Tomorrow is N’s big 30 birthday. In years past I’ve made red velvet cake, orange crush cake, regular chocolate cake, cupcakes and so on. I ask him weeks before what he wants baked. It’s sort of a fun challenge for me and it gives him a chance to get exactly what HE wants for once. Ha, ha.

The plan was to make up some chocolate eclairs for N’s birthday treat. He has asked for these instead of a cake this year. Except instead of using the typical pastry cream I am filling the eclairs with Bavarian cream. The pastry dough recipe comes from the Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook, it is called Pate a Choux.

The Bavarian cream recipe comes from the All Recipes website. The only ingredient difference between pastry cream and Bavarian cream is the gelatin and whipping cream. We like the consistency and taste of Bavarian cream better than other pastry creams, it is not a fluffy, full of air and sweet.

Everly was pretty interested in the baking process. She ate lunch and dinner facing my workspace in the kitchen. She watched me mix stuff, line cookie sheets, pipe dough and she even got to help me “smooth” the tops of the eclairs down before baking. Though she was really interested in grabbing the raw eclair dough and mashing it in her fingers.

Everly and I also dropped some gooey cinnamon rolls off for the neighbor. We I ate many cinnamon rolls, Everly just watched me. It is like a bakery here these days. Yummy and one of my favorite things to do… Someday I’ll open myself a bakery or coffee/ baked treats shop. I bet she’ll want to tag along!