by Julia Child
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp instant coffee mixed with 1 Tb boiling water
Beat the vanilla extract and coffee into the other bowl, and fold in the remaining egg whites.
A 6-cup soufflé mold prepared as in the master recipe
½ cup pulverized macaroons, moistened with 2 Tb orange liqueur
Turn half the vanilla soufflé mixture into the prepared mold. Sprinkle with a third of the macaroons and liqueur mixture. Spread half of the coffee soufflé over this, then sprinkle on more macaroons. Continue with the remaining vanilla soufflé, macaroons, and the last of the coffee soufflé.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in a preheated, 375-degree oven as for the master recipe.
SOUFFLÉ AU CHOCOLAT
[Chocolate Soufflé]
Chocolate needs special treatment for soufflés because it is heavy. Although the formula in our first edition produced a dramatic puff, it was far too fragile. In this new version, you fold the chocolate mixture into a meringue—that is, rather than adding the sugar to the sauce base, you whip it into the egg whites, thereby firming them up. Just this simple change in method gives the soufflé staying power so that instead of collapsing rather rapidly into a pudding, it stays up and retains its primal soufflé character.
For 6 to 8 people
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
7 ounces or squares of semi-sweet or sweet baking chocolate
⅓ cup strong coffee
A small saucepan with cover set in a larger pan of almost simmering water
Place the chocolate and coffee in the small pan, cover, and set in the larger pan of almost simmering water. Remove from heat and let the chocolate melt while you proceed with the recipe.
½ Tb softened butter
A 2- to 2½-quart soufflé dish or straight-sided baking dish 7 ½ to 8 inches in diameter
Smear the inside of the dish with the butter. Surround with a collar of buttered aluminum foil (double thickness) to reach 3 inches above the rim of the dish. Set out all the rest of the ingredients called for.
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
A 2-quart saucepan
A wire whip
2 cups milk
3 Tb butter
Measure the flour into the saucepan. Start whisking in the milk by dribbles at first to make a perfectly smooth cream; rapidly whisk in the rest. Add the butter, and stir over moderate heat until boiling; boil, stirring, for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and beat 1 minute or so to cool slightly.
4 egg yolks
1 Tb pure vanilla extract
One by one, whisk the egg yolks into the hot sauce, then the smoothly melted chocolate, and finally the vanilla.
() If you are not continuing within 5 to 10 minutes, lay a sheet of plastic wrap directly on top of the sauce to prevent a skin from forming.
6 egg whites (¾ cup)
⅛ tsp salt
½ cup sugar
Beat the egg whites and salt in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed. Then, by sprinkles, beat in the sugar and continue until stiff shining peaks are formed.
Scrape the chocolate mixture into the side of the egg white bowl; delicately fold them together. Turn the soufflé mixture into the prepared mold and set on a rack in the lower level of the preheated oven. Turn thermostat down to 375 degrees.
Powdered sugar in a sieve or shaker
Serving suggestions: 2 cups of sweetened whipped cream, crème anglaise, or vanilla ice cream
In 35 to 40 minutes, when soufflé is well risen and the top has cracked, rapidly sprinkle the surface with powdered sugar; continue baking another 5 to 10 minutes. Soufflé is still creamy at the center when a skewer plunged down through a surface crack comes out slightly coated. It is fully done and will stand up well (if that is how you like it) when the skewer comes out clean. Serve at once with one of the suggestions listed.
() When turned into its baking dish, the soufflé may be covered loosely with a sheet of foil and set in a draft-free part of the kitchen for an hour or more before being baked.
SOUFFLÉ DÉMOULÉ AUX MACARONS
[Rum and Macaroon Soufflé, Unmolded—a cold dessert]
For 6 to 8 people
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1 tsp butter
An 8-cup fireproof, cylindrical mold lined with caramel
Butter the inside of the caramel-lined mold.
A wire whip or electric beater
1½ cups (8 ounces) pulverized macaroons
¼ cup dark rum
A 3-quart mixing bowl
¾ cup milk brought to the boil with ¼ cup granulated sugar
Beat the macaroons and rum together in the mixing bowl while pouring on the hot milk and sugar, and continue beating for 1 minute.
4 egg yolks
One by one, beat in the egg yolks until blended with the macaroons.
4 egg whites
Pinch of salt
1 Tb granulated sugar
Beat the egg whites and salt in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed; sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
A rubber spatula
Fold the egg whites into the macaroon mixture, being sure the mixture, which is very liquid, is thoroughly but delicately blended with the egg whites. Turn into prepared mold which will be filled by about two thirds.
A pan containing enough boiling water to come halfway up outside of mold
Place mold in pan of boiling water; set in lower third of preheated, 350-degree oven for 15 minutes. Then reduce heat to 325 degrees and continue baking about 35 minutes more. Soufflé will rise about to the top of the mold. It is done when it shows a faint line of shrinkage from the sides of the mold.
A serving dish
3 cups chilled, coffee-flavored crème anglaise (custard sauce)
Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. The soufflé will sink down as it cools, and shrink more from the mold. When chilled, reverse on the serving dish. Simmer 2 tablespoons of water in the mold to dissolve the remaining caramel; allow to cool for a moment, then pour the caramel syrup over the soufflé. Surround with the sauce, and serve.
ÎLE FLOTTANTE
[Caramel Almond Soufflé, Unmolded—a cold dessert]
French floating island can be either a layered cake covered with whipped cream and surrounded by custard sauce, or a meringue. We have chosen the meringue because it is light, delicious, and so very easy to do in the electric mixer. The addition of pralin gives texture and flavor as well as providing a ready-made sauce, allowing you to dispense with the traditional crème anglaise if you wish. (Those little mounds of egg white floating on custard may be English floating islands, but are French oeufs à la neige.)
For 6 to 8 people
A heavily buttered, 2-quart baking dish or charlotte mold 3½ to 4 inches deep
2 to 3 Tb sugar
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Roll sugar in the buttered mold, knock out excess, and set mold aside.
An electric mixer with 2½- to 3-quart bowl
8 egg whites (1 cup) at room temperature
⅛ tsp salt
¼ tsp cream of tartar
1 cup instant or very finely granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup pralin (caramelized almonds)
A rubber spatula
Beat egg whites at moderate speed until they are frothy, then beat in the salt and cream of tartar. Gradually increase speed to fast and when egg whites form soft peaks start beating in the sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time. Continue beating until egg whites form stiff peaks. Beat in the vanilla. Remove bowl from stand and fold in the pralin ¼ cup at a time with the rubber spatula.
Spread lightly in dish, which it will overfill by ¼ inch or so; smooth exposed sides and top with spatula. Bake in lower third of preheated, 250-degree oven for about 25 minutes, until meringue has colored slightly and risen about ½ inch. (It should be cooked enough so that meringue can hold its shape for unmolding; its rise indicates this.) Let cool for 30 minutes, the
n refrigerate for at least an hour so that it will settle.
A serving plate
2 Tb pralin
Optional: 2 cups chilled crème anglaise (custard sauce) in a sauce bowl
Set cover or plate askew over mold and drain accumulated caramel liquid into a small bowl. Unmold dessert onto serving plate. Sprinkle top with pralin, and pour the caramel around. Pass optional custard sauce separately.
FRUIT DESSERTS
Entremets aux Fruits
CHARLOTTE AUX POMMES
[Apple Charlotte, Unmolded—a hot or cold dessert]
This extremely good dessert is a thick, rum- and apricot-flavored apple purée piled into a cylindrical mold which has been lined with butter-soaked strips of white bread. It is baked in a very hot oven until the bread is golden brown, and is then unmolded. For the sake of drama, the mold should be 3½ to 4 inches high. Be sure to pick the right cooking apples and that your purée is very thick indeed, or the dessert will collapse when unmolded.
For 6 to 8 people
6 lbs. firm nonjuicy cooking apples (Golden Delicious are always reliable)
A heavy-bottomed stainless or enameled pan 12 inches across
A wooden spoon
Quarter, peel, and core the apples. Slice them roughly into ⅛-inch pieces. You should have about 4 quarts. Place in pan, cover, and cook over very low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
½ cup apricot preserves, forced through a sieve
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
¼ cup dark rum
3 Tb butter
Uncover and beat in the apricot preserves, sugar, vanilla, rum, and butter. Raise heat and boil, stirring almost continuously until water content has all but evaporated—20 minutes or more. The purée should be a very thick and fairly stiff paste which holds itself in a solid mass in the spoon.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
10 to 12 slices of homemade-type white bread, 4 inches square and ¼ inch thick
A 6-cup, fireproof, cylindrical mold about 3½ inches high
1 cup clarified butter
Remove crusts. Cut a square and 4 semicircles of bread to fit the bottom of the mold exactly. Sauté to a very light golden color in 3 or 4 tablespoons of the clarified butter. Fit them into the bottom of the mold. Cut the rest of the bread into strips 1¼ inches wide. Dip in clarified butter and fit them, overlapping each other, around the inner circumference of the mold. Trim off protruding ends.
Pack the apple purée into the mold, allowing it to form a dome about ¾ inch high in the middle. (It will sink as it cools.) Cover with 4 or 5 butter-dipped bread strips. Pour any remaining clarified butter over the ends of the bread around the edges of the mold.
A pan
A serving platter
Set in a pan (to catch butter drippings) and bake in middle level of preheated oven for about 30 minutes. Slip a knife between bread and sides of mold; if bread is golden brown, the charlotte is done. Remove from oven and cool for 15 minutes. Reverse the mold on a serving platter and lift the mold up a few inches to see if the sides of the dessert will hold. If there is any suggestion of collapse, lower the mold over the dessert again; it will firm up as it cools. Test after 5 minutes or so, until the mold can safely be removed.
½ cup apricot preserves, forced through a sieve
3 Tb dark rum
2 Tb granulated sugar
Optional: 2 cups crème anglaise (custard sauce), or 2 cups lightly whipped cream flavored with rum and powdered sugar
Boil the apricot, rum, and sugar until thick and sticky. Spread it over the charlotte. Serve the dessert hot, warm, or cold, with the optional sauce or cream.
POMMES NORMANDE EN BELLE VUE
[Applesauce Caramel Mold—a warm or cold dessert]
This is a much lighter dessert than the apple charlotte, and also much easier to prepare.
For 6 people
4 lbs. crisp cooking or eating apples
A heavy-bottomed enameled pan (saucepan, casserole, or skillet) about 10 inches in diameter
Peel and core the apples. Slice them roughly into ⅛-inch pieces. You should have about 10 cups. Place them in the pan; cover and cook over very low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
A wooden spoon
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
¼ tsp cinnamon.
The grated peel of 1 lemon
½ cup granulated sugar
Beat the cinnamon, lemon peel, and sugar into the apples. Raise heat and boil, stirring, for 5 minutes or so, until the apples have reduced to a thick purée which will hold its shape in the spoon. You should have about 4 cups of applesauce.
¼ cup rum, cognac, or excellent apple brandy
4 Tb butter
4 eggs
1 egg white
Remove from heat and stir in the rum or brandy, then the butter. One by one, beat in the eggs, then the egg white.
A 6-cup, fireproof, cylindrical mold lined with caramel
A lid or a plate
A deep saucepan or kettle Boiling water
Turn the apple mixture into the caramel-lined mold. Cover with lid or plate, and set in the saucepan or kettle. Pour boiling water around the outside of the mold to come up to the level of the apple mixture. Place in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate oven heat to maintain water almost at the simmer. The dessert is done in 1 to 1½ hours, when it begins to shrink from the sides of the mold and the top, all except for a small area in the very center, is set.
A serving dish
To serve warm, remove the mold from the saucepan or kettle and allow the dessert to cool for 20 minutes. Then reverse it on a serving dish. To serve cold, chill the dessert 4 to 5 hours or overnight. Then run a knife around the edge of the dessert and reverse on a serving dish; in a few minutes it will dislodge itself from the mold.
4 Tb rum, cognac, or apple brandy
2 cups lightly whipped cream flavored with powdered sugar and rum or brandy, or 2 cups crème anglaise (custard sauce)
Simmer the rum or brandy in the mold to dissolve any remaining caramel, and strain over the dessert. Surround the dessert with the whipped cream or sauce.
POUDING ALSACIEN
[Gratin of Sautéed Apples—a cold dessert]
This simple apple dessert is always better if prepared the day before it is eaten, as a good 24 hours are needed for a slow blending of flavors.
For 6 to 8 people
2½ lbs. firm cooking apples (Golden Delicious)
Quarter, core, and peel the apples. Cut into ¼-inch lengthwise slices. You should have about 7 cups.
4 to 5 Tb butter
A 10- to 12-inch skillet
A lightly buttered baking dish, 8 to 9 inches in diameter and 2 inches deep
Sauté the apples, one layer at a time, in hot butter until they are very lightly browned on both sides and tender, but retain their shape. As they are done, place them in the baking dish.
¾ cup plum jam, forced through a sieve
2 Tb rum
A rubber spatula
Melt the plum jam in the skillet with the rum. Delicately fold into the apples, and smooth the apples in the dish.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
4 Tb butter
½ cup granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
1 Tb all-purpose flour
½ tsp cinnamon
1 cup fresh whole wheat or rye bread crumbs
Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg yolks, then the flour and cinnamon, and finally the bread crumbs.
2 egg whites
Pinch of salt
½ Tb granulated sugar
Beat the egg whites and salt until soft peaks are formed; sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Fold the egg whites into the bread-crumb mixture and spread evenly over the apples.
Powdered sugar in a shaker
Bake in midd
le level of preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until top has puffed slightly and has just begun to color. Sprinkle liberally with powdered sugar and continue baking another 20 to 25 minutes; the top should be a nice golden brown under the sugar.
Allow to cool, then chill, preferably for 24 hours.
ASPIC DE POMMES
[Rum-Flavored Apple Aspic, Unmolded—a cold dessert]
Because the apples for this simple dessert are boiled in a heavy sugar syrup, they jell when chilled and can be unmolded on a serving dish. It makes a pretty effect with its decoration of glacéed fruits. Once made, the aspic may be kept molded or unmolded under refrigeration for at least 10 days.
For 6 to 8 people
3 lbs. cooking apples
Quarter, core, and peel the apples. Cut into lengthwise slices ⅜ inch thick. You should have about 8 cups.