By and large, baking is about blowing bubbles. The bubbles built by the mixing methods discussed so far have been based on flour protein, starch, solid fat and, of course, water. These bubbles have been blown up by water vapor and by the gasses created by chemical and biological forces. However, the bubbles in egg white foams are blown up by the conversion of water into vapor and the expansion of air—that’s it. Everything that is needed to create the millions of flexible balloons that make up a meringue, soufflé, or angel food cake exists in the miraculous matrix of the egg white.
The Egg Foam Method
Separate fresh eggs while cold via the 3-bowl method (see here), placing the whites in a clean metal bowl. (If the recipe doesn’t call for water, feel free to replace one of the egg whites with warm water. This will not only help the foam come together faster and keep it plastic after beating; it will also help to get the temperature up quicker than having it wait around on the counter.)
Using a clean balloon whisk (manned by a very stout arm) or an electric hand mixer (use a stand mixer if you must) beat the egg whites on low speed until they are foamy.
Add your acid, such as cream of tartar.
Increase the mixer speed to high (at least 75 percent power) and move the beaters around the bowl in alternating directions.
When the foam becomes opaque, start sprinkling in the sugar (if called for) slowly so as few bubbles as possible are damaged.
Continue beating until the foam reaches the desired stage: soft, medium, or stiff peaks.
TO CHECK THE PEAKS:
Turn the mixer off and hold it so that the beater shafts are straight up and down.
Push the beaters to the bottom of the bowl and slowly pull them straight out.
When the beaters are clear of the mass, turn the mixer so the beaters are pointed straight up.
FOAM
Foam comes from the Germanic faimaz, which derives from the Latin spuma. Spume is the foamy stuff you see at the beach on windy days.
Properly prepared, egg white applications are impossibly light, airy, delicate, and in some cases, completely fat free. Since they are mostly air, egg foam batters have a nasty reputation as temperamental, troublesome, and downright mean. Like Dr. Seuss’s Pale Green Pants with Nobody Inside Them, I believe that egg foams are simply misunderstood. Learn what they need and you’ll be in possession of the roadmap to a wide range of delicious culinary destinations.
Whether it’s sudsing your hair, topping your beer, or floating in a tide pool on a windy day at the beach, a foam is simply a collection of small bubbles. And a bubble is but a pocket of gas surrounded by a thin layer of liquid, which is surrounded by more air. Now, no pure liquid can produce bubbles. Why not? Surface tension. Take water, for example. Water molecules are so attracted to each other that when faced with an alien environment, like air, any body of water will round up its covered wagons and shape itself as to expose as few of its molecules to that environment as possible. It just so happens that the shape that exposes the fewest molecules is a sphere. (We’ve all seen water bead on a freshly waxed car hood, right? Water does that because it dislikes the wax (which is a lot like a form of fat) as much or more than it dislikes air. That’s why even on a slight incline, the water beads run right off the car. This never happens on my car because the water finds plenty of other things to get along with … like dirt.)
So, if we wish to make water (and an egg white contains little else) into a foam we must break the tension by adding molecules that can infiltrate the water and get it to loosen up a little…soap for instance.
Egg whites foam fabulously because their water content already contains the necessary foaming agents in the form of proteins. In fact, when it comes to building egg foams, you can usually replace 25 percent of the egg whites with H2O at a rate of one tablespoon per white. There’ll still be plenty of bubble-blowing proteins to go around but the lighter mass will foam a lot faster. The resulting foam will be more flexible and less prone to over-beating.
Eggs are unique because they can be coaxed into foams of such volume and stability that Mr. Bubble would blush. In fact, nothing in nature is as good at foam building as eggs, especially egg whites, which can be whipped into a stable foam nearly eight times their original volume. Whole eggs can be whipped to about four times their original volume (though it can be tricky), and egg yolks one to one-and-a-half times their original volume (don’t feel bad for them, they make up for it in other ways).
Creating a foam is a lot like calling a square dance. There are a bunch of proteins and water that need to move together in a very specific arrangement and it’s up to you to coax them into it. Now, let’s say you have four egg whites in a bowl. How did they get there, you ask? Okay, let’s talk about separating for a second.
Here’s how I do it:
Why the center cup? Well, sooner or later you’re going to have an accident and you’re going to break a yolk and contaminate the white. The quarantine container prevents mass contamination. Is a little yolk that big of a deal? Yes, no … and maybe. Keep reading.
Fresh eggs separate easier than old, and cold separate easier than warm. But egg whites whip easier at room temperature, so either allow the whites to sit for half an hour or so on the counter or float their container in warm water for a few minutes.
Adding a small amount of acid is smart. Why? Because an acid such as cream of tartar can work to denature proteins so that the beginning foam (the proto-foam) forms faster. Acid also helps prevent over-coagulation of the proteins once the bubbles are blown and that means you’ve got a little more leeway on the back end of construction.
When you’re ready to beat, do so on a low mixer speed (Although soufflés can be mixed with stand mixers, I always find that there’s a little pool of egg white left in the bottom of the bowl. Since you can create chaotic currents with a hand mixer, that’s how I go. I used to tout a KitchenAid, but lately the cuisinarts seem to have a bit more gumption if you get my meaning.) until the whites form a big, wet proto-foam, then put the spurs to ’em. In just a few minutes you’ll have a foam that holds the tracks and trails left by the beaters. At this point, start checking your peaks.
Turn the mixer off and hold it so that the beater shafts are straight down. Push the beaters to the bottom of the bowl, and slowly pull them straight out. When the beaters are clear of the mass, turn the mixer so that the beaters are pointed straight up.
Within moments of beating the whites form big bubbles. If the speed is high enough the whites will have taken all the air they’re going to take in just a minute or less.
If the beaters sport twin peaks that just barely fall over when the beaters are tapped, you’ve got firm peaks and you’re good to go. If you can see that peaks are forming but they’re completely flopped over, you have more beating to do.
If you have no peak action at all, you have even more beating to do.
If the mess in the bowl looks like a mass of dry cotton floating on water, you’ve over-beaten. Throw it away and start over.
If you find yourself facing a busted foam, here’s what happened: The proteins in the bubble walls squeezed so tight that they squeezed out the moisture they were holding on to and then collapsed on themselves like a zillion little dying suns. So you’re left with a bunch of knotted albumin protein floating on water. And there’s no cure…luckily eggs are cheap.
Even if you don’t beat your eggs to death as described above, you still may have overbeaten your eggs without knowing it. Remember, if you beat the eggs until you have very stiff peaks, odds are good that unless you’re working with a sweet meringue that’s supported by a lot of sugar, your product will fail to expand in the oven. That’s because each of the bubbles in the foam is like a balloon; when it’s full, it’s full.
Take a balloon and blow it absolutely as full as it can be and tie it off. Now take it out in the sun on a hot day and see how long it takes to burst. Not long, because the walls of the bubble (latex) couldn’t expand as the air inside heated. The same thing can happen inside a soufflé or angel food cake. So beat your whites until you have a foam that’s stiff and glossy but only until it starts looking dry…beyond there be dragons.
For notes on building a sweet foam, see the meringue procedure here.
You can fill this crust with instant pie filling and top it with whipped cream (see here) and eyes will still roll back in heads. I think this is a darned good example of what egg whites can do if they put their foam into it. And don’t worry, the fat from the nuts won’t make the meringue fall—it will anyway.
Hardware:
Digital scale
3 glass or metal bowls for separating eggs
Large metal bowl
Stand mixer, electric hand mixer, or balloon whisk
Dry measuring cups
Wet measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Chef’s knife
Cutting board
8- or 9-inch pie plate or pan
Flexible spatula
Place an oven rack in position C. Preheat the oven to 300°F and lubricate an 8- or 9-inch pie plate or pan with oil or shortening.
Assemble the meringue mixture via the EGG FOAM METHOD, adding the salt with the cream of tartar. Add half the sugar when the foam begins to build, then continue to add the rest of the sugar in smaller batches, whipping until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the vanilla and nuts.
Use a flexible spatula to mold the meringue into the plate, shaping it like a crust, but don’t go over edges.
Bake for 50 minutes, until the meringue is firm and lightly browned.
Allow the meringue to cool completely, at least 2 hours.
Fill with a no-bake filling such as pudding or sliced fresh fruit—anything you’d put in a pre-baked pie shell—and top with whipped cream.
Yield: One 8- to 9-inch pie shell
Note: In warm weather, meringues will get gummy after a few days, so it’s best to serve this pie shell within 24 hours. You could freeze it, but I wouldn’t. The meringue will lose its seductive chewiness.
Although there is nothing wrong with plain angel food cake, it is rather, well … plain. After all, it’s mostly air, which is why I think it makes sense to add spices that are on the aromatic side. You know, to flavor all that air.
Hardware:
Digital scale
Food processor
3 glass or metal bowls for separating eggs
Medium bowl
Large metal bowl
Stand mixer, electric hand mixer, or balloon whisk
Dry measuring cups
Wet measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Chef’s knife
Cutting board
Flexible spatula or large kitchen spoon
10 × 4-inch (18-cup) tube or angel food cake pan with collapsible bottom and feet
Cooling rack
Place an oven rack in position C and preheat the oven to 350°F.
In a food processor, spin sugar about 2 minutes until it is superfine and remove it to a separate bowl. Return half of the sugar, and all of the salt, cake flour, and spices to the food processor and sift together, setting the remaining sugar aside.
Assemble the egg whites and water via the EGG FOAM METHOD, adding the cream of tartar as directed.
Slowly sift the reserved sugar over the opaque foam as directed.
Once you have achieved medium peaks, sift in enough of the flour mixture to dust the top of the foam. Fold in gently using a spatula (see here). Continue until all of the flour mixture is incorporated.
Carefully spoon mixture into an ungreased tube pan. Bake for 35 minutes before checking for doneness with a toothpick. (When inserted halfway between the inner and outer wall, the toothpick should come out dry.)
Cool upside down on cooling rack for at least an hour before removing from pan.
Yield: 10 to 12 servings
Angel food cake must cool in a suspended state. That’s why an angel food cake pan will often have those little feet on the rim. Others have a center tube that’s taller than the sides. If your tube pan has neither, you can suspend the pan on a drinking glass for support.
Along with angel food cakes and meringues, tossing soufflés is a cheap, delicious way to hone your egg foam skills. Embedded into this technical review is the recipe for a basic, no-nonsense cheese soufflé (Soufflé is French for “puffed up.”) that has never let me down. I even made it with Tabasco-spiked Velveeta cheese once and it still passed muster. See here for the complete recipe.
Although the soufflé has long been seen as the big, bad boogie man of the culinary canon, the truth is that soufflés are neither complex nor difficult. All they require of the cook is a little understanding and some careful steering around a couple of procedural potholes. No big deal. And there’s the payoff, which in my mind is substantial.
Part of what makes soufflés fascinating is that they are binary systems composed of two completely unrelated components…sort of a yin and yang, if you will. One side of the equation is a light, relatively fragile egg-white foam, which is responsible for growing to a couple of times its original size while carrying a thick, heavy roux-based sauce—or base—on its back. This base in turn is expected to deliver 100 percent of the final construct’s flavor while taking up a small fraction of its mass.
Choosing the right vessel and prepping it properly.
A properly constructed foam.
Getting enough flavor into the roux base.
Proper joining of the two components.
Soufflés may come in many sizes but they only come in one shape: round. Now just about any tall-sided ceramic vessel will suffice for a soufflé, but none does a better job than an actual soufflé dish (Soufflé dishes can be used for anything. I bake banana pudding in mine.) that has some design modifications especially suited to the task at hand.
Unlike many baking dishes that have slightly sloping sides, the soufflé dish sports a 90-degree angle from floor to wall. These straight sides promote climb. But look up at the top. About three-quarters of an inch from the summit is a lip that flares slightly outward. If the soufflé breaches the top it will spread out rather than climb straight skyward—a trajectory that would probably lead to early collapse. Notice the fluted exterior. It actually increases the outer surface area so that heat can be absorbed quicker. And then there’s the unglazed bottom. Some say the lack of glaze speeds the absorption of heat from below…I’m not saying I don’t buy that, but I’m not saying that I do either. My favorite size is a number seven, which holds right at 1 1/2 quarts, perfect for a five to six egg soufflé serving three to four people.
Eggs contain a lot of protein, and protein is notorious for sticking to the surfaces of cookware. So our collective instinct is to lube those sides up with some butter. But here’s the catch: soufflés rise best when they can get some traction. The answer is to lube with butter, then thoroughly dust with something dry. Although flour is traditional, I usually use finely grated Parmesan cheese for savory soufflés and cocoa powder for sweet.
Rub the entire interior of the soufflé dish with butter. Take special care to cover the corners where the sides meet the floor. Dump in a couple tablespoons of grated Parmesan and tightly cover with plastic wrap. (A fair amount of that cheese will be recovered before the soufflé mixture goes in.)
Roll and shake the soufflé dish so that the cheese has a chance to make plenty of contact with the butter.
Stash the soufflé dish in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.
Traditional savory soufflés depend on a white sauce as a base. And by white sauce we mean a milk-based sauce thickened by a roux. A few friendly words about roux: A roux is simply a cooked paste composed of an equal amount (by weight) of all-purpose flour suspended in butter. Although you could make roux in any amount, here’s a formula that makes enough for one 5-to-6-egg soufflé:
Yes, I know I said “equal amounts by weight,” but remember that butter is about 15 percent water and other stuff besides fat and we’re going to cook the water out before introducing (The easiest way to do this is cut 3 tablespoons from the stick of butter, rub enough on the soufflé to properly lube the interior, then melt the rest.) the flour to the party.
Melt butter over medium heat.
When the butter stops foaming, all the water will have evaporated. Sprinkle on the flour and whisk to combine.
The goal here is to coat each grain of flour with fat and then cook that flour until the raw starchy flavor is gone. Why bother with coating the flour with fat? Because if each grain is coated with fat, the flour won’t turn into a bunch of gooey lumps upon introduction to the hot liquid it’s going to be thickening. Water is also the reason for waiting to add the flour to the butter until after the bubbling is over. Bubbles mean that water is turning to vapor and as long as it’s happening there’s water in that pan and as we’ve already established, water and flour gets you lumps nine times out of ten.
Now drop the heat to low and continue whisking and cooking for two minutes. At first the paste will get really tight, then it will loosen up again. This is normal.
In the meantime, combine milk, dry mustard, garlic powder, and salt in a tightly sealable container and shake the beejeebers out of it.
Whisk the milk mixture into the roux and turn the heat to high. The wheat starches won’t gelatinize completely until they reach a boil. Many is the impatient cook who adds more flour only to find his or her sauce turns to library paste at a boil.
Meanwhile beat the egg yolks in a small bowl until they turn creamy in texture and light yellow in color. This will help to denature some of the proteins and evenly distribute the fat so that the yolks will be a lot less prone to scrambling when they join the hot sauce. Tempering will help too.
Whisk a little bit of the hot mixture (whatever holds onto the whisk) into the beaten egg yolks. Continue in this manner until about a third of the hot mixture has been added to the eggs. Then whisk the egg mixture into the hot mixture.
Once the sauce is constructed, stir in the cheese a handful at a time. Don’t do this over direct heat, just take advantage of whatever heat is left inside the pot. Additional heat will only result in a grainy sauce.
Now give it a taste. Pretty strong, huh? That’s good, because although a soufflé base makes up only about 40 percent of the soufflé’s volume, it has to deliver all the flavor.
You’ll notice that the recipe calls for one more egg white than yolk That shouldn’t be a problem if you’ve been freezing the whites left over from your forays into custard making (see here).
Five room-temperature egg whites and a tablespoon of H2O go into a clean metal bowl, (Yes, technically you could do this in a glass bowl, but I just don’t like the idea of slamming a whisk around in something that’s heavy—or breakable.) along with 1/8 teaspoon of cream of tartar.
Now we beat it, starting low, then high as described here.
Fresh foam formed? Check
Room temperature base standing by? Check
Prepped soufflé dish on deck, ready to go? Check
Oven…you did remember to turn the oven to 375°F and set a rack to position B, right? Good. And did you make sure there are no racks above this? Double good. (I once had a soufflé rise so beautifully that when it was ready to come out of the oven the rack above it was baked into it … don’t let this happen to you.)
Time to fold the foam and sauce together, so check out the note on Folding here.
Start the fold by rapidly stirring a third of the egg whites into the sauce; then fold in half of the remainder, then the rest.
Pour the mixture into the prepped soufflé dish and use your spatula or a plate to smooth the top. Now when it cooks, this soufflé is most likely going to mushroom over as it rises above the edge. That’s just natural expansion. You can restrict this outward growth by placing your thumb at the edge of the vessel, pushing down about half an inch and rotating the soufflé so that you basically carve a shallow ditch around the entire perimeter. Believe it or not, this miniscule maneuver will greatly improve the appearance, not to mention the texture of the final dish.
Now straight into the oven—and I do mean straight. And don’t forget the pie pan that goes underneath. It’ll make things a lot easier in the end. Now set your timer for 35 minutes.
Various sitcoms, movies, comic books and the occasional Jane Austen novel would have us believe that once the soufflé is interred, the house must be evacuated lest vibrations make it fall. This is not the case. I’m not saying that a newly ovened soufflé could handle the seismic activity of a jump-roping hippo, but everyday running around will do no harm.
Damage during baking is usually the result of opening the door within 30 minutes of the soufflé going in. Breaching the oven in any way will result in a loss of heat and that may result in a permanently deflated foam. So don’t open that door. Just look through the window—that’s why it’s there.
Your soufflé is all puffed and proud and golden brown, but what about the inside? The only way to know for sure is to punch a wee little hole into it. Just take a paring knife, find a convenient crack or fold in the top, and plunge straight down. It should be ooey and gooey down there, but if you see a lot of liquid running around, slide it right back in for another 5 minutes.
“Carve” the soufflé with a big metal spoon, making sure to plunge the device all the way to the bottom before spooning out the mixture. The goal in serving is to make sure that every diner gets a cross section from the crusty top all the way to the gooey bottom. Gooey bottom? That doesn’t really sound very good does it? Well, in this case, it is.
LET’S SAY YOU GET DRAGGED TO A PERFORMANCE OF RIVERDANCE. When all those quick-steppin’ freaks link up arms and form an annoying human chain, they are imitating the proteins in an egg-white foam. That is, they hook up with each other to create a molecular grip onto which water can cling.
Now, let’s also say that you have that pocket watch from The Twilight Zone. You know, the one that lets you stop time? Let’s say you use the watch to stop time, run down to the hardware store, and buy some axle grease. Then let’s say that you went back to the theater and smeared the grease all over the dancers’ arms, returned to your seat, and restarted time.
When all that fancy footwork started up again, I’m betting the scene would look something like this:
Besides being a great moment in show business history, this would also be a darned fine example of what happens when egg yolk gets into the whites. The fats in the yolk lubricate the junctions between the proteins. They can’t hold together anymore so the walls of the bubbles collapse.
This is also why beating egg whites in plastic is a no-no. Fats and plastics share common molecular structures. In fact, they often bond together so tightly that even a serious washing can’t drive them apart. As a result, plastic utensils often harbor enough fat molecules to crash a batch of whites.
Now, here’s a codicil. The truth is, if you have a strong mixer, a foam can be erected with fat in the equation. I recently made a four egg-white meringue that included half a yolk and had no problem. I had to turn the mixer all the way up to its highest speed and it took several more minutes, but after I added sugar and some water to the equation, it did achieve stiff peaks and was a stable foam.
Although this rather classic soufflé features sharp cheddar, the truth is that you can make it from almost any cheese, including Velveeta. Smoked Gouda is also a darned fine addition. Oh, and as for the Parmesan that’s used on the soufflé dish itself, that can be replaced with any cheese that’s hard enough to grate: Pecorino Romano comes to mind, as does aged Gruyère.
Hardware:
Digital scale
Wet measuring cups
Dry measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Food processor
Box grater
Saucier or sauce pan
Small bowl or teacup
Stand mixer, electric hand mixer, or balloon whisk
Large metal bowl (Very, very clean.)
Hand mixer (Also very clean.)
1.5-quart soufflé dish
Heavy duty plastic wrap
Disposable pie tin
Large rubber spatula
Place an oven rack in position B and remove any other racks from higher positions. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Peel back the wrapper on the butter and, holding it like a really big lipstick, thoroughly grease the interior of the soufflé dish—be especially careful to get into the corners. Reserve the remaining butter.
Add the Parmesan and cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap. Shake to coat the entire interior of the dish with cheese, reserving any excess. Place the dish in the refrigerator.
In a small saucepan, heat the remaining butter. Allow all of the water to cook out.
Add the flour to the butter and whisk to combine. Reduce the heat to low and continue to cook for 2 minutes.
Combine the heated milk, dry mustard, garlic powder, and salt in a tightly covered container and shake well to mix. Whisk the milk mixture into the roux and return the heat to high. As soon as the mixture comes to a boil, remove the pan from the heat.
In another bowl, beat the egg yolks until light in color and slightly thickened. Temper the yolks into the milk mixture (see here), constantly whisking while doing so. Remove the pan from the heat and add the cheese. Whisk until incorporated.
In one more bowl, beat the egg whites, water, and cream of tartar via the EGG FOAM METHOD, to create glossy and firm peaks.
Add 1/4 of the egg foam mixture to the base. Continue to add the foam by thirds, folding very gently.
Pour the mixture into the soufflé dish to 1/2 inch from the top. Place the soufflé dish in the oven on a disposable pie tin and bake for about 35 minutes, or until the soufflé has risen and is browned on top.
Serve immediately.
Yield: Serves 4 to 6
THE TRUTH ABOUT COPPER BOWLS
Q: Are copper bowls really better for beating egg whites?
A: Yep.
Q: Could you go into a little more detail?
A: Sure. When you beat egg whites in a copper bowl, copper ions tangle up with a protein called conalbumin in the egg white. Since the new complex that is formed is more stable than the protein is on its own, foams beat in copper are harder to overbeat and they stay fluffy longer. Because of this, cream of tartar need not be added to egg whites whipped in copper.
A: Is it worth spending a hundred bucks on a copper bowl?
Q: Not if you ask me. Good technique applied to egg whites in a stainless bowl will yield equally positive results, especially if cream of tartar is added. Besides, copper is toxic and a beast to clean.
Man, do I love this soufflé. Served alongside grilled lamb chops … spare me the oysters, this is the food of love. Believe it or not, this also makes for pretty good leftovers the next day. Many is the breakfast that’s found me chomping on reheated last night’s soufflé. The secret, of course, is the grits. They swell with water and guard it jealously so you don’t have to add a lot of water to reheat. A little cream wouldn’t be bad though.
Hardware:
Digital scale
Wet measuring cups
Dry measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Food processor
Box grater
Saucier or sauce pan
Small bowl or teacup
Stand mixer, electric hand mixer, or balloon whisk
Large metal bowl (Very, very clean.)
Hand mixer (Also very clean.)
1.5-quart soufflé dish
Heavy duty plastic wrap
Disposable pie tin
Large rubber spatula
If I find out you’ve used some lame instant grits or anything other than stone-ground grits, I will hunt you down … I will, I swear it!
Place an oven rack in position B and remove any other racks from higher positions. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Peel back the wrapper on the butter and, holding it like a really big lipstick, thoroughly grease the interior of the soufflé dish—be especially careful to get into the corners. Reserve the remaining butter.
Add the Parmesan and cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap. Shake to coat the entire interior of the dish with cheese, reserving any excess. Place the dish in the refrigerator.
Place the remaining butter, water, grits, garlic, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, partially covered, until the grits are almost done, 10 to 15 minutes depending on the coarseness of the grits.
Place the egg yolks in a metal bowl and beat until light in color and slightly thickened.
Remove the grits from the heat and temper (See here.) the grits into the yolks. Then add the cheddar, reserved Parmesan, and cayenne.
Beat the egg whites, water, and cream of tartar via the EGG FOAM METHOD, to create medium peaks.
Remove the prepared soufflé dish from the refrigerator.
Add 1/4 of the egg foam mixture to the base. Continue to add the foam by thirds, folding very gently. Turn the batter into the prepared dish. Place the soufflé dish in the oven on a disposable pie tin and bake for about 45 minutes, or until the soufflé has risen and is browned on top.
Serve immediately.
Yield: Serves 4 to 6
If a soufflé base can be composed of any highly flavored and viscous substance, why not use canned soup? We tried cream of celery soup, too, but celery soufflé just doesn’t cut it. Ditto cream of asparagus.
Hardware:
Digital scale
Wet measuring cups
Dry measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Chef’s knife
Cutting board
Heavy-duty plastic wrap
Heavy wide skillet or frying pan
Paper towels
Small bowl or teacup for separating the eggs
Large metal bowl (Very, very clean.)
Hand mixer (Also very clean.)
1.5-quart soufflé dish
Heavy-duty plastic wrap
Disposable pie tin
Large rubber spatula
You’ll notice there is no salt. Believe me, with a can of condensed soup, there’s salt aplenty.
Place an oven rack in position B and remove any other racks from higher positions. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Peel back the wrapper on the butter and, holding it like a really big lipstick, thoroughly grease the interior of the soufflé dish—be especially careful to get into the corners. Reserve the remaining butter.
Add the Parmesan and cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap. Shake to coat the entire interior of the dish with cheese, reserving any excess. Place the dish in the refrigerator.
Heat the remaining butter in a heavy wide skillet or frying pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms a handful at a time and sauté them over very high heat. Remove each batch to paper towels as it’s done. The goal is to create a crust on the mushrooms. If liquid pools in the pan it’s either overcrowded or not hot enough. Quickly sauté the scallions in the remaining butter.
Place the egg yolks in a metal bowl and beat until light in color and slightly thickened.
Place the soup into a large bowl and whisk in the egg yolks. Then stir the mushrooms, green onions, black pepper, and reserved Parmesan into the soup-egg mixture.
Remove the prepared dish from the refrigerator.
Beat the egg whites, water, and cream of tartar via the EGG FOAM METHOD, to create medium peaks.
Add 1/4 of the egg foam mixture to the base. Continue to add the foam by thirds, folding very gently. Turn the batter into the prepared dish. Place the soufflé dish in the oven on a disposable pie tin and bake for about 50 minutes (don’t even think about opening the oven door for the first 40 minutes), or until the soufflé has risen and is browned on top.
Serve immediately.
Yield: Serves 4 to 6
