Easy Eclair Cake

I've been wanting to make this yummy recipe for awhile! I finally made it for a family party a couple of weeks ago. It was soooo tasty! I couldn't believe how much it tasted like regular eclairs with half the work!

Homemade Eclairs

Pastry Shell:
1 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup Butter (1 stick)
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 Cup Water
4 Large Eggs

Filling:
2 pkgs. (3.4) French Vanilla Instant Pudding (not made up)
2 1/2 C. Milk
8 Ounces of Cream Cheese (Room Temperature)
1 Container of Cool Whip (12 oz.)

Topping:
4 Ounces Real Milk Chocolate Chips (I love Ghirardelli)
2 Tbsp. Butter
4 Tbsp. Milk
1 Cup Powdered Sugar

Preheat oven to 400* Bring water, butter, and salt to a boil until the butter is melted. Add the flour all at once and mix quickly with a wooden spoon. Stir until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and forms a ball. Dough should be soft, let cool 5 minutes. Add eggs on at a time beating thoroughly after each until smooth. Spread in a un-greased 10x15 baking pan. Bake until a golden brown 30-35 min. Crust will puff into bubbles, prick the bubbles with a fork and let cool.

To make filling: Beat the pudding mix, milk, and softened cream cheese until thoroughly blended. Spread pudding mix over the baked crust. Spread cool whip over pudding mix.

To make Chocolate Topping: Melt chocolate chips and butter, add confections sugar and milk alternately until a thin glaze forms. Put into a zip lock bag and cut the corner off the side. Drizzle all over the top of the Eclair filling. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving.