I never made souffle before because I thought it would be so difficult to make. I’ve only seen the making of souffle on one of my favorite tv show, Hell’s Kitchen. Even there with professional kitchen and cook, they still failed to make souffle now and then. Thanks to KBB’s challenge this month that I had to make it and believe me it was not as difficult as I thought it would be.
I didn’t make any changes on the ingredients and method, just one thing that I added was a handful of shredded spinach leaves. No major difficulty that I found during the baking. It came out nicely puffed and fluffy. One thing I would do different next time would be the cayenne pepper. I hardly notice the taste on my souffle, so next time I would definitely add more.
On the other hand, the photo session was a bit challenging for me. As you know, souffle would only be puffed up for some minutes before it would slowly fall. I think I failed photo-wise. The photo session was so hectic, I was running here and there between the kitchen and the photo set. One good picture I made was not so puffed up.
All in all it was a really good experience and challenge. Thanks to KBB, from now on, I wouldn’t be scared to make souffle again.
Ingredients:
– 100 gr unsalted butter
– 1/2 cup plain (all purpose) flour
– 300 ml milk
– 1 cup grated cheddar
– 2 tbs freshly grated parmesan
– 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
– Pinch cayenne pepper
– 4 eggs
Directions:
– Preheat the oven to 190C (375F, Gas Mark 5). Grease and lightly flour six ½-cup-capacity souffle dishes.
– Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Gradually add the milk and whisk continuously over medium heat until the mixture is smooth, thickens and comes to the boil. Allow to cool for 5 minutes.
– Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the cheddar, parmesan, mustard and cayenne pepper. Mix well.
– Lightly beat the egg yolks and add these to the cheese mixture. Mix well.
– With an electric mixer, whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl until firm peaks form. Fold a quarter of the whites through the cheese mixture to slacken it slightly, then gently fold through the remaining whites.
– Spoon the mixture into the prepared dishes and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until risen and golden. Don’t be tempted to open the oven until the souffles have risen. Serve immediately.
Source: The Perfect Cookbook by David Herbert. Penguin Books Australia Ltd 2003.
