Clair

Clair or Claire may refer to:

Places

Canada

United States

Scotland

Other uses

Éclair

An éclair is an oblong pastry made with choux dough filled with a cream and topped with icing. The dough, which is the same as that used for profiterole, is typically piped into an oblong shape with a pastry bag and baked until it is crisp and hollow inside. Once cool, the pastry then is filled with a vanilla-, coffee- or chocolate-flavouredcustard (crème pâtissière), or with whipped cream, or chiboust cream; and then iced with fondant icing. Other fillings include pistachio- and rum-flavoured custard, fruit-flavoured fillings, or chestnut purée. The icing is sometimes caramel, in which case the dessert may be called a bâton de Jacob.

Etymology

The word comes from French éclair 'flash of lightning', so named because it is eaten quickly (in a flash).

History

The éclair originated during the nineteenth century in France where it was called "pain à la duchesse" or "petite duchesse" until 1850. It is a popular member of the pie family served all over the world. The word is first attested both in English and in French in the 1860s. Some food historians speculate that éclairs were first made by Antonin Carême (1784–1833), the famous French chef. The first known English-language recipe for éclairs appears in the Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Mrs. D.A. Lincoln, published in 1884.

Claire (given name)

Claire or Clair /ˈklɛər/ is a given name of Latin/Viking origin via French; the name could mean "clear" or "famous". The word still means clear in French in its feminine form.

Its popularity in the United Kingdom peaked during the 1970s and 1980s; in 1974 it was the second most popular female first name and in 1984 was still sixth, but by 1997 it had fallen out of the top 100 after several years of sharply declining popularity.

The name was traditionally considered male, specifically when spelled Clair; however, it is now commonly used as a female name and is usually spelled Claire.

Women with the given name Clair or Claire