If you want to serve daintier rolls this holiday season, consider Smoked Provolone Gougères (pronounced goo-zshair). These savory French cheese puffs are light and fluffy and sure to please.
They’re made with pâte à choux aka French choux pastry. It sounds fancy, but they’re easy to make so don’t be intimidated.
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Classic Gougères For Your Holiday Party
These are the perfect appetizers for any holiday meal, book club, wine tastings, or any time you want a cheesy snack. They also come together incredibly quickly and easily, so they’re perfect for first-time bakers.
The easiest way to make these is by blending the ingredients in a pot on the stove and piping them onto a baking sheet. I use a disposable pastry bag with a large star tip, but a Ziploc bag with a corner cut-off works just as well. (This means the least amount of dishes needed for cleanup, too!)
When you’re ready, bake gougères for 25 minutes, or make them the day before and reheat them in the oven or microwave before serving. Honestly, they taste great even at room temperature.
Smoked Provolone Gougères
Ingredients
- 1 cup water, 235 grams
- 1/2 cup butter, 1 stick or 110 grams
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, 145 grams
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups smoked provolone cheese, shredded, 170 grams
Instructions
- Preheat: Heat oven to 450 degrees F (235 C).
- Boil: Bring water, butter and salt to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat and stir in flour. Return to medium heat and cook for a couple of minutes until flour is just golden brown.
- Stir: Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Stir in large eggs, one at a time, ensuring that each is fully incorporated before adding the next. Stir in the cheese until blended and a smooth dough forms.
- Pipe: Transfer the choux dough into a piping bag with a large star tip. Pipe the dough into 2-inch circles onto a Silpat-lined sheet pan.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated 450-degree F (235 C) oven for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 C). Let the dough bake for an additional 20 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Ingredients for savory gougères
- Water
- Butter
- Salt
- All-purpose flour
- Eggs
- Smoked provolone cheese
Substitutions: I used smoked provolone cheese, but you can use any blend of shredded cheese. I like the smoky flavor, but cheddar, pepperjack or Swiss would all taste great, too.
See the full recipe card for servings and a full list of ingredients.
How to make savory cheese puffs
- PREHEAT: Heat oven to 450 degrees F (235 C).
- BOIL: Bring water, butter and salt to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat and stir in flour. Return to medium heat and cook for a couple of minutes until flour is just golden brown.
- STIR: Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Stir in large eggs, one at a time, ensuring that each is fully incorporated before adding the next. Stir in the cheese until blended and a smooth dough forms.
- PIPE: Transfer the choux dough into a piping bag with a large star tip. Pipe the dough into 2-inch circles onto a Silpat-lined sheet pan.
- BAKE: Bake in the preheated 450-degree F (235 C) oven for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 C). Let the dough bake for an additional 20 minutes.
How to serve cheesy gougères
These small puffs are delicious fresh out of the oven, but like I said, they are also delicious at room temperature if your craving is too strong to wait for them to reheat. They would be amazing served alongside or on top of a steaming bowl of French onion soup, or have them as part of a spread at your next get-together alongside hard cheese, fresh berries, prosciutto or salami.
Storage
If you manage to have any leftovers, they will keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container. You can keep the baked gougères or a second batch of choux dough in a freezer bag for up to three months. You can gently heat the cooked gougères in small intervals in the microwave or make a fresh batch quickly once the dough thaws.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a very simple translation. It means a choux pastry flavored with cheese.
Choux pastry is a delicate pastry made with butter, flour, eggs and water. Instead of a rising agent like most breads, the high water content turns to steam, raising the pastry while baking. It’s a classic choice for many delicious pastries, like eclairs or sweet cream puffs.
They are traditionally made with Gruyere cheese, but these are a great way to use up your favorite cheese or whatever you have in the fridge.
Made these with leftover smoked provolone that I had from Christmas. I didn’t have a pastry bag so just put them on the pan with a spoon. They looked just as nice and were delicious. Also easy to make.
What a great idea for leftover cheese.
I actually have everything on hand to make these! I used to make them all of the time at a restaurant I worked at. These would be perfect for Thanksgiving!!!