I love having dinner parties. I also love going out for dinner, but I think there's something very special about inviting friends into your home and planning a menu they'll enjoy, then cooking it for them.
I am totally up for designing complicated menus (like making chocolate soufflés to order after the main course) but I think there's a lot to be said about taking the time to really enjoy the company of your friends. And that takes a menu where at least a couple of courses can be planned and prepped in advance so that they just require baking time when your friends are with you.
I was looking for vegetarian inspiration and came across this wonderful Twice Baked Roquefort Soufflé which I've only made once before (and that was more moons ago than I care to think of) from Delia Smith's Vegetarian Collection. What I love about it is that it can be prepped 24 hours in advance with its first bake and then finished in the oven 30 mins before it's due to be served. And it still retains its soufflé appearance and texture. Delia also has a goat's cheese version too.
The process of preparing it requires working at speed. I really recommend when making this that you have all your ingredients weighed out separately so you can just reach for this or that as required. You don't have time to be weighing out ingredients or crumbling roquefort once you've started. But the process is straightforward as long as you follow the timings below. Although the oven timings should work, keep an eye on the soufflés as they approach the end of the cooking period as they easily burn. The resulting consistency should be firm on the outside and slightly soft and velvety in the middle.
I promise you that if you want to wow your guests with something as special as a soufflé, this is a brilliant recipe for you. The hard work is all done in advance and the stress of trying to pull together something as seemingly complicated as a soufflé when your friends arrive and are chatting away with you is completely removed.
The light texture and resulting soufflé is every bit as good as the best restaurants.
You will be a masterchef in your own home :)
Twice Baked Roquefort Soufflés
from Delia Smith's Vegetarian Collection
Makes 6
Ingredients
- 4 LARGE EGGS, SEPARATED
- 175G ROQUEFORT, CRUMBLED
- 225ML MILK
- 5MM ONION SLICE
- 1 BAY LEAF
- PINCH OF NUTMEG
- 6 WHOLE BLACK PEPPERCORNS
- 1 TBSP BUTTER (for greasing the ramekins)
- 40G BUTTER
- 40G PLAIN FLOUR
- 150ML DOUBLE CREAM
- SPRIGS OF WATERCRESS TO GARNISH
Equipment
- 4 RAMEKINS (4cm deep x 7.5cm diameter, lightly buttered)
- REGULAR BAKING TRAY
- 5CM DEEP BAKING TRAY OR DISH (this will hold 6 ramekins and be filled with 1cm water)
- STANDALONE MIXER OR WHISK
Method
- Pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees (fan)
- Lightly grease the ramekins with the butter
- Separate the eggs and measure out all of the ingredients so you're ready to go
- Place the milk, onion slice, bay leaf, nutmeg and peppercorns in a saucepan and heat over a medium heat until it just reaches simmering point (you don't want this to boil so do keep an eye on it)
- Strain the milk mixture into a jug and put to one side
- Rinse out the saucepan and then melt the butter in it
- Add the flour until it becomes a paste and then cook it for 3 minutes until it becomes a light straw colour
- Whisking all the time, slowly add the milk mixture until the sauce is thick - at this time the mixture should cleanly leave the sides of the saucepan as you stir it
- Lightly season with salt and pepper and take the heat down to the lowest setting on your stove
- Cook for 2 minutes, stirring gently
- Remove from the heat and leave it to cool for 3 minutes
- Beat in the egg yolks one at a time until they're all combined
- Stir in 110g crumbled roquefort into the mixture until it's mostly melted
- In a standalone mixer, whisk the egg whites until they reach soft peak
- Stir in one spoonful of the egg whites to loosen the mixture
- Then gently fold in the rest of egg whites
- Boil your kettle
- Divide the mixture evenly amongst the 6 ramekins
- Place them on the baking tray that's 5cm deep and place this onto a shelf in the oven
- Pour boiling water into the bottom of the baking tray until the water is 1cm deep
- Bake for 20 minutes until lightly golden
- Once baked, remove them to a cooling rack
- When they're almost cool, run a knife around the edge of each ramekin and gently loosen and remove each soufflé from its dish
- Place the soufflés on a lightly oiled baking tray and cover with clingfilm
- They can now be kept in the fridge for up to 24 hours
- When you're ready to serve them, pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees (fan)
- Place the remaining crumbled roquefort evenly on the top of each soufflé
- Bake them in the oven for 30 minutes, during which time they should rise again
- When they're ready, remove from the oven and spoon the double cream over the top of the soufflés and place back in the oven for 2 minutes
- Remove from the oven, place on watercress garnish and serve immediately (they will deflate after a few minutes)
- Wow your guests with your wonderful savoury soufflé, freshly baked :)