Back in January I committed myself to making some refined sugar free, gluten-free, vegan eclairs for the blog. Boy did I not know what I was getting myself into! This has perhaps been my most trialing recipe to date, but in the end it worked out and now I have this lovely recipe to share with you!
Truth be told, this recipe is a bit on the fussy side {and I'm usually not a fussy baker...} -- but not because it's difficult in the least, rather only because there are some basics you need to understand first before you embark on this mini-eclair adventure {and because I want you to learn from my mistakes, which were plentiful!}, especially if you've never made eclairs or cream puffs before. So, if you want a bite of these little beauties, you'll need to read the long and short of it {no getting around it -- sorry!}.
Oh, but where to begin? In January I ran a giveaway on the blog and I asked people to share their absolute favorite childhood treat, in the hopes of then re-creating some of those recipes for you. Nancy's comment caught my eye straight away:
My favorite childhood dessert my Mom used to make when I was growing up is custard eclairs with chocolate topping. I definitely wouldn’t be able to eat one now
I absolutely loved eclairs growing up, in all shapes and forms, and until I read her comment I didn't realize just how much I missed this little treat. Easy, peasy I thought. I mean, I knew it would be somewhat challenging to replace eggs, dairy, gluten, and sugar {amongst other things} in one treat, but I still thought "how hard could these little puffs be, right?" WRONG! Well, sort of...
Not entirely wrong. I got to work straight away, did a bit of research, and I actually nailed the recipe on my second try. Amazing, isn't it? I was blown away by just how easy it actually was. It was midnight, the little beauties were puffing up in the oven like magic. I did a little happy dance, filled them with whipped cream {to make cream puffs}, snapped some beautiful photos, and called it a night. The next day I wanted to re-make the recipe into custard-filled, chocolate topped mini-eclairs, as Nancy requested, but to my horror I found out I could not reproduce the results. Like AT ALL! Not even close. I thought I noted everything down very carefully, and yet the recipe just kept on failing.
I made batch after batch for a whole week straight. I tried a billion different oven temperatures, pots, pans, flour mixes, ingredient proportions, egg-replacers, went through thousands of blogs sharing their eggless eclair fails, watched thousands of videos of traditional eclairs, cream puffs, profiteroles, followed every tip imaginable {including some super hokey stuff!}... Still NADA. I was absolutely tormented by these little eclairs. I just couldn't understand what kept going wrong. I walked around in a daze like a mad scientist for a week straight. Kept opening the fridge and looking at the beautiful cream puffs I had in there {to make sure I didn't just imagine them} and not understanding why instead I just kept ending up with this over and over again:
Nice sight, isn't it? Haha :). Well, I ended up with MOUNDS of these... {lumps?}... in various shapes, weights, flavors, and sizes. You seriously have no idea the amount of ingredients I went through. I was very ready to give up many times. My husband was also super unhappy both with how obsessed I was {I call it determined ;) } and with the amount of ingredients wasted... He kept urging me to just call it a day, he said you guys would understand, I don't have to succeed at every recipe, etc. I knew he was right, and I nearly agreed many times {in fact I did, but then the next day I woke up with new ideas...}. But the fact that I made them, and that they were so delicious {and I had the photo evidence to prove I wasn't crazy!}, I just couldn't stop. After a week straight, I felt utterly defeated and promised I won't try any more. The next day I woke up finally remembering what I had done differently that one time, gave it one more go and BAM -- I succeeded! And oh, man was is such a simple detail I'd been missing! You can only imagine how ecstatic I was the recipe wasn't a failure after all, I am sure :)
Then I made many, many more batches to make sure it wasn't a fluke again. I even made a video to show you guys so that you can see what things should look like at every step -- I really want to make this easy for you so you don't end up like "mad scientist Audrey", you know? :)
{P.S. A huge thanks to my husband for putting this video together for me. I must admit that videos aren't my thing, but I felt it necessary for this recipe. I don't have the best set-up for videos, but I hope that whatever we were able to whip up here is helpful to your eclair making}.
But first, let's cover a few basics. Eclairs and cream puffs / profiteroles get their texture, flavor, color, and "puff" from a basic combination of flour, water or milk, some butter, a hint of sweetness, and a lot of egg. The basic classic recipe for choux pastry {that's the name of all these puffy goodies} is the same. The difference in recipe names is more or less what you fill them with. There are many ways to make successful gluten-free eclairs. My friend Brianna @ Flippin Delicious has a great version up, for example {if you don't mind dairy and eggs, etc.}. There are many ways to make successful eclairs that are dairy-free too. But to make an eclair that is free from gluten, eggs, dairy, and sugar is quite a feat! Do a little search for homemade "eggless" or "vegan eclairs" in a google image search, and you'll see for yourself the kinds of things people are ready to accept as "eclairs"... ;)
The main challenge, I'd say is that eggs are sort of an essential ingredient that gives these little guys their quick rise and hollow center. But the egg-replacer you use here can't be a heavy or a gummy one -- so no veggie/fruit purees, no flax and chia eggs, no tofu, etc. Most recipes I've seen that semi-succeeded used something like an Ener-G egg replacer, a product I don't like to buy because it just ends up sitting on my shelf forever and usually contains some ingredients I'm not a huge fan of, etc. So I made my own egg-replacer powder -- easy peasy! Look at these little cuties puff up :)
Another important component to a good choux pastry is the texture of the batter. This is where my recipe differs significantly from any other eclair recipe you'll see out there. Traditionally, you bring some milk or water and butter to a light boil, and then add in the flour, put the pan back on low heat, and cook the batter for some time to let the moisture out before adding in the egg replacer. HOWEVER, the gluten-free flour combination I used here absolutely fails if you put the batter back on the stove and cook it, or if you even warm your butter/milk mixture too much. It just turns into a gummy mess and you end up with those fail "lumps" I showed you a photo of a little earlier. So please follow the directions carefully, and though I'm not usually one to discourage experimenting, note that if you use a different flour blend in this recipe I'm really not certain as to what you'll end up with! Why did I choose to use this flour mix if it's so different? Because hands down this tasted the best of everything else I tried {and I tried many, many things!}. This tastes just like a real choux pastry. And the recipe is not fussy at all if you follow it. It's just a little "unconventional" ;)
The last thing I'll note here is that I did not have success making these into large eclairs. You can elongate the shape a little, but because of the lack of eggs and gluten, they don't puff up as much, so the larger you make them, the flatter they'll be. After much trial and error, I concluded that 2-3" little eclair puffs were the optimal size for flavor and texture. And in the end, whether I get to eat a few smaller eclairs or one large one, it really doesn't matter. The point is it's ECLAIRS! And they're dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, and refined sugar-free. And I can eat them! I rest my case :)
So watch the video above, note the consistency and texture of the batter and egg-replacer {very important!}, note that the butter/milk mixture should be warmed on absolutely the lowest heat possible, just until it all melts and incorporates, and get to it :). The resulting eclairs will be very rewarding, even if there's some trial and error in the process {trust me, I now know all about it ;) }!
Final notes: through all my fails here, I had done a lot of research, read what worked and mostly failed for others, etc. I had gotten ideas from a specific type of vegan eclair recipe that seems to be very popular around the web. I couldn't find where the original recipe came from though, so just giving credit and a thanks here to this blog, which was the main one I used for reference. This video was helpful too.
PrintGluten-Free Vegan Mini-Eclairs
Light, delicate mini gluten-free vegan eclairs topped with chocolate and filled with creamy vegan custard. Perfect recipe for special occasions. Refined sugar-free.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 10 mini eclairs
- Category: Pastry
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Dessert
Ingredients
Choux Pastry:
- ½ cup non-dairy milk {I used unsweetened almond milk}
- ¼ cup non-dairy butter
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ⅛ tsp salt
- The following gf flour mix: ¼ cup brown rice flour, ¼ cup tapioca starch, 2 tablespoon sweet sticky rice flour {also called glutinous rice flour}, 1 teaspoon guar gum {or if using a store-bought gf mix use ½ cup Pamela's Artisan Flour Mix + ½ teaspoon guar gum}
- ½ tsp gluten-free baking powder
Egg Replacer:
- 3 tbsp water {warm or room temp}
- 1½ tbsp tapioca starch
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp guar gum
- ⅛ tsp cream of tartar
Custard Filling:
- ½ cup non-dairy butter, softened {add a dash of salt if your butter is unsalted}
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 3-4 tablespoon tapioca starch {start with 3 and add a bit more until you're at a custardy consistency}
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
Chocolate Ganache:
- ½ cup non-dairy chocolate chips or a chopped up chocolate bar
- 2-3 tablespoon non-dairy butter {add a dash of salt if your butter is unsalted}
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 425F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Place milk, butter, vanilla extract, maple syrup, and salt in a small sauce pan. Warm on absolute minimum heat just until the butter melts. Stir to help it melt faster. Do not let the mixture boil or heat up too much. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool a few minutes.
- {Mix the flour ingredients in a small bowl first if you're making the flour mix from scratch} Add in flour and gluten-free baking powder into the butter mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until the mixture is pasty. Set aside.
- Place all egg replacer ingredients into a small mixing bowl and whip with a mixer until frothy and thick. Scoop the egg replacer mixture into the choux pastry batter and mix until the two mixtures are incorporated {only takes a few seconds}. Batter should be the consistency of something like a soft frosting at this point.
- Transfer batter into a pipping bag fitted with a round tip {or use a sturdy large zip lock bag and snip off one of the corners}. Pipe the mixture onto a the prepared baking sheet, using a circular motion, into 2" round swirls {pipe upwards to give the mound a bit more height}. Space them at least 2-3” apart. {Make sure they are all the same size to avoid the smaller ones from burning!}.
- Lightly wet your finger tip with water and smooth out the spiky tip of each eclair {otherwise the tips will burn}. {Try not to wet the eclairs too much though — only use a tiny dab of water to prevent sticking as you’re smoothing them out}.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes {keep an eye out to avoid burning them}. They should be slightly browned at this point. Reduce temperature to 350 and bake a further 5-10 minutes, {keeping a very keen eye to avoid burning them}. {Note: the timing can vary based on the size of your puffs. The smaller they are the faster they will bake}.
- When done, they should look lightly brown. Test one of the eclairs by carefully taking it out of the oven and tapping it with your finger — it should sound/feel a little hollow and the shell should be a little hard. If it feels soft, bake a further 5-10 minutes {again keeping a keen eye to avoid burning them}.
- When ready, turn off the oven, open the door a bit and allow the eclairs to sit in the oven as it’s cooling for a further 20 minutes. Then remove from oven and cool on a cooling rack.
- In the meantime, prepare the custard filling by combining all filling ingredients together in a mixing bowl using a mixer.
- Prepare the chocolate sauce by melting chocolate chips {either in microwave or in a double boiler}. Mix in a few tablespoon non-dairy butter, and stir until chocolate is smooth and runny.
- Cut each eclair in half. If there are any doughy parts in any of them, simply remove them and discard. Spoon filling onto the bottom half of each puff, cover with the other half. Then pour some chocolate mixture on top. Place in the fridge for about 20 minutes for the filling and chocolate to harden a little. And enjoy!
Notes
Recipe for gluten-free vegan cream puffs / profiteroles can be found here.
Julie says
I'm so glad this was at the top of the Google search! I can't wait to make these! I just want to say that in creative & scientific pursuits such as recipe development there is *no such thing* as wasting ingredients! If that's the mindset that all scientists and artists had, we wouldn't have much cool stuff in our lives! It's liberating to understand that time isn't wasted on failures because we learn, and supplies aren't wasted, either! No one wants to waste food, but it's necessary to throw out projects that fail. You are providing (for free) your time, energy, intelligence, grit to give us joy when we can't go buy it at a bakery! Thank you, thank you!
The Real Person!
Thank you so much, Julie. It's been years since I posted this recipe, but the "mad scientist" mindset I experienced while working this one out is still very fresh in my mind haha. It was totally worth it though in the end.
Katherine says
These look amazing! Could I use palm shortening in place of the non-dairy butter? Or can you tell me which non-dairy butters you use? The ones I find are full of processed stuff I don't eat. Thank you!
The Real Person!
Hi Katherine, I haven't tried these with palm shortening and given how finicky the recipe is I'm not sure if that swap will work or not (but worth a try if you're up for some experimenting!).
I used Earth Balance when I made these, but nowadays I often use Melt as my go to brand. I know what you mean about the vegan butters, they do tend to be quite processed, but for a treat like this I think it's worth the exception once in a while :)
Mary says
I made these, except I put them in a muffin tin filled about 3/4 of the way (convection baked at 425 for 10 mins). Then when cooled poked a hole in the top and stuck my pinky down there to kinda hollow it out, then used a turkey baster to inject the cream, then melted choc on top to hide the hole. They were perfect lil round eclairs. Looked like they could have come from a pastry shop.
F-ing incredible. Cream was wayyy too liquidy, and had to set in the fridge for a very long time before it wouldn't explode all over your face when you took a bite. But very delicious. Gonna try a different vegan cream recipe next time - maybe even vanilla pudding. Husband was incredibly stoked. Already asking when I will make them again, I doubled the recipe and they only lasted 24 hours...
The Real Person!
Hi Mary, thank you so much for sharing your experience and swaps with this recipe. I'm so glad you and your husband enjoyed these! :)
Randa says
Hello your recipe seems to be the one for me even though I'd like to make a few replacemnets based on Availabilty and of course ur input...
Can I replace tapioca and white rice starch with arrowroot and potato starch (which replaces what)
So excited to try this one out
The Real Person!
Hi Randa. I'm normally all for substitution ideas, but in this case given how finicky the recipe is I hesitate to give any ideas just because of the experiences I had experimenting with the recipe myself (as explained above). If you do experiment with the swaps you suggested, do share how it turned out for you one way or the other for the benefit of others wondering the same. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful!
Celine says
Hi, would this recipe work with store bought egg replacer ?
If yes, how much of it ?
thank you they look great
The Real Person!
Hi Celine,
I'm sorry I haven't tried it with a store bought egg replacer. If you give it a try I'd love to hear how you go.
Manisha Baking Recipes says
I really admire your courage for realising a vegsn gluten free choux pastry recipe! To be truth, even to bake a normal egg choux I would still be stressed and careful even tired. You should be thankful to your husband for the encouragements he gave you, just like my husband. And also a big congratulation to your beautiful yummy vegan gluten free choux recipe! Big kisses to you!
Manisha
The Real Person!
Thank you so much for the kind note, Manisha! :)
Lora says
Hey! Just to let you know that we featured your recipe in our recent French Patisserie article. It was a great recipe! I've linked the article below - please feel free to take a look and share.
- Lo
http://eluxemagazine.com/magazine/vegan-french-patisserie-recipes/
The Real Person!
Hi Lora, thanks very much -- hopping over to have a look now :)
Lisa says
Hi Audrey, I tried making the custard filling but the (Earth Balance) margarine and the maple syrup never blended together properly. It was like little pieces of margarine sitting in liquid. I tried melting it but that made the whole thing liquid. I did use arrowroot powder instead of tapioca, could this be the problem? Thanks, Lisa
thanks
The Real Person!
Hi Lisa. I'm so sorry I missed your question earlier somehow. Was your maple syrup cold by any chance? It sounds like the butter might be turning to "pieces" if the maple was cold. The arrowroot instead of tapioca shouldn't make a difference. If the issue was that it's cold and you warmed it up and it turned to liquid, you can just chill it for a bit (gently) to let it settle and then try again (the mixture can be gently chilled & warmed up again many times if need be).
Dimitra says
Those eclairs look lovely.
I have two (or 3) questions to ask:
1. Could I use normal flour? (the main problem is that where I live I can't find all the different types of flour you suggest)
2. Have you tried using aquafaba instead of the egg replacer you suggest? Do you think it would work? If not, could I use xanthan gum instead of guar gum in the mixture of the egg replacer you suggest?
Thanks a lot!
The Real Person!
Hi Dimitra,
Sorry for the delayed reply -- I missed your question somehow :o
About the regular flour -- I'm sorry, I haven't tried it, and given how sensitive this recipe is, I really am not sure how it would turn out -- worth an experiment though, I'd say.
I did try this with aquafaba, but it didn't turn out. That's not to say it's not doable, because it might be that the quantities weren't right or something of that sort. Xantham gum in place of guar should definitely be fine though.
Let me know how you go if you give it a try with regular flour -- I'm really curious :)
Karissa says
These look amazing! How do you store them? In the fridge? Are they best eaten the day you make them? Or could they be made a day in advance? Thanks!
The Real Person!
Hi Karissa. I stored mine in the fridge, yes. You could definitely make them a day or two in advance, or enjoy the same day. They are best on days one and two. The only thing is, as per the write-up above, the recipe is quite finicky to get right sometimes, so I recommend trying it out ahead of time if you're planning to make for an event. Let me know how you go!
Lulu says
Hi! I am a 13 year old girl who loves to bake, and I always check your website when I bake! My sister loves these, and her birthday is coming soon. I was searching everywhere for the best recipe for eclairs, and I finally found this!! It looks sooo good and the recipe is pretty easy! Thanks for posting this (:
P.S. Have you ever thought about a recipe for veggie chicken burger? Or maybe you already have one and I haven't checked correctly! (:
The Real Person!
Hi Lulu. Thanks so much! How amazing you've discovered a love for baking so early on :)
I don't have a veggie chicken burger unfortunately as I'm focusing more on desserts at the moment. However a few of my blogger friends put together their favorite veggie burgers here, if you're interested.
Happy baking!
Faeryn says
Hi Lulu, sorry for crashing in on someone elses question but I cant seem to comment. I just wondered if you could answer a question for me :) I have glutenous rice in the cupboard, could I blend this into a powder and use this instead of buying a whole pack which i may never use again? Just wanted your thoughts :) Thanks
The Real Person!
Hey Faeryn,
In theory it should work. In practice I don't think you'd be able to get it as finely ground as it needs to be with home equipment. If you try it though, I'd love to hear how you go.
Faeryn says
Hi there, thanks for taking the time to reply :) If I give it a go, I'll let you know how it worked out x
sara says
Is it possible to use 2 tbsp white rice instead of the sweet sticky rice ? Or what can I use to replace the sweet sticky rice.
The Real Person!
Hi Sara, it's kind of a delicate recipe and the sweet sticky rice flour is necessary. It's quite different to white rice flour and doesn't really have a good substitute. It's very inexpensive though {usually like $2 per bag in Asian grocery stores or the natural baking section in many grocery stores} -- I hope you can find some so you can try these out. I don't know of another good substitute for it for this recipe to get the texture right.
Mary Jane says
Hi Audrey,
Thank you so much for all the added info. I have been having so much fun trying this recipe. It has opened up a whole new world of baking with tofu for me! Yes, the first couple of times I made mine with a little too much liquid: one day I even tried yogurt instead of cream cheese. And though it turned out well enough it was more mushy. I think just the straight tofu blended with spices, either savoury or even sweet (I tried a tofu cookie!) works well. Instead of cream of tartar I used baking powder and baking soda. I cannot seem to find cream of tartar anywhere and I always have baking soda and powder. I also found that my oven was too hot so I actually needed to bake them for not more than half an hour and then let them cool. Otherwise mine turned out flat when baked for an hour. So once again dear uncoventional baker, you have tapped into a great recipe!!!!
With full appreciation,
Mary Jane
The Real Person!
Oh, you're more than welcome Mary Jane. I'm so glad you took the recipe and rolled with it ;) I had a feeling you might end up with some tofu cookies in the process too :) So happy you found a new way to make treats for your diet.
♥
Laura@ Baking in Pyjamas says
Audrey, these look absolutely wonderful, great job! Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Have a great day!!
The Real Person!
Thanks so much, Laura!
Terje says
I don't think I've ever had eclairs before, so there's no emotional connection to these little puffs, but they do look delicious! Had a little laugh at the failure parts though, you described the kitchen madness perfectly. However, "lumps" was definitely not the first word that popped in my head when looking at the failure-photo. Perhaps it's better not to write that one out here :D
The Real Person!
Haha. Yes, I resisted not calling them something else too... I settled on "lumps" for the sake of everyone's appetite ;)
Mary Jane says
Hello Audrey,
After scouring the internet I finally found your site! I said to myself, "Don't give up, somebody out there might have the answer!" I am a lacto-vegetarian for many, many years. I am also a "dieter" as I had put on unnecessary weight. I recently read about the oopsie rolls or the Atkins revolution rolls which are made with cream cheese and eggs. I do not eat eggs, and I cannot figure out a replacement for egg whites to make the recipe work. You seem to be very knowledgeable and talented in this field. Would you have any suggestions as to how I can make these rolls with cream cheese but without eggs. I am reading through your recipes but at the moment I am not consuming any sort of flour. I only use oat bran. I would be very grateful for any suggestion you might have for my dilemma re the oopsie rolls.
Congratulations on your effort and your site. It is one of the best I have seen on the net!!!!
Regards,
Mary Jane
The Real Person!
Hi Mary Jane,
Thanks so much! I really appreciate your comment :)
Hmm.. Well, at a glance I can see why swapping out the eggs in oopsie rolls is a little challenging, but I have some ideas that I'd like to try out -- after this eclair debacle I think I can definitely tackle this one ;). As soon as I'm able to pick up some ingredients I'll play around with the recipe and see what I can come up with, and if I come up with anything worthwhile, I'll be sure to share.
In the meantime though, I came across this recipe that may perhaps replace the need for oopsie rolls for you altogether -- it's for an eggless low carb and low calorie bread that's pretty easy to make: http://www.foodiefiasco.com/healthy-coconut-flour-flatbread/. Looks and sounds pretty good to me. What do you think?
Also, I was wondering whether you are ok with tofu? Wouldn't want to make an oopsie roll recipe with another ingredient you can't eat... ;)
Since you are pretty much grain-free {with the exception of oat bran}, you'll probably want to stick to these two recipe sections on my site:
Paleo & Grain-free: https://www.unconventionalbaker.com/category/special-diet-paleo-grain-free/
Raw & no-bake: https://www.unconventionalbaker.com/category/special-diet-raw/
Let me know if that bread recipe I linked to above works for you or if you still prefer oopsie rolls {and if so, is tofu ok?}.
Thanks, Mary Jane. I hope you find yourself some treats to make around here :)
Mary Jane says
Thank you so much for your immediate reply Audrey! How kind you are! Yes, tofu is a food I eat almost daily. So that would be a fantastic option to the low fat cream cheese I make. I only consume oat bran at this stage of my diet, and coconut flour and coconut products though a favourite of mine, are not allowed items on my present diet. Thus, I was interested in the oopsie rolls. But, anything tofu is fantastic. Thank you so much. I will stay tuned in to you and your site and will recommend it to my friends. Fantastic job. By the way, I had a chance to watch the video you and your husband put together: It is truly well done!!!
With thanks and appreciation,
Mary Jane
The Real Person!
Great, Mary Jane, and no worries -- I like adapting recipes and trying out new things, so it's my pleasure. Hopefully I'll have a version I can share with you soon!
And thanks for the comment about the video -- I roped my poor husband into way more much work than I expected in order to make this video. Glad he's been a good sport about it ;)
The Real Person!
Mary Jane,
How are you going? I haven't forgotten about you, in case you were wondering :)
I finally got around to playing around with this recipe and I have something to share! But because it's a little outside of the blog's theme, I shared it with my Instagram and Facebook followers instead of posting it on the blog itself, so this way they can in turn share it if they know of anyone who could use the recipe.
Here's the recipe I settled on as being the most successful:
I adapted these to be dairy and egg-free from this oopsie rolls recipe: http://bit.ly/1zn7PRc
Preheat oven to 350F.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Blend these ingredients in a blender until smooth: 1 {12.3oz} package of MoriNu FIRM silken tofu, 1 oz nondairy cream cheese {I used Vegan Gourmet}, 1/2 tsp cream of tartar, dash of salt, dash of garlic powder.
Spoon the mixture into 6 rounds onto the tray {I actually scooped it in two steps — so did 6 rounds first with half of the mixture, and then topped them each with more of the mixture again}.
Bake for 1 hour and 10 mins. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. Store leftovers in the fridge.
*I know you mentioned you're ok with dairy, so feel free to use whatever cream cheese you like. I only tested this with a non-dairy cream cheese though.
If you want to see a photo or share the recipe with any friends, you can direct them to this link on Instagram: https://instagram.com/p/0Wie-LOEI4/
Or this link on Facebook, if they are a facebook user: http://on.fb.me/1AWqMIL
I hope this helps and let me know if you have any questions!
Mary Jane says
First of all Audrey, thank you, thank you, and thank you!!!! I thought that perhaps it was unreasonable of me to request your assistance, but since you have one of the best Vegan sites I couldn't resist. My goodness you are amazing!!! I will try out your recipe in the next day or two and see if I have the ability to reproduce your experiment. I will let you know! I do not have access to the Vegan cream cheese, so I will attempt the recipe with my cream cheese. Wish me luck! You are most definitely a baking wizard!!!
Tremendous appreciation,
Mary Jane
The Real Person!
No worries at all. It just took me a little longer to get around to this one.
I must admit I wasn't as rigorous with testing this recipe out in different ways like I usually do, but I think I got it to a point where you can probably modify it as you like.
In case it helps, here's what I tried: I tried using non-dairy cream cheese + strained soft silken tofu -- ended up with delicious big soggy circles on a tray :) -- too much liquid. I then tried it again with less soft silken tofu -- and it was better but again didn't really hold up in any way. I then just tried it with hardly any cream cheese {just enough to give it a bit of flavor and texture} and used FIRM silken tofu and skipped all the "mixing in separate bowls" business {as described in the recipe I was adapting from} -- I just put it all in a blender and blended and it worked just fine. I did add a bit of garlic powder and a tiny bit more salt just to give it a bit more of a flavor because tofu is a lot less flavorful than cream cheese -- so feel free to add other seasonings {I wasn't sure how seasonings work on Atkins, so I didn't add too many}. I liked them like this though. After they cooled off completely they were sturdy enough to lift easily, to spread things on, etc. -- could definitely work as a "bready" item.
I was actually surprised I liked these -- I don't usually eat soy {I can be very sensitive to it sometimes}, but these were kind of tasty for what they are! :)
Let me know how it goes for you. Like I said, I didn't go over and proof the recipe any further {mainly because I didn't want to eat any more soy or the non-dairy cream cheese to be honest -- I think I already ate a little more than I should have as it is while testing these :)}, but I left it off at a point where I felt like it works and you can take it from here.
Good luck with them and if you're having any trouble with the recipe, let me know.
Tessa@TessaDomesticDiva says
Cream puffs make me think of my late Grandma and her debacle of time making them for the very time for my gramps...I have GOT to to try these in her memory!
The Real Person!
Aw, sounds sweet, Tessa! After making this allergy-friendly version, I think the traditional ones are a breeze, though I may not have thought that just a few weeks back ;). I hope you get to try these out sometime, especially since they're eggless and I know that's an important factor for you.
Tamara V says
IF you were to use eggs (since I'm just gluten and dairy free), how many would you use?
The Real Person!
Hi Tamara, I haven't tried this with eggs, but the egg-replacer amount I used here is the equivalent of 2 eggs.
Nissrine @ Harmony a la Carte says
Amazing! Loved this story and the eclairs look so good, like pop in your mouth until they're all gone good.
The Real Person!
Thanks Nissrine! It's been an adventure, to be sure :)
Gingi says
Ohhhh, these look so good!!! <3 - http://www.domesticgeekgirl.com
The Real Person!
Thank you :)
Medha @ Whisk & Shout says
Oh wow! Your dedication to finding the perfect recipe really paid off :)
The Real Person!
Thanks so much, Medha! It's been an adventure from start to finish, but if it can bring eclairs back into people's kitchens, I'm happy and it was well worth it :)
Harriet Emily says
Wow these look sooooo amazing! Well done!! I feel so inspired by your recipes - I love your blog!
The Real Person!
Thanks so much, Harriet! Glad you found some inspiration here :)
Barbara Bianchi says
Absolutely awesome. It pays to be persistent.
The Real Person!
Thank you, Barbara! I'm glad it worked out in the end -- for the benefit of all ;)
Shirley @ gfe & All Gluten-Free Desserts says
So spectacular looking, and so delicious I'm sure ... some recipes take lots of extra work and trials and we're all grateful to you for your patience and persistence, Audrey!
Shirley
The Real Person!
Thanks, Shirley! I bake so much {as you know} and there certainly are many fails that happen and a lot of the time I choose to just let things go -- I have too many ideas and so little time that I just move on to the next thing... If it weren't for that one original delicious batch though {and for the fact that it's eclairs!!!}, not sure this recipe would have happened :) -- but I'm so glad it did and that it worked out in the end!
Brianna @Flippin' Delicious says
These look amazing Audrey! I still can't believe that they are egg-free. So impressed!
The Real Person!
Thanks, Brianna -- I know, I can't believe it either! I made another batch this morning to celebrate ;)
Leah M @ love me, feed me says
These look incredible Audrey!!! I had wanted to try to make vegan eclairs, but I gave that up really quickly as I thought it was near impossible, but I was apparently very wrong! I'm definitely going to give these a try, yum.
The Real Person!
Thanks, Leah! I hear ya, I was very close to calling it quits so many times myself. If it wasn't for that one good batch these wouldn't have come about -- lucky! I'm still amazed at how it all worked out in the end :)
Natalie @ Feasting on Fruit says
Wow these are simply perfect! Sometimes recipe development makes me wish I had a huge knowledge of chemistry so I would know why somethings rise and some don't and some get gummy and some don't whip and etc. I know the feeling of failing over and over with a recipe to the point where you're almost ready to abandon it, but it makes the success so much sweeter (literally :D)
The Real Person!
Absolutely sweeter, Natalie! :) And I know what you mean -- I have some knowledge of the chemistry between the ingredients, but the reason for the persistent failures still kept mysteriously elusive. Hence the "mad scientist" in me kept searching. I knew it was something simple, but had to go through the motions of trial and error to get back to that good batch.
Chloe says
Oh my goodness! Thankyou Audrey, don't worry! Your hard work will pay off all over the world!!! These sound and look AMAZING! I have everything ready to make these beauties right now, but no sweet sticky rice flour in sight :'( does it ever go by another name?! I live in Australia please help me! xx
The Real Person!
Thanks Chloe! :)
Sweet rice flour is also called Mochiko flour or glutinous rice flour -- a name that seems to be more common in Australia {don't worry, it's gluten-free!}. Do you have a Coles nearby? They appear to carry it: http://shop.coles.com.au/online/national/erawan-flour-rice-glutinous and if Coles carries it then Woolies might, or your local Asian or health food shop. This shop appears to carry it too: http://www.glutenfreeshop.com.au/Erawan-Glutinous-Rice-Flour-500g-Green-P163.aspx.
Good luck & happy baking! :)