An Essential Component Of Eclairs

Nicolas Poelaert of Choux Patisserie is a master of éclairs. Here, he talks us through an essential component.

- Nicolas Poelaert

A classic pastry cream is the perfect filling for pastries, traditionally used in millefeuille or choux pastry, and as the base for fruit tarts. It can also fill cakes and doughnuts. The pastry cream can be flavoured at different stages, too. For a chocolate version, add 200gm chopped dark chocolate per 5-litre batch while it’s still warm. To make a nut-based pastry cream, such as hazelnut, add nut paste to your cream once it’s cooked but still warm. You can also add a fruit purée, such as an apple purée (see below). It makes the perfect base for a crisp, sweet pastry shell in fruit tarts. Or for a crème chiboust, as seen in Gâteau Saint-Honoré, add meringue, or fold thro