There are so many wonderful pastries in the Tartine Bakery Cookbook that it can be hard to choose which one to dedicate your Sunday to. I decided on these savory gougeres because I had all of the ingredients on hand, and they didn’t seem impossibly difficult. (Jordan and I have an outstanding bet to see who attempts Tartine’s croissants first). As it turns out, the gougeres were easier and faster to make than I expected.
Gouyeres are a French pastry made with a pate a choux base. To that eggy cream puff dough, you add gruyere cheese and plenty of fresh thyme and black pepper. They’re often served as an appetizer in miniature form, but I made large dinner-roll-sized gouyeres—mostly because I didn’t feel like piping dough. You can serve the large ones on their own, or, because they are an incredibly light and airy, you can fill them like a pita.
Gougeres, from the Tartine Bakery Cookbook
1 1/4 cup nonfat milk
10 T butter
1 t salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
5 eggs
3/4 cup gruyere cheese
1 t freshly ground pepper
1 T fresh thyme, chopped
For the topping
1 egg, beaten
pinch of salt
gruyere for sprinkling
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a heavy saucepan, combine milk, butter and salt. Place over medium heat until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a full boil. Add the four all at once, stirring vigorously. Keep stirring until the mixture has formed a smooth mass and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
Pour the paste into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the eggs one at a time and mix on medium speed. When all of the eggs have been added, the mixture will be very smooth and shiny.
Add the cheese, pepper and thyme by hand with a spoon.
Spoon 3 inch rounds of dough onto the lined baking sheet. Brush with beaten egg and top with a sprinkling of salt and cheese. Bake 35 – 45 minutes, until browned.
When you remove the gougeres from the oven, poke them with a toothpick to release some of the steam to prevent them from collapsing completely. Enjoy warm from the oven or re-crisp by warming them in an oven for 10 minutes.
-Emily