by Deena Mcclusky

Created on: January 12, 2009   Last Updated: January 28, 2009

The first, and most crucial thing to remember about making a souffle is that it is vastly easier to do than you believe. For years people have convinced themselves that they are unable to master this relatively simple dish. Whether this is because it is French, and therefore scary from a cooking standpoint, or because everyone has somehow heard horror stories from others about failed attempts, is unclear. What should be remembered is that this is a dish that has very few ingredients, requires very few tools, cooks quickly, and is not hard.

Ramekins are the first item you need to procure. Once you have mastered souffle making you will likely want to have varying sizes to use for different purposes, but initially purchasing individual sized ones would be the best choice. These can be found at virtually any store with a kitchen department and can be found as inexpensively as around four dollars for two. The other crucial item is a proper metal whisk. This is an item already in most kitchens so this should not be a problem. As for the many recipes available that suggest the use of a double boiler or other more expensive kitchen items, these are unnecessary.

The two easiest versions to start with would be either chocolate or cheese. The recipe is identical with the only difference being which of these items you include. For the purposes of simplicity the following instructions are for the chocolate version.

Ingredients:

4 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp flour

2 tsp cocoa

3 tbsp milk

tsp vanilla

1 lg egg - separated

Mix the sugar, flour, cocoa, milk, and vanilla together in a saucepan over low heat. When thoroughly blended add the egg yolk and remove from heat. Working quickly whip the egg white until it peaks and fold carefully into the prepared mixture. Spoon gently into a pre-buttered ramekin. Cooking spray can be used in place of butter if preferred. Place the ramekin in any sort of baking dish with slightly raised sides so that you can pore water into the dish to surround the ramekin. Bake for approximately fifteen minutes. Baking time will vary by ovens so this may take some trial and error. You may also find that depending on taste, some people prefer the center of their souffle to be softer and some prefer a more cake like consistency which can be achieved by slight variation in the baking time. Most of all remember that even if you souffle should fall it is still eminently edible, despite not looking as pretty as you may have desired.

Remove from oven carefully and remove from baking pan. Place the ramekin on serving dish and use two spoons to split open the top and insert fresh whipped cream, or to reduce calories and fat simply sprinkle with a light dusting of powdered sugar. Serve.

Once you master this simple recipe you can take your souffle making in a variety of direction. Many different types of chocolate may be substituted for the cocoa. The only warning I would make is to not use chocolate chips as that would be a recipe for disaster. By design they are harder to melt than other forms of chocolate and therefore make a poor choice. Since you are experimenting on a single serving basis you can afford to be daring. Pair unusual combinations and most of all have fun. Cooking was meant to be enjoyable.

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