Paprika gougères

Gougères are basically the savoury version of chouquettes. They make a nice light snack and are perfect for serving with pre-dinner drinks as an appetizer.

I love having friends round for dinner, but I know that no matter how early I start preparations I always end up serving dinner later than planned. These will be great to serve when people arrive so they don’t starve to death whilst they are waiting for me to serve up whatever ridiculously complicated dish I have decided to make this time!

Gougères can be made with any kind of hard cheese and flavoured with different herbs or spices to taste. Paprika is my favourite addition, as it gives them a spicy kick and pleasing orange tint. They are light enough that you can munch away on them for a while without getting too full and I like them best when piped into very small bite-size pieces.



Things I have learnt from making gougères:

I discovered a very clever trick from a churros recipe: to make neat choux pastry shapes, snip the dough off with scissors once you have piped the right amount onto the baking sheet. This stops the shape from becoming distorted when you pull the piping bag away and is particularly useful for making tiny choux pastries like these.

These should be served straight from the oven. To prevent any last minute panics, you can prepare the gougères earlier in the day so they are piped and sprinkled with cheese, then cover with clingfilm and set aside until you are ready to bake.



Paprika gougères: makes 30 very small gougères
(adapted from this recipe on the BBC Good Food website)

87ml water
37g salted butter
50g plain flour
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
30g cheddar, grated
Parmesan, for sprinkling

• Crack the eggs into a measuring jug and briefly whisk together with a fork
• Put the flour and paprika into a bowl and mix to combine
• Heat the butter and water in a pan over a medium heat until the butter is melted and the water comes to a rapid boil
• Take off the heat and dump in all the flour in one go. Beat with a wooden spoon until it forms a smooth dough
• Return to the heat and beat until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan as you stir
• Remove from the heat again and gradually add in the eggs very slowly, stirring vigorously after each addition
• Keep adding in more beaten egg until it reaches a reluctant dropping consistency (see notes from this post). You may not need all of the egg to get to this stage
• Add the grated cheddar into the pan and mix to combine
• Put into a piping bag with a 1.5cm plain nozzle and leave to rest for 5-10 minutes whilst you pre-heat the oven to 200C
• Pipe onto a large baking tray lined with greased baking parchment snipping off the dough with scissors to make tiny 1.5cm mounds
• Smooth any uneven tops with a finger dipped in water
• Sprinkle over the parmesan
• Bake for 20 minutes or until very crisp and deep golden brown