Baby Matcha Eclairs

This is one of the cutest recipes I have ever made: tiny eclairs filled with a delicate matcha cream and glazed with the coolest naturally green glaze. Baby eclairs are so much better than regular ones because you can eat more than one without an excuse, plus they are perfect for a party! You can double and triple the recipe and make multiple flavor creams and icings: for the cream swap the matcha with your flavor of choice (coffee extract, vanilla extract..)  and add some colorant to your glaze.

Baby Matcha Eclairs (makes about 12)

Matcha cream

Ingredients

• 250 g full fat milk
• 1 egg
• 5 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp matcha
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp flour

Instructions

1. Heat the milk in a medium pan, when it boils, add in the vanilla and matcha, whisking vigorously to dissolve the powder. Let the mix infuse for 30 minutes.
2. Stir together the egg, sugar, flour and salt in a small bowl
3. Bring the milk mixture to a boil
4. Slowly incorporate the milk into the egg mixture: pour hot milk over as you keep whisking the egg/sugar mixture
5. Pour the mixture back into the pan and cook it until it thickens and simmers for at least 2 minutes, stirring vigorously to prevent the bottom from burning
6. Transfer the hot cream to a clean medium bowl, cover with plastic film and let it cool down completely. Refrigerate until ready to use

Choux pastry

Ingredients

• 50 g water
• 50 g milk
• 45 g butter
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 60 g flour
• 2 eggs

Instructions

1. Boil the water, milk, and butter in a medium pan
2. In a small bowl combine the flour, salt, and sugar
3. Remove the pan from the heat and add in the dry ingredients, stirring with a wooden spoon until a loose, yellow bowl of dough has formed and detached itself from the sides of the pan
4. Transfer the dough to the bowl of a stand mixer
5. Add the eggs one by one while mixer is turning on medium speed
6. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix until smooth
7. Transfer the dough to a pastry bag fitted with a medium star tip
8. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
9. Pipe 3 cm strips of dough 2 cm apart. Freeze the baking sheet if you wish to or bake the mini eclairs right away.
10. Preheat the oven to 175 C. Bake the eclairs for 10/15 minutes or until golden (do not open the oven door before the eclairs have browned)
11. Let the eclairs cool down completely before filling them

Glaze

Ingredients

• ½ cup icing sugar
• 2 tbsp cream
• ½ tsp matcha

Instructions

1. Place the icing sugar in a medium bowl
2. Heat the cream in the microwave and add in the matcha, stir until the powder has dissolved
3. Add the cream to the sugar and stir to obtain a thick, glossy, green glaze (add more cream if it looks too thick and more sugar if it looks too liquid)
4. Gently dip the top of filled eclairs in the glaze and remove the excess glaze with your finger. Decorate with flowers, sprinkles or anything you want