Active time: 20 minutes (add 15 minutes if using a spoon rather than piping) total time: 1 1/4 hours
- 1 C water
- 1 stick butter, cut into tablespoons
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 c flour
- 4-5 large eggs1 1/2 C finely grated Gruyere (about 4 oz)
- 2 Tbsp finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- Rounded 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Put racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 375. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or lightly butter them.
Combine water, butter and salt in a 3 quart heavy saucepan and bring to a full boil over high heat, stirrting until butter is melted. Reduce heat to moderate, add flour all at once and cook, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon, until mixture pulls away from sides of pan, about 30 seconds. Continue to cook adn stir to remove excess moisture for about 1 1/2 minutes. REmove from heat and let cool slightly about 3 minutes.
Add 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well with wooden spoon after each addition; batter will appear to sepearte but will become smooth once beaten. Mixtures should be glossy and just stiff enough to hold soft peaks and fall softly from a spoon. If it is too stiff, beat remainign egg ina small bowl and add to batter, 1 tsp at a time, beating and then testing batter after each adidtion until it reaches desired consistency. Stir in cheeses, nutmeg and pepper.
Fill pastry bag, if using, with batter and pipe fifteen 1 inch diameter mounds 1 inch apart onto each baking sheet, or spoon level tablespoons of batter onto sheets. Bake, switching positions of sheets halfway through baking until puffed, golden, and crisp, about 30 minutes total. Make more gougeres in same manner iwth remaining batter. Serve warm.
Gourmet