Living with my 90-something grandparents has impacted us all in so many different ways, individually, and as a family. Likely in profound ways that we will look back on and realize through reminiscing. Sometimes it has been quite a challenge, and sometime it has given us pause to appreciate the opportunity that we have provided for my grandparents and our children to really know and spend time with one another. Granted, 90-somethings and 0-8 year olds are often at odds, but it’s still a special family relationship that isn’t often given a chance to develop.
Ok, enough about the deeper meaning of familiar relationships, and on to one of the distinct benefits for me, as a mom at home during the day, of living here with my grandma (we had been living here with both of my grandparents, but my grandfather passed a few months back. Grandma is holding strong at 95, though, bless her little Italian heart).
Ok – the distinct benefit to me – caregivers.
Yes- my grandma’s caregivers.
We have been blessed enough to have caregivers to help with my grandma’s needs, who also love my children, and yes, Shawn and me too. They love us so much that they go out of their way to assist with things that are well beyond the job requirements of caring for my grandmother.
They help us in lots of ways, and bring their special skills to the job.
So while this blog is not one where we will regularly post recipes, today I’m going to show you how we spent our rainy Friday.
Making Eclairs!
Yummm. I had asked one of our caregivers, Monique, if she *wanted* to make a dessert for a family gathering we are attending. Not to add to her workload, or take advantage of her, of course – but because she is a pastry chef and enjoys making desserts! She said yes – yay!
I had the foresight to snap some pictures, thinking that a. everyone likes pictures of yummy food and b. some of you, like myself prior to today, might feel intimidated by something like making eclairs.
Granted, Monique did ALL of the prep, and most of the work, but it didn’t appear to be as daunting as I would have thought. It seemed pretty straightforward, and it yielded yummy, delicious, sure-to-be crowd pleasing eclairs.
The real test of how simple these are to make will be if I ever attempt it unsupervised. Stay tuned for that!!
So, from what I gathered, here is what you have to do:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, and grease one or two baking sheets.
Bring one cup of water and ½ cup of butter to a boil.
Once the butter is melted, reduce heat to low.
Add 1 cup of flour and ¼ teaspoon of salt.
Stir until the mixture pulls from the side and into a ball.
Remove from heat and place dough in a bowl on a stand mixer.
Slowly add in four eggs, one at a time. Mix until blended. And ta-da!
Your éclair dough is ready to go.
Insert a size 10 tip (I googled that!) into a pastry bag, and fill the bag with dough. You’re all set to start making the magic.
What I learned was to hold the pastry bag straight up and down. Squeeze it out slowly while moving your hand down to the length that you want the éclair to be. We were making ‘mini’ ones. Here is what they looked like before we put them in the oven.
Set the timer for 20 minutes, but keep an eye on them as ovens vary.
While the eclairs cook, you should prepare the filling and the chocolate topping. First, prepare a box of French Vanilla pudding as the box directs. And here is the secret Monique shared – add a container of cool whip to the pudding. This makes the filling light, fluffy, and freezable.
For the topping:
Boil a pot of water, and place a glass or metal bowl on top, being sure it does not touch the water. Once the water is boiling, add a bag of chocolate chips and 2 teaspoons of butter. Mix until melted, and then remove from the heat. Add 1/3 cup of cream or half and half to get a smooth and creamy consistency.
Once the eclairs (or cream puffs) are done, remove them from the oven and allow to cool for a bit.
Then, use a chopstick to poke a hole in one end of the éclair or in the bottom of a cream puff. Fill a new pastry bag first with a smaller tip, and then with the pudding filling. Insert the tip into the hole and squeeze the filling in until the pastry feels full or you see it start to come out!
Once the pastries are full, you can then dip them in the chocolate.
Voila.
I missed some pictures, because we were embarking on this baking adventure with both a 95 year old, and a 2 year old, and I also had to go and do school pick up. But nonetheless, I now have these beauties to share at a family gathering tomorrow! Thanks Monique!!
