I don't share Gougère...

What do you do when you are going on holidays and have a fridge to empty ? Some people check the websites where you write what ingredients you have, then the website gives you a recipe that matches your ingredient input... Well I don't do that, I guess making the staff meal in a restaurant is a good training!

So there I was with eggs, cheese and butter to finish...It didn't take that long to figure it out, and I'm pretty sure you already know...Gougères!

Gougères are a burgundy speciality, and it is in Dijon that I had them for the first time...They were big, puffed, golden brown, crsuty cheese outside and moist inside, and most of all really cheesy, literally. I remember my friend wanting to split them in half and share them...no, I don't share my Gougère.

Ingredtients :

1/2 cup butter

1 cup water

1 1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup flour

4 eggs, mixed

1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon of dry mustard

1 1/2 cup og Gruyère, Compté or Parmesan, or a mix of those.

A pinch of cayenne

1 egg for egg wash

Preheat the oven at 425°.

Combine the butter, water and salt in a pot and bring to a boil.

Off the heat add all the flour at once and mix vigorously with a spatula.

Put back on the stove on low heat and cook until the dough comes out of the pot and is shiny and smooth, it might take a few minutes.

Let cool a little bit, then add the eggs, one by one, mix with the spatula after each addition.

Add the Dijon mustard, the dry mustard, the cheese and a pinch of cayenne and mix well to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

On a sheet tray covered with parchment paper, place tablespoons full of the batter. If you want to have individual gougères, leave a small space (about 1/2 inch) between each gougères. Otherwise you can make a crown, in that case, outline a circle on the parchment paper, flip it (so that the dough doesn't touch the ink) and form the gougères around the circle, there should be no space between the gougères.

Egg wash the gougères, sprinkle with more cheese, Gruyère is really the best, and bake in the preheated oven for about 1/2 hour, or until it is golden brown and puffed.

Remove from the oven and pierce the bottom of the gougère so that the steam comes out. Return to the off oven for 10 min, leaving the oven door slighlty open. This operation allow the gougères not to collapse.

I got this recipe from the culinary school where I was. This is the traditional recipe, but you can add your own twist : prosciutto, olives, herbs...