Pumpkin Pie Puffs

About a week ago, Papa Bear was rummaging through the pantry looking for something sweet. He found a can of pumpkin pie filling, and then he showed it to me while flashing his best puppy dog eyes.

"Hun, it's late. I really don't want to make a pie tonight."

"OK," he muttered, shuffling his feet.

"I'll make one soon. And really, you have three months to eat pumpkin pie," I reassured him.

Seriously, this man really likes pumpkin pie, and I always forget because it's such a seasonal dessert.

The next day, I was avoiding some other household duty by cooking; and I, too, stumbled on the can of filling. I've been on a cream puff kick thanks to my new cookie gun, so here's what I came up with.



Yeah, they're a little too good.

They're so good, in fact, that when I suggested that Papa Bear host a poker night for the guys, he asked if I'd make them pumpkin pie puffs.

I made a couple of Mexican pizzas too...so they could feel a little more manly.

Then, when he invited the guys, he told them (in great detail) what I would be serving. I've since asked him, very politely, not to ever do that again. See, I love playing hostess, but sometimes my plans are a little too lofty.

Case in point...

If you have a cookie gun, or just a good piping bag, these puffs are easy peasy to make. I'd already made them a few times, before this weekend, with absolutely no hitches. But now I was going to be making them for company.

Dun. Dun. Dun.

The recipe is so simple that I had already memorized it. First, you bring one stick of butter, one cup of water, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt to a boil. Then, you remove the pot from the stove and stir in one cup of flour. Let the mixture cool for one minute, and then mix in four large eggs, one at a time.

The batter should be thick and glossy, like this...



But on Saturday night, when I piped the batter onto the pan, it did not look like that. I didn't think to take a picture of what it did look like, because I was too busy throwing a massive hissy fit.

The batter was runny, not extremely runny, but not thick enough to stand up in a mound; and I had no idea why.

I stirred in more flour, but the result was just tiny cakes instead of puffs (which didn't end up being a huge loss; the kids ate them with peanut butter). But when I took the eggs (that I had sent Papa Bear to the store to buy) out of the refrigerator to try again, I immediately realized my problem. They were extra large eggs.

Sigh.

If you've ever wondered how much of a difference there is between large eggs and extra large eggs. My answer is: enough.

So, I tried again using the right amount of egg. And I, finally, came up with this...



And after baking them for 10 minutes at 450 degrees and 10 minutes at 350, they came out looking like this...



I filled them with pumpkin pie (which I had prepared, baked, and cooled ahead of time). You will actually make a pumpkin pie for this step...just without the crust. Once it has cooled you can scoop the baked pie filling into your piping bag.



And then I topped them with fresh whipped cream.



If you didn't know what to take to your mother-in-laws for Thanksgiving this year, now you do.