Cheese Puffs (Gougeres)
Light, airy, cheese puffs are a versatile addition to a meal or appetizer plate. Tiny, they're like soup nuts. Larger, they pair well with beer or wine. Even bigger, they can be split and filled with ham, chicken, tuna salad, or even more cheese! These are easier to make than the recipe sounds, yet the result looks impressive enough that you can tell your friends you slaved over them.
Gallery
Recipe Summary
Ingredients
Directions
Substitutions
Different cheeses allow you to tailor the flavor of the puffs to pair with your meal. Use an assertive cheese to get a full flavor, and grate or crumble it so it mixes easily into the dough. In place of the Gruyere cheese, you can use Swiss, sharp Cheddar, Gouda, pepperjack, or even crumbled blue or feta cheese.
Instead of topping the puffs with grated Parmesan, you can use sesame or poppy seeds, or 1 tablespoon of coarse salt.
Make ahead
You can refrigerate the dough (covered) after step 6. Bring dough to room temperature, then proceed from step 7.