Demystifying the Souffle

Not that the soufflé is a mystery that most of us think about but…

I have loved soufflé ever since the age of seven when my uncle made me a perfectly fluffy and delicious Grand Marnier soufflé that melted in my mouth. When I was younger I didn’t eat a lot of the things my uncle made for me; I vividly remember being yelled at for not trying carrot celery juice, but I will always fondly recall every trip to Massachusetts on which I was lucky enough to taste my uncle’s soufflé.

Since I have started making soufflé, I have always made soufflé au fromage in a large ramekin for four or more people and I have always used Julia Child’s recipe from “Mastering the Art of French Cooking.” Soufflé is one of the only things I ever stick to recipes for (following recipes makes me feel like I’m being told what to do, something I don’t respond very well to) and while taste has never been a problem, the soufflé’s ability to rrise has varied.

A weekend ago I decided to make mini soufflé’s and came across an adaptation of Julia Child’s recipe on the internet (I believe the only change is adding cream of tartar (for structure) to the egg whites.) Even though I could hear the culinarily pure voice of my uncle in the back of my head, telling me not to mess with Julia Child, I decided to give the recipe a try.

On two occasions, I made soufflé using the recipe listed below and on both I not only managed to space out and screw up (the first time I tried I added too much milk at the wrong temperature and the second time, I idiotically forgot to add the cheese. These are pictured on the left after a couple minutes of sinking.), but I also managed to get my souffle’s to rise. One of them even rose the next day after sitting uncooked in my refrigerator over night and transported to work.

I am posting this recipe (not my own) with the hope that those of you who might not be experienced cooks give it a try. I used to believe that the process of soufflé preparation had to be perfect for them to work but after my recent gaffes I realize that all you need to do is add cream of tartar for to make soufflé work.

I hope some of you give this a try and it tastes delicious. Don’t forget the cheese.

(Note: when I made this soufflé I divided it up among smaller ramekins and reduced the cooking time to approximately 12 minutes.I also substituted cheddar for swiss. I guess I didn't really follow the recipe after all.)

• 1 tsp. butter plus 3 tbsp. butter, divided

• 1 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

• 3 tbsp. flour

• 1 c. boiling milk

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 1/8 tsp. pepper

• Pinch of cayenne pepper

• Pinch of nutmeg

• 5 eggs

• 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

• Pinch of salt

• 3/4 cup (3 oz.) coarsely grated cheddar cheese, or combination of cheddar and Parmesan, divided

Directions

Prepare a 6-cup soufflé mold by buttering inside and sides with 1 teaspoon butter, then sprinkle with the 1 tablespoon Parmesan. Turn upside down to knock out excess. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Melt the 3 tablespoons butter in the saucepan. Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon and cook over moderate heat until butter and flour foam together for 2 minutes without browning. Remove from heat; when mixture has stopped bubbling, pour in all the boiling milk at once.

Beat vigorously with a wire whip until blended. Beat in the salt, pepper, cayenne and nutmeg. Return to moderately high heat and boil, stirring with the wire whip, for 1 minute. Sauce will be very thick.

Remove pan from heat. Immediately separate first of 4 eggs into containers by placing egg white into a separate bowl and yolk into the center of the hot sauce. Immediately beat the yolk into the sauce with the wire whip. Continue in the same manner with the other three eggs. Set yolk mixture aside.

Add an extra egg white (from the fifth egg; you won't use the yolk) to the ones in the bowl. Whip 30 seconds until foamy, add cream of tartar and a pinch of salt. Beat until stiff peaks form. Stir a big spoonful (about one quarter of the egg whites) into the sauce. Stir all but a tablespoon of the cheese into that mixture. Delicately fold in the rest of the egg whites.

Turn the soufflé mixture into the prepared mold, which will be almost three quarters full. Tap the bottom of the mold lightly on the table, and smooth the surface of the soufflé with the flat of a knife. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Set on the second lowest level rack of oven and immediately turn the oven down to 375 degrees. Do not open oven door for 20 minutes. In 25 to 30 minutes the soufflé will have puffed about 2 inches over the rim of the mold, and the top will be nicely browned. (If you like a creamy center, it may be served at this point, but it is fragile and will sink rapidly.) It will collapse less readily if you allow it to bake 4 to 5 minutes more to firm it up. Serve at once.