Souffles
 

My partner and I and several friends were in Paris last month and one of the things we did was eat at Le Souffle. It was terrific. Anyway, I ordered a chicken and mushroom souffle. When they served it, they brought out a (I think) cheese souffle and a bowl of chicken and mushrooms in a cream sauce. They "dug" (for lack of a better term) a hole in the middle of the souffle and spooned the chicken and sauce into it. It was wonderful.

Anyway, after Christmas, I made my usual creamed turkey (boiling the carcass, separating the meat from the bones, straining, thickening and all that). After one meal of serving it over mashed potatoes, for another, we decided to attempt souffles and serve them like they did in Paris. We used this basic recipe:

http://www.murraywilliams.com/cooking/souffle.html

We used gruyere cheese and instead of a large souffle, made individual ones, buttering the ramekins and lining them with grated parmesan. They turned out beautiful and so delicious - with and without the creamed turkey.

Next up? Chocolate!

You are a cruel one indeed...:D

I'm just home from work and haven't eaten yet!!!!

(Whatever I have won't live up to that souffle I'm sorry to say...:()

We took pics. They were so beautiful when they came out of the oven! :D

souffles are awesome.

I like making them with many cheeses, like to combine the normal cheeses that tend to be mild with some more pungent cheeses, even hard cheeses.

Also you can make them with varied styles depending on mood, you can do some incredible italian basil and tomato souffle :D

One of the treats of life for many culinary buffs is the venerable "Souffle".
I try not to think about them.

Like the OP, I love Paris. And of course, the food. A Souffle is always on my agenda. That and Moules-frites.

Here in the States, I've actually found the Morton's Steak House "Amaretto Souffle" to be wonderful for desert. I always order it.

C'est magnifique!

Souffles are much easier to make that many people realize.

A lot of cooking is like that, but when people see make a roux, beat eggwhites and fold them into something, it's all over.

Yes.
And the waiters/waitresses at places like Morton's always make a big deal out of it.
"Sir, if you and madame are going to order the "Souffle" for desert, may I suggest you get your order in now, because they take time to prepare!
;)

I bit.

I'd put off making a soufflé for years as I'd hoped to try a good one before attempting it. It's a dish that has kept eluding me. I was in Spain last time I ordered a suflé de limon and instead of a light, airy, lemony cloud of scrumptiosness I got a horrible sickly sweet Italian style meringue (what I would generally call a 'tarta merengada' or 'tarta de merengue') and a side dollop of 'education' by a South American waiter who repeatedly insisted in patronising terms that this is what souffles are (I'm sure he chuckled about my ignorance later to colleagues, friends and family :( ).

Anyway, now that I have an Airfryer which means nearly instant warm up times for what is effectively a small oven I tried this recipe with some aged gouda I had to hand and used small ramekins (a 2 egg recipe for three portions.)

They took 15 minutes in the oven, so just under 25 minutes from start to finish.

Glorious! Our two year old was particularly fond of her soufflé and wolfed it down as soon as it was cool enough.

Verdict: easier than poaching an egg (it took many, many attempts for me to get to a point where I'm usually happy with my poached and boiled eggs, soufflé was perfect on first attempt - and I don't think it was a fluke)

Thanks!

Thanks to this thread I was inspired to have souffle for breakfast. Yum!

I don't think I have ever had a true souffle. I have yet to encounter one on a restaurant menu, and have never met anyone who made them. I tried making one once from a recipe but it was a dismal failure. Part of me thinks they wold be nothing more than a baked egg that is really light - I am assuming there is more to it than that?

If you look at the basic recipe in the op, you'll see that it's quite a bit more than a baked egg.

Saw this video earlier today. looks absolutely terrible.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3A2Am4LqLo

Yes... Horrible!

But it isn't souffle - more like a moelleux.

You seem to be underestimating how much of a part the small amount of starch plays when it comes to texture, succulence and flavour.
It doesn't taste anything like meringue -where egg is beaten with sugar and baked nor is it like a whipped omelet (with or without the yolk).
I'd put off eating one for years as I didn't want a mediocre version to be a defining first experience and leave me prejudiced against this classic dish in the way you became after your disaster.
I've already made it a second time - makes a nice change from eggy bread for breakfast - and am so pleased I finally tackled my souffle virginity.

ILuvParis - if you come across a kickass chocolate souffle do please post the recipe here. I've made my fair share of moelleux and fondants but am always vaguely disappointed with them. I suspect the chocolate dessert of my dreams is actually a souffle with a chocolate sauce poured into the middle.

I make chocolate souffles, and they are light and airy and therefore not very chocolate-y. I've had better luck with doing a peppermint souffle with choc chips!

Souffles are easy. My standard recipe for random flavours is 50 ml of strongly flavoured thick white sauce made with a roux (can be a cheese sauce, or you can flavour with sugar, scraped vanilla bean or essences, add ground nuts, etc) to 2 egg whites. (My chocolate souffle is different and I'd have to find the recipe - it's chocolate melted into milk, egg yolks added and thickened with cornflour. Let me know if you want the recipe.)

Audrey

If you would post that and the peppermint w/ choc. chips, that would be most excellent. Thanks!

+1

In anticipation, I think I'll go and buy some eggs! :)

Sorry it's taken me so long!

Simple Chocolate Souffle
25 g cornflour
250 ml milk
100 g good dark chocolate
50 g sugar
3 egg yolks
5 egg whites
1 tablespoon extra sugar, caster if available.

Mix cornflour to a thin paste with some of the milk.

Put the remaining milk in a saucepan with the chocolate and sugar, and stir over a gentle heat until the chocolate melts and the sugar dissolves.

Add cornflour paste carefully and bring mixture to boil to thicken, stirring continuously, then remove from heat.

Beat in egg yolks one by one, and leave mixture to cool slightly. (You can prepare in advance this far and if needed warm the mixture slightly before continuing.)

Beat egg whites until they begin to stand in soft peaks, then add extra sugar and beat until the mixture stands in stiff peaks but is not dry.

Gently fold egg whites into chocolate mixture, and immediately pour into greased and sugared 1 litre souffle dish, and bake at 190 degrees celsius for 40 - 45 minutes. Serve immediately.


As noted, it's mostly air so is not intensely chocolatey. If you want intensely chocolatey you need my ultimate chocolate cake recipe - that meets the spec! ('d have to check the exact recipe, but it's goes along the lines of 1 lb dark chocolate, 0.5 lb butter, eggs, a spoon of sugar and a spoon of flour, baked for about 15 minutes, then chilled in the tin and melted out of it. This cake will melt if left out on a warm day.... if anyone wants the recipe I am going to have to find it. Can't remember the ratio of chocolate to butter to egg.)

And here's my generic souffle recipe:

Almond Souffle

I looked in all my books, and couldn't find any recipes at all. So, I decided that a proportion of 50 ml bechamel per egg would be OK. it was. :+>

100 ml thick white sauce, made from a fairly dry roux.
2 egg whites, stiffly beaten
1 oz ground almonds (optional)
1 tablespoon sugar
few drops of almond essence, to taste

Mix the white sauce with the almonds, sugar and essence. Fold in eggwhites gently. Pour into two individual souffle moulds.

Put into oven that has been preheated to 240 degrees, and immediately turn heat down to 190 degrees. When it looks well risen (about 10 minutes) turn oven up to maximum to brown top.

When brown eat.

Very light and fluffy and delicate. And easy to make - just pinch a bit of white
sauce from another dish to use in this.


White Sauce:
Melt about a tablespoon of butter in a saucepan, add a tablespoon of flour, cook briefly while stirring, mixed. Add a small dash of milk, mix until smooth and thick, add another dash of milk, mix until smooth and not as thick, etc. One tablespoon of flour will generally thicken about 1 tablespoon of milk.

This recipe can be varied in many ways. The almond meal can be omitted and replaced with scraped vanilla bean, or a tablespoon of green creme de menthe which will give a pleasant green colour. Other liqueurs could be used. Very small chocolate chips can be added to create a chocolate chip souffle (if the chips sink to the bottom they were too big - experiment!). The souffle can be made more exciting by adding small pieces of sponge cake in the bottom of the souffle dish, soaked in brandy or liqueur. The milk in the sauce can be partly substituted with fruit juice or fruit puree. The sauce can be flavoured with melted cheese and the sugar omitted to make a cheese souffle.

A hole can be made in the top of the souffle and a sauce poured in - I prefer to do this with individual souffles and guests making their own hole and pouring in their sauce from a small jug.

A couple of my favourite combinations:

Almond choc chip.
Mint choc chip
Apple souffle with brandy soaked sponge in bottom

And using the previous chocolate souffle recipe:
Chocolate souffle with raspberry sauce
Chocolate souffle with vanilla custard (home made from left over egg yolks)

Audrey

Thanks for all that! Just one more question - how large are the individual souffles you make? This morning, I was at a chef's kitchen type place and saw individual ramekins in at least 4 oz., 6 oz., 8 oz, 10 oz., and 10.5 oz. sizes, if not more. I purchased some 10 oz., but these are probably better for savory souffles - a little large for sweet ones (for anyone but me! :D)!

Golly, I'll have to check! Pretty sure they are 4" across - they're standard ramekins. I've never seen the need for taller dishes for souffles.

Audrey

Since your profile shows you as being located in MEL, you might want to try the souffles at the European restaurant on Spring St (across from Parliament). Fantastic (as good as the best in Paris, ime). Flavours rotate monthly, but they make a great intense chocolate souffle and also a wild strawberry one (when they can get fraise du bois).

Magic souffle moment
 

Time out for a very significant soufflé moment. On our first trip to Paris, we visited Laperousse and at the time was a Michelin 2*or possibly 3*. The restaurant was known for its "discreet" salons. This was in the early 1970's and I was with a very young man. As well, he was with a very young woman. Did I mention that we were married to each other?
One dessert offered was a "fresh raspberry soufflé. So many years later and so many desserts later and yet, we will never forget our soufflé at Laperousse, in one of the salons prive.
Sometimes a soufflé is about the timing and the presentation. Sorry to burst anyone's egg whites.

Nice story - as long as nothing fell. :)

OK, for the Americans, I converted this. Anyone who is good at this, please check to see if I did it right. :)

3 T cornstarch
1 cup milk
3 1/2 oz good dark chocolate
4 T sugar
3 egg yolks
5 egg whites
1 tablespoon extra fine sugar, if available

And the oven temp. is 375. :)

I just realized that it looks like falconea left a step out - there is no mention made, after beating the eggwhites, of folding them into the chocolate mixture

I know where I can get twin yolk eggs, but where do I find the double white eggs? :)

;)

should that be 4 T sugar?
You can put granulated sugar in a food processor/blender to make it finer for caster sugar.

^

Oops, you're right. I'll fix that. Thanks for noticing. Oh, that's caster. I'll change it to extra fine for other dummies like me! :) And what about 100 ml of thick white sauce in the next recipe - not sure whether that's a liquid or dry measurement conversion for these purposes.

You may have to go to Melbourne. :p

I would think it's a liquid (TSA might call it a gel). This may help~

http://www.recipe-idea.com/conversion-chart.html

Ok, you've got my attention. ^

Please, we want to see pictures both of the final product including the oozing, yummy chocolate once you've taken that first spoonful.

Ah, they occur with small batches of vanilla custard sauce. :+>

Audrey

Do you have dry cups and liquid cups? I find this "dry" and "wet" measure business much more confusing than metric measurements!

100 ml is 100 ml. Half a cup should be a reasonable approximation - it's not a precise recipe.


Audrey

Apologies - I've amended my post.

Audrey

No, dry and wet is all the same when it comes to cups. But I saw some conversion talking about fluid oz. - that got me all confused. :D

We made ham and gruyere souffles on Sunday for breakfast - lined the ramekins with butter and fresh grated parmesan. Heavenly! :)

I just made this, as I was in a 'mocha' mood, and it is incredibly good.
I don't have an electric beater or even one of the old fashioned crank kind, my arms are worn out from whisking so much!

I am enjoying this treat a lot more than I should, considering I worked so hard to make it.

Julia Child taught me how to make a soufflé from her first cookbook. I still have the unlined copper bowl she convinced me was essential for beating the egg whites.

I got a the bowl, I have a whisk, my arm, I barely have now, tomorrow it will be stronger!

Now, that recipe needs a pinch of salt too, it was lacking in that regard, still very enjoyable.