We fell in love with these savory cheese puffs on a recent trip to the Burgundy region in France. Made with choux pastry and served warm, gougères traditionally include Gruyere cheese but grated Emmental, Comte, Parmigiano-Reggiano or even cheddar can also be used. They are a simple and elegant pre-party appetizer that pairs well with wine (of course!).
Gougères
Gougères can be made ahead and frozen (either raw, or baked). This recipe is adapted from several sources.
Servings: 24 pastries (approximate)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (113 g)
- 1 cup water (250 ml)
- 1 cup flour (130 g) (all purpose)
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup Gruyere cheese (42 g) (grated)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Grease a baking sheet or use a silicone liner.
- Melt butter in a saucepan on the stove. Add water and bring to boiling.
- Add flour and salt, stirring vigorously until the mixture comes together into a ball.
- Remove from heat and cool about five minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time. The dough will get clumpy after each addition, but keep stirring until it is smooth again before adding the next egg.
- Once the eggs are incorporated, mix in the grated cheese.
- Drop the batter in heaping tablespoons onto the greased baking sheet. (Alternately, you can use a pastry bag to pipe the dough onto the sheet.) If desired, you can sprinkle a little extra cheese on top prior to baking.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 20-24 puffs.