Eclairs are delicious, but they can look so fancy when displayed at French bakeries with gold leaf or delicate fondant flowers. We decided to give them a playful, over-the-top twist—think nostalgic snacks and cereal toppings—so you can enjoy fun, colorful versions at home. These “trashy” eclairs come in five variations inspired by favorite childhood treats and cereals, from cosmic brownie vibes to Cookie Crisp crunch.
If you prefer a semi-homemade approach, you can buy pre-made éclair shells from a local bakery and skip straight to the fillings and toppings.
Trashy Eclairs (Five Ways!)
Prep Time: 2 hrs
Cook Time: 30 mins
Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 15 Eclairs
Ingredients
- For the chocolate & vanilla éclair shells:
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup milk
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1½ tablespoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 5 eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- For the cream filling:
- 2 egg yolks
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon funfetti cake mix
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon mini chocolate chips
- For the glazes:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon funfetti cake mix
- For the toppings:
- Cookie Crisp cereal, crushed
- Candy coated chocolate chips
- Crushed Dunkaroo cookies or animal crackers
- Rainbow sprinkles
- Sweetened coconut flakes
- Hot pink food coloring
Instructions
- Make the cream filling: In a medium bowl whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar until pale. Sift in the flour and cornstarch and whisk until smooth; set aside.
- Heat 1 cup milk with the vanilla in a small pot over medium heat until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat and slowly whisk the warm milk into the egg mixture a little at a time to temper the eggs and prevent scrambling.
- Pour the mixture back into the pot and bring to a simmer while whisking continually for about two minutes, until thickened. Strain the pastry cream through a sieve into a clean bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin and chill until completely cool.
- Whip ⅓ cup heavy cream with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cooled pastry cream until airy. Set aside.
- Make the éclairs: Preheat the oven to 475°F (245°C). In a medium pot combine water, milk, butter, sugar and salt and heat until the butter melts. Add the flour and stir constantly until the dough forms a large ball and begins to pull away from the pot, about 3–5 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a stand mixer bowl and cool for 10 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time until the dough becomes smooth and glossy. Divide the dough into two portions: keep one plain and mix 1 tablespoon cocoa powder into the other to make chocolate shells.
- Pipe long strips of vanilla and chocolate dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets using a large round tip. Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 15 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F (175°C) and bake 15 more minutes. Cool completely.
- Prepare fillings and glazes: Divide the cooled pastry cream into five bowls. Flavor one bowl with 1 tablespoon funfetti cake mix, another with 1 tablespoon mini chocolate chips, a third with 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, and leave two bowls plain. For the glaze, mix 2 cups powdered sugar with ¼ cup heavy cream; it should be spreadable but not runny. Split the glaze into four bowls: one with 1 tablespoon funfetti cake mix, one with 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, and two plain. For the chocolate ganache, combine ½ cup very warm heavy cream with ¼ cup chocolate chips and stir until smooth and shiny.
- Assemble the éclairs:
- Cosmic Brownie: Fill a chocolate shell with the chocolate cream filling. Top with chocolate glaze and candy coated chocolate chips.
- Hostess Cupcake: Fill a chocolate shell with plain vanilla cream. Top with chocolate ganache and pipe the classic Hostess swirl using thick vanilla icing.
- Dunkaroos: Fill a vanilla shell with funfetti cream. Top with funfetti glaze, rainbow sprinkles, and crushed Dunkaroo cookies.
- Sno Ball: Fill a chocolate shell with plain vanilla cream. Top with vanilla glaze and press hot pink-dyed coconut flakes all over the surface.
- Cookie Crisp: Fill a vanilla shell with mini chocolate chip cream. Top with vanilla glaze, crushed Cookie Crisp cereal, and extra mini chocolate chips.
Photos by Jeff Mindell | Recipes & video by Rachel Kivlahan
Which one is your favorite? Mine’s the cosmic brownie éclair.