AAF’s Recipe of the Day
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 14, 2008 – 4:43 pm -Chances are that if you’re wine-tasting in France, will be offered as a savory accompaniment. It’s a simple puff made from an easy to follow recipe of pâte á choux, flavored with Gruyère cheese, nothing fancy. They are best eaten hot right out of the oven, they simply melt in your mouth.
Adapted from Seriously Good — direct quotes are blockquoted. biscuit
This recipe will make 2 or 3 dozen, depending on the size you wish to make them. I use the processor to make the dough so this is not a messy job. 1 cup of warm water, 4 oz softened butter, a tbsp salt, a pinch of sugar, 5 oz strong white flour, 5 free range eggs, 5 ox freshly grated Gruyère, and some freshly ground pepper. Preheat the oven to 450F. Use a couple of baking trays and line them with parchment paper (if you don’t have any, brush the trays with melted butter or oil.
The cooking of the dough takes roughly 5 minutes.
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.
Transfer the mixture to your processor and run it for a few seconds, then add the eggs, one by one. You should have a fairly smooth texture. Now add the grated Gruyère, adjust the seasoning and add the cracked pepper.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch plain pastry tip with the gougère batter. Pipe the batter into tablespoon mounds on the baking sheets, roughly 2 inches apart between the gougères as the mixture will swell during baking. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until they puff and hold their shape. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. Add a little sprinkling of cheese on top of each 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 and the inside should be cooked but still slightly moist. Eat them while hot, mind you, they’re good cold too.
Tags: Food, Gruyère Cheese Gougères, Recipe
Posted in Diaries |
5 Comments
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I sent this to a friend and she wondered if they would be good filled with egg or ham salad?
Absolutely. You can fill them with anything on hand.
Thanks. I’ll pass that along.
I’ve had very mixed success with pâte à choux. What would you say is the most important variable? Mine have come out variously soggy, dry, and just about right, and I have no idea what I did to make the difference.
Any tips?
A little more butter or sometimes I stick an extra egg and keep mixing. The trick is to make it as silky as possible by integrating all the ingredients, one by one.