Cheese Soufflé – Julia Child
ShareJulia Child’s cheese soufflé recipe; an airy baked cheese and egg dish.
Soufflés remind me of the movie Because I Said So. I’m sure that’s just me but I vaguely remember there being a scene where Mandy Moore’s character was whispering while fighting with one of the two men she was seeing… I know, stay with me… and she knew the moment to take it out of the oven.
That’s about the extent of my knowledge of soufflés. Does noise really disturb such a delicate dish? I’m not sure. Let’s just assume the old wives tale is true and blame my falling dish on the obnoxious contractor and noisy children.
It was beautifully puffed up in the oven one minute and the next it had fallen. I swear on a stick of butter that it tasted just as it should. If you’ve never had one, it’s kind of like puffed up scrambled eggs in a dish. Sorta.
Switch things up and toss in some spinach or another light vegetable for added flavor and texture. Or keep things simple. Even the youngest of eaters will love this. My 2 year old gobbled one of these up all by herself!
Cheese Soufflé
Ingredients
- 1-2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter plus additional for the ramekins
- 1 1/2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 1/2 C hot milk
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp ground white pepper
- 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 large yolks
- 1/3 C large egg whites
- 1/2 C shredded Swiss cheese
- 2 tsp plain breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 °F.
- Butter the bottom and sides of your small (4-6oz) ramekins. Shake Parmesan around within the buttered dishes, coating well. Save extra cheese for sprinkling.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine butter and flour. Add hot milk. Bring to a light boil for 2-3 minutes. Add seasonings. Stir well and remove from heat. Whisk in egg yolks one at a time. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.
- Stir 1/4 of the egg whites into yolk mixture. Fold remaining in with shredded Swiss cheese.
- Fill ramekins 3/4 of the way full. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese and 1 tsp breadcrumbs per dish.
- Place in oven. Immediately reduce heat to 375 degrees. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until puffed up and golden.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Celebrating 100 with Julia Child:
Week 1: Rolled omelette
Week 2: Chocolate mousse
Week 3: Coq au Vin
Week 4: Salade Niçoise
Week 5: Vichyssoise
Week 6: Reine de Saba
Week 7: Fillet Meunière
Week 8: Roast Chicken
Week 9: Charlotte Chantilly
Week 10: Bouillabaisse
Week 11: Ratatouille
Week 12: Celery Root Rémoulade
I’ve never had souffle before but I’m all for anything cheesy. I’m sure I’d gobble both of them up myself! Cheesy stuff is just dangerous around me.
I love that movie – and I wish I had that ingrained sense about souffles like Mandy Moore does. And that rocker guy? Holy frijoles is he HAWT! I must try more souffles. Maybe Ben will go rocker guy on me and wear a fedora. Mmm.
Love this! I want a spoon to dig in!
soufflés can definitely be finicky. even if they fall, they can still be delicious + yours looks tasty!
Bahaha! As I clicked over to read your post I thought “What was that dang Mandy Moore movie with the souffle?!” Too funny! I love the look of a fallen souffle! They’re more interesting than a perfectly puffed one.
These look amazing! I have never attempte to make a souffle!
This is gorgeous!!!!! God I love Julia.
i’ve never attempted to make a souffle cause i’m scared of failure but yours turned out beautiful even if they deflated!! i want a few of these in front of me :)
Wow, this looks perfect, Rachel!! Mine would have looked way different! ;)
This came out great! I am intimidated by souffles!
Geez me completely missed the Julia Child tributes. Love this posts with your choice of cheese souffle as an honor. Been out of the loop so happy to catch up!
I love souffles, but there is always that mad rush to serve/photograph them before they deflate. They always taste delicious afterwards anyway!
Fallen or not, they look darn tasty! I am definitely afraid of making souffle’s but I actually like the look of them being fallen. A lot more texture that way :)
My mouth is watering. I love cheese souffle and it was one of the first savory dishes I made from scratch (at age 10). Yours looks divine. I am on a cleanse right now (chicken, brocolli, oatmeal, tea, spinach, and avocado) and the idea of eating something this delicous right now is making me urn for the next 14 days to come sooner rather than later!
YUMM! After seeing this, I definitely need to make this soon! I’m such a huge fan of your blog! You always take the most beautiful photos and post the most delicious recipes! I’m always saving something of yours everyday onto to Pinterest :)
Look tasty will try soon! Even if they are deflated.
However, I don’t think noise should bother them, as I’ve made my chocolate souffles around my dad :P