Making pâte à choux was one of the first things I learned in cooking school and I've had the pastry formula rattling around in my head ever since. When flavored with cheese and baked, it puffs into addictive gougères. The French tend to make theirs with Gruyère, I use Cheddar, and either way, they beg to be eaten with Pinot Noir. For parties, I make one-bite gougères and people tend to eat three or four. You can also split these and fill them with chicken, ham, or lobster salad for substantial hors d'oeuvres.
I cup water
1 stick (8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1-1/2 cups (about 6 oz.) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
2 Tablespoons minced fresh chives
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Put the water, butter, and salt in a medium, heavy saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Cook, swirling the pan a few times until the butter melts; once it has melted, increase the heat to high and bring the mixture to a rolling boil. Turn off the heat and dump in the flour. Beat the mixture with a wooden spoon until it starts to pull away from the sides of the pan. Take the pan off the stove, set it on a counter or hot pad, and let it cool, without stirring for five minutes.
Now work in the eggs, one at a time, beating the mixture well with the spoon after each addition (you have to put some muscle into it to incorporate the eggs fully). With each addition, the dough should look glossy and slick at first, then stick to the sides of the pan before you add the next egg. After beating in the last egg, beat in the dry mustard and cayenne, then the cheese and chives.
Scoop up a heaping teaspoon of dough and with another spoon, push it off onto the paper lined baking sheet (it should form a mound about 1" in diameter). Continue with the remaining dough, leaving an inch of space between the gougères (work in batches as necessary; the dough can stand, covered with buttered waxed paper or parchment, for up to 1/2 hour). Bake until the gougères are puffy and light golden, about 25 minutes, switching pan positions halfway through. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before serving, or turn off oven and let gougères remain in oven, with door ajar, for up to 1 hour.
Makes 40 to 50 gougères (about 15 servings.) Make ahead: Yes
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