Chocolate eclairs

For the choux pastry

• 130g plain flour

• Pinch of caster sugar

• Pinch of salt

• 230ml water

• 60g butter

• 4 large eggs

For the chocolate creme patissiere

• 1 egg

• 2 egg yolks

• 3 tbsp caster sugar

• 2 tbsp plain flour

• 60g 70% cocoa solids dark chocolate, roughly chopped

• 300ml whole milk

• 20g butter

For the dark chocolate icing

• 150g 70% cocoa solids dark chocolate, roughly chopped

• 30g butter

To make the choux pastry eclairs

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C/190°C fan/Gas Mark 7.

2. Sift the flour, sugar and salt together in a large bowl.

3. Add the butter to a saucepan over a medium heat. Pour in the water. Stir together and cook until the butter is melted and the mixture comes to a gentle boil.

4. Steadily pour in the flour mixture, stirring as you go until it is all incorporated. Keep stirring with a wooden spoon for 2-3 minutes until you have a thick dough which comes away from the edge of the pan.

5. Once the dough comes together to form one large ball, remove from the pan and add to a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on.

6. Put one egg aside. Add the remaining three eggs, one at a time, either with the motor running on your stand mixer, or using an electric hand-held mixer to beat them in. Beat until all combined and you have a smooth, glossy dough.

7. Add the dough to your piping bag and pipe 12 eclairs onto two baking trays lined with baking paper, making sure to space them out. Brush the eclairs with beaten egg from the egg you put aside earlier.

8. Bake for 25 minutes until the eclairs are risen and golden.

9. Turn off the oven. Leave the eclairs in the oven for 10 minutes as it cools. Remove to cool completely on the wire rack.

To make the chocolate creme patissiere

1. Whisk together the egg, egg yolks and sugar in a large mixing bowl.

2. Whisk in the 2tbsp flour.

3. Melt the chocolate and milk together in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Once melted, whisk the flour and egg mixture into the chocolate mixture in the pan and whisk for a couple of minutes until thickened.

4. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter. Leave to cool.

5. Once the eclairs and chocolate creme patissiere are completely cooled, slice each eclair in half lengthways.

6. Fill a piping bag with the chocolate creme patissiere and fill the centres of the bottom halves with cream. Place the tops back on to each eclair.

To make the chocolate icing

1. Melt the chopped dark chocolate and butter together in a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water, until all melted and you have a rich, glossy sauce.

2. Leave to cool, then pipe stripes of chocolate icing along the lengths of the eclairs.