Gougères, Savory Cheese Puffs, Are Party-Perfect Appetizers With French Flair

These classic cocktail hour nibbles are cheesy, airy delights

Each gougère features an airy dough and a cheesy crackly exterior, making it a popular holiday addition. (Courtesy of Audrey Le Goff)

Cheesy, crisp, and airy, gougères are impossible to stop at just one. These savory cheese puffs are typically served warm to accompany wine tastings in France, but there’s little wonder as to why they’re so beloved all across the country. Served as appetizers or as part of a cheese platter, they’re ideal for the holidays, as they’re easy to make and sure to impress your guests.

Burgundy Roots

No one is sure who developed the first gougère, but the pastry seems to find its roots in Burgundy, one of France’s best-known wine regions; the first mention of gougères comes from a 1571 wedding menu from the region’s town of Sens.

Some say gougères originated from the little town of Flogny-la-Chapelle, still in Burgundy, where a 19th-century Parisian baker named Liénard won locals over with his cheesy gougères, which were then ring-shaped. Still today, Flogny-la-Chapelle organizes an annual gougères festival and has a tasting guild for gougères.

In Burgundy, gougères can be found in most bakeries in a larger format (about 1 1/2 inches). The rest of France is more used to making them at home in smaller, bite-sized versions.

One Base, Many Pastries

The making of gougères starts with the making of a choux pastry—known in French as “pâte à choux.” To create savory gougères, the soft pastry dough is then shaped into little mounds on a baking sheet and topped with cheese before baking. For shaping the mounds of choux paste, it’s easiest to use a piping bag; however, you can also use a cookie scoop or two large spoons.

If you’re interested in French cooking and baking, pâte à choux is a great recipe to add to your repertoire. Pâte à choux is the base dough not only for making classic savory gougères but also for chouquettes (pearl sugar-topped puffs), profiteroles (puffs filled with vanilla ice cream and doused in chocolate sauce), éclairs (oblong puffs filled with cream and topped with flavored icing), and others.

Basic ingredients for pâte à choux include butter, water, flour, and eggs. There’s no leavening agent (such as baking powder). Instead, it’s the high moisture of the dough, made with water, that creates steam and puffs the dough while it bakes at a high temperature. Thus, choux pastry puffs are light and hollow in the center.

For your first time making pâte à choux, make sure you read the recipe twice before you start to familiarize yourself with the process. Pâte à choux does have a reputation for being an advanced technique, but I assure you it isn’t that complex.

Beat the eggs thoroughly into the dough, one at a time. (Courtesy of Audrey Le Goff)

Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a smooth dough forms. (Courtesy of Audrey Le Goff)

Fully incorporate each egg into the batter before adding the next. (Courtesy of Audrey Le Goff)

If the dough separates after adding the eggs, keep beating and it will come together again. (Courtesy of Audrey Le Goff)

My tip: You want to make sure you have all your equipment prepared (saucepan, bowl, wooden spoon, piping bag, and so forth) and all ingredients measured out in front of you before you start. A successful pâte à choux is all about moving quickly and precise timing.

Mix It Up

The classic Gougères are traditionally made using a hard, strong mountain cheese such as Gruyère, Comté, or Mimolette. They’re then flavored with a pinch of black pepper and/or nutmeg.

Once you get the hang of the pâte à choux, you can get creative and try different variations—while always keeping the toppings to 75 grams. Creamy cheeses such as goat cheese or brie (rind removed) work very well to replace Gruyère. You can add a few nuts, too. Blue cheese and walnuts work especially well together. Instead of nutmeg, smoked paprika or cayenne can add a little kick. Dried and fresh herbs are lovely too, especially chopped chives.

For serving, keep them as is or cut them open and fill them with whipped goat cheese, rolled-up charcuterie, or smoked salmon. Gougères are best eaten right away, still warm from the oven.

Gougères

This recipe’s twist includes topping each dough ball with grated cheese right before baking, instead of folding it into the dough. This keeps the dough lighter, creating big “holes” inside and a cheesy crackly exterior. You can also freeze pre-scooped dough balls for up to one month. You can then pop them, still frozen, into the oven and bake them for a few extra minutes than what’s stated in this recipe.

This recipe calls for topping each dough ball with grated cheese right before baking, instead of folding it into the dough, which results in lighter, airier dough with a cheesy, crackly exterior. (Courtesy of Audrey Le Goff)

Makes 24 puffs

• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 cup grated Gruyère cheese

Preheat your oven to 390 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium saucepan, combine the water, cubed butter, salt, nutmeg, and ground pepper. Cover and bring to a boil, then simmer for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat and immediately add the flour. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a smooth dough forms, then return the saucepan to low heat and keep stirring until the dough “dries out” and pulls away from the pan, about 2 minutes.

Remove from the heat again and let cool for 1 minute. Then, beat the eggs thoroughly into the dough, one at a time. It’s important that each egg is fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next. If the dough separates, keep beating and it will come together again.

Using a piping bag, a cookie scoop, or two tablespoons, drop tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto the baking sheets, keeping them one inch apart. Sprinkle about half a tablespoon of grated Gruyère on top of each ball.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until puffed and golden brown. Enjoy warm.