Gougeres with Cheddar and Mustard

One of the more pleasant side benefits of my new gig at Food52 is that even the most complicated-seeming recipes have started to seem very approachable. Chicken with forty cloves of garlic? Check. A crispy chicken thigh recipe that breaks all the rules? No problem. A summery salad that combines classic caprese and panzanella? I can’t wait to make that one again.

This time, inspiration struck while watching multiple edit rounds of a video starring a total kitchen superhero. Dorie Greenspan (of course) made fancy French cheese puffs seem so doable, that I ran to the kitchen to make them immediately (ie. two months later, because upside-down-face emoji).

Gougeres, as they’re called in French, are cheese puffs made with a savory choux pastry dough (choux pastry is also used to make eclairs, profiteroles, crullers and lots of other sweets). Choux pastry seems really difficult, but it’s actually easier than you’d think — boil butter and water, add flour and stir stir stir until the dough comes together, then stir in eggs and cheese. Traditionally, the French use Gruyere or Comte to make gougeres, but I had a fridge full of cheddar, so that’s what’s I used. And because I used cheddar, I also had to add some mustard, because what’s better than cheddar and mustard?

The best part is that you can portion out the gougeres on a baking sheet and freeze them, then transfer them in a plastic bag. Then when you need them, you can pop them straight from the freezer to the oven, and bake them right before your party guests arrive — what’s more welcoming then a plate full of freshly baked cheese puffs?

Next up on my “to conquer” list: bread. Between Food52 and my recent GBBO binge, I’ve become convinced that bread is something I can absolutely cook up in my stand mixer-less, half-counter kitchen with the tricky oven. We’ll see how that goes …

Gougères with Cheddar and Mustard

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Description

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan

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Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• a hefty pinch of teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• a hefty pinch of cayenne pepper
• 3/4 cup (about 3 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats.
2. In a medium-sized heavy saucepan, combine 1/2 cup water with the butter and salt, and bring to a boil.
3. Turn off the heat and add the flour all at once. Stir with a wooden spoon until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and forms a lump. Set aside, without stirring, for 5 minutes, until the mixture has cooled slightly.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. The dough will look glossy and slick at first; let it come together before adding the second egg. Stir in the mustard, cayenne and cheese.
5. Scoop up a heaping teaspoon of dough and use another spoon to scrape it onto lined pan; it should form a mound about an inch in diameter. (You could also use a pastry bag or Ziploc bag with one corner cut off, to pipe small mounds onto pan.) Repeat with the remaining dough, leaving an inch between puffs.
6. Bake the gougères until puffy and golden, about 25 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Remove from the oven and serve immediately or at room temperature.

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Notes

• You should pipe the gougères immediately onto the baking sheet, but once piped, you can freeze them on the baking sheets for a few hours, until they’re solid. Then transfer them to a plastic bag and keep for up to month. No need to defrost before baking — just give them an extra minute or two in the oven.