WHITE CHOCOLATE SOUFFLÉ CAKES
SOURCE: ALICE MEDRICH. PURE DESSERT: TRUE FLAVORS, INSPIRING INGREDIENTS, AND SIMPLE RECIPES.
Macerated berries fill the bottom of these irresistible soufflés, so their bursted juices turn into a deposit of sweet tart syrup that ripostes to the soft and creamy warmth of white chocolate. Harboring any absurd thoughts of serving the enticing dessert with an extraneous sauce is a strictly forbidden superficiality!
Ingredients
Butter
3 tablespoon/38 grams sugar plus more for dusting the ramekins
36 raspberries OR small blackberries
3 tablespoons/23 grams all-purpose flour
3 pinches sea salt
3/4 cup/180 mL whole milk
3 large egg yolks
6 ounces/170 grams finely chopped premium-quality white chocolate
1/2 teaspoon/3 mL pure vanilla extract OR vanilla bean paste
3 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon/1 gram cream of tartar
OPTIONAL: Fresh raspberries or small blackberries for garnish
Specific Equipment
Pastry brush
6 ramekins or custard cups with a volume of 6 fluid ounces/180 mL
Small saucepan
Wire whisk
Rubber spatula
Medium-sized mixing bowl to contain the egg yolks
Large bowl
Hand or stand mixer equipped with whisk attachment
Baking pan lined with parchment paper or silicon baking sheet
Serves 6
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375°F/190°C.
2. Brush the bottom and sides of each ramekin or custard cup with butter. Coat each ramekin and custard cups evenly with sugar and shake out any excess sugar. Distribute 6 raspberries or blackberries around the bottom of each ramekin or custard cup and sprinkle the berries with 1/2 teaspoon/2 grams sugar. Set aside.
3. Stir the flour and salt in a small saucepan with a wire whisk until well-blended. Pour in 1/4 cup/60 mL milk, constantly whisking, to make a smooth paste. Whisk in the remaining milk. Place the saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly for 2 to 3 minutes or until the mixture is warm and has a consistency of a thick cream sauce. Remove from heat.
4. Scrape out out about a quarter of the hot mixture from the saucepan with a rubber spatula and beat it into the egg yolks in a medium-sized mixing bowl with a wire whisk until well-blended.
5. Scrape out the egg yolk mixture from the mixing bowl with a rubber spatula and stir it back into the saucepan. Return the saucepan over medium heat and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, whisking constantly, or until the mixture turns into a thick pastry cream. Remove the saucepan from heat.
6. Pour the pastry cream back into the medium-sized mixing bowl and stir in the white chocolate and vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste. Stir the mixture constantly with a rubber spatula until the white chocolate has completely melted and incorporated into the pastry cream.
7. Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl with a hand or stand mixer equipped with a wire whisk attachment. Sprinkle in 2 tablespoons/25 grams granulated sugar gradually and continue beating until stiff and glossy peaks form and the egg whites have doubled in volume.
8. Stir a quarter of the beaten egg whites into the white chocolate pastry cream until the mixture is light and well-blended. Fold the lightened pastry cream into the rest of the beaten egg whites until the entire mixture has no indications of marbling or white streaks.
9. Fill the ramekins or custard cups with the soufflé batter, dividing the mixture evenly. Transfer the ramekins or custard cups on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or silicon baking sheet.
10. Bake the soufflés in the lower third rack of the oven for 16 to 18 minutes or until the soufflés have puffed up and are golden brown on top. Remove the soufflés from the oven. Garnish the top with fresh raspberries or blackberries, if desired. Serve immediately or cool slightly for 3 to 5 minutes before serving.
