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Souffles


Amy Eber

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I make lots of souffles ahead and don't have special recipes. I simply make the souffles and fill the individual ramekins about 2/3 to 3/4 full, cover with plastic wrap and either leave at room temp (for an hour or two) or refrigerate if it will be two hours or more. I place the souffles on a sheet pan or in a baking dish, if I am going to bake in a water bath, so one whole sheet of wrap covers all of them. Add five minutes or so to baking time if they are chilled.

Note: I don't think this would work on egg whites only souffles. I don't like them or make them, my souffles always have a bechamel base.

Ruth Dondanville aka "ruthcooks"

“Are you making a statement, or are you making dinner?” Mario Batali

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Most bases can hold for a couple of days no problem. Whip up some whites and go when needed. Shouldn't take more than a couple of minutes to get them into the oven.

If you want to have them mixed with whites and still come out looking perfect - maybe 1-2 hours ahead at best? I've cooked souffles left over from the previous night's service for breakfast and they come out more of a mushroom and very cracked. Not pretty but still tasty.

Are these souffles for home, work, catering...?

Devin

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i did a piece a couple of years ago where i developed souffles that could even be frozen in advance and then baked. it was amazing. i found the real trick was getting stiff peaks out of the egg whites and then the right balance of base to egg white (a little less than normal). after that, everything worked, pretty much. those things are not so delicate as we have been led to believe. here's one recipe:

Souffle of bitter greens

Servings: 6

Butter

3 tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, sliced

5 cups trimmed, shredded mustard greens, washed and lightly drained

1/3cup ricotta

3 egg yolks

1/2teaspoon salt

5 egg whites

1/8teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees and generously butter 6 (one-half cup) straight-sided ramekins or individual souffle molds. Warm the olive oil in a skillet and add the garlic. Cook until the garlic turns translucent, about 3 minutes, then add the mustard greens and cook, stirring, until they are quite soft, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly.

2. Combine the greens mixture, the ricotta, egg yolks and salt in a food processor and puree until smooth.

3. Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and continue beating until well-defined, stiff peaks form and retain their shape. Do not over-beat.

4. Gently fold about one-half cup of the greens puree into the egg whites, using a hand-held balloon whisk or a spatula. Cut straight down through the puree and the egg whites, scrape the bottom and lift the egg whites over the puree. Turn the bowl a quarter turn and repeat. Keep doing this until the puree is fully incorporated, 3 or 4 times.

5. Add the remaining puree and fold it in the same way. When you're done, the puree should be evenly distributed but there may be small patches of egg white remaining. Do not over-mix.

6. Using a large soup spoon, divide the souffle mixture among the ramekins. If you have excess batter, bake it in another ramekin or discard it. (The recipe can be made to this point, covered tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 2 hours or frozen for up to a month. Souffles can be baked straight from the refrigerator. If frozen, remove the plastic wrap immediately and warm at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.)

7. Put a jellyroll pan in the heated oven and arrange the souffle ramekins on it. Bake until the tops are puffed and golden brown in spots, 18 to 23 minutes. A sure sign of doneness is when the souffle becomes extremely fragrant. Do not over-bake, or the center will be dry. Remove and serve immediately.

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Thanks. I appreciate your help.

i did a piece a couple of years ago where i developed souffles that could even be frozen in advance and then baked. it was amazing. i found the real trick was getting stiff peaks out of the egg whites and then the right balance of base to egg white (a little less than normal). after that, everything worked, pretty much. those things are not so delicate as we have been led to believe. here's one recipe:

Souffle of bitter greens

Servings: 6

Butter

3 tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, sliced

5 cups trimmed, shredded mustard greens, washed and lightly drained

1/3cup ricotta

3 egg yolks

1/2teaspoon salt

5 egg whites

1/8teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees and generously butter 6 (one-half cup) straight-sided ramekins or individual souffle molds. Warm the olive oil in a skillet and add the garlic. Cook until the garlic turns translucent, about 3 minutes, then add the mustard greens and cook, stirring, until they are quite soft, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly.

2. Combine the greens mixture, the ricotta, egg yolks and salt in a food processor and puree until smooth.

3. Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and continue beating until well-defined, stiff peaks form and retain their shape. Do not over-beat.

4. Gently fold about one-half cup of the greens puree into the egg whites, using a hand-held balloon whisk or a spatula. Cut straight down through the puree and the egg whites, scrape the bottom and lift the egg whites over the puree. Turn the bowl a quarter turn and repeat. Keep doing this until the puree is fully incorporated, 3 or 4 times.

5. Add the remaining puree and fold it in the same way. When you're done, the puree should be evenly distributed but there may be small patches of egg white remaining. Do not over-mix.

6. Using a large soup spoon, divide the souffle mixture among the ramekins. If you have excess batter, bake it in another ramekin or discard it. (The recipe can be made to this point, covered tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 2 hours or frozen for up to a month. Souffles can be baked straight from the refrigerator. If frozen, remove the plastic wrap immediately and warm at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.)

7. Put a jellyroll pan in the heated oven and arrange the souffle ramekins on it. Bake until the tops are puffed and golden brown in spots, 18 to 23 minutes. A sure sign of doneness is when the souffle becomes extremely fragrant. Do not over-bake, or the center will be dry. Remove and serve immediately.

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What if the egg whites are Italian meringue? They should hold better than French meringue, no?

Candy Wong

"With a name like Candy, I think I'm destined to make dessert."

Want to know more? Read all about me in my blog.

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i did a piece a couple of years ago where i developed souffles that could even be frozen in advance and then baked. it was amazing. i found the real trick was getting stiff peaks out of the egg whites and then the right balance of base to egg white (a little less than normal). after that, everything worked, pretty much. those things are not so delicate as we have been led to believe. here's one recipe:

Souffle of bitter greens

...

Thank you; this sounds delicious. I just cooked up some mustard greens tonight (and used them in tacos with pinto beans and monterrey jack) but this sounds another application I need to try ASAP.

Does anyone know if it is generally possible to transfer souflee recipes designed for single serving ramekins to a single souflee dish? I'll probably just try it but thought I'd ask in case anyone had experience with this.

The Chez Panisse Vegetable Cookbook has a nice recipe for what is called a "pudding souffle". They are twice baked. the first time they are baked in ramekins. Then a little before service, they are removed from the ramekins and baked in a shallow dish with some cream. They puff up nicely again the second time but are less fluffy than once baked souffles. I've made the corn version but she also describes some others like green garlic or mushroom.

"Under the dusty almond trees, ... stalls were set up which sold banana liquor, rolls, blood puddings, chopped fried meat, meat pies, sausage, yucca breads, crullers, buns, corn breads, puff pastes, longanizas, tripes, coconut nougats, rum toddies, along with all sorts of trifles, gewgaws, trinkets, and knickknacks, and cockfights and lottery tickets."

-- Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1962 "Big Mama's Funeral"

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I have made a chocolate souffle which was stabilized with powdered egg whites. You can make them way ahead of time and they turn out like champs, a bit more "marshmallowy" tasting but yummy!

500 g. Egg White Fresh

25 g. Powdered Sugar

25 g. Powdered Egg White

100 g. Granulated Sugar

250 g. 70 % Chocolate

Mix together powdered sugar, powdered whites and a bit of fresh whites to smooth comsistency. Add back to rest of whites and mix over the stove until warm. Whip to medium peaks adding sugar slowly. Fold in melted chocolate and pipe into prepared molds. Bake at 425 about 15 minutes until they stand proud and are still soft in the middle.

Hope this helps!

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Does anyone know if it is generally possible to transfer souflee recipes designed for single serving ramekins to a single souflee dish?  I'll probably just try it but thought I'd ask in case anyone had experience with this.

Generally, you can bake a souffle in any sized dish. Just give it straight sides to rise up.

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Thanks, wendy and jackal10.

I hadn't thought it through too carefully, but I had wondered if the different ratios of souffle mixture to surface area of the cooking vessel (in the ranges we are speaking of, ie. ramekins and 'normal' souffle dish) would affect the rising and/or stability of the souffle. Thanks for the cooking time reminder, jackal10.

"Under the dusty almond trees, ... stalls were set up which sold banana liquor, rolls, blood puddings, chopped fried meat, meat pies, sausage, yucca breads, crullers, buns, corn breads, puff pastes, longanizas, tripes, coconut nougats, rum toddies, along with all sorts of trifles, gewgaws, trinkets, and knickknacks, and cockfights and lottery tickets."

-- Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1962 "Big Mama's Funeral"

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The Chez Panisse Vegetable Cookbook has a nice recipe for what is called a "pudding souffle".  They are twice baked. the first time they are baked in ramekins.  Then a little before service, they are removed from the ramekins and baked in a shallow dish with some cream.  They puff up nicely again the second time but are less fluffy than once baked souffles.  I've made the corn version but she also describes some others like green garlic or mushroom.

Several years ago I assisted at a cooking class taught by Anne Willan, who made a similar cheese and herb "twice-baked" souffle. The texture is not as light as a regular souffle, but they're still very good.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Generally, you can bake a souffle in any sized dish. Just give it straight sides to rise up.

And it doesn't have to be a souffle dish, either. I've made great cheese souffles in my Pyrex casserole dish (without the lid on, of course).

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Generally, you can bake a souffle in any sized dish. Just give it straight sides to rise up.

And it doesn't have to be a souffle dish, either. I've made great cheese souffles in my Pyrex casserole dish (without the lid on, of course).

I just made some souffles in hollowed out tangerine rinds, they came out great.

- peter

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