Gougères (cheese puffs), a specialty of the Burgundy region in France is a savory choux pastry with cheese.
One can either mix grated cheese into the batter, or push small blocks of cheese into the top – or you could do both.
Traditionally the puffs are made with Gruyère, but other cheeses are also used.
The puffs are ususally made in small bite size pastries but the batter can be baked in a pie tin. If baked in a ring or pie tin the gougère is normally filled with savory ingredients like beef, ham or mushrooms.
RECIPE
Time: About 30 minutes Yields 30-40 Gougères
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups (about 7 ounces) all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1 cup freshly grated Emmenthal, Gruyère, Cantal or Cheddar cheese
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan or other hard cheese
Method
Step 1 Preheat oven to 425 degrees and lightly grease 2 baking sheets.
Step 2 Combine one cup water, butter and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil over a medium to high heat. Stir until butter melts. Add flour all at once and cook, stirring continuously for about 5 minutes or less, until dough holds together in a ball. Keep stirring until dough is smooth. Transfer batter to a large mixing bowl.
Step 3 Add eggs one at a time, beating hard after each addition, (preferably with an electric mixer as a hand mixer may not be strong enough) until the mixture is glossy.
Step 4 Stir in the cheeses.
Step 5 Drop teaspoons full onto a baking sheet and bake until puffed and lightly browned, about 10-15 minutes.
