Old Bay Chocolate Eclairs

Directions for Crème Pâtissière

1. Start with your milk and vanilla bean paste in a medium sized saucepan, Bring this to a boil over a medium-high heat, stirring regularly. Meanwhile, in a separate heat proof bowl, whisk together egg, yolks, sugar and cornstarch.
2. Once your milk has boiled, pour this slowly into the egg mixture tempering your eggs. Once whisked together, pour this back into the pan over medium heat and whisk until thickened (about 5 minutes).
3. Take off the heat and add any flavourings - in this case, 2 teaspoon of Old Bay (or less/more to taste). Pour this into a separate bowl and cover with cling film (the film should be placed directly on the surface of the custard to help prevent a skin forming). Refrigerate for about 2 hours before using (and up to three days).

Directions for Choux

1. For your choux pastry, pre-heat the oven to 350°F 175C/155C Fan) and line a baking tray with parchment or a silicone baking mat. For consistency in your finished product, you can pre-draw guiding lines onto the underside of the parchment for your eclairs - mine were about 3.5" (8cm) long, spaced 1.5" (3cm) apart.
2. Begin by measuring out your flours and adding Old Bay seasoning to this. Set aside.
3. Place the butter, salt and sugar in a medium saucepan. Add the water to the pan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, tip in your seasoned flours and quickly beat with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Continue mixing over the heat for a couple of minutes to help cook the flour out, then tip the mixture into a medium bowl and continue beating until it finishes steaming.
4. Once the dough has stopped steaming, you should add your eggs one at a time, mixing with the wooden spoon until incorporated after each addition. You may not need all three eggs, but you are looking for a smooth, dropping consistency of batter. Once this has been reached, put your batter into a piping bag, fitted with a nozzle about .5" (1.5cm) wide.
5. Pipe out steadily in lines on your parchment paper. Brush with some beaten egg to help develop a golden colour and place in the oven to bake. Once risen and lightly golden (about 30 minutes), turn off the oven and leave inside for another 30 minutes to help dry out. Then remove and leave to cool on a baking rack.

Directions for Assembly

1. Now that all of your elements are ready, you are set to assemble the éclairs. Begin by using a sharp knife to cut two holes in the bottom of each éclair near either end. These will help you to fill the pastries more evenly.
2. Next, revive your crème pâtissière - beating this for a couple of minutes to loosen it and then prepare a piping bag with a slightly smaller nozzle than the one you used for piping the choux (I used a 1cm).
3. Take each éclair and pipe some of the crème pâtissière into each of the two holes in the bottom - aiming to fill the hollow within the pastry.
4. In a small bowl, crumble up your crisps to small pieces. Set aside.
5. Place your chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water (or a double boiler if you have one). Melt this down, stirring until smooth.
6. Coat the tops of each eclair with the chocolate and sprinkle over a good layer of the crisps.