Girl Time and Chocolate Souffles

21. May 2012 · 24 comments · Categories: Baking, cooking, Dessert, food, life, recipes · Tags: , ,

chocolate souffle

Pardon the iphone pics…

Nate went to California this weekend with his mom, to visit his brother who lives there. I wish I could have gone but I hate having to take a red eye and having such a long flight for such a short trip.

I knew that I should spend the weekend doing some wedding-related projects, but I also decided to sign up for a souffle baking class! I’ve made a chocolate souffle before but I figured I could use a few pointers, and I had a coupon for half-off. I can’t refuse a deal!

The class was through DessertTruck Works. Dessert Truck used to be an actual truck that drove around NYC, dispensing tasty treats out its window. I guess their business grew so much that they decided to open a store. I saw them on the Food Network once in a Throdown with Bobby Flay…and they won!

chocolate souffle

My friend did it with me and had a great time. We got to catch up and eat chocolate…what could be better ;)

I did learn a few things. There are 3 different types of meringue: French, Swiss, and Italian. They differ in that French is the least stable is is simply whipped egg whites with sugar. Swiss is slightly more stable because the whites are cooked with the sugar over a water bath. Finally, Italian is the most stable and involves pouring a boiling sugar syrup into the whites while they’re being whipped.

French meringue is therefore the simplest, quickest and easiest. Because the teacher wanted to show us how to make souffle without any fancy appliances, we had to whip the egg whites by hand. My friend and I switched off whipping and my arm is still SO sore! I told the teacher that she should have an exercise class that consists of different cooking techniques. Kneading dough without a KitchenAid made my arms and abs extremely sore the last time I did it!

chocolate souffle

I also learned that you should run your finger around the inside rim of the ramekin so that the souffle doesn’t get stuck on the sides as it begins to rise, and thus has an easier time rising. This will prevent slanted souffles and also cracks on top. Good to know :)

Souffles were a perfect recipe for a 1.5 hour class because you assemble and cook them in a very short amount of time. They only have to bake for 10 minutes when made in small ramekins.

I highly recommend this recipe. It was the perfect texture, not too sweet and very chocolatey. We got to eat it with a Creme Anglaise they had that was perfect with it.

*They gave this recipe out and already had everything measured for us, so sorry it’s in grams instead of cups. If I make it again I’ll update the recipe.

Chocolate Souffle

From DessertTruck Works!

Print this recipe!

makes Five 4 oz. ramekins

Ingredients:
approx. 4 Tbsp of softened unsalted butter (for ramekins)
approx. 1/2 Cup of granulated sugar (for ramekins)
250 g egg whites
120 g granulated sugar
3 g cream of tartar or lemon juice
150 g 70% dark chocolate
35 g egg yolks

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Using a brush, generously brush the interior of the ramekins with softened butter, ensuring that the entire interior is buttered. Coat the butter with sugar, knocking out any excess sugar.

Using a double-boiler, melt the chocolate over simmering water, stirring occasionally.

Place the egg whites, the cream of tartar or lemon juice and a pinch of sugar in a large bowl. Using a whisk or an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the whites and gradually add the rest of the granulated sugar. Whip the whites until you get stiff peaks. You now have a meringue.

Stir in about one-third of the meringue into the melted chocolate. Then fold this mix into the remaining meringue, making sure you use a rubber spatula at this point.

Now fold in the egg yolks into approximately one-third of the chocolate-meringue mixture. Fold in the rest of the chocolate-meringue mixture into the mix with the yolks.

Spoon or pipe the souffle mix into your ramekins. Level the tops of each ramekin so that the souffle mixture is even with the top of the ramekins.**Note, at this point you can refrigerate or freeze your souffles for baking at another time. If you refrigerate them, just take them out of the fridge 15 minutes before you plan to bake them.

Run your thumb along the inside edge of each ramekin rim. Bake the souffles on the middle rack until they have risen, formed a crust on top, but are still jiggly in the center, approximately 10 minutes.
Serve immediately.

Spring is here!- Carrot Orange Pudding Souffle

11. April 2011 · 11 comments · Categories: Baking, Brunch, cooking, food, recipes, Side dishes, vegetarian · Tags: , , , , , ,

Call me crazy, but I love cold weather. The first brisk day in autumn when I get to wear a sweater makes me the happiest girl. Sure, when the temps dip into the teens come winter, I try to avoid being outside for extended periods of time, but something about the frigid air is so refreshing.

But by mid-january, I’m kinda over all the layering. I’m over having to remember to take my scarf, hat, and gloves out the door every day (and freezing my face off on the days when I forget).  So when the weather hit the 50s the other day, I got a little giddy. I guess maybe I like spring more than I’d let on.

With the milder temperature days slowing creeping in, and the holidays approaching, I’ve been trying to come up with a recipe that just screams spring. I knew that in order to encompass this season completely, it had to be bright, fresh, warm, refreshing, light and airy. I wanted something that could be served at any spring holiday meal.

I was going to make something with squash but my mom told me that’s too wintry and suggested carrots. I knew right when she said it that I’d have to make some sort of carrot pudding/souffle.

The orange color is so bright it reminds me of all the beautiful flowers that start popping up at this time of year. I added a touch of orange zest and juice to give it a citrusy and fresh aroma.  The orange/carrot combo is a delicious one.

I wasn’t sure how it would turn out when it was in the oven, but as soon as I took it out I knew it was exactly what I wanted. Fluffy and delicious, it was everything I’d hoped.

I made this recipe with matzo meal instead of flour, and margarine instead of butter to be sure that it could translate well for Passover (not all recipes do), but obviously using flour and butter would work equally well, if not better and could be served for Easter brunch/dinner.


Carrot Orange Pudding Souffle
Recipe by Me

Print this recipe!

serves 6-8

1 3/4 lbs carrots, peeled and chopped
1 Tbsp fresh orange juice
1/2 cup margarine/butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
zest of 1 orange (about 1 Tbsp)
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp matzo meal/flour
Powdered sugar for garnish

Preheat oven to 350.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add carrots and cook til tender, about 30 min. Drain and transfer to a medium bowl. Mash with a potato masher or fork. Add orange juice and mix. Cool to room temp.

Using an electric mixer, beat margarine/butter til creamy. Beat in sugar and zest til blended. Add eggs and beat til blended and slightly more voluminous. Mixture may look curdled but that’s ok.

Add carrots to egg mixture and blend.

In a small bowl, combine salt, baking powder and matzo meal/flour. Stir completely to blend. Pour into a 2 quart baking dish.

Bake 1 hr 15 min or until top is golden brown. Best served at room temperature or cold. Dust with powdered sugar before serving if desired.

*Note, I double checked and baking powder IS kosher for Passover :)