How To Make Cream Puff Dessert — Simple, Impressive, and Delicious

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Straight out of the 70s church-lady playbook

This vintage cream puff dessert has everything you love about classic cream puffs — a tender crust, silky pudding, and a fluffy cream cheese filling. It’s an old-fashioned showstopper that’s surprisingly easy to make and always a hit at potlucks.

This cream puff dessert is fun to make, and it's delightfully fun to eat because it's absolutely delicious. Who doesn't love a showy dessert that isn't hard to put together?

Cream cheese added to the pudding makes a soft yet firm, meltingly delicious filling. Notice how each piece stands up nicely and tall for a great presentation!

If you're looking for other desserts you can make ahead and stash in the fridge or freezer, look no further than these! Malted Milk Ball Pie, Layered Lemon Dessert, or Oreo Dirt Cake.

Gather Your Ingredients

For a 13" x 9" pan, you'll need

• All-purpose Flour
• Butter
• Eggs
• Milk
• Instant pudding mix, any flavor you like
• Whipped Topping
• Cream Cheese
• Candy bits or sprinkles for garnish

How To Make The Cream Puff Dessert Crust

Cream puff batter is fascinating. It looks hard, but it's only got five ingredients! Combine the water, salt, and butter, and bring them to a boil. When you cook it, the ingredients magically come together into a ball of dough that doesn't stick to the pan.

Next, take the dough off the stove and let it cool for about 5 minutes. This is an important step. Then, use a wooden spoon or spatula to stir in four eggs, one at a time.

The eggs are what make the dough do fancy tricks. If you bake it in individual blobs of dough plopped on a baking sheet, you'll get cream puffs that are hollow inside. When you bake the dough in a pan, it creates undulating hills and valleys of tasty golden crust.

Spread that eggy batter in a greased 13" by 9" pan.

Bake the crust for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Let it cool until it's no longer warm to the touch.

Look at that beautiful landscape of light and tasty crust! Looks fancy, but it's deceptively easy!

Now Make The Yummy Cream Puff Dessert Filling

You'll want to have the cream cheese at room temperature. Warm the milk slightly in the microwave. Add about a cup of the warm milk to the cream cheese and beat until it's nice and fluffy soft.

Next, add the puddings and the remaining milk. Continue beating the pudding mixture until everything is completely blended and all the flecks of cream cheese are incorporated. This will be a thick mixture.

I can't believe my avocado green mixer from the 1970s is still on the job! When it finally gives up the ghost, I have my eye on a cute red KitchenAid hand mixer, but I'm patient.

Spoon the mixture onto the crust and spread to the edges of the pan. Chill until the pudding is set.

Beautiful Final Touches For Cream Puff Dessert

When the pudding is set, smooth a whole tub of whipped topping over the top, clear to the edges. Sprinkle on candy bits of your choice. Here I used brickle bits and semi-sweet mini chocolate chips for the chocoholic birthday girl we were celebrating.

I got this vintage recipe from a darling young mom who got the recipe from her mom. Her recipe is dated 1992. I still had a high school student at home then! This is a make-ahead dessert, which makes it perfect for potlucks, club days, and family gatherings.

PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD

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Yield: 16 servings

Cream Puff Dessert

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Chocolate pudding with cream cheese sits atop a cream puff crust then is slathered with whipped topping and sprinkled with candy bits.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

Crust

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• 1/2 cup butter (one stick)
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup flour
• 4 eggs

Filling

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• One 8-ounce block cream cheese at room temperature
• 1 small 3.9-ounce box instant pudding
• 1 large 5.85-ounce box instant pudding
• 3 3/4 cup milk, warmed slightly

Topping

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• 1 regular size tub of whipped topping, defrosted
• About 1/3 cup candy bits of choice, more if you want

Instructions

1. Combine water, salt, and butter in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Add flour all at once and stir until the mixture forms a ball of dough.
3. Set aside and let cool for 5 minutes.
4. Use a wooden spoon to beat in four eggs, one egg at a time.
5. Spread mixture in a greased 13" x 9" pan.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, until golden brown.
7. Cool crust.
8. Warm milk slightly in the microwave.
9. Add about 1 cup of warm milk to cream cheese in a mixing bowl and beat until cream cheese is quite soft.
10. Add remaining milk and pudding mixes to the cream cheese mixture and beat until all blended and no flecks of cream cheese are showing.
11. Spread pudding mixture over crust and chill until pudding is set.
12. Spread a container of whipped topping over the pudding.
13. Garnish with candy bits and refrigerate until it is served.

Notes

This recipe used instant chocolate pudding, but you can use butterscotch, vanilla, or pistachio pudding, too!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

16

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 214Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 81mgSodium: 212mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 0gSugar: 5gProtein: 6g

Cream Puff Dessert FAQ

Can I use other flavors of pudding for the fiilling?- Yes! get creative with this recipe and with the garnishes!

Can I use sugar-free pudding and whipped topping? - Absolutely, it works great!

Can I freeze this dessert? I don’t recommend it. The creamy layers don’t hold up well in the freezer and can turn watery. This one’s best made ahead and chilled in the fridge.

Today, we're making this a chocolate dessert for all those chocoholics out there, but butterscotch, lemon, or pistachio pudding would also make this a killer dessert! Try Butterfinger bits on pistachio! Delish!! Another idea is to add sliced strawberries or peaches to a chilled and thickened vanilla pudding/cream cheese mixture.

Each variation uses the same simple pantry ingredients and the same easy make-ahead method — just new flavors to love!

What else are you cooking up for Easter? At our house, we will have these tried-and-true menus items (and someone always brings something fun and new.)

Grammy's Ham Balls - Tasty meatballs made of ground ham and ground pork in a sweet and tangy glaze of ketchup, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, and dry mustard.

Dill-Glazed Carrots - A beautiful side dish. Crisp-tender sliced carrots with the perfect amount of onion and dill in a slightly sweet, buttery glaze.

Yeast Dinner Rolls or Breadsticks - A very basic, easy white bread yeast dough you can use in many ways.

Icebox Cookie Pie - A quick and easy no-bake pie that brings back warm memories of cookies and milk. Can be made ahead and frozen.

If you liked this cream puff dessert recipe, you’re exactly the kind of cook I write for. If you enjoyed a post, I'd love it if you would leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review or a comment. It really helps my little business. ❤❤

🐝 Bee Sweet: Few things say “I love you” quite like a special homemade dessert. Every whisk, fold, and swirl is a small act of kindness, and whispers "I know what you like"— proof that joy grows when it’s shared.

Love, GB (Betty Streff)

Real food. Real kitchen. Real easy.

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