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Quick & EasyBy Beverly Barbour
Impossibly simple chocolate soufflé and important informationAlice Medrich is the queen of chocolate and perhaps of all desserts. Not only does she know all that there is to know about the wonders of chocolate but she really cab treat your sweet tooth to any dessert your little heart may desire. This is what she has to say about the easiest and fastest soufflé recipe that I have ever encountered. The recipe is from her book, Bittersweet: Recipes and Tales from a Life in Chocolate, Artisan, 2003. "I whip up these decadent chocolate soufflés for any occasion that requires something completely spectacular, but soul satisfying, with minimal effort. I know that soufflés don't sound versatile, foolproof or effortless, but these are. There is no last minute flurry of measuring or mixing involved and, it doesn't even matter how high the soufflé rises, they are soooo delicious. "I make the batter in advance--it takes only a few minutes--and divide it into ramekins. The unbaked soufflés can then wait for a couple of hours at room temperature or even a couple of days in the fridge, before baking. When I offer to bring dessert to a dinner party, I bring the soufflés ready to bake, and then slip them in the oven and whip the cream while the hostess is clearing the table and getting the coffee on. "On vacation, it's easy to find the few simple ingredients and I can always scrounge for teacups or small mugs, or little bowls in anyone's cupboard. I've made this soufflé to serve 20 friends and relatives. I've made it in teacups, in little soufflé dishes, ramekins." Alice created the recipe from "my then favorite soufflé recipe." I omitted the flour and reduced the butter and sugar to emphasis the flavors in the chocolate. Technically, I suppose the recipe is no more than a fantastic hot puffed-up chocolate mousse. Who cares? The recipe allows the flavors of the chocolate to shine, so you must definitely pick a chocolate that you really love." Amazing Bittersweet Chocolate Soufflés Can be prepared one or two days ahead and stored in the refrigerator waiting to be baked. They puff up and then sink down a bit. If you overcook them a little, they will still be crusty and delicious; if you undercook they have a mousse-like center. Plus, they are good hot or cold. Soufflés: 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (with 66%-72% cacao)
Topping: Whipped cream or crème fraiche, whipped
Soufflés: Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter bottom and sides of soufflé cups and sprinkle with sugar. Place chocolate, butter and milk in large heat proof bowl set in a large skillet of barely simmering water. Stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Off heat, whisk in the egg yolks. Set aside. In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually sprinkle in sugar and continue to beat, at high speed, until egg whites are stiff but not dry. Fold 1/4 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture, and then fold in remaining egg whites. Divide the mixture evenly among the prepared cups, filling them 3/4 or more full. (Soufflés may be prepared at this point, covered and refrigerated, to be baked up to two days later.) Bake soufflés on a cookie sheet until they rise and crack on top and a wooden skewer plunged into the center tests still moist but not completely gooey, 14 to 16 minutes. Remove from the oven, sieve a little powdered sugar over the top and serve immediately. Topping: Pass a chilled bowl of slightly sweetened whipped cream, slightly sweetened whipped crème fraiche, or Nibby Cream to top the soufflés. Makes 8 servings. *Note: If you are making these and find you have no cream of tartar, add a little bit of sugar to the egg whites slightly earlier than you would normally, and be very careful not to overbeat them. All will be well. Alice has this to say about Cacao Nibs. "Until a few years ago, almost no one had seen or tasted cacao nibs, the essential ingredient of all forms of chocolate. The nibs are the bits of pure chocolate that come directly from the cacao bean once it has been roasted and crushed. They are now available for both chefs and home cooks." Nibby Cream Use to top chocolate soufflés or a cup of hot chocolate, or slather it between cake layers or roll it up in a cake sheet to make a roulade. Alice has made ice cream with Nibby cream. You must be sure to infuse the cream several hours or a day ahead and chill well before beating. 8 ounces (1 cup) heavy cream
Bring cream and nibs to a gentle boil. Remove from heat and cover for 20 minutes. Strain the cream, pressing on the solids to extract the liquid. Discard the nibs. Chill the cream until cold enough to whip. Just before serving, whip the cream to the desired consistency, adding sugar to taste. Using the right chocolate --Do not interchange natural coca powder for Dutch process cocoa powder. One is acidic and the other is alkali. If you don't have Dutch-process cocoa, add a pinch of baking soda to the cocoa powder. --Unsweetened cocoa powder is not the same thing as ground chocolate. They cannot be used interchangeably in recipes. --Bitter chocolate is unsweetened chocolate. --Bittersweet chocolate is sweetened, with added cocoa butter. --Bitter and bittersweet chocolate behave very differently in recipes and are not interchangeable. --White chocolate is not chocolate because it has no cacao solids. It is made from cocoa butter and sugar, with added dairy solids and sometimes vanilla. Make certain that cocoa butter is the only fat listed. Death by chocolate would not be a bad way to go. Beverly G. Barbour-Soules
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