Pumpkin Profiterole with Caramel Drizzle

Merry Almost Christmas y’all.  This morning I woke up and whipped up some yummy goodness for a Christmas Party this afternoon.  To be fair I didn’t have to be at work until 9:30, but I still think this puts me in the running for the coveted Supermom title. 

This is a combination of several good recipes that I have modified to meet my needs. First I began with a profiterole recipe I learned years ago.  Of course all of my favorite kitchen gadgets made this job go a lot quicker.  You will need:

¾ cup water

¼ cup butter

¼ tsp. salt

¾ cup all-purpose flour

3 eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to 375°.  It is best to have everything measured and ready to go, this process goes fast.

In a saucepan mix the water, butter and salt, bring this to a boil.  I slice my butter into pieces to prevent boiling off too much water while waiting for the butter to melt. 

Take the pan off the heat and dump the flour in all at once, mix until this forms a dough ball.  

Put the dough into a large batter bowl and whisk vigorously with the eggs. This will become glossy, and then come together to a smooth consistency.  

Keep whisking until the dough comes together smoothly. I used my small PC scoop to portion into my mini muffin pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Bake for 25 minutes until lightly brown.  Remove from the oven and let cool. 

For the filling I began with a pumpkin spread recipe to which I added cool whip for a lighter and fluffier consistency.  You will need:

8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened

½ cup of canned pumpkin

¼ cup of sugar

¾ tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup cool whip

I mixed all but the cool whip in the kitchen aid until they were smooth and even.

I decided it needed to be lighter which is when I mixed in the cool whip with the whisk attachment. 

I placed this in a PC Easy Accent Decorator.  I generously filled each cream puff, and place on parchment paper. A piping bag would do the trick here nicely.

Once they were all filled I drizzled with caramel topping.  Yes I know I'm a cheater cheater pumpkin-eater so to speak, but I never could have pulled this off in the morning without a little help.  Don’t be afraid to use what’s out there. 

I place a food storage bag in a glass and spooned in the caramel topping, I cut the tip off and drizzled back and forth over the top.

These were all done, and ready to be enjoyed.

I may have tried one just to be sure they were ready for the big event.

Trust me, Santa will leave you the neighbors presents if you make these for him.  Give it a try and be sure to share with a friend.