Éclair and Choux Making Class in Paris with a Pastry Chef

Make éclairs, chouquette, and choux pastry in a single afternoon

A hands-on pastry class in Paris where you make chocolate and vanilla éclairs, chouquette, and cheese choux from scratch under the instruction of a pastry chef. You handle every step—mixing the dough, piping it onto baking sheets, baking, making the pastry cream, filling, and glazing—and taste what you've made at the end. Tea and coffee are included; the lesson runs two and a half hours.

The Experience

Paris. You arrive at the kitchen, put on an apron, and get the full setup: all the utensils you need are there. The pastry chef walks you through making choux pastry first—heating water and butter, adding flour, incorporating eggs one at a time until the dough is ready. You transfer it into a piping bag and pipe sticks onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Then into a preheated oven at 200°C for twenty to twenty-five minutes until they're golden and crispy.

While those bake, you move to the pastry cream. Heat milk in a saucepan, whisk egg yolks with sugar, flour, and cornstarch in a bowl, then combine them and cook over low heat until the cream thickens. The choux come out of the oven. You let them cool, cut them in half, and fill them with the pastry cream using a piping bag—chocolate, vanilla, or coffee, depending on what you're making. For the éclairs, you melt dark chocolate with butter until smooth, then dip the tops into the glaze. The cheese choux get their own treatment. By the end of the lesson, you have three types of pastry you've made entirely yourself.

The final part of the class is tasting. You sit down with tea or coffee and eat what you've just baked while the pastry chef talks through your creations and answers questions about the techniques. If you want culinary advice or recommendations for restaurants and shops in Paris, that's part of the conversation too.

What’s included

• All utensils and ingredients for making the three pastries.
• an apron.
• tea and coffee to enjoy with your finished creations.
• step-by-step instruction from the pastry chef throughout the two and a half hours.

Good to know

Wheelchair accessibleAccessible transportPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Maison Fleuret — The Baking School

Is this one for you?Two and a half hours is long enough to make three pastries from scratch and taste them, but short enough to fit into a morning or afternoon without consuming your whole day in Paris. You'll leave with the techniques to make these at home, not just a memory of watching someone else make them.

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Top questions

What exactly do I make during the pastry class?

You make three types of French pastry: chocolate and vanilla éclairs, chouquette, and cheese choux. Each one involves mixing the dough, piping it, baking it, making or preparing the filling, and finishing it—you do all of it yourself, not watching a demonstration.

How long does the class take and what's included?

The class runs two and a half hours. Tea and coffee are included so you can taste your pastries at the end. All utensils and ingredients are provided; you just bring yourself and an apron is supplied.

Do I need pastry experience to join?

No. The pastry chef teaches you the techniques step-by-step and guides you through every stage, from mixing the dough to glazing the finished pastries. Children are welcome from age ten.

What happens if something doesn't turn out right?

The pastry chef is there throughout the lesson to help you correct mistakes and explain the techniques that guarantee success. The goal is for you to understand how to make these pastries, not just follow instructions.