This Dutch treat is deliciously messy; it's a supersize, super-rich version of a chocolate eclair - recipes

No one could finish a chocolate Eclair that big and decadent. Or so we thought, eyeing a Bosche bol on a recent trip to the Netherlands. A few mouthfuls later, the rich whipped cream filled puff, enrobed in dark chocolate, was gone.

Two bakeries in the town of s-Hertogenbosch, 50 miles southeast of Amsterdam, make this dessert their specialty. Jan de Groot bakery claims to have taken the first puff from the oven more than 40 years ago. Now it does a brisk business of about 2,000 "bollen," or balls, per day. The name Bosche bollen is taken from a local, more pronounceable version of the town's name: Den Bosch.

At home, make Bosche bollen with a classic egg-rich cream puff paste. Spoonfuls of the paste rise dramatically in the oven, leaving hollow pockets that you fill with the heaviest whipping cream you can justify. The icing is chocolate and more cream. Bosche Bollen If undercooked, the shells may soften and collapse.

  1/2 cup water
  1/4 cup (1/8 lb.) butter or margarine
  1/2 cup all-purpose flour
   2 large eggs
    Whipped cream (recipe follows)
    Dark chocolate glaze (recipe
        follows)

In a 2- to 3-quart pan over medium-high heat, bring water and butter to a boil. When butter melts, add flour all at once and stir until mixture holds together and pulls from side of pan, 15 to 30 seconds. Remove pan from heat; you can put mixture in a food processor or leave in pan. Let cool for 2 minutes.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, whirling or beating vigorously after each addition until egg is incorporated and mixture is glossy. Evenly space 6 equal mounds of dough on a greased 10- by 15-inch baking sheet. Bake in a 425 deg oven until puffs are deep golden, and firm and dry to touch, about 35 minutes. Transfer puffs to a rack and let cool completely.

If made ahead, store puffs airtight up to 2 days or freeze. If they soften, reheat on baking sheet in a 400 deg oven until puffs are crisp to touch, about 5 minutes. With a serrated knife, gently cut the upper fourth from each puff. Pull out and discard eggy webs, then fill with whipped cream. Replace puff lids. Place puffs on a wire rack set over a rimmed pan. Spoon chocolate glaze over puffs, covering tops and sides as well as you can. Lift rack from pan and scrape chocolate drips from pan back into double boiler; return rack to rimmed pan and spoon chocolate over puffs to finish coating.

Chill puffs until chocolate is set, about 30 minutes. Serve, or chill up to 2 hours longer. Makes 6. Per puff:494 cal.; 7g protein; 43g fat; 29g carbo.; 127mg sodium; 170mg chol.

Whipped cream. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat 1 1/4 cups whipping cream, 1/4 cup powdered sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until mixture holds soft peaks. Dark chocolate glaze. Over hot water in the top of a double boiler, combine 1/2 cup whipping cream and 6 ounces (3/4 cup) chopped bittersweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate baking chips. Stir over medium heat until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Use warm. 1-i