Chocolate Eclair Cream Puffs

So this is the recipe for the cream puffs that were at my wedding. These really aren't as hard as they appear and I thought they were really fun to make. Also who doesn't like an eclair/cream puff right?

Makes about 12 large

Puff Dough
1 cup water
4 eggs (room temperature - **this step is very important**)
1 cup sifted flour
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
1/2 tsp. salr
1 Tbsp. sugar

Step 1
Bring water to boil with salt and butter. As soon as butter melts and full boil begins, add flour all at once. Stir Rapidly. Remove from heat and continue stirring till mixture looks like cornmeal mush.
Tip:(Since I have never made cornmeal mush before I kind of stopped stirring until I couldn't stir anymore. Which is basically until it is just combined.)
Step 2
Add eggs one at a time. Beat each one till it blends in well. (I would definitely use a hand mixer for this unless you want a workout)
Step 3
For miniature puffs, drop by teaspoon on to greased, heavy cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place puffs in oven and turn down immediatly to 400 degrees. Bake at 400 for about 15 minutes or till light brown on top. (It is important that they are cooked long enough, under cooking will cause them to collapse.) Remove from oven and slit sides to allow steam to escape. (I did this and eventually ended up cutting the whole top off because it was easier to fill them that way.) After cutting take out any loose batter. Allow to cool completely before filling.
Step 4
For dessert size puffs, drop from large spoon in desired shape. Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes then 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Follow the same instructions as for miniature puffs after they are removed from oven. (I don't think I cooked them the entire time so make sure to keep an eye on things.)


Cream Filling
1 small pkg. Vanilla Instant Pudding
1 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream (you could substitute cool whip)

Step 1
Prepare pudding with milk and let set-up in fridge.
Step2
Whip cream like you usually would...with sugar and vanilla.
Step 3
Fold pudding and cream together.
Step 4
Fill cooled puffs.
Tip: If you like a lot of cream in your puffs (which I do) you may want to double this or add more cream to make it go further. When I made these I had enough to fill all mine but 2.


Chocolate Glaze/Frosting
3 Tbsp. butter, melted
3 Tbsp. cocoa
1 tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp. boiling water (or a little more, if necessary
2 c. powdered sugar

Step 1
Mix all ingredients together. Play with powdered sugar and water until you get the right consistency.
Step 2
Spread on top of filled cream puffs.