Gougères
Cheese choux puffs
Burgundy's warm cheese choux puffs (gougères bourguignonnes)
In the wine villages of Burgundy, around Beaune and Chablis, a basket of gougères lands on the table the moment guests sit down: small golden choux puffs, crisp outside and hollow and cheesy within. They are handed round at cellar tastings, christenings and Sunday aperitifs, and they are best eaten warm, within ten minutes of leaving the oven. The dough is the same as for profiteroles, but salted, peppered and beaten with grated Comté or Gruyère. Both cheeses are traditionally made with animal rennet, so use a vegetarian hard mountain-style cheese if you need to. Chef's tip: dry the dough on the heat until it leaves a thin film on the bottom of the pan; drier dough takes more egg and puffs higher.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup whole milk
- 3 ½ oz unsalted buttercut into cubes
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepperfreshly ground
- 1 pinch ground nutmeg
- 5 ½ oz plain floursifted
- 4 eggsmedium, beaten in a jug
- 4 ½ oz Comté or Gruyèrefinely grated, or a vegetarian hard mountain cheese
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Method
0/10 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan). Line two baking trays with baking paper.
Step 2: Put ½ cup water, ½ cup whole milk, 3 ½ oz unsalted butter, 1 tsp salt, ¼ tsp black pepper and 1 pinch ground nutmeg in a medium pan over a medium heat. Wait until the butter has melted completely and the liquid comes to a rolling boil.
4 minStep 3: Take the pan off the heat, tip in all of 5 ½ oz plain flour at once and beat hard with a wooden spoon until it forms a smooth ball.
1 minStep 4: Put the pan back on a low heat and keep turning the dough for 2 minutes, until it comes away from the sides and leaves a thin film on the base.
2 minStep 5: Tip the dough into a bowl and leave it for 3 minutes to cool slightly, so the eggs don't scramble.
3 minStep 6: Beat in 4 eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Stop when the dough is glossy and falls from the spoon in a thick V-shaped ribbon; you may not need the last spoonful. Common mistake: adding all the egg at once, which leaves a runny dough that spreads instead of puffing.
Step 7: Stir in 3 ⅔ oz Comté or Gruyère until evenly mixed.
Step 8: Pipe or spoon walnut-sized mounds onto the trays, 4 cm apart. Smooth any peaks with a wet fingertip and scatter over ⅞ oz Comté or Gruyère.
5 minStep 9: Bake for 22–25 minutes without opening the oven door, until deep golden, puffed and light when you lift one. Pale gougères will sink as they cool.
25 minStep 10: Pierce the side of each puff with a skewer to let the steam out and serve warm. Unbaked mounds freeze well on the tray; bake from frozen for 5 minutes longer.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 245 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 15 g
- Fat
- 17 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does gougères take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of whole milk?
- Semi-skimmed milk with 1 tbsp cream per 240ml (1 cup).
- What can I use instead of unsalted butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
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