Rarebit stuffed gougères

Method

1. For the pastry, sift the flour, cayenne and a pinch of salt onto a large sheet of baking paper. Set aside. Heat the butter with 220ml water in a large saucepan over a medium heat and bring to a rolling boil once the butter has melted. Using the paper as a funnel, tip the flour into the liquid in one go, remove from the heat and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together and leaves the sides of the pan. Scrape the pastry onto a dinner plate. Cover with cling film, then leave to cool.
2. Once cooled, put into a mixing bowl and beat in the eggs in 3 additions, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture is smooth, shiny and drops reluctantly from the spoon. Transfer to a large piping bag with a 1cm plain nozzle or with the corner snipped off at 1cm.
3. Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Line 3 baking sheets with baking paper, then pipe small 3-4cm high blobs of pastry onto the sheets, spaced a little apart. Smooth any peaks with a wet finger, then bake for 20 minutes until puffed and golden.
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4. Meanwhile whizz all the filling ingredients to a thick paste using a food processor. Reserve 2 tbsp of the mixture, then put the rest in a piping bag fitted with a very narrow nozzle or with a tiny corner snipped off.
5. When the gougères are golden, remove from the oven. As soon as you can handle them, poke a hole in the base of each one with a metal skewer, then pipe no more than 1 tsp filling into each one. Set the gougères upright again, brush the reserved filling on top, then grate over some parmesan. Return to the oven for 5-8 minutes until deep golden. Remove from the oven, leave to stand for 2-3 minutes, then serve, warning people to watch out for the hot filling.