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Engaging stories of love, joy, comfort and friendship with proven scrumptious, healthy recipes, we celebrate LOVE as the secret ingredient for wonderful food!

Chocolate Soufflé

February 13, 2015 by Mary 28 Comments

Chocolate souffle on a candlelit dining table
There’s nothing like chocolate to end a meal and nothing (well almost nothing – a little romp in the sack can go a long way here) more magnificent than to pull a soufflé out of the oven and present it at the table. And then my French friend, Alain, speaks about the crisp, and then the hiss – the sound that’s made when spooning out the first serving. It’s beautiful, exciting and delicious! Just like I hope your Valentine’s Day turns out to be! Make this chocolate soufflé for dessert, with LOVE and it will be the perfect way to end a Valentine’s Day dinner.

This recipe is from Mark Bittman, originally printed in the NY Times, and it is super easy and the very best part is that you can make this in the morning, keep it refrigerated and bake it while you’re eating your main course and it will be ready in about 25 minutes! Now the soufflé won’t rise quite as much this way, but who cares? The trade off of not having to jump up and make the whole thing after dinner is well worth it. And it’s even gluten-free as there’s not a speck of flour in it.

Now Mark says this recipe serves two, but I say it really serves four. You can’t make it smaller as you can’t have one and a half eggs, right? So make this for the two of you but know that you can also use this recipe to serve four. I don’t have a picture of the serving, but I want to tell you that I garnished it with a whole strawberry to add a little color. It was beautiful. Raspberries are also nice.

CHOCOLATE SOUFFLE  – serves 2 – 4  – Recipe by Mark Bittman

About 1 Tbs. butter for dish
1/3 cup sugar, plus some for dish
3 eggs, separated
2 oz. good quality bittersweet chocolate, melted
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter one 4-cup soufflé or other deep baking dish. Sprinkle with sugar, invert it and tap to remove excess sugar.

Chocolate souffle prepared bowl with butter and sugar.Chocolate souffle - beaten egg yolks.

Beat egg yolks with all but 1 tablespoon sugar until very light and very thick; mixture will fall in a ribbon from beaters when it is ready. Mix in the melted chocolate until well combined; set aside.

Wash beaters well, or use a different set, then beat egg whites with salt and cream of tartar until whites hold soft peaks; continue to beat, gradually adding remaining tablespoon of sugar, until they are very stiff and glossy.

Chocolate souffle - folding in egg whites.Chocolate souffle ready to bake.

Stir a good spoonful of whites thoroughly into egg yolk mixture to lighten it; (egg yolk mixture will have become very stiff so this step is very important) then carefully fold in remaining whites, using a rubber spatula. Transfer to prepared soufflé dish. At this point you can cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are ready to bake.

Bake until center is nearly set, 25 to 35 minutes. Serve immediately.

Filed Under: Desserts, Dinner Tagged With: chocolate souffle, easy chocolate souffle, gluten-free desserts, make-ahead chocolate souffle, Mark Bittman's chocolate soufflé recipe, Valentine's day desserts

Silky chocolate cake

February 13, 2013 by Mary Frances 28 Comments

So we have this wonderful big lovefest tomorrow – Valentine’s Day!! A terrific holiday in my book!

If you don’t have time to make this on the 14th, no matter. Keep the holiday going and make it on the weekend.

I have been making this cake for nearly 20 years now and it is a true winner. It is orgasmic – full of rich chocolate and butter. You can just sink into it, and if you died, it wouldn’t be bad.

Every time I make this cake for a dinner party, guests always either pick at the crumbs on the serving plate or just want another piece. It is rich, rich, rich and totally yummy. And it’s easy to make. Enjoy!

SILKY CHOCOLATE CAKE
-serves 8 – 10

2 sticks plus 2 tbs. (9 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 pound bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I use Scharffen Berger)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs, beaten
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Extra butter to butter the pan

Preheat the oven to 350°. Wrap the outside of an 8 or 9 -by-3-inch round springform pan in heavy-duty foil, then generously butter the inside of the pan. Set the springform in a roasting pan.

In a saucepan, combine the butter with the granulated sugar and water and bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring. Remove from the heat. Add the chocolate and stir until smooth and all the chocolate is melted; let cool.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the eggs until blended. Add the chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan. Pour enough hot (not boiling, but hot) water into the roasting pan to reach one-third of the way up the side of the springform. Bake the cake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until the top is crusty and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cake cool in the springform on a rack for 20 minutes. Then remove the foil and the side of the pan and let the cake cool completely. Dust the cake with confectioners’ sugar just before serving.

Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream with some vanilla. A few fresh raspberries are also a nice addition.

Silky chocolate cake, side view on a plate.Silky chocolate cake top view on a handmade plate from South Africa.Silky chcocolate cake piece - yummy!

Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: Scharffen Berger chocolate, silky chocolate cake, sinful chocolate, Valentine's day desserts

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Mary Frances

Mary Frances

Spread love through cooking.

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