A Tasteful Garden: recipe

cheesy puffs of perfection... As my excitement for my garden grows, so do my plans to throw a garden party this June. Garden fresh ingredients are the central elements for this shindig and come early summer summer we'll be having an abundance of fresh herbs. So, for fun this morning, I decided to try out a potential recipe for the party... Herbed Cheese Puffs, courtesy of King Arthur Flour's The Baker's Catalogue. The result were light, airy, delicate puffs of happiness and joy to your tastebuds. Best of all, the recipe was super easy to make.

Herbed Cheese Puffs

Yield: about forty 2-inch puffs.
1 cup water
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3 large eggs
chopped leaves of 1 stalk fresh rosemary (about 2 tablespoons, packed)
10 leaves fresh basil, chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley (loosely packed), chopped
1 tablespoon King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 cup (4 ounces) grated Gruyere or sharp Cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

In a heavy saucepan bring the water, butter and salt to a boil. Add the 1 cup of flour all at once and stir with a spoon until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan and forms a ball. Remove the pan from heat, and beat until the mixture cools slightly. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Mix the chopped herbs with 1 tablespoon of flour, and add them to the batter. Beat in the grated cheese and black pepper.

Drop the batter by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the baking sheets, leaving 1 1/2 to 2 inches between each, or place it in a pastry bag or cookie press and pipe it through a large star tip. Preheat your oven to 400°F. Line a couple of baking sheets with parchment, or grease them lightly. Bake the puffs for 25 minutes, or until they're puffed, golden and crisp.

Remove the puffs from the oven, and transfer them to a rack to cool slightly; serve warm. If the puffs don't seem crisp enough, put them back in the oven for 5 minutes, then turn the oven off, leaving the puffs inside till you're ready to serve them.