Kitchen gadget: Bismark tip

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Have you ever wondered how pastry chefs and doughnut shops are able to pipe those perfectly puffed eclairs and plump jelly doughnuts with their glorious fillings? It takes a very long piping tip.

Better known as a Bismarck pastry tip (named after the doughnut), these handy little gadgets make simple work of filling all sorts of baked goods: classic pastries, doughnuts, even cupcakes. Trying to fill a delicate pastry using a standard pastry tip can be almost as messy as eating one; the tip is often just too short and thick to reach the center of the baked good. Bismarck tips are shaped like a standard piping tip but with a long tube attached at the end to make the job of injecting your favorite treats with all sorts of sweet goodness that much easier.

Bismarck pastry tips can generally be found at cooking and baking supply stores, as well as at select craft stores, and are widely available online. A Bismarck pastry tip should set you back only $3 to $6.

Continue reading below for recipe links for eclairs, yeast-raised doughnuts and more!

If you have any kitchen gadgets or tips you’d like me to explore, leave a comment below or shoot me an email at noelle.carter@latimes.com.

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-- Noelle Carter
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• Cream puff pastry for eclairs and cream puffs
• Pastry cream (crème pâtissière)
• Chocolate glaze
• Yeast-raised doughnuts (omit the hole in the center and fill with jelly for jelly-filled)
• Raspberry Religieuse

Patisserie Chantilly petits choux au sesame (Black sesame cream puffs)

Total time: 1 hour plus cooling and chilling time

Servings: 8

Note: Adapted from a recipe by Keiko Nojima of Patisserie Chantilly. Black sesame seeds and paste are available in Asian markets.

Pate a choux

1/3 cup milk

1 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons butter

1 cup flour

4 eggs, divided

1 teaspoon black sesame seeds

1 teaspoon white sesame seeds

1. Bring the milk, two-thirds cup water and the sugar to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and allow it to melt. Remove from the heat. Add the flour all at once and stir until the mixture is completely blended and forms a ball. Return the saucepan to the heat and cook, stirring until the mixture does not separate and the bottom of pan has a thin film on the bottom, about 2 minutes.

2. Remove from the heat and beat in 3 eggs one at a time until completely blended.

3. To make the puffs, spoon or pipe about one-fourth cup of choux for each puff onto two greased baking sheets. Beat the remaining egg and brush it over the puffs. Combine the black and white sesame seeds and sprinkle over the top of each puff.

4. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes until the puffs are doubled in size and golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack. Make a small slit on the side of each puff to allow steam to escape.

Black creme sesame and assembly

3/4 cup sugar

6 egg yolks

2 1/2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons plus 3/4 teaspoon cornstarch

2 cups milk heated to scalding

1 1/2 tablespoons butter, cut up

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup whipping cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon black sesame seeds

2 tablespoons black sesame paste

4 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons soy flour

1. Beat together the sugar and egg yolks until pale yellow in color, about 2 minutes.

2. Stir together the flour and cornstarch and beat into the egg mixture. Slowly beat in the hot milk.

3. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and heat over medium-high heat, stirring, until boiling and thickened. Boil 1 to 2 minutes; stir constantly.

4. Remove from the heat. Add the butter, stirring until it’s melted. Stir in the vanilla. Pour into a bowl and cover. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until ready to serve.

5. In a chilled bowl, beat the whipping cream and sugar until the mixture forms soft peaks.

6. Remove the chilled creme from the refrigerator. Fold in the whipped cream, sesame seeds and sesame paste. Cut the tops off the cooled cream puffs and pipe half the creme sesame mixture into the bottoms of the puffs. Drizzle each with honey, then pipe in the remaining creme. Put the tops on the puffs, sprinkle each with soy flour and serve.

Each serving: 482 calories; 10 grams protein; 47 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram fiber; 29 grams fat; 15 grams saturated fat; 299 mg. cholesterol; 72 mg. sodium.