Mrs. Roundell's Practical cookery book

Souffles. — Souffles ai-e the lightest of all possible varieties of Puddings, and happy is the cook who can turn them out well. Success depends, of course, chiefly on practice and experience, but with the best cooks and the utmost care a Souffle may fail at the last moment. The great Leander, in Lord Beaconsfield’s Tancred, said of one of his subordinate cooks, “He is too young. He lost his head. I entrusted the “ Souffles to him, and but for the most desperate personal “ exertions all would have been lost. It was an affair of the “ bridge of Areola* ” “ Ah ! mon Dieu ! ” replied Leander’s old * A battle in which Bonaparte narrowly escaped capture. master, “ Those are moments !” In Souffles to fall short of perfection means failure, but perfection can be (and not unfrequently is) attained. As Souffles cannot, unluckily, be eaten in the kitchen, it should be a rule that the guests must wait for the Souffle, for it cannot wait for them, and also that the Souffle is handed round the moment it comes upstairs, without any delay between the oven and the dinner table. If flour is used in Souffles at all, it should be potato flour, which, being really potato starch, is extremely light. Souffle cases are double, and should be rather deep in proportion to their width. The Souffle is put into the inner case, which is dropped into the outer one as soon as the Souffle comes out of the oven. The Souffle, if properly made, rises very much indeed, and the tin must have a band of thickish paper pasted round it, extending quite two inches above the upper rim, so as to prevent the Souffle from brimming over. Souffles can be made of fish, or chicken. Or they can be sweet. Or they can be of cheese. But the treatment is in all cases the same. For a fish Souffle, say of whiting, allow four ounces of fish, pounded in a mortar, and passed through a sieve. The quantity of chicken, also pounded, would be the same. Allow four eggs for this quantity, and a pint of white sauce made with fish stock for the fish Souffle and with chicken or veal stock for the chicken Souffle. In all other respects carry out the following recipe, of course omitting the sugar and vanilla. Vanilla Souffle. — Put into a casserole or enamelled pan four ounces of potato flour, two ounces of sugar, and a little essence of vanilla to flavour the sugar. Mix this well with a pint of cold milk, then put the pan on the fire till boiling, stirring well with a wooden spoon till it is smooth. Take the pan off the fire. Break four eggs into a bowl, separating the yolks from the whites. Set the whites aside. Mix the yolks one by one into the Souffle batter. Whip the whites very firmly, and pass the froth flake by flake into the batter. Pour the whole into a well buttered Souffle tin which has been lined with paper at the top rising at least two inches above the rim. Bake for twenty-five minutes in a moderate oven, or till the Souffle has risen. Slip the tin into the outer case, and serve forthwith. [ Wyvem!\ Orange-Flower Omelette Soufflee. — ( Family Recipe.) — Weigh four eggs in their shells and take their weight in sugar. ORANGE-FLOWER OMELETTE SOUFFLEE 493