ZAP! Éclairs.

So for the past couple of days, I've been taking "Fundamentals of French Petite Fours" at the French Pastry School in Chicago. I wanted to hone my macaron skills- one of the Chefs worked with Pierre Herme. More on that later. In the meantime, this is why I'm never making tiny éclairs again:
Pâte à Choux, piped in two inch pieces with egg wash and scored with a fork. Lookin' okay.

The pastry tip we were given for filling these with pastry cream just put a big crater in the bottom of the pastry. Instead, let's focus on the fondant icing, which has been flavored with chocolate and has weird chemically properties that make it get all crusty-glazey on top.


Oh, and two-inch éclairs? They are a pain in the ass to cover with fondant.

Sad-looking éclairs. At least my madelines, coconut roches and raspberry financiers looked better. More on that soon. Bonus fact: éclair is French for "lightning,"