4:13pm Monday 30th June 2008
By Gavin Haines
AS I start to chomp my second éclair of the afternoon, I make a promise to hit the gym a little harder this evening. I could have saved myself 15 minutes on the treadmill, but the trouble is, they're quite moreish.
And so they should be because they've been made by Xavier - a pastry chef with 12 years' experience rustling up these kind of delights.
Originally from Spain, Xavier came to Britain to learn English, but as well as the language he found himself learning how to be a chef - a journey that brought him to the Print Room last August.
He is responsible for cooking the sweet treats that Print Room customers enjoy with afternoon tea. And, kindly, he has given Taste the recipes for three of them. "These are simple recipes, even for people who don't know much about cooking," he says.
Eclairs
250 ml water
250 ml milk
200g butter
300g flour
8 eggs
2 pinches of sugar
1 pinch of salt
1 pint of milk
Filling:
5 eggs
75g sugar
80g flour
1 drop vanilla essence
Boil milk and water with the butter, sugar and salt. Once boiling add all the flour and mix till it becomes a thick paste. Work it for 5 minutes on low heat.
Off the heat mix in the eggs one by one.
Fill up a piping bag with the mix and pipe on to a tray, snakes about 3 inches long.
Bake at 200C for about 15 mins till golden brown and crispy.
For the filling mix the eggs with the sugar and the flour and form a paste. Boil the milk with the essence and pour over the paste. Combine it and bring back to the heat, work it for a couple of minutes and chill.
Fill a piping bag to fill the eclairs.
Scones
600g sieved flour
100g sugar
30g baking powder
175g butter
Pinch of salt
350 ml milk
2 eggs
Crumble the flour and butter with the sugar, baking powder and salt. Then add the milk and eggs to form the dough. Add some raisins if you wish to make the scones fruity.
Roll the dough about 1 inch thick and cut scones out with a pastry cutter.
Place on a baking tray, leave them to prove and glaze on top with a bit of eggwash. Bake in a very hot oven 180C-200C for about 10-12 minutes. Cut open and fill with clotted cream and jam.
Flapjacks
400g oats
100g golden syrup
40g honey
175g demerara sugar
250g melted butter
100g dried fruit
Mix all the ingredients except butter in a large bowl, then pour over the melted butter, spread on a baking tray and cook at 170C for about 30 minutes. Leave to cool down and cut into fingers.
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