When the urge to fill my face with chocolate strikes, I have to satisfy it quickly. And I like to have a few select recipes on hand that I can turn to at a moment’s notice. Recipes that make one or two servings is perfect – I get to eat it all myself without too much guilt (well, perhaps just a smidge).
I was rather intrigued by this soufflé recipe (from Meals.com) as it incorporated a little surprise inside – a small piece of caramel filled chocolate. But, to tell you the truth, I felt it just didn’t need it. The dessert is very sweet and rich already and to add even more chocolatey sweetness seemed a bit unnecessary. I reckon if you’re going to add something else, it needs to make sense in terms of a taste or texture contrast… I’d rather find a few tart raspberries in the middle or perhaps even a glob of salty peanut-butter.
This was an interesting learning experience for me. I’d never made a soufflé before, and so wasn’t entirely sure if this was a success or not. My understanding of a soufflé was that, apart from the fact it rises dramatically, it was light as air all the way through. Mine, on the other hand, had a lightly crunchy exterior and a soft and squidgy interior – not unlike a lava cake. It did rise, though it deflated somewhat by the time I took this photo.
I thought it was a big failure until I did some investigation and discovered that there are two distinct types of chocolate soufflé – the traditional version we all associate with the term ‘soufflé’ and this ‘trending’ cake-like variation with an oozing chocolate centre. Hmm. Not quite what I had in mind, but still decadently delicious. Next time around though I’ll be looking for a more traditional soufflé recipe. In the meantime, if you love chocolate and like the density of a lava cake, this baby’s for you!
CHOCOLATE SOUFFLÉ FOR TWO
Ingredients
- Granulated sugar (to line ramekins)
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels or chopped chocolate
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp cocoa
- 1 large egg, separated
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 bite-size caramel-filled chocolates
- Powdered sugar (Optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray two 6-ounce ramekins or custard cups with non-stick cooking spray; coat lightly with granulated sugar.
- Microwave morsels (or chopped chocolate), butter and cocoa in medium, uncovered, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 45 seconds; STIR. If necessary, microwave at additional 10-second intervals, stirring just until chocolate is melted. Stir in egg yolk and vanilla extract.
- Beat egg white in small mixer bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in 2 tablespoons granulated sugar until stiff peaks form. Stir about a quarter of the egg white mixture into chocolate mixture to lighten. Fold in the remaining egg white mixture gently but thoroughly. Spoon into prepared ramekins, filling about three-quarters full. Drop 1 bite-size chocolate into centre of each soufflé; press in slightly. Place soufflés on baking sheet.
- Bake on centre oven rack for 16 to 20 minutes or until puffed and centre still moves slightly. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve immediately – I reckon it’s even better if you add some pouring cream into the centre – it cuts nicely through the sweetness.
I love the new design! I’ve always wanted to make a soufflé but always thought it was one of those scary things reserved for advanced chefs. Well done on making your first one. It looks good to me.
This post would make a wonderful addition to Our Growing Edge this month. It is a monthly link up party for bloggers who are trying new food related things.
Details here: http://bunnyeatsdesign.com/our-growing-edge/
Or submit your post directly here: http://new.inlinkz.com/luwpview.php?id=363863
Hey thanks! I’ll take a look when I get a bit of time and see what the site’s all about. Have a great day.
Chocolate soufflé is one of my favorite desserts! Yum!
Cool – which do you prefer, the light as air type or the lava cake type?
I like both, but must say I have a weakness for the warm, oozing lava goodness! It’s such a delicious treat.
Well, I’m just going to have to give the other version a try at some point, then I can talk with more credibility on the matter!
My favorite chocolate soufflés (or molten lava cake), have been the ones I’ve eaten at Roy’s Restaurant (https://www.roysrestaurant.com) in Hawaii (they have other locations too). He offers a copy of his recipe (available online) and one day I hope to try it and can only hope it will be close in texture and flavor to the ones I’ve loved so much. Good luck to you as you continue to experiment and explore!
I had a really hard time with this recipe. My egg whites never fully stiff peaked, but stayed at kind of a taffy consistency. The vanilla made my chocolate seize, which made it hard to incorporate the whipped egg whites. My final product didn’t puff much, probably because of my problems with the egg whites, but instead of a dense cake, I had a very grainy, crumbly soufflé with a somewhat burned taste to the top. Thanks for the recipe, but I don’t think I’ll try it again. Any ideas what went wrong?
Hi Rebekah. Thanks for taking the time to comment. I’m really sorry the recipe didn’t work for you. I think you’re probably right about the egg whites causing the issues. There can be a number of reasons why they don’t whip properly – from the eggs being too fresh, to too much humidity in the air, to there being a tiny bit of egg yolk in the mixture, to adding the sugar too early and then not whipping until the sugar is properly dissolved. At the end of the day any recipe relying on beaten egg whites is tricky – I’ve had plenty of disasters along the way. All the best.