Cheddar GougÉres Recipes

CHEDDAR-WALNUT GOUGèRES

Steps:

• Set a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 400 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Put the butter, milk, salt and 1/2 cup water in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil. Add the flour all at once, set heat to medium-low and stir without stopping until the mixture pulls away from the pan easily and comes together in a ball. Keep stirring energetically for 3 minutes more; the drier the dough, the better the gougères. Scrape the dough into a mixer with a paddle attachment (or into a large bowl, if you're mixing by hand), and let sit for 1 minute.
• With the mixer at medium speed, add the 4 eggs one by one, and beat for 1 minute after each goes in, scraping the bowl as needed. As you're working, the dough may break into curds; just keep going - it's always fine once the egg white goes in.
• Beat in the egg white, then the mustard. Reduce the mixer speed to low, and blend in the cheese followed by the nuts. Give the dough a few good beats with a sturdy spatula.
• Working with a small cookie scoop or 2 spoons, scoop balls, each about 2 teaspoons, onto the sheets, leaving an inch between each. (Gougères are excellent baked from frozen. They can be frozen at this point; set them in an airtight container once frozen solid.)
• Working with one baking sheet of fresh gougères at a time, slide the gougères into the oven and turn the heat down to 375. Bake for 22 to 24 minutes, or until the gougères are puffed, golden and firm enough to pick up. (If baking frozen gougères, arrange them on a lined baking sheet, and leave at room temperature while you heat the oven. You may need to bake them a couple minutes more, so keep an eye on them.) Serve immediately. Baked gougères can also be reheated briefly in a 350-degree oven.

CHEESE PUFFS (GOUGERES)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Set aside.
• In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup water with the milk, butter, sugar and salt and stir over low heat until the sugar, butter and salt have melted. Raise the heat to medium and bring to a healthy simmer.
• Take from the heat and immediately add the flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens, is smooth and no flour lumps remain. Return to the heat and cook, stirring, until a film forms on the bottom of the pan. Continue stirring, careful not to scrape up the film, for a minute or two more.
• Transfer the mixture (panade) to a food processor. Mix for a minute to dissipate the heat. Add the eggs one at a time with the processor running. Pay attention to the consistency of the paste. It should be smooth and shiny, so you may only need 3 of the eggs. Stir in the cheese.
• Using a small cookie scoop, scoop generous mounds onto the parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them an inch apart. Place in the oven, immediately reduce the heat to 375 degrees F and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cheese puffs are golden brown.

CHEDDAR GOUGERES

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, bring the water, butter and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil. Add flour all at once and stir until a smooth ball forms. Remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until mixture is smooth and shiny. Stir in cheese, chives and garlic., Drop by tablespoonfuls 1 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Sprinkle with remaining salt. Bake at 375° for 14-16 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

CRANBERRY-CHEDDAR GOUGèRES

Steps:

• Turn on food processor and finely chop cranberries by dropping them in through feed tube. Remove cranberries, but don't bother cleaning bits clinging to the bowl. (Cranberries can also be chopped by hand.)
• Place 1 cup water in a 2-quart saucepan. Add butter and salt, bring to a simmer and cook just until butter melts. Remove from heat, add flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon. Return saucepan to medium heat and cook dough, stirring, about a minute. Transfer dough to food processor.
• Heat oven to 425 degrees. Turn on food processor and add 1 egg to the dough. As soon as it's completely incorporated, add another, and continue adding eggs 1 at a time until you have used 4. Add chopped cranberries and Cheddar and pulse to blend. (This step can be done by hand, but it's a lot more work.)
• Line 1 large or 2 smaller baking sheets with parchment. Drop teaspoons of batter, in mounds about 1 inch across, on baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between them. Beat remaining egg. Brush tops of mounds with egg, taking care not to let any drip down the sides.
• Bake 15 minutes, until puffed and lightly browned. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake another 10 to 15 minutes, until well browned. Shut off oven, open oven door a few inches and leave gougères another 15 minutes before removing them. When completely cooled, the gougères can be transferred to a heavy plastic bag and frozen. Reheat them for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

CHEDDAR CHEESE GOUGERES WITH BACON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
• In a medium saucepan, add 1 cup water, the butter and salt, and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat to medium and add the flour all at once. Stir rapidly with a wooden spoon; the mixture will form a dough ball that will pull away from the sides of the pan. Continue to cook for a couple minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and let cool for a couple of minutes. Stir so that the dough cools more evenly; you want the dough to be warm, but not so hot that when you start adding the eggs they cook as they hit the dough. In a mixer or by hand with a wooden spoon, add the eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition until the eggs are incorporated. The dough should become rather creamy. Stir in the grated cheese, bacon, thyme and a few grinds of pepper.
• Spoon out small balls (about a heaping tablespoon) of the dough onto the baking sheet, with at least an inch separating the spoonfuls. Cook for 10 minutes; lower the heat to 350 degrees F and cook until puffed up and lightly golden, another 15 to 20 minutes.

CHEDDAR GOUGÉRES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and position racks in the upper and middle thirds. Lightly butter two large baking sheets. In a large saucepan, combine the butter, water, and salt, and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Let cool slightly, then, using an electric mixer at medium speed, beat in the eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly between additions. Beat in all but 2 tablespoons of the cheese. Using a one-tablespoon ice cream scoop, scoop level mounds of the dough onto the baking sheets, 1 1/2 inches apart. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of cheese and bake for 28 minutes, until golden and risen; shift the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking. Lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees F. Pierce each gougère near the bottom with a skewer and return the pans to the oven. Bake for about 8 minutes longer, until crisp and deeply golden. Transfer the gougères to racks to cool. Serve the gougères warm or at room temperature.