These Celery Gruyère Gougères from Chadwick Boyd feature one of his favorite vegetables: Celery. These French “puffs” celebrate every part of this vegetable, from its crunchy stalks to its tender leaves.This recipe is inspired by one of Julia Child’s most beloved flavor combos—celery, butter, and cream. For more vegetable themed recipes from Chadwick get our latest issue, July/August, here.
Celery Gruyère Gougères
Makes about 30
Ingredients
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (141 grams) unsalted butter
- 1¼ cups (125 grams) plus 2 to 4 tablespoons (12 to 24 grams) very thinly sliced celery,* divided
- ½ cup (120 grams) heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup (120 grams) water
- ¾ teaspoon (1.5 grams) celery salt**
- 1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
- 5 large eggs (250 grams), room temperature
- 1½ cups (150 grams) finely grated Gruyère cheese
- ½ cup (20 grams) roughly chopped fresh celery leaves
- 1 teaspoon (2 grams) celery seeds, divided
- Maldon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium heavy saucepan, heat butter over medium heat. Stir in 1¼ cups (125 grams) celery, and cook until soft and translucent, 7 to 8 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high. Add cream, ½ cup (120 grams) water, and celery salt; bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low, and quickly stir in flour with a heavy-duty whisk or thick-handled wooden spoon. (Dough will quickly become smooth and have a nice shine.) Continue whisking until a skin begins to form on the bottom of the pan to ensure dough is dry enough to finish batter, about 1 minute.
- Quickly transfer dough to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat at medium-low speed to release heat (you will see steam escape), about 1 minute. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. (Dough will be smooth and glossy.) Add cheese, and beat for 1 minute. Scrape sides of bowl, and beat until combined, 15 to 20 seconds. Add celery leaves and ¾ teaspoon (1.5 grams) celery seeds, and beat until combined.
- Using a 1-tablespoon scoop, drop dough 1 to 1½ inches apart onto prepared pans. (The gougères dough should be scooped out immediately and placed on a baking sheet. If the dough sits, it will become tough.) Sprinkle with remaining 2 to 4 tablespoons (12 to 24 grams) celery. Dust lightly with remaining ¼ teaspoon celery seeds, and sprinkle with Maldon sea salt.
- Bake for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F (180°C), and bake 12 minutes more. Rotate pans from front to back and top to bottom, and bake until gougères are golden and puffy and celery bits are lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes more. Let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Serve freshly baked or at room temperature. Store in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days.
Notes
*We used a mandoline to slice celery.
**Use kosher salt if you don't have celery salt on hand. Sprinkle a few more pieces of celery on top with the Maldon flakes to garnish.
**Use kosher salt if you don't have celery salt on hand. Sprinkle a few more pieces of celery on top with the Maldon flakes to garnish.
