Savory French Cheese Puffs (Gougeres)

Gougeres, or French cheese puffs, start with a basic pate a choux dough that bakes into wonderfully light puffs that are given their flavor with a bold cheese - like Swiss or Gruyere - and black pepper.

Don't let the fancy terms scare you away, because pate a choux is a lovely dough that is incredibly simple to make and it comes together so well in the bowl.  While this dough is most often used in a sweet recipes like cream puffs, mixing a strong cheese into the batter yields a delicious side that can take the place of any other dinner bread.

Pate a choux dough begins on the stovetop where butter, a combo of milk and water, salt, and pepper are brought to a boil.  Flour is dumped in and stirred together until an elastic dough is formed and a dry film becomes visible on the bottom and sides of the pan.

Then everything gets transferred to a mixing bowl and is given time to cool so that eggs can be added along with the cheese.  Finally, mounds are piped onto a parchment-lined pan and then bake until poofy, hollow, cheesy puffs are formed.

Don't be afraid to try pate a choux dough!  Once you realize how easy it is and how tasty the result, you'll want to start churning out gougeres and profiteroles on the regular.  Enjoy!

Savory French Cheese Puffs (Gougeres)

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• Total Time: 40 mins
• Yield: 12 puffs

Ingredients

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• 4 TBS unsalted butter
• ¼ cup milk
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ½ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled off
• 2 large eggs
• 3 oz grated cheese - Gruyere, Swiss, or Comte

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Instructions

1. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.
2. Preheat oven to 400F
3. In a small pot, add the butter, milk, water, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil and then add all of the flour, stir with wooden spoon to combine. Lower the heat to medium-low and continue stirring until the dough comes together and begins to dry out just a little, about 1-2 minutes. The dough ball will come together nicely and be a little bit elastic when you stir it. You will notice a dry film starting to form on the bottom and sides of the pan.
4. Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl and give it a stir occasionally to allow the steam to escape. When the dough has cooled to being warm to the touch, add the eggs one at a time, combining well after each one. Mix in the cheese.
5. Scoop dough into a big Ziploc bag or piping bag with the corner cut off or fitted with a large round tip. Pipe 1-2 inch rounds onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each one. If desired, wet clean fingers and smooth off the top of the domes, but don't squish them down.
6. Bake for about 5 minutes at 425 and then lower the heat to 350 and continue baking 15-20 minutes more until the puffs are golden brown and have dried out. They will sound hollow if you tap them.
7. Serve warm or at room temperature.

• Author: Erin Browne
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 35 mins

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