Les Petits Chefs make chouquettes and gougères

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F (200˚C). Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
2. Bring the milk, butter and salt to a boil in a medium pot over medium- high heat.
3. Once the butter has melted, turn down the heat to medium-low and add the flour quickly, all at once.
4. Stir the mixture vigorously and continuously with a wooden spoon—it will come together fairly quickly, looking a little like mashed potatoes. Keep stirring over medium-low heat until it forms a smooth ball of dough, about 4 minutes. There might be a slight crust on the bottom of the pot, but that’s fine!
5. Place the dough in a large clean glass or metal bowl (preferably one with high sides) and use a wooden spoon to break up the mixture a little to release the steam. Do not stir. Keep breaking up the mixture every 30 seconds or so, for a few seconds each time, for about 2 minutes so the dough loses some of its heat.
6. Once the steam rising from the pastry has more or less subsided, add one egg and stir even more vigorously than before using a wooden spoon (or electric hand beater). When you first add the egg, it will look like you’ve made a huge mistake—the mix will be sloppy and it might be hard to incorporate the egg into the pastry at first, but don’t worry. If you keep stirring, your pastry will soon return to its mashed potato–like state.
7. Add another egg and stir vigorously until the pastry has come together again. Continue adding the remaining eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously until the dough is soft, shiny and elastic.
8. IF MAKING GOUGERES, ADD THE SHREDDED CHEESE NOW! Mix until well-combined!
9. Scrape the choux pastry dough into a (18-inch/45 cm) piping bag fitted with a plain (3/4-inch/ 2 cm) piping tip and pipe rounds of 1 1/2 inches (4 cm) in diameter, placed about 11/2 inches (4 cm) apart. (If you don’t have a piping bag, you can use a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop or a teaspoon (the kind you stir your tea with, not the measure) to scoop up a heaping spoonful of the mixture, then use a second teaspoon to push it off onto the baking tray, forming a ball as you do so.)
10. FOR CHOUQUETTES: Brush the tops of the puffs with the beaten egg and gently press the pearl sugar into the dough. You’ll need to add a lot more than just a sprinkle as the puffs will expand when they bake, and if you don’t add enough, you’ll end up with bald chouquettes! IF MAKING GOUGERES, skip this step!
11. Place the baking trays in the top and bottom third of the oven and bake for 25 minutes, turning the trays from front to back and switching them from the top to the bottom rack halfway through to ensure even baking.
12. Remove the trays from the oven and transfer the chouquettes to a cooling rack. These are best enjoyed the day they are baked, but you can store them at room temperature in airtight containers or resealable plastic bags for a couple of days.