Vanilla Soufflé

I really love the texture of a well made soufflé, and I really love vanilla, but until today I had not been able to come up with a recipe for a vanilla soufflé that really allowed the lusciousness of the vanilla to shine through the egg. It’s been over a year since I made my first soufflé, a chocolate affair made with some really delicious 70% cocoa solids callebaut chocolate, which to me has a slightly spicy note to the flavor that I just adore (I’ll post that recipe another day), but I’ve played repeatedly with different variations on the classic vanilla soufflé and had never come close to the sublime vanilla flavor that haunted my imagination, until today. I made the recipe as individual soufflés, but I’ve included a version for a 2 quart / 2 liter soufflé as well.

Vanilla Soufflé (2 quart / 2 liter)

40g (2-3 TBSP) sugar to coat soufflé dish

Whipped Egg Whites
6 egg whites
50g (¼ C) sugar for whipping egg whites
2 TBSP lemon juice

Crème Pâtissière
2 egg yolks
50g (4 TBSP) sugar
30g (3½ TBSP) flour
360ml (1½ C) milk
3tsp vanilla paste or extract

Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C, arrange the rack into the bottom third of the oven and place a heavy baking sheet inside to heat. Butter a 2 quart/2 liter soufflé dish or baking dish. When buttering I use a silicon pastry brush (because I don’t like the potential for leaving little hairs behind in my dish) and coat the entire dish bottom and sides really well; I then take the brush and brush the sides from the bottom to the top to help with the upward rise of the soufflé. After buttering well sprinkle the inside of the dish with sugar making sure to tilt the dish around and coat the sides as well as the bottom; this gives the soufflé a little something to cling to as it climbs.

For the crème pâtissière, put the milk, vanilla and half the sugar into a small pan and slowly allow it to heat until steam is coming off the milk and small bubbles rise to the surface, then turn down the heat. Whisk the egg yolks and the remaining sugar in a bowl to a ribbon consistency then add the flour and whisk well to incorporate. Pour the hot milk on the yolks, whisking continuously so as not to scramble the eggs. Return to the pan and whisk over a low heat for 1 minute, then pour into a bowl, cover with cling film / Glad wrap (to prevent a skim forming on the crème) and allow to cool slightly.

Put the egg whites into a large bowl and beat until foamy. Whisking all the while, slowly add the sugar and then the lemon juice, beat until the whites are stiff, but not dry. The classic test of whether they’ve been whisked enough, is that you should be able to turn the bowl upside down over your head without any egg falling out… up to you whether you want to take that risk . Remove the cling film from the crème and whisk a quarter of the whites into the crème pâtissière to lighten it; then very gently fold the remaining whites through the crème. Now gently pour / spoon the mixture into the soufflé dish, slightly overfilling, then take a palette knife or chef’s knife and run it across the top of the dish to smooth the surface. Lastly, take your finger and run it around the rim of the dish, making a slight indentation all around the rim of the soufflé; this ensures a more even rise as the the soufflé won’t get stuck to the rim of the dish. Carefully place the soufflé dish onto the baking sheet and bake for 35 minutes if a slightly runny center is desired, and 45-50 minutes for a drier soufflé (I generally prefer the slightly runny center).

Individual Vanilla Soufflés Makes 4

20g (1-1½ TBSP) sugar to coat soufflé dishes

Whipped Egg Whites
4 egg whites
20g (1½ TBSP) sugar for whipping egg whites
1TBSP lemon juice

Crème Pâtissière
1 egg yolk
20g (1½ TBSP) sugar for the sauce
15g (2 TBSP) flour
235ml (1 C) milk
2tsp vanilla paste or extract

Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C, arrange the rack into the bottom third of the oven and place a heavy baking sheet inside to heat. Butter the ramekins. When buttering I use a silicon pastry brush and coat the entire dish bottom and sides really well; I then take the brush and brush the sides from the bottom to the top to help with the upward rise of the soufflé. After buttering well sprinkle the inside of the dishes with sugar making sure to tilt the dishes around and coat the sides as well as the bottom; this gives the soufflés a little something to cling to as they climb.

For the crème pâtissière, put the milk, vanilla and half the sugar into a small pan and slowly allow it to heat until steam is coming off the milk and small bubbles rise to the surface, then turn down the heat. Whisk the egg yolks and the remaining sugar in a bowl to a ribbon consistency then add the flour and whisk well to incorporate. Pour the hot milk on the yolks very slowly, whisking continuously so as not to scramble the eggs. Return the mixture to the pan and whisk over a low heat for 1 minute, then pour into a bowl, cover with cling film / Glad wrap (to prevent a skim forming on the crème) and allow to cool slightly.

Put the egg whites into a large bowl and whisk until foamy. While continuing to whisk, slowly add the sugar and then the lemon juice, beat until the whites are stiff, but not dry. Remove the cling film from the crème and whisk a quarter of the whites into the crème pâtissière to lighten it; then very gently fold the remaining whites through the crème. Now gently pour / spoon the mixture into the soufflé dishes / ramekins, slightly overfilling, then take a palette knife or chef’s knife and run it across the top of the dishes to smooth the surface of each soufflé. Lastly, take your finger and run it around the rim of each dish, making a slight indentation all around the rim of each soufflé; this ensures a more even rise as the soufflés won’t get stuck to the rim of the dishes. Carefully place the soufflé dishes on the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes if a slightly runny center is desired, and 25-30 minutes for a drier soufflé.

For an even more delicious vanilla experience, forget about the vanilla extract & instead use a vanilla bean. When making the crème pâtissière, split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds from the inside. Stir the seeds through the milk mixture and add the bean, then simmer gently for about 20 minutes. Remove the pod from the mix and continue with the crème pâtissière as above.