Preheat oven to 400 F
Measure and set aside:
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
Combine in a large saucepan:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup whole milk
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
Bring the mixture to a full boil over medium heat. Add the flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan. Continue to cook and stir the mixture for about 1 minute, to eliminate excess moisture. The butter may ooze out, which is fine; it simply means that the moisture is evaporating. Transfer to a bowl and let cool for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Beat in 1 at a time:
4 large eggs
Make sure that the paste is smooth before adding the next egg. Beat the dough until it’s smooth and shiny.
Scoop the paste into a large pastry bag fitted with a 1 inch tip for large éclairs or a 1/2 inch tip for minis. Shape the paste into 8 to 10 large or 24 miniature éclairs. Bake the eclairs at 400 F for 15 minutes. Reduce the temp. to 350 F and bake until golden brown and very firm to the touch, 10 to 15 minutes for minis and 25 to 30 minutes for large éclairs. Turn off the oven, poke the short end of the éclairs, and let dry in oven for 10 minutes.
Prepare:
3 cups Pastry Cream (recipe to follow)
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4 inch tip with the pastry cream. Poke the pastry tip into the drying hole in each éclair and pip full. Or cut off the top third of the éclair horizontally with the serrated knife for the lids. Remove any uncooked dough and spoon the filling into the eclairs.
Dip the top of each eclaire into:
Chocolate Ganach Glaze (recipe to follow)
Refrigerate the éclairs, chocolate side up, until glaze is set. Eclairs are best on the day they are made.
Pastry Cream
In a medium bowl, beat on high speed until thick and pail yellow, about 2 minutes:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 large egg yolks
Meanwhile, combine in a medium stainless-steel or enamel saucepan and bring to a simmer:
1 1/2 cups milk
Gradually pour about one third of the hot milk into the egg mixture, stirring the combine. Scrape the egg mixture back into the pan and cook, whisking constantly and scraping the bottom and corners of the pan to prevent scorching, over low to medium heat until the custard is thickened and begins to bubble. Then continue to cook, whisking for 45 to 60 seconds. Using a clean spatula, scrape the custard into a clean bowl.
Stir in:
3/4 teaspoon vanilla.
Cover the surface of the custard with a piece of wax or parchment paper to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool, then refrigerate before using.
Chocolate Ganach Glaze
Bring to a boil in a a small saucepan:
3/4 cup heavy cream
Remove from the heat and add:
8 ounces semisweet chocolate finely chopped (or chocolate chips)
Stir until most of the chocolate is melted. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Stir or whisk very gently until completely smooth.
Stir in:
1 tablespoon liqueur, or more to taste (optional)
Cool until it becomes the desired texture.