Gruyère Cheese Gougères

Holiday time is upon us and these are easy tidbits to make: (3 Recipes included)

Gruyère Cheese Gougères
Makes about 4 dozen gougères

Gruyere Cheese Gougeres Gougères are a classical preparation often served at wine tastings in France. The puffs are made from a savory pâte á choux, or cream puff dough-flavored here with Gruyère. They are best served hot out of the oven, offering that creamy-dough gratification. Don't add the cheese, and the puff is a base for a dessert.

1 cup water
7 tablespoons (3-1/2 ounces) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon kosher salt, or more to taste
Pinch of sugar
1-1/4 cups (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
4 to 5 large eggs
1-1/4 cups grated Gruyère (5 ounces)
Freshly ground white pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with Silpats (see Sources) or parchment paper.

In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter, salt, and sugar and bring to a boil. Add all the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium, and stir with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes, or until the mixture forms a ball and the excess moisture has evaporated (if the ball forms more quickly, continue to cook and stir for a full 2 minutes).

Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle and beat for about 30 seconds at medium speed to cool slightly. Add 4 eggs and continue to mix until completely combined and the batter has a smooth, silky texture. Stop the machine and lift up the beater to check the consistency of the batter. The batter in the mixing bowl should form a peak with a tip that falls over. If it is too stiff, beat in the white of the remaining egg. Check again and, if necessary, add the yolk. Finally, mix in 3/4 cup of the Gruyère and adjust the seasoning with salt and white pepper.

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch plain pastry tip with the gougère batter. Pipe the batter into 1-tablespoon mounds on the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between the gougères as the mixture will spread during baking. Sprinkle the top of each gougère with about 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining grated cheese and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until they puff and hold their shape. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. and bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes. When the gougères are done, they should be a light golden brown color. When you break one open, it should be hollow; the inside should be cooked but still slightly moist. Remove the pans from the oven and serve the gougères while hot.
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Gougeres (French Cheese Puffs)
Makes about 24

The classic French cheese puff is called a gougere, which means savory pastry with cheese. The classic recipe calls for using gruyere cheese. I like to use smoked cheddar, which adds an American touch. These little puffballs are a flavorful bite to savor while enjoying a glass of wine or your favorite cocktail. But stop at just 2 or 3, they are quite addictive.

1⁄2 cup unsalted butter, chilled, cut into small pieces
1 cup water
1⁄2 tsp. salt
1 cup, all-purpose flour
5 whole eggs
1 1⁄2 cups Smoked cheddar cheese
1 whole egg mixed with 1 tbsp. water

Heat the water in a heavy saucepan to a boil. Add the butter and salt and reduce the heat to medium. Add the flour all at once and vigorously beat the mixture until it pulls away from the sides of the saucepan. Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the eggs, one at a time, making sure the egg is incorporated into the batter before adding additional eggs. Once all the eggs are incorporated, transfer the batter to a bowl. Add the grated cheese and stir the batter to incorporate the cheese.

Heat the oven to 400°. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Spoon a small portion of the batter onto the cookie sheet. Note: I like to put the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a fluted tip. Then, I pipe a small round of the pastry batter onto the cookie sheet. This adds a fancy shape to the finished, baked pastry. Brush each pastry shape with some of the egg and water mixture.

Bake the pastries in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove the pastries from the cookie sheet and serve warm.
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Miniature Gougeres
Recipe courtesy Gourmet Magazine
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 to 8 servings

1 cup water
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 to 5 large eggs
1 1/2 cups coarsely grated Gruyere

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets or line with parchment paper.

In a heavy saucepan bring water to a boil with butter and salt over high heat and reduce heat to moderate. Add flour all at once and beat with a wooden spoon until mixture pulls away from side of pan.

Transfer mixture to a bowl and with an electric mixer on high-speed beat in 4 eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Batter should be stiff enough to just hold soft peaks and fall softly from a spoon. If batter is too stiff, in a small bowl beat remaining egg lightly and add to batter a little at a time, beating on high speed, until batter is desired consistency.

Stir Gruyere into pate a choux and arrange level tablespoons about 1-inch apart on baking sheets. Bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, 30 minutes, or until puffed, golden, and crisp.

Gougeres keep, chilled in sealable plastic bags 2 days or frozen 1 week. Reheat gougeres, uncovered in a preheated 350 degree oven 10 minutes if chilled or 15 minutes if unthawed frozen.

Episode#: CL9673
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