Cream Puff Ring             

Cream Puff
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
I cup flour

Filling
1 3 1/2 oz to 3 3/4 oz package vanilla instant pudding
1 1/4 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla   

Glaze
2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon butter
1/ 2 teaspoon milk
1/ 2 teaspoon light corn syrup

In 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, heat water, butter and salt until butter melts and mixture boils.  Remove saucepan from heat.  With wooden spoon, vigorously stir in flour all at once until mixture forms a ball and leaves side of pan. Add eggs to flour mixture, one at a time, beating after each addition, until mixture is smooth and satiny.   Cool mixture slightly. Preheat oven to 400*.   Lightly grease and flour a large cookie sheet.  Using a 7-inch plate as a guide, trace a circle in the flour on cookie sheet. Drop batter by heaping tablespoons into ten mounds, inside circle, to form a ring. Bake ring 40 minutes or until golden.  Turn off oven; let ring remain in oven 15 minutes.  Remove ring from oven; cool on wire rack. When ring is cool, with long serrated knife, slice horizontally in half.  Prepare filling; spoon into bottom of ring.  Replace top of ring.  Refrigerate. Thinly drizzle glaze over top of ring. 

Filling:   Prepare pudding according to label directions, except use only 1 1/4 cups milk.  Carefully fold in one cup whipping cream, whipped, and vanilla.

 Glaze:   In double-boiler over hot, not boiling water (or in heavy 1-quart saucepan over low heat), heat chocolate chips, butter, milk, corn syrup until smooth, stirring occasionally.

 Alternate Styles:  Instead of forming ring, drop batter in mounds for individual puffs. Makes ten large or many mini puffs. Check oven because individual bake faster. For a very different flavor, use almond extract instead of vanilla in filling.   Pretty garnished with fresh raspberries or strawberries. Or omit chocolate and stuff with cubed peaches.