Cheese Soufflé Recipe

Base formulas for savory soufflées — their ratios of eggs, flour and liquid — are remarkably consistent from one recipe writer to another, at least in my experience. Where they differ is usually in the amount of flavoring added and the types of seasonings, though sometimes in the type of liquid used as well. Below is a recipe that’s almost identical to Julia Child’s, except that it calls for a little cream of tartar to help stabilize the egg whites. I’m providing recipes for both of the most common sizes of forms, 6-cup and 8-cup.

For a 6-Cup Form

2 1/2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup simmering milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of cayenne pepper
4 egg yolks
4 ounces cheese, grated
5 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

For an 8-Cup Form

3 1/2 tablespoons butter
4 1/2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups simmering milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of cayenne pepper
6 egg yolks
6 ounces cheese, grated
8 egg whites, room temperature
3/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

Procedure

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Grease a form and coat it with bread crumbs or finely grated parmesan cheese. Pour the milk into a small saucepan and set it to simmer. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a separate saucepan and add the flour. Whisk until the butter and flour are combined — you’ll have what’s known in cooking circles as a roux — and cook the mixture, letting it bubble away for about two minutes (this is important to “cook out” the flour’s starchy taste and mouthfeel). Remove the roux from the heat, pour the simmering milk into the roux and whisk. It will thicken in a matter of seconds into a dense béchamel sauce. Whisk in the egg yolks and seasonings, and set the pan aside. You can keep this mixture for up to two days in the refrigerator if you like. You can even freeze it for up to two months.

When ready to make your soufflé, pour the room temperature whites into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whip attached. Whip to soft peaks, add the cream of tartar and whip to stiff peaks.

To bring the batter together, pour the béchamel sauce into a large, preferably shallow bowl and fetch your broadest scraper. Add 1/4 of the whipped whites to the sauce, plus all but a tablespoon or so of the cheese. Stir all that in, not caring about the consequences. Now then, gently fold in the remaining whites a third at a time until you can only see a few streaks of egg white.

Gently scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the batter if need be with a scraper. Sprinkle on the last of the cheese, put the pan in the oven and immediately turn the heat down to 375. Bake for about 25 minutes for a 6-cup soufflé and 35 for an 8-cup. Though stories about soufflés falling with the opening of an oven door are mostly just that, stories, it’s better to leave the door closed and the soufflé undisturbed for the full time. When the time’s up, check the soufflé, it should be rising nicely. Bake another 5 minutes for a 6-cup and 10 minutes for an 8-cup until the puff comes a full 2 inches over the rim of the form and the crust is well browned.

Remove the soufflé from the oven, carry immediately to your waiting family — singing La Marseillaise all the while — and serve with great ceremony.