Recently, we had a dinner party and I served a grilled caesar salad as one of the courses. Of course, you MUST have REAL bacon so JT cooked the bacon up on the BBQ (none of that maple crap) and I asked him to save the drippings for the roast potatoes but by the time I got around to tossing the tators in the bacon drippings, I had second thoughts so I used only about a tablespoon and tossed the rest with olive oil. I had about a 65 mL (1/4 cup) bacon drippings sitting in the refrigerator, crying for something creative so I came up with this easy recipe. The drippings have such an amazing flavour, and the bits of bacon add just the right amount of crunch. I think I may have to cook up another batch of bacon just for the drippings so I can bake another batch of these tasty morsels.
Bacon and Parmesan Cheese Puffs
A KitchenInspirations Original Recipe
Makes 42 small puffs
Ingredients:
- 250 mL (1 cup) water
- 65 mL (1/4 cup) bacon drippings
- 5 mL 1/2 tsp salt
- 145 g (1 cup) all-purpose flour
- 3 eggs
- 120 g (1 cup) grated Parmesan Cheese
- 1 1/2 slices bacon, cooked until crispy and crumbled to small pieces
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 200° C (400° F).
- Place water, bacon drippings and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Remove from heat and add flour, and stir until combined.
- Return to heat and stir cooking the flour mixture until it comes away from the sides of the pan and is a shiny ball.
- Place in a food processor with plastic blades and process for 15 seconds (give or take).
- Add eggs, one at a time and process for 40 seconds (err on the longer side of give or take).
- Add the cheese and process for another 5-10 seconds until smooth. Stir in the crumbled bacon.
- Dip a spoon or small ice cream scoop into 1 cup cold water with 5 mL (1 tsp) plain vegetable oil, place walnut-sized spoonfuls on a parchment lined cookie sheet about 3 cm (1 1/2 inches) apart.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
- Serve warm or room temperature.
Notes:
- You may also prepare this recipe with a good quality handheld mixer or stand mixer but I would suggest an immersion blender with the whisk attachment is not strong enough for this pastry.
- These delightful balls puff up about 12 minutes into baking and are ideal for stuffing with a piping funnel (I bought a really cheap one from a dollar store and it works very well). Stuff with goats cheese, or your own recipe.
- Unstuffed, they freeze very well, just pop them into a zip lock bag. To use, you need not defrost them, simply put them into a preheated 150° C (300° F) oven for 10-12 minutes, until defrosted and heated through.
Eva, you’ve got me at bacon drippings! I don’t need to read any more, it’s enough to make me hungry and imagine how delicious these cheese puffs must be.
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I love your tasty food ideas too! Yummmm! They must be utterly delicious!
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Thanks Sophie, not the healthiest but they sure are tasty!
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Uh, I didn’t even have to get past the title of this post to know that I was on board! And I’ve got bacon drippings in the fridge (as I almost always do). I have a feeling I know what I’m doing this weekend! You mention that they freeze well unstuffed, but you don’t mention what you’d stuff them with if you did.
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Hi Jeff, I will often make a slightly loosened goats cheese spread (add a little yogurt or milk to loosen) and inject into the puff prior to reheating. Sometimes I will even add a little paprika into the mix, it makes a delicious stuffing!
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And the award for best use of bacon dripping goes to…
GREG
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Oh my…I’d like to thank…
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What a brilliant idea!! You’ve kicked gougeres up a notch or two!!
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Thanks so much Liz, they are pretty tasty.
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Absolutely love these Eva. I’ve started cooking these for dinner party nibbles with drinks. They’re addictive and I love the bacon addition.
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Thanks Dave, I may make a few for your visit!
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well no convincing required on the amazing flavor these puffs must have! And the recipe makes such a big batch – perfect for a crew. I wonder how some garden herbs might play in these puffs… I’m getting a little rosemary waft over here ;-). What a tasty menu… I’m all in on the grilled Caesar and yes, only real bacon please!
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Thanks so much Kelly, sometimes I do a little-loosened goats cheese with chives as the stuffing, it’s really quite tasty but I love the idea of adding the herbs to the puffs themselves! I have an excellent batch of fresh herbs growing in my garden, it’s been a stellar year!
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What a fun, creative, tasty take on a classic dish! This looks really excellent — thanks.
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Thanks John, I was pretty happy with the way they turned out,
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They sound like the perfect party appetiser! 😀 And great that nothing went to waste 🙂
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I love using up things, particularly when it is unexpected! They are quite the tasty treat.
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Very yummy!
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Thanks Liz!
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I don’t why I never thought of using bacon fat in place of butter in gougere. It seems like a wonderful idea. They look delicious.
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Thank you Maria, it worked out even better than I expected, I do hope you will give them a go!
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Can I borrow a couple of them for my carrot soup for the lunch? These sound and look really great, Eva.
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They do go great with soup Angie, carrot sounds amazing!
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