Souffle, etc.

PHOTO BY: clairity

"This EGG DAY was one of the best!" declared David.

I have to agree. All the guests were exceedingly charming and the food was exceptional. I am blessed to have so many good humored people in my world. Many of them can cook up a storm too.

I really do need to take photos of the food and the people or get Mania to do it for me. She's an aspiring photographer who happened with her camera. I need to bug her for some shots, see if I can pepper this post with them. The photo above is from Create Commons on Flickr but it looked like the one I made.

But let me tell you about the soufflé.

I had opportunity a few weeks back to be at a home store where I saw a soufflé dish. I thought I should buy that and make soufflé for Egg Day. I mean soufflé equals eggs and a new dish is always a good idea. But I'd never made one before.

So I read The Madame's Souffle Recipe which is as delightful as it is frightening.

It was originally published in the 1920's and it’s pages and pages long. I delighted in the phrasing and talking about making soufflés to amuse oneself, which truly speaks to me. And I got some important tips, like testing the center. I didn't much need to have a partner work with me to beat the egg whites because I have a stand mixer, but the thought was fun.

Then I read this recipe from Alton Brown for cheese soufflé, which is the one I followed, but I added gruyere cheese to the cheddar.

Aside from having too much batter to fit my pan, (I made 4 mini soufflés in little wide-mouth canning jars with the excess) it was perfect. The flavor, the rise, the color...I was so proud.

Egg Day goers said it tasted pretty good too. That's high praise indeed.

So what are your experiences, good or bad, about cooking an item for the first time for company? Fool hearty or fun?