French in a Flash: Parmesan and Gruyère Gougères with Jambon de Bayonne, Arugula, and Dijon-Chive Butter

Once the gougères are mostly cool, but still just a bit warm, slice them in half horizontally, revealing the air-pocket within.

Spread each half lightly with the Dijon-Chive butter.

Place one folded slice of ham on the bottom of each gougère, and top with a small handful of baby arugula leaves and chive halves.

Place the gougère lid on top, and voila, your perfect ham and cheese sandwich.

Parmesan and Gruyère Gougères

-makes 8-10 gougères-

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

To make pâte à choux, or choux pastry, place the stick of butter and the cup of water in a medium sauce pot and put the lid on it. Bring to a boil. Take the pot off the heat, then add the salt, sugar, and flour all at once, and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the flour is absorbed into the butter-water mixture. Lower the heat to medium-low, and return the pan to the heat, stirring the dough continuously for about 30-60 seconds, until the dough comes away from the sides of the pot.

Scoop the dough out of the pot and into a large mixing bowl.

Let stand and cool for about 3 minutes. Then add one egg at a time, and use a hand mixer to incorporate the eggs into the dough. At the very end, add in 3 ounces of Gruyère and 1 once of Parmesan.

Use an ice cream scoop to mound the gougères onto a parchment-lined baking or cookie sheet. You should end up with 8-10 gougères, depending on your scoop. Then top with the remaining Gruyère and Parmesan, and sprinkle with just a touch of coarse cracked black pepper.

Bake the gougères at 400°F for 10 minutes. Then lower the heat to 350°F and bake another 35-40 minutes, until they are golden, puffed, and hard to the touch. You don't want to take them out too early--if you have to return them to the oven, chances are, they'll deflate a bit.

Place the gougères on a cooling rack.

Dijon-Chive Butter

Stir everything together until combined.