Chocolate Soufflés
Inspired by techniques from Bon Appétit.
A rich cocoa-and-melted-chocolate base is lightened with an Italian meringue, piped into sugared ramekins and baked until it climbs well above the rim with a set, barely-jiggling centre. The hot sugar syrup whipped into the egg whites gives the meringue extra stability, so the soufflés hold their rise a little longer at the table.
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Method
- 1
Prepare the ramekins. Heat the oven to 190 °C (170 °C fan). Butter the ramekins, then sprinkle with sugar and tip out the excess. Set them on a rimmed baking sheet.
- 2
Warm the milk. Whisk the milk and cocoa powder together in a small saucepan and bring just to a simmer over medium heat. Take off the heat and set aside.
- 3
Build the base. Melt the 28 g butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring, until it smells nutty and turns light golden, about 1 min. Whisk in the warm milk mixture and cook, whisking constantly, until it thickens to the consistency of a thin pudding, about 2 min. Off the heat, whisk in the egg yolks, then transfer the mixture to a large bowl and whisk in the melted chocolate until smooth.
- 4
Cook the syrup. Whisk the 200 g sugar with the water in a small saucepan. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pan, bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-high and cook, without stirring, until the thermometer reads 120 °C. Take off the heat.
- 5
Whip the meringue. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites, fine salt and cream of tartar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until frothy. With the mixer running, drizzle in the hot syrup down the side of the bowl, then raise the speed to high and beat until the meringue holds stiff, glossy peaks, about 4 min.
- 6
Fold and fill. Fold a third of the meringue into the chocolate base to loosen it, then fold in the rest just until no streaks remain (a few are fine). Fill the ramekins to within 0.5 cm of the rim; you may not need them all.
- 7
Bake. Bake without opening the oven door until the soufflés have risen well above the rim and the centres are set, 18-22 min.
- 8
Serve. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and serve immediately with ice cream.
Storage
Soufflés deflate quickly and are best served straight from the oven. The chocolate base can be made up to 6 hours ahead: cool, cover and refrigerate, then whip and fold in the meringue just before filling and baking. Cool leftover base in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
Free sugars
48.5 g per serving
97 % of the 50 g daily maximum · 194 % of the ideal 25 g
Free sugars under 50 g a day, ideally about 25 g, based on WHO free-sugar guidance (not endorsed by WHO). The share shown is the share of one serving. WHO
Equipment
- six to eight 170 ml ramekins
- rimmed baking sheet
- small saucepan
- medium saucepan
- candy thermometer
- whisk
- large bowl
- electric mixer
- rubber spatula
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 622 kcal |
| Protein | 10.6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 76.6 g |
| of which sugars | 65.2 g |
| of which free sugars | 48.5 g |
| Fat | 31.2 g |
| of which saturates | 18 g |
| Fibre | 4.2 g |
| Salt | 0.65 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
1.7 g High Protein needs ≥ 5 g (20% of energy)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
