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Recipes

savory gougeres

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

Categories
Recipes

sage grilled cheese

You all know how much I love Alice Waters and Julia Child (as in I’m totally obsessed, think they are beyond awesome ladies, and wish I could meet them) … well, I have a new crush to add to that list: Judy Rodgers. Judy rocks and so does her cookbook The Zuni Cafe Cookbook.  Recently, Judy taught me the importance of salting early (do it, it will improve meat ten-fold) and how to make this incredible grilled cheese.

Everyone love grilled cheese because there is absolutely nothing bad about it. Well, this recipe is no exception.

Sage Grilled Cheese, from The Zuni Cafe Cookbook
Makes four sandwiches

About a dozen fresh sage leaves
2 T olive oil
1/2 t fresh black pepper
8 slices 1/4 inch thick from a chewy, peasant-style bread (we used a sour batard)
4 oz Fontina or Swiss Gruyere, coarsely grated or sliced thin

Chop the sage. Place it in your smallest saucepan, add the oil, pepper and set over low heat. Warm to the touch. Turn of heat and let the oil infuse while you assemble the sandwiches.

Blanket the bread with cheese, taking care to bring the cheese all the way to the end. Top with another slice of bread. Lay a heavy cutting board over the sandwiches to press them for about 20 minutes.

Preheat a griddle or cast-iron pan over low heat.

Use a brush to spread the oil on both faces of the sandwiches. Add to the pan and cook until golden, 2 – 3 minutes per side. Keep the heat low so you don’t burn the sage or pepper.

Eat while still hot!

Conclusions: I love you Judy! Way to take something that is already great and make it even better! So simple, so perfect. Totally worth the extra few minutes of prep. I mean, look at that sandwich!

-Emily