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Chocolate éclairs are one of the world’s best creations, but what you might not know is that they also have one of the best names for a pastry. In French, “éclair” means lightning. Some people think it’s a reference to the glossy sheen of confectioner’s glaze atop the pastry. Others say the term refers to how quickly you will eat this dessert: lightning fast.
Whatever the case, this beloved dessert is sinfully delicious, but traditional chocolate éclairs are somewhat difficult and time-intensive to make. Making these the old-fashioned way will keep you in your kitchen all day.
However, this recipe for chocolate éclair dessert bars from Betty Crocker is so simple that it requires just five ingredients. Instead of choux pastry that you must boil and mix by hand, you will make a pastry base with refrigerated Crescent dough sheets. Rolling out the dough into a 13-by-9-inch pan and baking it is a simple, foolproof way to create a crispy base for your bars, after the baked crust has cooled.
Mixing Jell-O vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix and half-and-half creates the creamy filling for these chocolate éclair bars. Next, you’ll whip together heavy cream and melted chocolate chips to fold on top of the bars. Then, simply allow the creation to chill in the fridge before slicing into bars and serving. Whether you make this the night before to enjoy on a weekend morning or you bring it to a party, these chocolate éclair bars are sure to impress.
You could also swap out the chocolate chips for caramel chips to make caramel éclairs. Or use white chocolate chips to make white-chocolate éclairs. You can get creative with the Jell-O filling too, by using banana cream, cheesecake, coconut cream or cookies-and-cream flavors.
This recipe takes just 15 minutes of prep work, and the rest of the time it simply chills in the fridge, so this is the perfect recipe for those busy summer days. Just remember to store any leftovers in the fridge. Although, you will likely find a pan of these goes as fast as, well, lightning!
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