Home cooking with the chefs of Commerce Café

This month’s chef from Commerce Café is Sarah Heard, a graduate of Lockhart High School, mother of a spunky 12-year-old/carb lover, and 2021 Austin Chef of the Year by Culture Map.

Entertaining at home can be a daunting task. For me, I have a few recipes in my pocket that I can make ahead, so that I’m not scrambling right before guests arrive. This recipe can be frozen and re-toasted too!

I love these gougeres (pronounced “goo- zhehrs”) because they are delicious, relatively easy, and people LOVE them! This was one of the first recipes I learned in catering, and I still make them regularly.

The recipe calls for a piping bag, which you can get in the baking section of the grocery store, or you can drop them from a wet spoon if you prefer.

What’s better than a cheese puff? Am I right?

* * *

1 cup water

7 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

5 ounces all-purpose flour

5 eggs

5 ounces parmesan grated (or any hard cheese you prefer)

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Steps

1 – Add water to wide pot on medium heat and drop butter into water.

2 – Once butter is melted, add salt and sugar, and stir.

3 – Add flour in one dump, stir (do not add slowly).

4 – Stir on medium heat with a wooden spoon until flour is visibly cooked out and you can no longer taste raw flour.

5 – Put dough into the mixer bowl with the paddle attachment.

6 – Add pepper to dough and paddle on low until the steam is almost gone (this can also be done by hand with a wooden spoon).

7 – Slow alternate adding eggs one at a time and a handful of cheese. Allow things to incorporate fully before adding another (dough will not matte, not shiny when it’s ready for another egg). You might not need a 5^th egg.

8 – Pipe onto a parchment-lined pan in small domes about the size of a quarter in width and height, with ½-inch between domes.

9 – Bake at 475 degrees for 6 minutes, then drop temperature to 400 until golden brown (about 20 minutes). If the color gets dark faster than 20 minutes, carefully remove on gougere and break open with a towel to check. Puffs should be crispy outside and moist inside, but not doughy.

10 – Once gougeres are finished, allow to cool for a few minutes, then place in a towel-lined bowl, and top with additional cheese for snacking.

11 — Alternatively, the puffs can be broken open and stuffed with any filling you’d like.