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1
Prep the oven. Set the rack in your oven about 2/3 of the way down, so the rack will be just a little bit below the middle. Preheat the oven to 425 F.
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2
Prepare the pastries. Cut the butter up into 1 tablespoon-sized chunks. In a large, heavy saucepan, bring the cup of water, butter, salt, pepper and nutmeg to a slow boil (set it over medium or medium low heat). While that's going, measure out your flour into a bowl. Turn the heat off the saucepan as soon as it's reached a boil, then dump in all of the flour into the pan at once. Beat vigorously with a wooden spatula or spoon for several seconds to blend thoroughly. Turn on the heat again to medium high heat. Then beat it with your spoon for another 1-2 minutes until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and the spoon and forms a mass. Turn off the heat. Take a minute, breathe! You're halfway there!
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3
Seriously though, take a minute for the dough to cool down. This was a big mistake I made in the beginning, because I put in the eggs when the dough was too hot, and the dough scrambled the eggs! So just let the dough rest for about 5 minutes, or until it's about lukewarm.
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4
Make a well in the center of the dough-just push it down gently with a wooden spoon or your hand. Immediately break an egg into the center of the well. Beat it into the paste for several seconds until it has absorbed into the dough. Continue with the remaining 3 eggs, beating them in one by one. The third and fourth eggs will be absorbed more slowly, so will require a bit more time to mix in.
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5
Next, mix the grated cheese into the dough. Make sure it's all well blended in and smooth!
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6
Put the dough in a pastry bag, or if you're a MacGyver cook like me, into a large Ziplock bag, and place the sealed bag in the fridge. Because of the cheese, these puffs don't puff up quite as high as their dessert counterparts (eclairs/profiteroles) but they are still light and fluffy nonetheless.
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7
Make an egg wash next: beat an egg and about a tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Get a pastry brush out and keep it handy.
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8
Get a large baking sheet ready (you might need 2) and either place parchment paper on the sheet or grease it really well.
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9
Take your bag of dough from the fridge and if you're using a Ziplock bag, cut about a 3/4 inch opening in one corner. Squeeze 3 inch oval mounds onto the prepared baking sheet(s). Make sure they're about 2 inches apart. Brush each pastry lightly with the egg wash. Sprinkle each puff with some more grated cheese if you wish.
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10
Set the baking sheet(s) in the oven on the prepared rack and bake for 20 minutes or until the puffs have doubled in size and are light brown. Then reduce the heat to 375 F and bake for 10-15 minutes more, or until the puffs are golden brown and firm and crusty to the touch. Turn off the oven. Remove baking sheet(s) from the oven and make a 1 inch slit in the side of each puff (to let the air out and have the inside cook a bit more). Return the puffs to the turned off oven, and leave the oven door ajar for 10 minutes.
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11
Then remove the pan from the oven and open one puff as a test. If the center is still damp or doughy, put the sheet back into the (turned off) oven to crisp for a bit longer. If they are not damp or doughy just set the pan aside.
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12
While the pastries are in the oven, prep the filling.
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13
Chop up the green onions and the mushrooms, and saute them in a skillet over medium heat with the tablespoon of butter. Season to taste. I added a few pinches of pepper. The veggies should be ready after about 5 minutes. When done remove pan from the heat.
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14
Take your puffs out of the oven (if they are still in there) and slice them horizontally, like a sandwich. Spoon your desired amount of mushroom filling over the bottom slice, and then top with the top slice!
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15
Enjoy!
