Cheese Soufflé

Right out of the oven

Does this ever happen to you?  Once a deadline is past, you lose all sense of urgency to get something done, and then it gets done even later than it needed to?  Take, for example, last week’s French Fridays with Dorie post.  I made the soufflé early in the week and I was on track to get the post written on time.  But then I got busy preparing for my sister and niece to come for a visit and it just didn’t get done.  I figured I would get it written Sunday or Monday when I finally had some time.  But no.  It was already late, so why not later?

ANYWAY, here it is finally!  Last week’s recipe is a French classic:  Cheese Soufflé.

Beginning to deflate...

The base of a cheese soufflé is a basic white sauce, called a béchamel.  Egg yolks are whisked into the béchamel, and then grated Gruyère cheese is added in.  The ingredient that causes the dramatic rise of the soufflé is whipped egg whites.  They are gently folded into the cheese mixture, which is then poured into the baking dish.

Deflated

The soufflé bakes for 40 to 50 minutes, and it rises dramatically while in the oven.  Dorie says to remove it when “it is well risen, golden brown, and firm to the touch but still a little jiggly at the center”.  I thought my soufflé fit this description after 40 minutes, but wasn’t quite cooked through.  The top was cooked, but the bottom was still a little liquidy.  I should have cooked it for the additional 10 minutes.

Cheesy and light

Despite the bottom not being cooked completely, we really enjoyed the cheese soufflé (don’t worry – we only ate the top half).  It made a great side dish to a roast tri tip.  My daughter loved it, but she loves anything with the word “cheese” in the title.  It would be a fun “wow” dish to make for company.

A delicious meal!