lighter than air, soufflé!

The soufflé.  In Chapter 10 of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, the Great Julia Child wrote that the soufflé is “the epitome and triumph of the art of French cookery, a glorious and exciting finish to a great meal.” (p.613).  I’d have to agree.  Soufflés sucrés – sweet soufflés- are my favorite dessert, preferably chocolate.  Whenever on a menu, no doubt, that will be my dessert.  I always thought about making them at home, but with the preface that Mrs. Child gave, I felt that this was a daunting task. 

Over Valentine’s Day this year, I decided, “Yes, I’ll make soufflé!” I got courage to prepare a recipe I found in the February issue of Bon Appétit magazine.

I cut the recipe in half, but it’s called Bittersweet Cocoa Soufflés with Orange Blossom Cream

½ cup plus 3 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp flour

1/8 tsp salt

1/3 plus 1 tbsp milk

¼ cup natural unsweeten cocoa powder

1 large egg yolk

½ tsp vanilla extract

2 large egg whites

1/16 tsp cream of Tartar

1.5 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely

Orange Blossom Cream

½ cup chilled whipping cream

¾ tbsp sugar

½ tsp grated orange peel

The recipe was quite easy, considering I had been so afraid to even think about making this dessert, but it does take some time.  First, butter 4 ramekins and dust them with sugar, coating to the edge.  This helps the soufflé rise.

Whisk sugar, flour, salt with some of the milk in a saucepan to form a paste; basically, you are preparing a sweet béchamel sauce. Once it bubbles, add and whisk the remaining milk.  Stir over low heat until it bubbles again and it thickens (about 4 mins). Transfer to a large bowl and add cocoa, egg yolks, and vanilla and stirl til smooth. 

With an electric mixer, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until soft peaks form.  Fold egg whites into mixture.

Divide batter in ramekins, and let chill (can be stored overnight, which I did).

To make the orange whip cream, whip heavy cream, sugar, and orange peel until heavy peaks form and store until survey.

When you are ready to bake your soufflés, preheat your oven to 375°F.  Bake until puffy for 15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Voilà! Soufflé!

For my first soufflés, I think they came out pretty good, and they tasted amazing! If you’re afraid they’re not going to rise, just relax! And if they become too light, follow the advice from the Swedish Chef!

http://youtu.be/Zmr4dKlXR_o