NATIONAL CHEESE SOUFFLE DAY | MAY 18
Each year on May 18, we celebrate National Cheese Soufflé Day. On this tasty day, take the opportunity to enjoy this French delight.
#NationalCheeseSouffleDay
A soufflé is a baked egg-based dish whose origins appear in France during the early 18th century. Earliest mention of the soufflé is given to French mastercook Vincent La Chapelle. However, master French chef Marie-Antoine Careme receives the honor for popularizing the dish by using a new elaborate style of creating dishes.
The soufflé’s base consists of a French creme base made of a flavored crème sauce or puree, and beaten egg whites. By combining egg whites with custer, this delicate delight will puff up into a fine, golden soufflé when baked. Many who make souffle commonly add cheese, jam, fruits, berries, chocolate and lemon. In other words, the base provides the flavor and the egg whites provide the puff it up.
Making a cheese soufflé requires cheese. The most popular cheeses to use when making a soufflé are:
- Gruyère cheese
- Parmesan
- Cheddar
- Provolone
- Fontina
However, just about any kind of cheese will make an amazing soufflé. Adding complimentary herbs and spices to your soufflé dish will increase your chances of it being hit at the dinner table! How you eat your soufflé is entirely up to you. You can serve your soufflé as a tasty main course dish, or sweetened it for a dessert.
Secrets to Preparing Soufflé
Creating the perfect soufflé lies within the timing of preparing the dish. Beating the egg whites into a stiff peak consistency then folding them gently into the sauce ingredients will prevent air from getting into the mixture. This process is what decides whether your soufflé will be perfectly puffy or deficiently deflated.
Determining when you are serving your soufflé will decide when you should bake your souffle. A soufflé can be prepared ahead of time; however baking cannot begin until the time is determined for serving. As long as the egg whites have been whipped to the proper consistency, the mixture will hold for a few hours.
WAYS TO CELEBRATE TODAY
- Order a cheese soufflé at your favorite restaurant.
- Try your culinary skills with cheese soufflé recipe.
- Enroll in a French cooking class.
- Use #NationalCheeseSouffleDay to post on social media.
NATIONAL CHEESE SOUFFLE DAY HISTORY
Soufflé is a French word that means “To blow up” or “Puff up.” Historically, they are prepared either savory of sweet, depending on the flavor of the dish. Some soufflé recipes ask for cheese, while others ask for chocolate. However, traditional soufflé is baked in a ramekin, which is a round, flat-bottomed container normally made of porcelain.
The first Soufflé appeared in the early 18th century around 1742 through Vincent La Chapelle’s, Le Cuisinier Moderne. By 1841, souffle recipes became more popular when chef’s across France began creating more technical recipes for soufflé. By the 1800s, chef Marie-Antoine Carême perfected the soufflé recipe that we know today.
Since the first time the soufflé was introduced, many different variations have surfaced. Even though the preparation steps are the same, the flavors added to the recipe change the dynamic of the outcome. Here are a few flavors that have been created over time:
Bread Pudding Soufflé: Similar to bread pudding, bread pudding soufflé is made with day old cubes of French bread, milk, eggs, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon. However, bread pudding soufflé is also made of a whiskey sauce consisting of heavy cream, bourbon, sugar, water and a heavy cream.
Ice Cream Soufflé: This soufflé is a combination of ice cream and fruit, often with a hot fruit sauce on top.
Fig Soufflé: This decadent souffles is made with eggs, whipped cream, flour, milk, butter, sugar, figs (for the recipe and for garnish) and dark chocolate.
Vegetable Soufflé: A vegetable soufflé is made by adding pre-cooked minced broccoli, carrots, spinach, mushrooms, and asparagus. Some people also add cheese for flavor and topped with shallots and pepper.