Gougeres

Gougeres are a delightful way to begin a party!  Or to eat by yourself.  Or to use to make LOTS of new friends.  The dough is basic and simple and requires only about 10 minutes of prep time before baking.  The gruyere cheese is a must.  Some recipes state you may substitute shredded Swiss, but spend the extra money and go with the original cheese for these wonderful little bites of heaven.

I've tried other recipes in the past, but this one from Around My French Table is far and away the best one I've attempted.

1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup water
1 stick butter
1/2 salt
1 cup flour, all purpose
5 large eggs
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (gruyere, swiss)

Place milk, water, salt and butter in a sauce pan and bring to rapid boil.  Add flour all at once and beat to combine quickly.  Cook another minute or two until dough becomes dry.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Remove dough from stove and add 1 egg at a time, beating each egg into the dough vigorously until completely combined.  Add in cheese and drop onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Use a teaspoon to drop a tablespoon of dough, spacing at least 2 inches apart. When all the dough is portioned out, turn oven down to 375 degrees and cook for 12 minutes.  Turn pan halfway around to cook evenly and bake another 12 minutes until browned and puffed up.  Serve immediately

The raw dough will freeze really well.  Portion out the dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet and freeze for at least 2 hours.  Remove frozen dough and place in a plastic freezer bag.  To bake, simply bake straight from the freezer but allow an extra few minutes for baking.