Gougeres

Every now and then I pull out a cook book and say "I AM GOING TO USE THIS"! Such is the case with these beautiful little pillowy cheesy egg bites called Gougeres. I have been loving my Around My French Table for the past couple years - gorgeous photos and mouth watering recipes - but I haven't cooked out of it much!

I decided one day after drooling my way through a handful of pages I was going to hop in the kitchen and whip something up from those beautiful pages.

These little treats can be set out room temp as an appetizer - and we thought they worked great with breakfast, you can even pull them open and stuff bites of egg / tomato / ham in there and eat like little bite sized sandwiches. They reheat well in the oven for at least a few days after their original baking!

Gougeres

Ingredients
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
8 TBS (1 stick) butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
5 eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (Gruyere is commonly suggested, I used sharp cheddar)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven 425 degrees. Space the racks out so that they break the space up into thirds. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats and set aside.  
2. In a medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, and stick of butter to a boil. Add all of the flour, reduce the heat to low, and whisk / stir vigorously until the dough comes together and begins to form a light crust on the bottom of the pan. Continue stirring and cooking for another minute or so. 
3. Transfer the warm dough to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Set mixer to medium-low and allow to mix for about a minute until most of the steam has released and dough is a little cooler. One by one, add in the eggs - allowing them to incorporate between additions (the dough may seem very wet and loose at points, but keep going, it will come together)! Dough will be thick and shiny.
4. Once you have a smooth thick dough, add in the grated cheese and blend briefly to incorporate.
5. You can then scrape the dough into a piping bag or just use a large spoon if you don't mind a slightly rustic appearance. By Tablespoonfuls, drop mounds of dough on the prepped silicone mats - leaving a couple inches of space between them for expansion (you should be able to fit about 12 to a sheet).
6. Place both baking sheets in the oven and immediately drop temp to 350 degrees, set a timer for 12 minutes. At 12 minutes rotate the sheets from top to bottom and front to back (flip them around). Bake another 12-14 minutes or until beautifully golden brown and cooked through. Allow to cool briefly on mats, and then move to a cooling rack to complete cooling.
7. Serve warm or room temperature. Best served the day they're made, but you can store for up to 2-3 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator - reheat in the oven to crisp.

Recipe from Around My French Table

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