BAKING

It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Eclair!

Michelangelo Buonarroti, 1475-1564.
Studies for the Lybian Sibyl, 1510.
Red Chalk on Paper, 11 3/8 x 8 7/16 inches.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1924.
Italian (Florentine)High Renaissance Master


I’ve been meaning to make these for some time now but with the onset of the holidays, the kitchen move and starting my own business, my baking schedule has been way-laid to say the least.

And what about the white chocolate mousse I was working on? Well, I have a confession to make: I hate white chocolate. It’s great for decorating, but to make it the star of the day makes me want to gag, so I have abandoned the white chocolate mousse. But the banana tart is still in my mind and I am confident will be realized soon.

Any old how, please do enjoy these éclairs; they are sensual, decadent, deceptively light yet robust, with the full flavored chocolate glaze unifying all the varying sweet notes. The silky vanilla-infused cream finishes the bite with a cleansing quality, beckoning for the next moment to be a repeat of the last.