Although appearances can be deceptive, these delights are neither sweet nor coccoli (Florentine pancakes served with stracchino cheese and ham), but rather
delicious cheese puffs. Contrary to popular belief, cream puffs are not just sweet – there are many savoury variations. Just think of this recipe for cheese puffs, or delicious potato puffs, or even better lobster puffs… not to mention truffle puffs! I will gradually share these culinary gems with you and I am sure you will not be able to do without them!

Made with Emmental, these cheese puffs are the perfect accompaniment to any perfect aperitif, they are crispy on the outside but creamy on the inside. I personally love it when I go to a bar to have an aperitif with friends and they surprise me with some delicacies made by them, instead of the usual boring chips.

So I thought of this when I decided to put together a few simple ingredients, but capable of turning an evening with friends into a spectacle.

CURIOSITY

Although the basic pastry is almost always the same, there is a difference between cream puffs and eclairs: the former are baked in the oven while the latter are fried in hot oil. Eclairs are sometimes also called puffs if they are coated in a specialfrying batter made of eggs, flour and cream.

Have you ever wondered why emmental cheese has holes in it? Some researchers have answered that the holes characteristic of emmental, the biggest reason I ate this cheese as a child, are caused by the presence of small hay particles in the milk. These are probably present because of the traditional milking, carried out in a barn with open containers. Some bacteria in those hay particles generate a kind of carbon dioxide expansion that causes the holes.

In recent decades, however, it has been noticed that the amount of holes in Emmental has been decreasing and studies have shown that this phenomenon is caused by cleaner milk. In fact, today traditional milking has mostly been replaced by automatic milking machines, which make it more difficult for hay particles to get into the milk and create holes.