Gougere Salad

Preheat oven to 400 degree F. Pre-warm the mixing bowl and paddle attachment. Pre-warm the eggs while still in the shell by running hot tap water over them. Change the hot tap water two more times to warm the eggs through. While eggs are warming, measure out flour and sift; set aside. Line a large baking sheet with kitchen parchment paper or a nonstick silicone baking mat, or grease the baking sheet; set aside.

In medium saucepan, bring the water, butter and salt to boiling; reduce heat to low. Add flour all at once and stir vigorously with the wooden spoon about 1 minute or until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan and forms a ball.

Drain the eggs and wipe the warm mixing bowl dry. Immediately transfer the dough to the warm bowl. Fit with the paddle attachment and turn to medium speed. Crack 1 egg at a time into an unbreakable dish and add egg to the batter; combine completely. Add the remaining 3 eggs, one at a time, and combining completely before adding the next egg. When all eggs are in, scrape the bottom of bowl and mix in the grated cheese. (Don't worry about overmixing dough, but work quickly to keep batter warm.) Spoon the dough into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch diameter round or star tip or use a tablespoon.

Pipe dough into twenty-four 1-inch (for canape size) or twelve 2-inch (for entree size) mounds or drop 12 heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared pan, spaced evenly apart. Bake for 5 minutes. Turn oven temperature down to 375 degree F. Bake about 7 minutes more for the 1-inch or 12 minutes more for the 2-inch or until evenly golden. Transfer gougeres to a wire rack; cool.

In a screw-top jar, combine oil, lemon juice, basil, sugar, mustard, garlic, and black pepper. Cover and shake well; set aside.

When the baked gougeres are cool enough to handle, cut off the top one-third of each. Carefully remove any soft dough inside the gougère with a fork of spoon. Spoon 1/4 teaspoon of the vinaigrette into the base of each canape-sized gougere. Use 1 teaspoon of the vinaigrette in the base of an entree-sized gougere. Pour remaining vinaigrette over mesclun; toss lightly to coat.

To serve, stuff some of the dressed salad into each gougere, allowing the greens to poke out merrily. Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings (about twenty-four 1-1/2-inch or twelve 3-inch gourgeres).