Comté Cheese Gougères

Golden, puffed shells that crunch under the bite to reveal a soft, airy heart. The intense aroma of melted cheese and warm choux pastry hits you as soon as the oven opens.

• Prep time: 20 min
• Cook time: 25 min
• Difficulty: Medium
• Calories: 565
• Protein: 22 g
• Carbs: 30 g
• Fat: 40 g

Ingredients

• 125 ml Mineral water
• 125 ml Whole milk
• 100 g Minimum butter sweet ( in small pieces )
• 150 g Wheat flour
• 4 piece Egg
• 150 g Comté cheese ( grated )
• 1 pinch Gray sea salt
• 1 pinch Black pepper ground
• 1 pinch Nutmeg

Instructions

1. Prepare the liquid base

   In a saucepan, pour 125ml of mineral water and 125ml of whole milk. Add 100g of butter cut into pieces and a pinch of grey sea salt. Bring to a boil until the butter is completely melted.

2. Dry out the dough

   Remove from heat and pour in 150g of wheat flour all at once. Mix vigorously with a spatula. Return to medium heat and work the dough for 2 minutes: it should pull away from the sides and form a smooth ball that no longer sticks to the pan.

3. Incorporate the eggs

   Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl. Incorporate 4 eggs one by one, mixing vigorously between each addition. The dough is ready when it forms a smooth, shiny ribbon when lifting the spatula.

4. Season and garnish

   Add 120g of grated Comte cheese, a pinch of ground black pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg. Mix to evenly distribute the cheese throughout the mass.

5. Pipe and bake

   Pipe small walnut-sized mounds onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle with the remaining 30g of Comte. Bake at 180°C for 25 minutes without opening the door. The gougeres should be well browned and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Chef's tips

• Never open the oven door during baking, or the gougeres will collapse instantly.
• If your eggs are very large, whisk the last one and add it gradually to avoid making the dough too runny.

Storage

Keep for 2 days in an airtight container. Reheat for 5 minutes in a hot oven to restore their crispness.