Classic Cheese Soufflé

Classic Cheese Soufflé

In the pantheon of seemingly intimidating and near-impossible dishes to prepare at home, soufflé holds a pretty prominent position. Granted, while a homemade soufflé can be a little fussy when it comes to preparation, there is absolutely no need at all to be intimidated by this dish. The ingredients are actually quite humble and mainly consist of typical kitchen staples that everyone keeps on hand, and the prep-work itself isn’t all that taxing. Trust me, if you can mix ingredients and whip egg whites, then you can make a soufflé!

The key to a successful homemade soufflé is mise en place (French for “putting in place”). In the culinary world, this term refers to having all your ingredients prepped, measured, and ready to go before you begin to prepare a dish. Mise en place is especially important for a recipe like soufflé that involves several steps, and once you get it going, you really don’t want (or need) to stop and separate eggs or grate cheese. Having proper mise en place will undoubtedly assure a successful soufflé! Also, keep in mind that this really isn’t a “make ahead” dish. A soufflé should really be prepared just before you plan to serve it, and it should be served immediately once it has finished cooking. So you can definitely see here how proper mise en place is important for this recipe!

I’ve made soufflés before, but I was most recently inspired to prepare one after dining with loved ones at the fantastic Grille 29 in Birmingham, AL during our annual holiday shopping outing. One of their desserts is a marvelous chocolate soufflé that we all adamantly adored, and its sheer deliciousness inspired me to prepare my own soufflé of a more savory persuasion. I love a cheese soufflé mainly because of its versatility. It’s rich-tasting enough to be served as an entrée, perhaps accompanied by a salad, but it’s also light enough to be served as an appetizer or a brunch dish accompanied by fresh fruit. I hope my following recipe inspires you to try to make this classic dish yourself!

3 tbs. butter (plus extra for greasing)

3 tbs. all-purpose flour

At least ¼ cup finely grated parmesan

1 cup milk

1 tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

4 egg yolks

7 egg whites

1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

1 cup grated cheese*

*For this recipe, you can really use just about any kind of cheese you like. In my most recent preparation, I used a Vallagret, a very mild Swiss cheese made by Mississippi State University, which made for a very delicious soufflé! You can also use regular Swiss, gruyere, or cheddar. Just make sure the cheese you use is a *good* cheese and not something overly processed.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Make sure to adjust the racks so that the soufflé will have room to rise properly. Prepare a large soufflé dish by greasing the inside very liberally with butter. Then, sprinkle the parmesan in an even coating throughout the inside of the dish. (If you don’t have a soufflé dish, that’s fine. Just make sure to use a casserole dish with a flat bottom and tall sides. For individual, smaller soufflés, you can use ramekins. This recipe will make one large soufflé or approximately eight small ones.)

In a saucepan, bring the milk to medium heat. Make sure it doesn’t boil but that it stays warm. In another pan, melt the butter at medium heat, and add the flour, salt, and pepper. Cook for two minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and add the milk, whisking vigorously until everything is evenly blended. Then, whisk in the egg yolks until they are thoroughly combined, and then whisk in the grated cheese until the entire mixture is evenly blended.

For preparing the egg whites, make sure to use a glass or metal bowl and an electric mixer. In the bowl, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar and beat on high speed until the whites form stiff peaks. (The process is similar to making a meringue, sans sugar.)

In a large mixing bowl, gently fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture one small batch at a time. Do not beat or whip too vigorously, but continue to fold in the egg whites until they are all thoroughly incorporated into the cheese mixture. Pour the mixture into your prepared dish, leaving at least one or two inches of space at the top, and bake for 30-35 minutes. If your oven has a tendency to overheat, you may want to reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. Make sure that you don’t open the oven door too early, or your soufflé could deflate. The soufflé should be lightly browned. (If you’re using ramekins, reduce the cooking time to around 15 minutes.)

Once the soufflé has finished cooking, remove it from the oven and serve immediately as desired. 

 

(As you can see here, we used a typical Corningware dish for our large souffle, and it still turned out perfectly!) 

 

(Perfect little dishes of fluffy, cheesy goodness!)  

Enjoy! (And Happy New Year!)
:)