Cheese Puffs

Cheese Puffs

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Water
• 1/2 Cup Butter
• 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Cup Flour
• 4 large Eggs
• 4 ounces crumbled/shredded Cheese
• 8 Bacon slices, cooked crisp and crumbled
• 1/4 Cup Green Onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F
2. In a large heavy sauce pan combine the water, butter and salt. 
3. Heat and stir over medium heat until boiling and the butter is melted.
4. Reduce the heat to medium, and add the flour and stir quickly until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and forms a very soft dough.
5. Remove the pan from the stove and let stand 5 minutes.  
6. Allow the mixture to stand for the full 5 minutes or else it will be far too hot still when you start to add the eggs, and they will start to cook too quickly and the texture of the puffs wont be as good and they will taste like scrambled eggs.
7. After 5 minutes add the eggs one and a time and beat well after each addition. 
8. Dough should become thick and look glossy. 
9. Finally add the cheese, bacon, green onion and pepper and stir well to combine.
10. Drop onto greased baking sheets, using about 2 teaspoons per puff and placing them about 2 inches apart. 
11. Bake for 15-17 minutes until golden.  
12. Transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool.

Enjoy!

Notes:

These are one of my excellent go to recipes when I have some notice about a nice party and would like to bring a snack.  They are super easy to make if you follow the recipe and they can be frozen and re-heated without any issue, although like most things they are best when served fresh from the oven if you can manage it.

When making cheese puffs there are a few things to keep in mind, first being that they will rise in the oven while they are baking, so only put a small dollop of batter on the pan for each one. Second these taste best if you use a strong flavored cheese like a British Stilton blue cheese, other blue cheeses, or not sure if you will be able to find it but my grocery store has a sharp Mexican cheddar with peppers and things in it that is my favorite to use in this recipe.  But truth be a told any sharp cheddar will work well, plus if you use a milder cheese you can serve them with a nice spicy ranch dip.  Either way, these are sure to be a hit at your next party.

Plus they can be made ahead, frozen, and then toasted in the oven at the party to reheat and they come out perfect.