Gruyère Or Comté Cheese Soufflé Food

GRUYèRE AND PARMESAN CHEESE SOUFFLé

Steps:

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400°F. Generously butter one 10-cup soufflé dish or six 1 1/4-cup soufflé dishes; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to coat. (If using 1 1/4-cup dishes, place all 6 on rimmed baking sheet.) Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour, cayenne pepper and nutmeg. Cook without browning until mixture begins to bubble, whisking constantly, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk, then wine. Cook until smooth, thick and beginning to boil, whisking constantly, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Mix yolks, salt and pepper in small bowl. Add yolk mixture all at once to sauce and whisk quickly to blend. Fold in 1 1/4 cups Gruyère cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (cheeses do not need to melt). Using electric mixer, beat whites in large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold 1/4 of whites into lukewarm soufflé base to lighten. Fold in remaining whites. Transfer soufflé mixture to prepared dish. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons Gruyère cheese.
• Place soufflé in oven; reduce heat to 375°F. Bake soufflé until puffed, golden and gently set in center, about 40 minutes for large soufflé (or 25 minutes for small soufflés). Using oven mitts, transfer soufflé to platter and serve immediately.

LIGHT AND AIRY CHEESE SOUFFLé

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Grease 2 (1-cup) soufflé dishes/ramekins with butter and dust with Parmesan cheese.
• Melt the butter over medium-low heat, then add flour and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
• In the meantime, heat the milk in the microwave at medium power for 30 seconds just to warm.
• Whisk warmed milk into the flour and butter mixture and continue to cook, stirring, until thickened.
• Whisk together the egg yolks, ground mustard, salt, and white pepper, then add to sauce mixture, whisking quickly to avoid scrambling the eggs.
• Stir in the grated cheese, melt and mix thoroughly.
• Remove from heat and allow it to cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes. While the custard is cooling, preheat the oven to 425 F.
• Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar to medium-stiff peaks using a hand mixer or standing mixer.
• Once medium-stiff peaks form, fold 1/3 of the whites into the room-temperature sauce mixture.
• Carefully and delicately fold this mixture back into the remaining whites until just combined.
• Divide between the prepared soufflé dishes, place in the oven, reduce the heat to 375 F, and bake 30 to 35 minutes depending on how well done you like your soufflés. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out mostly clean, with no wet batter attached. Don't open the oven within the first 20 minutes or the soufflés will deflate.
• Serve the soufflé immediately while hot. Enjoy.

CLASSIC CHEESE SOUFFLE

Steps:

• Mix 50g butter and flour into a paste (known as beurre manié, see notes, below). Chill to firm for about 30 mins. Heat milk to boiling point with the onion, spices and bay leaf, then simmer gently for 5 mins. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Taste milk for flavour.
• Strain the milk into a large pan, pressing down on the onion to extract the maximum of flavour. Place the pan back on the heat and gradually whisk in the butter paste, adding in small pieces until you have a thick sauce.
• Season, then leave to cool for 3-4 mins. Whisk in egg yolks, grated gruyère and cheddar, plus two-thirds of the parmesan. Add the Worcestershire sauce and mustard. Check seasoning, leave to cool. Can be made 2 days ahead - bring to room temperature before continuing.
• Brush the insides of a soufflé dish (approx 20 x 8cm deep) with the remaining 25g butter, using upward brush strokes. Coat the base and sides evenly with some parmesan and freshly ground black pepper. Chill to set. Cut the gruyère slice into diamond shapes.
• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Coat a large, grease-free bowl with the lemon juice (see tip, below). Whisk the egg whites in the bowl, then whisk a third of them into the cheese mixture, to loosen. Carefully fold remaining egg whites into cheese mixture until well mixed, but still light.
• Spoon half the mixture into prepared dish. Dot with brie and top with remaining mixture. Gently level the top. Arrange gruyère on top, scatter with remaining parmesan. Bake for 10 mins. Reduce oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4, bake for 15-20 mins. The soufflé should be evenly risen and slightly wobbly. Serve immediately - the centre will be soft, but will thicken slightly when served.

CHEESE SOUFFLé

Steps:

• Using 10 grams (2 teaspoons) butter, grease a 2-quart soufflé dish. Dust with 12 grams (2 tablespoons) Parmesan. Heat oven to 400 degrees with rack positioned in the lower third.
• Make the béchamel: Place a strainer over a large bowl and set aside. Heat remaining butter over medium heat in a heavy medium-size saucepan. Add shallot and cook, stirring, until softened (do not brown), 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in flour and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until smooth and bubbling, but not browned. It should have the texture of wet sand. Remove from heat and whisk in milk all at once. Return to heat and bring to a simmer while whisking. Continue to whisk until mixture begins to thicken. Turn heat to very low and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring often with a whisk and scraping bottom and edges of pan with a rubber spatula. The sauce will be quite thick and should have no taste of raw flour. Add 3 grams ( 1/2 teaspoon) salt, the white pepper and the nutmeg. While it is still hot, strain sauce into the large bowl.
• Immediately beat egg yolks into sauce, one at a time. Adjust salt and pepper.
• In a stand mixer or using electric beaters, begin beating egg whites on low speed. When they begin to foam, add cream of tartar and a pinch of salt. Continue to beat until they form stiff but not dry peaks. Be careful not to overbeat or egg whites will fall apart when you fold them into sauce, which will make your soufflé mixture grainy.
• Using a large rubber spatula, stir a quarter of the egg whites into sauce. Stir in Gruyère, remaining Parmesan and truffle if using. Gently fold remaining whites into mixture, working rapidly but gingerly so whites don't collapse. Carefully spoon or pour mixture into prepared soufflé dish and place dish on a baking sheet.
• Place in oven, turning heat down to 375 degrees as soon as you close the oven door. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until soufflé has puffed above the top of the dish, and soufflé top is golden brown. Turn off oven. If desired, let sit 5 minutes (the sauce in the middle will thicken slightly, but the soufflé will remain puffed) or serve at once. The center of the soufflé should be saucy. When you serve the soufflé, spoon sauce from the middle over each fluffy serving.

COMTé CHEESE SOUFFLé

Steps:

• Using a pastry brush, thoroughly grease a 25-30cm oval or round earthenware dish with a thin, even layer of butter. Coat with the breadcrumbs, shaking out the excess, then set the dish aside. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and place a baking tray on the middle shelf to heat up.
• To prepare the soufflé base, melt the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Add the flour, whisk until smooth and cook to a nutty blond roux. Lower the heat, then gradually add the warm milk, little by little, whisking to keep the consistency smooth. Add the cheese and mustard, and continue to cook, stirring from time to time, for 3-5 mins. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Add the egg yolks and stir until the mixture is silky and smooth. Season with white pepper (see tip) and keep warm. Can be made ahead up to this point (see tip).
• In a large, clean, dry bowl, whisk the egg whites with the lemon juice to medium peaks.
• Transfer the warm soufflé base to a large bowl and briefly whisk in a third of the whipped egg whites to lighten the base. Carefully fold in the remaining egg whites with a spatula or large metal spoon, delicately cutting and lifting the mixture to ensure minimum loss of volume and lightness. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Pour the soufflé mixture into the prepared dish so it is three-quarters full.
• Slide the dish onto the hot baking tray and bake for 20 mins. Meanwhile, make the cheese sauce.
• Bring the cream to the boil and add the cheese and some freshly ground white pepper, stirring continuously. Once the cheese has melted, remove from the heat and taste for seasoning. Add a dash of kirsch (if using), then pour the sauce into a warmed small jug.
• Sprinkle the grated cheese over the soufflé and bake for a further 5 mins. Serve immediately, placing the soufflé and sauce in the middle of the table so everyone can help themselves.

GRUYèRE AND CHIVE SOUFFLé

Steps:

• Remove wire racks from oven and place a baking sheet directly on oven floor. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter a 1 1/2-quart soufflé dish. Coat bottom and sides with 3 tablespoons/15 grams Parmesan, tapping out any excess.
• In a small pot, heat milk until steaming. Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook until the mixture foams, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in warm milk. Return to heat and cook until thickened, whisking constantly, about 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat and whisk in paprika, salt and nutmeg. Whisk in egg yolks one at a time, blending fully after each addition. Transfer flour and yolk mixture to a large bowl.
• Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites and cream of tartar at medium speed until the mixture holds stiff peaks.
• Whisk a quarter of the whites into the lukewarm yolk mixture to lighten. Gently fold in remaining whites in 2 additions while gradually sprinkling in Gruyère cheese, remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan and the chives. Transfer batter to prepared dish. Rub your thumb around the inside edge of the dish to create a 1/4-inch or so space between the dish and the soufflé mixture.
• Transfer dish to baking sheet in the oven and reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Bake until soufflé is puffed and golden brown on top and center barely moves when dish is shaken gently, about 30 minutes. (Do not open oven door during first 20 minutes.) Bake it a little less for a runnier soufflé and a little more for a firmer soufflé. Serve immediately.