Rose Cream Eclairs (Fortnum & Mason)
Deliciously light and creamy, these rose eclairs are the perfect accompaniment to afternoon tea. The ingredients are the same as Fortnum's recipe - I've updated the instructions a bit for clarity, and I've made notes where I would personally make (tiny) adjustments.
Ingredients
For the choux pastry
- 100 g plain flour *I use all purpose
- 75 ml whole milk
- 75 ml water
- 3 med eggs, lightly beaten *this is roughly 2.4 large eggs (I lightly beat large eggs, and weigh 5.1oz total to use here)
For the rose pastry cream
- 1 vanilla pod *I use a spent vanilla pod from making extract
- 400 ml whole milk
- 100 g caster sugar
- 8 large egg yolks
- 30 g cornstarch *Fortnum's recipe reads "cornflour" (this is the same as cornstarch in the US)
- 20 g unsalted butter
- 4 tsp rosewater *I use a Turkish rosewater - 4 tsp is a bit strong for kids - I would nudge this down to 2 tsp if serving to children
- 120 ml heavy cream *Fortnum's recipe reads "double cream" (the same as heavy cream in the US)
For the fondant icing
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp water
- pink food coloring *I use a gel food coloring
- rose petals *optional
Instructions
Make the Choux Pastry (the "buns")
- Line 2 large baking trays with parchment, and preheat your oven to 200 deg celcius (~395 deg F).
- Sift the flour, and set aside.
- Add the milk, water, and butter into a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk to combine.
- When the butter has melted and the mixture has come to a boil, remove from heat, and beat in the sifted flour with a wooden spoon.
- Return the saucepan to the heat and cook, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes.
- Leave to cool for 5-10 minutes, until it is just warm (not hot).
- Using a stand mixer, add a little bit of eggs at a time, and beat until fully incorporated. The mixture should be thick and glossy.
- Transfer the choux dough to a piping bag fitted with a 1cm nozzle. *This is according to how large you want your resulting eclairs to be - I use two different nozzles of roughly this size with good results - my eclairs were about 4.5 inches (11.4cm) in length once baked.
- Pipe them onto your prepared baking sheets in thin strips 9-10cm (3.5-4in) long, leaving at least 5cm (2in) between them, as they expand a lot during baking.
- Bake for 25 min, or until well risen and golden brown. They should sound hollow if tapped underneath. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool. *If not using same day - once cooled, these can be stored in airtight bags in the freezer until you need to use them.
- For simplicity - wash your saucepan, as you will use it again in the following steps.
Make the Pastry Cream (the filling)
- Slit the vanilla pod open lengthwise, and scrape out the seeds with the flat edge of a knife into your saucepan. Add both the seeds and the pod, as well as the milk, into your pan. Bring to a boil over med heat, then remove from heat and set aside.
- Beat the sugar, eggs yolks, and cornstarch together in a large bowl.
- Gradually pour in a bit of hot milk at a time, and continue whisking, until all the milk is incorporated. Return the mixture to the saucepan, and cook over a low to medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. *The mixture may go lumpy partway through, but continue stirring and it will smooth out again.
- Once thickened, lower the heat, and continue cooking for 2 minutes.
- Remove from the heat, and mix in the butter, followed by the rosewater.
- Transfer to a heatproof bowl, and press a sheet of cling film (saran wrap) to the surface of the cream, and leave to cool. *It's important that the sheet is directly on the surface of the cream, and not just on the bowl - otherwise, your cream will form a skin.
- Whip your heavy cream (aka double cream) to soft peaks. Once your pastry cream is cool, stir it vigorously, and then fold in your whipped cream gently. Taste and adjust the rose flavor if necessary.
- Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a 5mm nozzle (for filling your eclairs). Make a small hole in the tip of your eclair, insert the nozzle, and fill the eclairs generously. *See video for reference on how to do this.
Make the Fondant Icing
- Sift the icing sugar, and stir in lemon juice. Gradually add enough water to give the consistency of "thick treacle". Add your food coloring. *Don't be tempted to think this mixture too much. 2 tbsp of water will appear to leave you with too thick of a consistency, but it should be about right for it to set without running off your pastry. Test it on an eclair before thinning further.
- Dip the eclairs until the tops are covered, then leave to set, and add rose petals as desired.