Sweet Dreams Are Made of Cheese

I often wonder if there is any recipe that the good folks of America's Test Kitchen, Cooks Country, and Cook's Illustrated cannot make more complicated. However, I will give them props, they truly simplified a cheese souffle and made it foolproof. I've had better souffles, but I've never made one that was this easy.


Chris Kimball of ATK

Cheese Souffle- ATK
Serves 4-6
1 oz. Parm cheese, grated (1 ½ C)
¼ C. (1 ¼ oz) all- purpose flour
¼ t. paprika
¼ t. salt
1/8 t. Cayenne
1/8 t. white pepper
4 T. unsalted butter
1 1/3 C. Whole milk
6 oz Gruyere cheese, shredded ( 1 ½ C)
6 Large eggs, separated
2 t. minced fresh Parsley
¼ t. Cream of Tartar
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position & heat oven to 350*. Spray 8” round (2 qt) soufflé dish with Veg oil spray, then sprinkle with 2 T. Parmesan Cheese.
2. Combine flour Paprika, salt, cayenne, white pepper in bowl. Melt butter in small saucepan over MED heat. Stir in flour mixture and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk and bring to simmer. Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick and smooth, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat and whisk in Gruyere and 5 T. Parmesan until melted and smooth. Let cool for 10 minutes, then whisk in egg yolks and 1 ½ t. parsley (SLICED Scallions instead).
3. Using Stand Mixer fitted with whisk, whip egg whites and cream of tartar on MED-LO speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Increase speed to MED-HI and whip until STIFF peaks form, 3-4 minutes. Add cheese mixture and continue to whip until FULLY combined, @ 15 seconds.
4. Pour mixture into prepared dish and sprinkle with remaining 1 T. Parm. Bake until risen above rim, top is deep golden brown, and interior registers 170*, 30-35 minutes. Sprinkle with ½ t. Parsley and serve immediately.



I must confess that I used slightly less cayenne and I omitted the parsley. I bought my parmesan cheese at the Piggly Wiggly and it was not aged very long. It was moist and did not do very well in coating the dish, so I (and I'm blushing here) used the stuff in the canister.

It was beautiful! Delicate and fluffy and light as air.

The thing about a souffle is this...it is delicate and beautiful and light as air and you really want to show it off. But it cannot be made ahead. It has to be eaten immediately because it will deflate before the meal is done. And, how can you spend all of that time in the kitchen away from your guests? Should you? So, when served with a salad, it becomes a light family dinner.