Whenever I want to impress with a beautiful dessert – I make eclairs. Eclair are one of my favorite desserts – I love the combination of a crunchy golden pastry filled with cream, and it makes such a great dessert you can make different each and every time.
These cherry eclairs are filled with mascarpone cream and cherries, and has a crunchy pistachio crumble layer on top. It’s festive and perfect for hosting a fancy dinner or brunch, and I’m sure you’ll like it too!
Cherry Eclairs with Mascarpone Cream and Pistachios
10 medium eclairs
For pistachio crumble:
100 grams cold butter
100 grams sugar
80 grams flour
20 grams pistachios
A pinch of salt
For pâte à choux:
125 ml. milk
A pinch of salt
30 grams sugar
50 grams butter
70 grams flour
2 eggs, whisked
For mascarpone cream:
225 grams mascarpone cheese
250 ml. whipping cream
2 tbsp. sugar powder
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. whipped cream stabilizer
150-200 grams fresh cherries
20-30 grams toasted, chopped pistachios
Preparation:
- Pistachio crumble: put butter, sugar, flour, pistachios and salt in a food processor, and blend together until a dough forms.
- Flatten the dough and cool for about an hour.
- Using a rolling pin, roll the dough until about 2-3 mm. thick.
- With a sharp knife cut 2*8 cm rectangles and keep in freezer until use.
- Preheat oven to 190c degrees.
- Pâte à choux: in a medium pan put milk, salt, sugar and butter and bring to a boil on high heat. Make sure all butter is melted.
- Remove from stove and add flour. Stir together until a form dough forms.
- Put dough in your electric mixer bowl with a paddle attachment and whisk for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add about half of the egg mixture and keep blending on medium speed. The dough will appear broken, but after a few more seconds it will be ok.
- Gradually add the rest of the eggs until mixture is soft and smooth.
- Transfer the batter into a piping bag fitted with large 2 cm serrated piping tip.
- Drizzle 10 eclairs at intervals each about 8-9 cm long on a baking pan lined with baking paper.
- Place a pistachio crumble rectangle on top of each éclair.
- Bake for about 15 minutes in 190c degrees. Than decrease the heat to 180c degrees and continue baking for about 10-15 minutes until golden brown and completely set.
- Allow cooking at room temperature.
- Cut each éclair into 2 parts.
- Mascarpone cream: in a mixer bowl whip mascarpone, cream, sugar powder, vanilla extract and cream stabilizer until firm and creamy.
- Transfers the cream into a piping bag fitted with 1-2 cm serrated tip, and fill the eclairs generously.
- Arrange some fresh cherry halves and “sandwich” with the other part of each éclair.
- Drizzle some mascarpone cream on top, and serve with whole cherries and chopped pistachios.
Notes:
- Eclairs are at its best on the day of preparation.
- You can use raspberries of strawberries instead of cherries.