Mango Soufflé 芒果梳乎厘

Soufflé means "puff up" in French. It is a classic French dish that can be made either savory with cheese or sweet for dessert. Whether it is savory or sweet, a base sauce is usually made and then folded with some stiffly beaten egg white, which provides the lift. I always turn on the oven light and watch anxiously as it is rising inside the oven. It is an amazing show.

Soufflé can easily be intimidating to make for many of us. But once you conquer a few basic concepts, it is not that difficult. There are a few factors that are critical in making a well risen soufflé. First of all is egg whites. Make sure the bowl and the beater are clean and oil free. Try to avoid using plastic bowls as it is hard to be oil free as glass or stainless steel ones. In order to beat good and shiny stiff peaks, cream of tartar, which is acidic, needs to be added to stabilize the alkaline egg white. Secondly, the folding which incorporates the base sauce and the egg white needs to be done lightly and quickly. Thirdly, the ramekins need to be oiled or buttered and then coated with sugar. An even coating will ensure a beautiful and even rise. Last but not least, the oven door needs to be closed at all times during baking. The air that is beaten into the egg white needs to be heated to cause the rise. If the heat inside the oven is lowered because the door is opened, that sudden drop in heat may cause it to collapse.

Makes 6 small ramekins

A)  Vanilla pastry cream base

half of a vanilla bean pod or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
15g cornstarch
30g sugar
175g whole milk
2 egg yolks
17g unsalted butter, room temperature.

B)  Main ingredients

all of the above vanilla pastry cream
150g mango puree
4 egg whites
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1)  First make the vanilla pastry cream:
a) Heat the whole milk, half the sugar and cornstarch in a small pot in low. Cut open the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds out using a paring knife. Put the seeds and the pod in the milk mixture. Keep mixing to prevent lumps. Remove from heat.

b) Whisk the egg yolks with another half of the sugar for a few minutes. Pour the hot milk mixture in while whisking.
c) Pour the egg mixture back to the pot and keep stirring until it thickens. Let it cool for a few minutes. Remove the vanilla pod.

d) Add butter and stir to blend. Add the mango puree and mix well. Set aside.
2) Preheat oven to 395 F. Oil or butter the ramekins and coat with granulated or powder sugar. Shake off the excess.
3) Beat the egg whites in a clean bowl with the cream of tartar on low until it gets foamy. Increase the speed to high until stiff peaks form.
4) Gently fold the whites with the pastry cream until blended.
5) Fill the prepared ramekins to the rim and smooth out the top.

6)  Immediately bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes and lower the temperature (without opening the door) to 350 F for another 12-15 minutes.
7)  Dust with powder sugar and serve warm.

Recipe adapted from "Le Larousse Des Desserts" by Pierre Herme.

Notes:

1)  Mango puree can be substituted with other flavors, like strawberry or other fruits or flavors of your choice.
2)  Vanilla bean is strongly recommended over extract. Its flavor is not comparable.
3)  The pastry cream base can be prepared ahead of time. But once the base and the white are folded, it has to be baked at once to achieve optimum result.

芒果梳乎厘

『梳乎厘』的意思在法文解作『升高』,當你見到它在焗爐內慢慢膨脹升高時,你便明白它的意思了。這款法式名點可以用芝士做成咸食,又可以用不同口味的醬料做成甜品,可謂變化萬千,各式其式。但要成功做好,有幾項要點是要注意的:

第一是蛋白要打得好,分蛋時要一丁點蛋黄都不可混入蛋白,打蛋白最好只用不銹鋼或玻璃容器,因塑膠器具很難完全洗得亁淨無油,一點點的油也會妨礙氣泡的形成。另外也要加他他粉去中和酸鹼度。第二是要用摺疊式(folding)去將蛋白和醬料混合,不然打蛋白時所打入的空氣便會被破壞。第三是小杯一定要塗油及均勻地灑上糖。最後是不可在烘焙期間開焗爐的門,以至爐温下降,影响成品上升。

比份量可做六小杯

雲呢哪奶油醬(材料見下)
150g 芒果茸
4個 蛋白
半茶匙 他他粉

雲呢哪奶油醬

半條雲呢哪條(香草莢)
15g 粟米粉
30g 糖
175g 全脂牛奶
2個 蛋黃
17g 室温牛油

1)  先做奶油醬:
a)用小刀將雲呢哪莢切開,刮出雲呢哪種子,然後全部放入小煲內,加牛奶,半份糖及粟米粉煮至微熱,要不繼攪動,以免起粒,離火。
b)蛋黄加半份糖打幾分鐘,再將熱牛奶倒入,邊倒邊攪,以免蛋黃變蛋花。
c)再將混合物倒回煲內,用慢火煮至稠,要不停攪動。離火待凉幾分鐘。
d)將雲呢哪莢取出,加牛油,攪勻,再加芒果茸,攪勻備用。
2)  預熱焗爐至395度,小杯塗油後灑上糖,然後將多餘的糖搖出。
3)  蛋白加他他粉用慢速打至起泡,再加速打至直身,約五至十分鐘。
4)  輕手將蛋白與奶油醬混合(fold),倒入小杯至滿。
5)  用395度焗五分鐘,將温度降至350度,再多焗十二至十五分鐘。
6)  出爐後灑上糖粉,趁熱享用。

注意事事項:

1)  除了芒果外,可用其他生果茸代替。
2)  雲呢哪條的香味是頂級的,可以買到的話,便不要用香油代替。
3)  雲呢哪奶油醬可以預先準備,但一經與打發好的蛋白混合,便要立刻入爐,否別便前功盡廢。

食譜改編自法籍糕點天皇Pierre Herme之『大師糕點』