Gougères are classic French cheese puffs that make a great snack or canapé. They are essentially a savory choux pastry, with cheese added into the mixture. Then you bake them up to crisp, light deliciousness. Perfect for parties or any excuse you want to find.
![Gougères are classic French cheese puffs that make a great snack or canapé. Basically a savory choux pastry, with cheese added in, baked to crisp, light deliciousness. plate of gougeres cheese puffs with some in front and small plate of ham behind](jpg/gougeres-cheese-puffs-side-photo.jpg)
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Savory snacks and bites are definitely some of my favorite, both for entertaining or just because. We're big cheese fans in our house, too, so little bites like these are perfect.
Choux pastry can get a reputation of being a little tricky to make, and I can imagine just being savory doesn't make them sound any easier. But honestly, these come together more easily than you might expect.
![Gougères are classic French cheese puffs that make a great snack or canapé. Basically a savory choux pastry, with cheese added in, baked to crisp, light deliciousness. close overhead view of plate of gougeres cheese puffs with one split open showing airy inside](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/gougeres-cheese-puffs-ohead-split-pic.jpg)
Where are gougères from?
As mentioned above (plus the name kind if gives a hint), these little bites are from France. The exact origins are unclear, though most agree they likely originate in Burgundy. Some say they go back to the 18th century, others suggest they are even older.
Either way, these days they are a classic savory snack. And once you try them, it's easy to understand why.
![ingredients for gougeres bowls of flour, eggs, grated cheese, butter and measures with milk and water](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/ingredients-gougeres-cheese-puffs.jpg)
What type of cheese is best?
You can use a few different hard, flavorful cheeses for this. Gruyère, Comté and Emmental are the most typical choices, which all have a lovely depth of flavor.
Gruyère is probably the most widely used or referenced in recipes, which is definitely a great choice. Given they are from Burgundy, in all likelihood they were originally made with Comté which is from that region. But any of these three would work well.
If you don't have any of those available, then another firm, relatively flavorful cheese would be your best bet, such as a strong cheddar.
![dough after mixing in flour before cooking dough in pot after mixing flour to butter-milk base](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/flour-mix-before-cook-gougeres-cheese-puffs.jpg)
How do they puff up?
If you take a quick look at the recipe, you might see there's no raising agent listed and wonder how these puff up. Well, there are a couple things going on here that make the magic happen. First, these are egg-rich which helps the dough hold it's puffed-up shape.
If you are familiar with Dutch baby pancakes and/or Yorkshire pudding, there's a bit of overlap in how they expand due to the mix of flour, egg, liquid and fat in them. But these have a little extra something going on.
As mentioned, these are effectively a savory choux pastry, and the trick to these and any choux is cooking the dough a little first before you add the eggs. You can see the dough above, before, and after, below. This process gently cooks the flour which gelatinizes the starches in it. What this means is that it becomes more flexible but also stronger.
When the water in the dough tries to escape as the dough bakes, the flour helps to hold it inside the dough, creating air pockets instead. Then those eggs help the flour hold it's shape even more. In other words, you get lovely light, puffy little bites that are soft inside and gently crisp outside.
![dough after cooking a few minutes flour and butter mixture after cooking a little](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/flour-mix-after-cook-gougeres-cheese-puffs.jpg)
Tips for making gougères
At first, these might seem a little intimidating, but really don't worry, they are easier than you might think. And with the following tips, you should be well on your way.
- Add the flour off the heat and mix it in well. You want to make sure you don't have any clumps of flour as this can impact the end texture. That's also partly why you mix in off the heat so you have a little more time to get it smooth.
- Cook the flour-butter mixture until it comes together and is a little drier and smooth. When you first mix in the flour, it will look a bit like mashed potatoes, but after cooking a few minutes, stirring regularly, it comes together and has a much smoother texture. It may leave a slight film on the pan as you stir.
- Cool the mixture slightly before adding the eggs. You only need to leave it a minute, but you want to make sure you don't cook the eggs as you add them. Scrambled eggs in there would not be good.
- Add the eggs one at a time and mix in quickly. Adding one at a time both helps you get a better chance of incorporating them and gradually cools the dough a little. Don't worry if the dough looks like it's separating or curdling when you first mix, just keep mixing. By the time they are all in, you should have a lovely smooth, rich dough, as below.
![dough for gougeres after adding eggs but before cheese gougere dough in pot after mixing in eggs before adding cheese](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/mix-with-egg-gougeres-cheese-puffs.jpg)
Top tip: use a piping bag
While you could use a spoon or scoop, I find a piping bag is the best way to make small mounds of the dough on the baking sheet before baking. It's the quickest and least messy way. If you don't have a piping bag, using two spoons is probably next-best to try to make them even and save it sticking too much to your hands etc.
- Leave space between them. Remember they are going to expand as they cook, so you want to give them room to do so.
- Smooth them off with a damp finger then add a little extra cheese. The extra cheese on top helps to give an extra burst of cheesy flavor as you bite in, as well as adding to the lovely golden color. Using a finger dipped in water helps you smooth off the shape without it sticking to you, and also helps the cheese stick on top, too.
- Then bake!
![gougeres (French cheese puffs) just out of the oven rows of gougeres cheese puffs on baking sheet just out oven](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/out-oven-gougeres-cheese-puffs.jpg)
Serving ideas
As you might guess being from Burgundy and being made with cheese, they pair really well with wine, so are great to snack on with a glass in hand. You could also serve them as part of a cheeseboard or appetizer platter.
While they are delicious just as they are, you can also top them with a few small additions. For example, a little sour cream and caviar or smoked salmon, or some ham. While non-traditional, we really like them with some membrillo, quince paste.
You can make them a little larger or smaller to suit your serving ideas, too. Just in all cases, be sure to leave space between them for expansion as they bake.
Gougères don't have that many ingredients, but the result is such a wonderful treat. Crisp on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside and packed with cheesy goodness. You'll definitely be back for a few more.
![Gougères are classic French cheese puffs that make a great snack or canapé. Basically a savory choux pastry, with cheese added in, baked to crisp, light deliciousness. plate of gougeres cheese puffs from side with plate of ham behind](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/gougeres-cheese-puffs-picture.jpg)
Try these other cheesy snacks/appetizers:
- Tiropita (Greek filo pastries with a cheese filling)
- Adjaruli khachapuri (a delicious Georgian bread boat with a cheese filling)
- Cheese scones
- Pesto goat cheese filo parcels
- Brie en croûte (a really easy and adaptable pastry-wrapped baked brie)
- Plus get more snack recipes, sweet and savory in the archives.
Gougeres (French cheese puffs)
Ingredients
- 4 oz gruyere cheese or comte/emmental, divided
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup water
- 7 tablespoon unsalted butter cut into chunks
- 1 cup all purpose flour plain flour
- 4 large eggs
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch pepper
- 1 pinch nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F/200C and line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment. Have a piping bag ready with a wide tip. Grate around 3 ½oz/100g of the cheese coarsely - this will go in the mixture - and grate the remaining ½oz/15g finely and keep separate (this is to go on top).
- Place the milk, water and butter in a saucepan and place over a medium heat. Warm, stirring fairly regularly, until the butter melts. Continue to warm until the mixture comes to a simmer then remove from the heat.
- Add the flour off the heat and using a spatula, mix well so that there aren't any clumps of flour. The mixture will probably look a little like mashed potato at this point.
- Return the mixture to the heat, and cook for around 5 minutes over a medium heat, stirring regularly, until the mixture dries out a little and comes together in a smooth clump. You may get a little residue on the side of the pan.
- Remove the mixture from the heat and let it cool a minute. You want it still warm but not so hot the eggs cook when they are added. Add the eggs one at a time to the mixture, stirring vigorously to incorporate them into the mixture. Don't worry if it looks like it is separating at first, just keep mixing and it will blend in.
- Once all of the eggs are added, add the coarsely-grated cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg and mix all through so well distributed. Transfer the mixture to a piping bag.
- Pipe mounds of the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet in rows, each around 1 - 1 ½inches diameter (3 - 4cm) with around 2 inches (5cm) between them to allow for them expanding. If you need to, you can add a little more to any mound after to even out sizes.
- Once you have piped them all, dampen your finger and gently smooth off the edges to make them relatively rounded. Sprinkle a little of the finely-grated cheese on top of each mound. Bake for around 20 -25 minutes until golden brown on top.
Video
Nutrition
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![Gougères are classic French cheese puffs that make a great snack or canapé. They are essentially a savory choux pastry, with cheese added into the mixture. Then you bake them up to crisp, light deliciousness. Perfect for parties or any excuse you want to find. Gougères are classic French cheese puffs that make a great snack or canapé. They are essentially a savory choux pastry, with cheese added into the mixture. Then you bake them up to crisp, light deliciousness. Perfect for parties or any excuse you want to find.](https://www.carolinescooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/gougeres-French-cheese-puffs-pin.jpg)
Mary Alice Mairet
I want to make smaller, bite-sized puffs, and then fill them with a bit of shrimp salad. How long should I bake them?
Caroline's Cooking
How long they take to bake really depends on the size, so I can't really say for sure, but you are looking for the same general feel and appearance. If they are smaller, they will take a bit less time. Just keep an eye on them and take them out when they have the right color and feel. You could also do a test batch with just a couple to see how long they take before doing more.
kushigalu
THese cheese puffs look amazingly delicious. I love the recipe here. Thanks for sharing
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, they are so tasty, we love snacking on them.
Anjali
I absolutely love gougères and always order them when I go to my favorite French restaurant, but I've always been intimidated to make them at home. But your recipe has inspired me to give it a try! Can't wait to make these soon!
Caroline's Cooking
So glad to hear that, hope you enjoy!