New Years Eve! It’s that time of year when I get ready to open a bottle of champagne, nuzzle into a warm blanket with my hubby by the fireplace, and watch people on television shiver in Times Square. What? Alright, I admit that we used to go out and tear it up, but for the last several years I’ve preferred the comfort of home and family to fighting the crowds and weather. Now that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a few nice glasses of bubbly and good food on New Year’s Eve. Honestly, if I could only choose one alcoholic beverage for the rest of my life, I would choose champagne EVERY TIME. And every time I drink it, I make these incredible little gougères.
Gougères are little rich, perfect French pastries. And since they’re French, they’re loaded with butter and cheese. Basically they are savory cream puffs. They are crusty and golden on the outside and tender and eggy on the inside. Pairing food with wine can be challenging, but matching these gougères with champagne is a no-brainer. The cheese lends a wonderful saltiness, and the buttery richness of the pastry works so well with a good sparkler. I’m telling you, the combination is divine. If you can’t get your hands on a gruyere cheese, a nicely aged white cheddar is a good substitute.
As an added bonus, making them is almost fool-proof. And it doesn’t take very long from start-to-finish to be nibbling on these little morsels. Even better, you can make them ahead of time if you’re entertaining. After the dough is made, drop them by a tablespoon onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet– no need to space them far apart– and freeze. Once they are frozen, throw them all into a freezer bag and keep until you’re ready to bake. Use them directly from the freezer, no need to thaw. They will require a bit longer to bake this way, but they’re very convenient. These are wonderful to keep on hand if you happen to want to have a glass at night with your spouse, after your children go to sleep (ahem).
The Recipe: Gougères
(makes about 2 1/2 dozen)
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup water
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
5 larges eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) coarsely shredded gruyere cheese
Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring the butter, milk, water, and salt to a rapid boil. Once it is boiling, add the flour all at once and vigorously stir the mixture with a wooden spoon. Lower heat to medium-low. It should form a ball quite quickly. Once the ball has formed, continue to “dry out” the mixture for another minute over the heat. A slight crust should have formed on the bottom of the pan. Remove dough from heat and let cool for a couple of minutes.
Add the dough to a bowl of a stand mixture fitted with a paddle attachment (or use a wooden spoon). Begin to add the eggs one by one, being sure to fully incorporate each egg before adding another. The dough will look as though it has separated, but rest assured that after the last egg is added, it will come together. Lastly, mix in the shredded cheese.
Using a tablespoon, drop the dough onto the lined baking sheet. Leaving about 2 inches between each of them. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the gougers are firm, beautiful golden brown, and have a wonderful smell to them. If making them from the freezer, you will need to bake them a bit longer. Enjoy these beauties warm or at room temperature and most definitely with a glass of champagne.
Source: Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table
Thanks for stopping by today — may you all have a safe and wonderful New Year’s!
Laurie
Join me on Twitter
Well I’d never heard of these till I saw your article but love your description. they sound easy enough for even me to manage.
They are actually quite simple — you should definitely try your hand at it!
I LOVE gougeres, and yours look perfect!! In fact, you’ve inspired me to make them again!
That said – my salted caramel apple filling should be up in full tomorrow. I’m just sick of typing for now – holiday overkill!
Thank you! And I’ll be checking back for that recipe — still thinking about it. 🙂
Mhmm I love anything that has cheese in it. These gougeres look scrumptious.
I’m in agreement on the cheese theory!
I love gourères, especially for an aperitif. This reminds me to make them again, have not made them for a long time. Yours look yummy.
Thank you!
Those are beautiful cheesy morsels, aren’t they? I have a party coming up; these would be just the thing to make as a tasty bite.
Made these for a New Year’s Eve party. There’s something wrong with our oven and *nothing* seems to puff up in there, so we rebranded them “Cheesy Flatbreads,” paired them with a mushroom cream sauce (to use up leftover mushrooms) and they were a hit. Laurie, you rule!