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Bake the sheets one at a time until the eclairs are puffed, golden brown, and feel light and hollow when picked up, 28 to 32 minutes.
Remove from the oven and while the eclairs are still hot (you may need to use a paper towel to handle them), and using a paring knife, make two ¼-inch holes in the bottom of each eclair (one near each end) by inserting the tip and turning in a circular motion.
Once both sheets have been baked and holes poked in the bottom, return both pans to the still-warm oven. Prop the door open with a wooden spoon and allow the eclairs to set in there for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely before filling.
Fill the Eclairs: Place the chilled pastry cream in a pastry bag fitted with a ¼-inch round piping tip (Ateco #802 is perfect for this). Insert the tip of the bag into the holes you created on the bottom of the eclairs, and gently squeeze until filled (the cream will start to come back out of the hole on the bottom). Wipe off excess cream from the bottom and continue until all eclairs are filled.
Alternative Filling Method: You can also slice the eclairs in half horizontally and pipe (I love a large closed star tip for this – Ateco #853) the pastry cream onto the bottom half, and then cover with the top half of the puff. This is a pretty presentation but a bit messier to eat!
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