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A simple nibble to enjoy in the evening before the dinner is served. A reason to sit down, slow down and savor the company who has gathered or simply wind down the day.
Gougères provide the savory comfort that can only come from cheese and butter.
Simple to make, and easy to freeze, so you have many to enjoy down the road with out having to mix up anything, only patiently waiting for them to bake, Gougères are a French favorite and beloved and recognized to have origins in Burgundy.
I began baking and savoring immensely these “little cabbages” as they are sometimes referred to in Burgundy from which the recipe originates, during the quarantine period this past spring. Providing comfort and delicious flavor, their ease to make, and immediate satisfying flavor inspired me to continue to make them again and again.
Pair with a favorite Burgundy wine such as Chablis.
Today I will share not only how to make them fresh, but why you should have some in the freezer as well.
Similar to a mini soufflé, you will have to resist peeking as they bake in the oven, but your diligence will pay off as you open the door upon completion of baking and discover the slight browning on the outside and the soft airy goodness on the inside.
Thank you for stopping by today and checking out the second episode of Season 3 in The Simply Luxurious Kitchen cooking series. If you have already checked out the premiere episode of this season, be sure to do so here. I am making Sorrel Chicken inspired by my time in France cooking with Susan Herrmann Loomis.
Just Made Available! Digital Cookbooks for Each Season of the Show! If you are looking for all of the recipes for each previous season in one easy to find place without having to click through each episode for each season, I now have available a Digital Cookbook for Seasons 1 & 2 ($8). Shop here.(Note: All TOP Tier ad-free subscribers can download these cookbooks for free, and grandfathered/mothered ad-free subscribers, you too will be able to access them for free – we have had to tend to a small glitch, but it will be worked out soon. My apologies for the delay.)
Now to the full episode just below!
~NOTE to readers who cannot see a video below: Be sure to turn off your ad-blocker if you use one as you will not be able to see a video at all if the ad-blocker is in use.
~Tour my full kitchen and learn all of the details and my approach to this new space as well as how I decided on a La Cornue stove to be my lifetime stove. I am so tickled with how it was customized and transformed this summer (2020). (be sure to become a TOP Tier subscriber to be able to view the tour post.)
An Everyday Luxury
Links from the Episode:
- The annual Gougères Festival in Burgundy
- Terracotta wine cooler
- La Rochere bistrot wine glasses
- View the full recipe at the end of this post
~Cook & Share! I would love to share your Simply Luxurious Kitchen inspired experiences from your kitchen! Tag me on Instagram with @thesimplyluxuriouslife #tslkitchen and your post could appear on my Instagram feed. Many readers have already shared their meals inspired by recipes from TSLKitchen. Check out TSLL’s IG Story Highlights – titled, Viewers’ Recipes. And see the most recent shares since Season 1 wrapped up as viewers began to explore the recipes in their own kitchens. Over the past year, the croissant recipe (Season 2, Episode #6) was the most popular. Have a look below at a handful of pics shared by readers/viewers on IG, and be sure to share your next experience in the kitchen exploring one of TSLK recipes.
Herbed Gougères
Ingredients
- 250 ml water (about 1 cup)
- 1/2 tsp fleur de sel
- 120 grams unsalted butter (about 2/3 cup) the best you can find
- 125 grams flour, all-purpose (about 2/3 cup)
- 4 large eggs
- 100 g Gruyére any flavorful hard cheese will work well (Comté, Emmental, cheddar)
- 1 cup fresh herbs, chopped (flat-leaf parsley, chives, chevril, basil) chop finely
- fleur de sel & freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your oven (convection if possible) to 425 degrees Fahrenheit (218 Celsius).
- On the stove top in a medium size sauce pan, combine over medium heat the water, butter and salt and combine until melted together. Bring to a gentle boil, then immediately remove from the heat and add the flour. Immediately mix with a wooden spoon until all combined and smooth.
- Place the sauce pan back on the stove top over a low heat for one minute and gently stir to cook out the flour "taste".
- Remove the pan from the stove top. All of the stovetop cooking is complete. Your pâte à choux is made!
- Mix into the pâte à choux the eggs, one by one. Mix until smooth.
- Add the grated cheese to the mixture.
- Add the chopped herbs until full incorporated.
- Prepared a parchment-lined baking sheet, and using two spoons (one large and one small if possible), place dollops onto the pan, providing about an inch of space between each gougère.
- Using the left over egg wash, brush the top of each gougère to smooth and soften. Then sprinkle each with a little of the remaining grated cheese.
- Turn down the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (176 Celsius).
- Place the gougères into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Do not peek as they will deflate upon opening the oven and no longer rise.
To prepare the remaining for freezing
- On a parchment-lined baking sheet, place the remaining batter in dollops, closer together than what you would do if you were baking them fresh (as they will not expand). Cover with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 2-4 hours.
- Once the dollops are frozen, remove the baking sheet from the freezer, remove the dollops and place in a smaller lid-tight container and place back in the freezer.
- Keep in the freezer up to 2-3 months.
How to Bake the Frozen Gougères
- Remove the frozen gougères from the freezer and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Add a bit of egg-wash and then grated cheese. Place in the oven as you have done for the fresh (preheat to 425, then reduce to 350 when the gougères go in the oven). Bake for 2-5 minutes longer than what you have done for the fresh. Do not peek! 🙂
- Enjoy with a glass of Burgundy wine – Chablis, Pinot Noir or head north a bit and a select a glass of Champagne.
- Be sure to enjoy more than just one or two or even three. 🙂
Previous Episodes from Season 3 of The Simply Luxurious Kitchen
Sorrel Chicken, Episode #1
Tune in next Saturday for a brand new episode, and view more Episodes of The Simply Luxurious Kitchen here.
~Beginning on October 1, 2020, a significant change and much anticipated improvements in engagement will be coming to TSLL blog. Only subscribers will be able to view more than five posts a month along with other exclusive content (Shannon’s Home & Garden Tours, Giveaways, Saturday Ponderings, etc.). Learn all about TSLL’s Soft Paywall here.
Hi Shannon, Brava on Season 3! I just watched both episodes and am feeling inspired (and hungry). I am going to try these gougères today; I didn’t realize you could use spoons instead of a pastry bag – so much simpler. And thank you for the heads up on that triple timer; I will definitely be investing in one of those. Your kitchen is gorgeous; looking forward to the full tour. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. Catherine
Merci Catherine. ?
Watched the episode of the Herbed Gourgères and have been wanting to make these for awhile, so will make these in my line of very soon. Love, love your kitchen! What a lovely place to create amazing food! I have one comment in that this episode when in full screen is quite blurry. You might check to see if you can correct that or make sure you film next time that it is focused properly during filming. Can’t wait till your next Saturday to se what you have cooked up. Have a lovely weekend!
Thank you so much for tuning in. If you happen to see something go blurry, it is due to connectivity and bandwidth capacity at that particular time on the viewer’s end. Even I when viewing my video on the blog during peek hours and fewer bars on my WiFi will see some blur for a short time when in production and editing it was crystal clear. I appreciate your attention to detail. 🙂
It is weird because the small picture is not blurry just when I enlarge it but all your older videos are playing clearly when I enlarge the screen that is why I mentioned it to you.
Anyway, I made the Gougères tonight and they turned out wonderful!
I wish I could attach a picture to show you them.
Hi Shannon. Delicious one of my favourite apéro nibble. I make a large one sprinkled with girolles and grated cheese for a delicious supper. Just add a green salad. We have a fête for almost everything in France
Hi Shannon, CONGRATULATIONS!!! I have to watch this episode again . My husband and I were just looking at your beautiful oven ? lol!
Nice kitchen!
Thank you Jenny 🙂 I cannot wait to share more details about why I chose this stove. I am smitten as it is simple use and cook with. Thank you again for tuning into the premiere. 🙂
I love your blue and white kitchen. It is really very nice!
Shannon, fabulous video! Love your kitchen! What kind of range do you have? It is gorgeous!?
Jamie, thank you for tuning in! So glad you enjoyed. 🙂 His is a La Cornue. Look for a detailed post on October about how the decision was made. ☺️
I am loving Season 3! A fellow dog mom, I appreciate the intro and enjoy watching this season with my toy poodle curled up on my lap. I can’t wait to try making these herbed Gougères. Thank you for taking me Out of my comfort zone and on a cooking adventure!
Thank you for tuning in Katrina! Sending love to you and your pup. ??❤️
These look incredible!
So simple and oh my, truly mouth-watering. Cooking them after you’ve frozen them keeps the flavor and makes it even simpler to enjoy. I think you will love them. Thank you for stopping by. ?
I made these tonight and they were delicious! I admit that I couldn’t resist peeking while they were in the oven, haha, so they deflated a bit, but they were still so tasty!
So happy to hear how your baking went! Tickled and am vicariously savoring them with you. 🙂 Thank you for sharing!