe here. What can I make with \u00e9clair paste? P\u00e2te \u00e0 choux can be used to make very different products, both sweet and savoury.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2091,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[154],"tags":[321,355,319,322,320,107,687,323],"class_list":["post-2083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pastry-culture","tag-basic","tag-choux-pastry","tag-eclair-paste","tag-explanation","tag-pastry-elements","tag-pastry-fundamentals","tag-pate-a-choux","tag-theory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2083"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2083\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roadtopastry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}