Cherry Soufflé

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1-liter (1-quart) straight-sided ceramic soufflé dish
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Electric hand mixer, stand mixer, or large balloon whisk
• •Flexible rubber spatula
• •Sturdy baking sheet

Instructions

1. 1

   Purée the raspberries

   Put the raspberries and their sugar in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring and crushing the fruit, until the berries collapse into a vivid crimson sauce. Press everything through a fine sieve and discard the seeds. The purée should fall slowly from a spoon; if it runs like juice, return it to the pan and reduce it briefly. If it becomes too thick, loosen it later with a spoonful of the cherry syrup.

2. 2

   Stew the cherries

   Combine the stoned cherries with their sugar in a clean saucepan, adding the water only for fresh fruit. Cover and cook gently for 3 minutes, then uncover and continue for 4 to 6 minutes, until the cherries are tender but still hold their shape. If the cherries are ready while their liquor remains watery, lift them out and reduce the liquid alone to a light syrup, then return the fruit. Ça se rattrape. Keep the cherries and raspberry purée separate, because the purée covers the fruit only when the dessert is served.

3. 3

   Prepare dish and oven

   Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C), with a rack in the lower-middle position and a sturdy baking sheet heating on it. Brush a 1-liter (1-quart) straight-sided soufflé dish generously with softened butter, working from bottom to rim, then coat it with sugar and tap out the excess. Wipe the rim clean and chill the prepared dish while you make the base. Straight, well-coated sides give the rising batter a clean path upward.

4. 4

   Cook the soufflé base

   Whisk the yolks with the sugar until smooth, then whisk in the flour. Bring the milk just to a simmer and pour one-third of it into the yolks while whisking constantly. Add the remaining milk, return everything to the saucepan, and cook over medium-low heat, whisking, until the base becomes a thick, smooth cream and bubbles heavily for about 1 minute. Take it off the heat and whisk in the cold butter. If it lumps, whisk hard away from the heat and pass it through the sieve; ça se rattrape. Cool for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring twice, then mix in the Kirsch. The Kirsch belongs here, inside the batter, where it perfumes without weighing down the foam.

5. 5

   Whip and fold

   Beat the four egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Add the sugar gradually and continue until the whites are glossy and hold medium peaks whose tips bend slightly. Stop there. Dry, clotted whites cannot expand properly; if you carry them too far, add the optional unbeaten white and whisk slowly just until the mixture turns supple and glossy again. Stir one-third of the whites briskly into the Kirsch base to loosen it, then fold in the rest in two additions with broad turns of a flexible spatula. Reach to the bottom of the bowl, rotate it as you work, and stop as soon as no white streaks remain.

6. 6

   Bake without peeking

   Scrape the batter into the prepared dish; it should sit about ¾ inch (2 cm) below the rim. Level the surface gently and run a clean thumb around the inside edge to make a shallow channel. Set the dish on the hot baking sheet and bake for 20 to 24 minutes without opening the door during the first 16 minutes. It is ready when it stands several centimeters above the rim, the crown is deep butter-gold, and the center trembles slightly without sloshing. If the top colors too quickly after the soufflé is fully risen, lower the oven to 375°F (190°C) for the remaining minutes.

7. 7

   Serve fruit outside

   Rewarm the cherries gently if needed and divide them among four dessert plates. Masquez them, meaning cover them generously, with the raspberry purée. Carry the soufflé straight to the table and spoon it beside the fruit, never pouring the fruit over the crown before serving. The contrast is the point: airy Kirsch soufflé, whole cherries, and bright raspberry in each spoonful. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Use clear, dry Kirsch, also called Kirschwasser, rather than a sweet red cherry liqueur. A syrupy liqueur brings extra sugar and water, softening the base when what you want is clean cherry perfume.
• •Out of cherry season, frozen unsweetened sour cherries and frozen raspberries are the honest classical pantry answer. Cook the cherries from frozen without the added water, then reduce their released juice until it lightly coats them.
• •Seat your guests before the whites meet the base. A hot soufflé waits for nobody, but it also needn't inspire panic: even after the crown begins to settle, the inside remains tender and light. Never apologize at your own table.
• •A chilled demi-sec Champagne is splendid here. Its acidity follows the raspberry, while its gentle sweetness can stand beside the cherries without burying the Kirsch.

Advance Preparation

• •The raspberry purée and stewed cherries can be prepared up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated separately. Rewarm the cherries gently and let the purée lose its chill before serving.
• •The cooked soufflé base can be prepared up to 6 hours ahead, covered directly on its surface, and refrigerated. Let it stand out of the cold for 20 minutes and whisk it smooth before adding the Kirsch.
• •Butter and sugar the soufflé dish earlier in the day and keep it chilled. Do not whip the whites or fold the batter until the table is ready and the oven is fully heated.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 260g)