Ham And Cheese Gougeres

Ham and Cheese Gougères

This flavourful Spanish spin on classic French gougères is especially light and airy due to an extra egg white. They’re best served straight from the oven, but you can bake them a few hours ahead and rewarm if needed. You could also freeze the piped batter right on the cookie sheet and bake straight from frozen—just give them a few extra minutes of baking time.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (125 mL) all-purpose flour
1 tsp (5 mL) ground mustard
1/2 tsp (2 mL) smoked paprika
1/4 tsp (1 mL) freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup (125 mL) water
1/4 cup (60 mL) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/2 tsp (2 mL) Diamond Crystal kosher salt or 1/4 tsp (1 mL) fine sea 

   salt
1/4 tsp (1 mL) sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1 large egg white, beaten
1 cup (250 mL) grated Manchego cheese
1/3 cup (80 mL) finely diced serrano ham
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix flour, mustard, paprika and pepper in a small bowl with a fork until uniform. Set aside.

Combine water, butter, salt and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and reduce burner to medium-low. Add flour mixture and stir until smooth. Return pan to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until dough has dried out slightly, about 2 minutes. Transfer dough to bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle. Mix on low until slightly cooled, about 1 minute. Raise speed to medium and add eggs and egg white, a little at a time, scraping down sides of bowl as needed, until you have a smooth, shiny batter with a thick ribbon-like consistency. Add cheese and ham, and mix until just incorporated. Transfer batter to a large piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch (1-cm) round tip.

Pipe 1-inch- (2.5-cm-) round, tall mounds on prepared baking sheets about 2 inches (5 cm) apart. Use a wet finger to smooth out any points—you should get 26 to 28 in total.

Bake, one sheet at a time, until outsides of gougères are golden, dry and crisp, 20 to 22 minutes. Serve immediately, or transfer to a baking rack to cool.  Serves 6 to 8