Gruyere Cheese Gougeres with Bechamel Filling Recipe

Gruyere Cheese Gougeres

Adapted from a Patisse recipe

Makes about 4 dozen gougeres

Choux pastry

• 100g/3 1/2 ozs butter

• 125g/ 1/2 cup water

• 125g/1/2 cup milk

• 1 teaspoon caster or superfine sugar

• 1 tablespoon salt

• 150g/5ozs plain flour

• 5 large eggs

• 1 cup finely grated gruyere cheese plus 1/2 cup to sprinkle on top

• 1 egg, beaten extra

Gruyere Bechamel Sauce

• 4 cups milk

• 60grams butter

• 1/3 cup plain flour

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup of gruyere cheese grated

• 1 pinch of nutmeg

• 1/2 teaspoon piment d'espelette chilli powder (optional)

METHOD

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 190C/380F. Place the butter, milk, water, sugar & salt into a saucepan to boil. Add flour and then stir the mix with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes until the batter pulls away from the side of the pot. Remove from heat. Place mix into a mixing bowl.

Step 2 - While beating the mix with paddle, gradually add the eggs and cheese. Store overnight in the refrigerator.

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Step 3 - Pipe mixture into small balls on a baking tray lined with silicon/baking paper making sure to leave an inch space between them. With the extra beaten egg and a fork dipped lightly in it flatten the poking up tips by making a cross hatch pattern on top. I find I need to re-dip the fork in the egg after ever three presses or so. Sprinkle with extra cheese and bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 190C/380F and then turn oven down and bake at 160c/320F for another 10 minutes.

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Step 4 - Meanwhile, make the bechamel sauce. Firstly heat the milk up-I always find this easier to incorporate warm milk into a bechamel but you can use cold milk. In a saucepan heat the butter and once melted, "cook" the flour in the butter, stirring constantly for 1 minute.  Gradually add the milk whisking at the same time adding 1/2 cup at a time until it is a smooth consistency. Add finely grated cheese, nutmeg, salt and piment d'espelette if using and allow to cool. If it is lumpy, pass through a sieve (not too fine a sieve though).

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Step 5 - When the bechamel is cool and the choux buns are ready, poke a small hole at the bottom of the choux buns (I used the end of a chopstick) and wriggle it around a bit. Then place a small tip (about the size of the hole) in a piping bag and fill it with the bechamel sauce. Serve with wine. Or just eat a dozen by themselves. I won't tell anyone.

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