Gougères (tasty, light, cheese puffs)

                                                                            Gougères

Gougères are a traditional finger food in Burgundy, France, to eat as an appetizer or light snack. They pair wonderfully with wine and are very easy to make. This recipe is for the common cheese version but they can also be made with anchovies instead. They are similar to cream puffs but are not normally filled. You can use your imagination if you decide to fill them. When I was researching gougère recipe I ended up with a riff off one from Alice Waters in her Book "The Art of Simple Food" and one I found on the Kitchn website.

1 cup (8 ounces, 237 grams) water 

8 tablespoons (4 ounces), 227 grams)  butter cut in chunks

3/4 teaspoon (4.5 grams) salt

1 cup (4.25 ounces, 120 grams) flour

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups (6 ounces, 170 grams) grated gruyère or similar cheese.

Combine the water, butter, and salt in a 2-4 quart saucepan. When the butter is melted add the flour all at once. Stir vigorously until the mixture comes together and looks like mashed potatoes. Continue to stir the mixture over medium low heat for 3 to 5 minutes to dry out the dough. The dough will be ready when it glistens and is thick enough to hold the spoon upright. 

Transfer the dough to a stand mixer and stir until it has cooled so that it is just warm to the touch. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each egg using the paddle attachment. Now add the grated cheese. You could also do this by hand with a wooden spoon or a stiff spatula.

Preheat the oven to 400º F (204ºC). Line baking sheets with baking parchment or silicone mats. Spoon rounded spoonfuls of the dough onto the baking sheets. They can be 1 or 2 inches in diameter depending on the size you want. They should be 1 1/2 inches apart. If you prefer you could pipe them from a pastry bag with a plain 1/2 inch tip. Bake the gougères, one sheet at a time, for 10 minutes and then turn the oven temperature down to 375ºF (190ºC) and bake for another 15 minutes. The gougères should be golden brown and crisp on the outside. Pierce each one with a sharp pointed knife, making a small slit to let out the steam. This helps them to stay crisp. If you are not serving them right away, place them on a cooling rack. They can be reheated and re-crisped in a 375ºF ((190ºC) oven for 3 minutes. They also can be frozen to be served later. If your freezer is large enough to hold a baking sheet, you can freeze unbaked gougères to bake later. Once frozen you can move them into a ziplock bag. You can make them any size you wish, tiny to large. Large ones could be used as sandwiches.

Variation: You can replace the cheese with 4-6 salt-packed anchovies, soaked, filleted, and chopped. This recommendation is from the Alice Waters recipe.