Say "Cheese" Please! Ina Garten's Blue Cheese Souffle' & a Rockin' Salad

I've never made a souffle' before. Come to think of it, I've never eaten a savory souffle'. Oh sure, I've indulged in a rich chocolate souffle'. I used to indulge in a  Grand Marnier Souffle at a local restaurant that, sadly, closed after many years.  But, Blue Cheese?  I had to think about that, since I like blue cheese, but I'm not crazy about it.

I spotted this cheese at Trader Joe's and I thought this would make a nice combination, and would tone down the blue cheese a bit.

Yes, this would do nicely!  So I grated a little over 3 ounces of this-- it's delicious!

I made sure that I had my mise en place (which I usually call "mess in place"). It's crucial, I think, when I'm trying out a new recipe that might pose a challenge. The last thing I need is to find out that something is missing!

I read the directions a few times, and realized that this wasn't that hard to make. I would make a roux, add cheese, whip eggs whites and fold it in. How hard could that be? Ready? Here we go!

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Butter the inside of an 8-cup souffle dish (7 ½ inches in diameter and 3 ¼ inches deep) and sprinkle evenly with Parmesan.
NOTE: I used 4 small ramekins and make "collars" with parchment paper so the souffle could rise higher. I had also read, somewhere, that coating the souffle dish with cornmeal helps the souffle to rise better. So I followed Ina's instructions to use Parmesan on two ramekins and I used cornmeal on the other two-- as an experiment.

• Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.
• Off the heat, whisk in the hot milk (I heated it in the microwave for about 90 seconds), ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, the cayenne, and nutmeg.
• Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, for 1 minute, until smooth and thick.

NOTE: It took more like 3-4 minutes to become thick, for me.

Off the heat, while still hot, whisk in the egg yolks, one at a time. Stir in the Roquefort and the ¼ cup of Parmesan and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

• Put the egg whites, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.
• Beat on low speed for 1 minute, on medium speed for 1 minute, then finally on high speed until they form firm, glossy peaks.

Whisk ¼ of the egg whites into the cheese sauce to lighten and then fold in the rest.

Pour into the souffle dish, then smooth the top.
NOTE: I think I should have added the collar at the end (I could have used kitchen twine, but I taped it) I had no way of smoothing out the top!

Draw a large circle on top with the spatula to help the souffle rise evenly (used a long knife to do this), and place in the middle of the oven.
NOTE: I set the ramekins on a baking tray.
Turn the temperature down to 375 degrees F. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (don't peek!) until puffed and brown.
NOTE: My baked for about 22 minutes, since they were in smaller ramekins.

 My first souffle's. NOTE TO SELF: Make the collars smaller next time!

Yes!  It worked!  Yeah, they're not quite so smooth on top-- okay, they're not smooth at all!  But, they sure puffed up and smelled fantastic.

 That's a puffy souffle'!

I think that the corn meal vs. the parmesan cheese didn't make any dramatic difference in how the souffle' rose. I will say, though, that the dishes were super easy to clean.

I thought that a salad would be perfect with this meal. I drop into Stacey Snacks blog on a regular basis. I love her recipes-- they're simple, made with fresh ingredients and she's also a really friendly blogger.  I always learn something new about French & Italian cooking from her (she's knows a lot about catering and gourmet recipes).  She posted a beautiful Alsatian Tarte Flambe (which I plan to make) and her favorite French salad. I had every single ingredient to maker her salad-- spring salad mix with frisee', walnuts (which toasted in a dry skillet... I had white balsamic vinegar and walnut oil, too!

 The only thing I didn't have was Gruyere' Cheese.  I did, however, have Manchego Cheese from Spain:

It has a nice bite to it! I grated a handful of the cheese.

Dressing:
1 teaspoon of grainy mustard
2 tbsp of white balsamic vinegar
5 tbsp of walnut oil  ( used about 3 Tbsp.)

Toss all ingredients together with dressing, and you have a wonderful French salad.

It's light and refreshing. Stace, it's a winner!

Souffle's deflate quickly, so photographing meant I had to work fast! You need to serve these immediately. Fortunately, the salad was ready to go so that I could get this meal on the dinner table, quickly.

 The souffle' was, indeed, airy and very light. Craig and I both liked the cheese flavor, but it wasn't overpowering.

Craig and two and I hate one and a half.  It was satisfying, but not a heavy meal at all.

I'm so glad that I can cross "learn to make a souffle" off my list of things to learn.  Would I make this again? Maybe.  It's good, but I much prefer a dessert souffle'.

It certainly kicked up my culinary self-taught lessons up a notch. I don't know what I was so afraid of!

It's a wrap!