Cheese Soufflés
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A cheese soufflé is the most satisfying of all savory soufflés and also provides a model for making savory soufflés out of just about anything. The model is simple: Make a béchamel sauce - essentially milk thickened with a little flour and combine it with cheese and egg yolks. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks and fold them with the béchamel mixture while folding over additional grated cheese - ideally a dry cheese such as Parmigiano-Reggiano that grates very fine. Spoon the mixture into individual soufflé dishes that have been buttered and coated with grated cheese orflour. If your soufflé dishes are 10 ounces or largen there is no need to make collars. If, however, they're smaller - say 8 ounces - make 4 aluminum foil collars out of 4 sheets of aluminum foil, each about 4 times as long as the diameter of the dishes, by folding the sheets lengthwise in thirds. The strips should be wide enough to come about 2 inches over the rim of the soufflé dish. Bake the soufflés until they rise 1 to 2 inches out of the dishes. Jiggle one to see if it seems stiff or fluid - this takes some practice - and probe into the soufflé with a spoon. It should be slightly runny in the very center. Makes 4 individual souffles.
ingredients
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serves: 4
2 tablespoons butter (at room temperature, for dishes plus 3 tablespoons if using collars)
5 tablespoons parmesan (finely grated authentic Italian Parmesan, or other dry cheese for dishes plus 1/2 cup if using collars)
Béchamel base
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
3/4 cup milk
1 pinch (or grating) of nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 grinds of pepper
4 egg yolks
5 ounces Gruyére (or other firm cheese, grated - about 1 cup)
Soufflés
7 egg whites
1 pinch cream of tartar (unless using a copper bowl)
2 ounces parmesan(authentic Italian Parmesan or other dry cheese such as aged Gouda, grated) (about 3/4 cup lightly packed)
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount per Serving
Calories: 521
- Total Fat: 42.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 21.2 g
- Trans Fat: 0.6 g
- Cholesterol: 875.3 mg
- Sodium: 651.4 mg
- Total Carbs: 12 g
- Dietary Fiber: 0.8 g
- Sugars: 2.7 g
- Protein: 22.8 g
preparation
1. To prepare the molds, brush the soufflé molds with butter and coat the molds with the grated Parmesan cheese.
2. For collars: Cut four strips of aluminum foil about 4 times as long as the soufflé dishes are wide. Fold the strips in thirds lengthwise. The collars should be 1 to 2 inches wider than the soufflé dish is high.
3. Brush the collars with butter - don't butter the entire strip, just the part that will be above the dish.
4. Sprinkle the collar with the grated Parmesan.
5. Tap off the excess cheese.
6. To make the béchamel sauce, separate the eggs by moving the egg back and forth between the two halves of the broken shell while letting the white drop down into a bowl.
7. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the flour, whisk to eliminate lumps, and cook the flour for about 2 minutes.
8. Whisk the milk into the flour-butter mixture (a roux), about one-fourth at a time. Wait until the mixture thickens before adding more.
9. Continue adding milk and vvhisking to keep the sauce smooth and free of lumps.
10. Grate in nutmeg and add salt and pepper.
11. When the béchamel has thickened, take it off the heat and whisk it for a minute or so to cool it. Add the egg yolks and stir until smooth.
12. Whisk in the Gruyere cheese and stir until the sauce is smooth.
13. To finish the soufflés, beat the egg whites to stiff peaks (add cream of tartar, unless you are using a copper bowl).
14. Whisk about one-fourth of the beaten egg whites into the base to lighten it.
15. Add the base tothe egg whites and fold together.
16. While folding together the base and egg whites, sprinkle over the Parmesan cheese.
17. Fill the prepared dishes.
18. Smooth off the tops of the soufflés with the back of a knife or with a metal spatula.
19. Make a small moat around the rim of the soufflés with your thumb.
20. Wrap the collars around the soufflés.
21. Attach the collars by folding over a little bit of one end with the other.
22. Bake until the soufflés come about 2 inches above the rim of the dishes. Quickly remove the collars and serve.
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comments
Mommy_loves_to_cook
May 8, 2012