Gougères (French Cheese Puffs).
Skill Level: Intermediate
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Baking Time: 5 Minutes & 22 Minutes
Baking Temperature: 450ºF & 375ºF
Course: Appetizer or Snack
Yield: 12-18 Puffs, depending on size
Equipment Needed:
4 Quart Sauce Pan
Measuring Cup
Tablespoon
Teaspoon
Wooden Spoon
Mixing Bowl Hand-Held Electric Mixer or Stand Mixer
Piping Bag
Baking Sheet
Parchment Paper
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (125ml) Water
4 tablespoons (55g) Butter, cut into cubes
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup (65g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 Large Eggs
3/4 cup (3 ounces, 90g) Parmesan, grated
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 450ºF. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
In sauce pan, bring water, butter and salt to a boil.
Remove sauce pan from heat, dump in flour all at once, stir vigorously with wooden spoon until incorporated. Return sauce pan to medium-low heat, stir constantly until mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan into a smooth ball, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat, and let rest two minutes to cool it down a bit. Transfer dough to mixing bowl. Adding one egg at a time, mix with beater until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl once or twice. Batter will appear lumpy at first, but will smooth out after about a minute.
Add grated Parmesan, stir until well-mixed. Spoon dough into a pastry piping bag fitted with a wide plain tip. Pipe dough into mounds, spaced one inch apart, making each about two inches in diameter.
Bake at 450ºF for 5 minutes, then turn oven down to 375ºF, and bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Let Gougères cool on wire rack. Serve.
Notes:
The dough is the same basic dough as for cream puffs, but savory because of the cheese.
If you don’t have a piping bag, use a ziploc bag with one corner snipped off. Or use a 2 inch ice cream scoop, dipped in cold water in between mounds, or just make mounds with the help of two tablespoons.
Before adding the eggs, make sure the dough isn’t hot anymore. Otherwise the eggs will begin to cook. You definitely don’t want that.
Don’t place the puffs too close to each other.
You can make the Gougères smaller or larger to your liking. This recipe can easily be doubled, but then you need two baking sheets.
Cutting a slit into the side of puffs with a sharp knife 5 minutes before the end of the baking time will allow more steam to escape, making them extra crispy. Some recipes call for Gruyère or even Cheddar, but the less moisture the cheese has, the more the Gougères will puff up.
You could also use grated Pecorino, and add some minced chives.