Cream puffs with Dream Whip Filling

Here is a dessert that I'm able to pull together pretty quickly as I have these ingredients on hand most of the time.  These cream puffs can be made much bigger (which results in a smaller quantity) but I like the idea of "bite size"so that is what I went with.

From www.the-chicken-chick.com I got the recipe for "Best Cream Puffs Recipe Ever!"  Here it is:

Cream Puffs

Ingredients
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter (one stick=1/4 lb)
1 cup flour
4 fresh eggs at room temp

Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium saucepan, over medium-high heat, combine butter and 1 cup water.  Bring to a boil and add the flour.  Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until batter forms a ball and a film forms on the bottom of the pan.  Remove from heat.

Using either a wooden spoon or mixer, stir eggs into flour mixture one at a time, completely incorporating each egg before the next addition. Batter should be stiff.

Scoop dough onto baking sheet using a cookie dough scoop, or shaping with two spoons, or by using a piping bag.  (The baking directions apply to a 4 oz cream puff shell, but the dough can be scooped into rounds for cream puffs or ovals for eclairs and size may vary according to your preference - but know that baking times will vary by size and shape, so adjust accordingly.

Bake for 30 minutes at 400 degree F, then reduce the heat to 325 degrees F and bake for 10 minutes more.  (This step is the key to deflation-proof cream puffs!)  Puffs should be golden brown when removed from the oven.

My note:  I used a small scoop and got a little more than 1-1/2 dozen cream puffs.  When cooled and filled I sprinkled them with powdered sugar.

I found the recipe for "Dream Whip Icing" at www.cdkitchen.com.  I wanted something more than pudding for my cream puff filling and this does this trick beautifully:

Dream Whip Icing

Ingredients
2 envelopes Dream Whip topping mix
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 small box instant pudding mix (I've used vanilla and chocolate - vanilla would be the most common)

Instructions
Prepare the Dream Whip by mixing the whipped topping mix, milk and vanilla in a large bowl with an electric mixer on low speed.  Mix until just blended.  Turn the mixer to high speed and mix for 4 minutes or until the topping is thick and forms peaks.

Add the pudding mix and beat well. Spread on cooked cake or refrigerate the icing until ready to use.  Be sure to refrigerate any leftover iced cake.

My note:  You need to use something fairly sharp to pierce a hole in the bottom of the cream puff and sorta "ream" it out.  I used a disposable piping bag to fill the cream puffs with the icing mixture.  As the cream puff filled I could feel the cream puff begin to swell and then I would stop.