Souffle

Souffles seem to polarize people into two camps: one who claim that they are impossibly difficult and finicky and another who insist that they’re actually a cinch to produce. Souffles are marginally more difficult than making an omelette, which is similar to what you’re left with once one has fallen, but they should not be particularly frightening. Like many things in the kitchen, all that is required to make souffles is a bit of patience and some understanding of what is happening behind the closed doors of the oven.

Unlike omelettes, souffles come in two types, sweet and savory. Generally what you’ll see are chocolate souffles for the sweet side and cheese souffles for the savory, this is because people generally love chocolate and cheese. Souffles in my house, when I bother to make them, are no exception, because I too enjoy chocolate and cheese – though not typically simultaneously.

A souffle is essentially bechamel (savory), pastry cream or custard (sweet) leavened with egg whites. Since it is the structure of the egg white proteins and incorporated air that makes the souffle rise, that structure is essential in keeping it stable. Heated for too long, the structure will burst, causing it to literally collapse by the weight of itself. When the souffle is removed from the oven, the air that caused it to rise begins to cool, also slowly causing the structure to eventually fall. So no matter how expertly prepared, a souffle still has to be eaten pretty much immediately after being removed from the oven.

Whipping egg whites by hand is a pain. Just be thankful if you did not go to a culinary school that insisted on doing everything by hand, over and over again, to gain an appreciation for “how things used to be”. An electric mixer will make quick work of things for you. Just make sure absolutely no egg yolk gets into your whites and that your bowl and utensils are immaculately clean of fat. If you are in the predicament of doing things by hand (or happen to have a masochistic streak and enjoy such tedious productions, such as myself) start whisking those albumens in a figure eight pattern until soft peaks begin to form, and then switch to the vigorous rotations. Your wrist will thank you.

Why should you go through all this trouble of whisking egg whites and such when you could just make a frittata? Oh, my friend, you have obviously not eaten a souffle before, for a souffle has a wonderful airy texture that cannot be compared to something like a frittata, quiche or strata. It is light, like a delicate meringue, without feeling as though you are eating eggy air. Serving a souffle is all about timing, but eating it is all about appreciating the texture. Simply put, there is good reason why you don’t find “chocolate frittatas” and chocolate souffles around.

Below, you will find a recipe for the savory variety. When I say “strong cheeses” I mean anything particularly flavorful, not necessarily Roquefort. I used Emmenthal, Parmesan and some sort of French cheese I don’t exactly remember the name of. Sorry. I do remember it was delicious though.

Cheese Souffle

• 1 cup milk
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 small onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
• 4 eggs, separated
• 3 ounces strong cheeses, grated
• salt and cayenne pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Place milk, bay leaf and onion in a saucepan and bring just to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 10 minutes.
3. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium heat until foaming bubbles subside, then quickly stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Cook butter and flour together for one minute to make a roux.
4. Strain the onion and bay leaf from the milk, discarding the onion and bay leaf. Gradually whisk the milk into the roux until fully incorporated. Cook until thickened, then remove it from the heat. This is your bechamel.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Whisk in a tablespoon of the bechamel to the egg yolks to temper them and prevent curdling of the eggs, then add the egg yolks into the bechamel, stirring to incorporate. Add the cheeses to the bechamel and season to taste with salt and cayenne pepper.
6. In an impeccably clean stainless steel, glass or copper bowl, whisk or beat the egg whites with a small pinch of salt (a pinch of cream of tartar would be nice too, if you have it) until soft peaks form.
7. Mix 1/3 of the egg whites into the bechamel to lighten it, then fold in the remaining 2/3 of the egg whites with a spoon or spatula.
8. Pour this mixture into a buttered/greased 4 cup souffle dish. If you want, run the end of a wooden spoon or your finger in a circle around the souffle to give it a “tophat” finish. I like to see what kind of random chaos is going to emerge and leave it alone.
9. Bake, without opening the oven, for approximately 30 minutes. When the top of the souffle has risen well beyond the rim of the dish, is browned on top and only slightly jiggles when shaked. Serve it immediately or risk a catastrophic collapse of all of your efforts into a very cheesy pancake.