Lucullus Soufflé

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •20 cm (8 inch) savarin mold
• •Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
• •Ovenproof platter or shallow baking dish at least 25 cm (10 inches) wide
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •10 cm (4 inch) wide baking parchment strips
• •Plain cotton kitchen twine
• •Small saucepan
• •Broad rubber spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Mix the savarin

   Butter a 20 cm (8 inch) savarin mold thoroughly, reaching into every curve. Stir the lukewarm milk and yeast together. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a mixer bowl, add the whole eggs and yeast mixture, then beat with the paddle on medium speed for 6 to 8 minutes. The dough should become glossy, elastic, and sticky enough to cling in long strands. Beat in the soft butter a spoonful at a time, waiting until each addition disappears before adding the next. A stiff, kneadable dough means too much flour has entered; keep this one soft.

2. 2

   Proof and bake

   Scrape the dough evenly into the buttered mold, filling it by no more than one-third, and smooth it with damp fingers. Cover and leave it in a warm place until the dough has nearly tripled and sits about 1 cm below the rim, 45 to 75 minutes. Bake at 190°C (375°F) until deeply golden, springy, and beginning to pull from the mold, 18 to 22 minutes. Rest it for 2 minutes, loosen the edges gently, and turn it onto a rack. Cool completely. If one patch clings and tears, press it back into place while warm. Ça se rattrape, and the syrup will bind the crumb.

3. 3

   Saturate with kirsch

   Bring the water and syrup sugar to a boil, stirring only until the sugar dissolves, then simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, wait 5 minutes, and stir in the kirsch so its cherry fragrance remains clear. Butter the exposed center of an ovenproof platter and scatter it with the coating sugar, then set the cooled savarin over it. Spoon the warm syrup slowly over the cake in several passes, pausing after each so the crumb drinks before more arrives. Saturated means moist to the center but still standing proudly; if syrup pools around the base, stop and wait rather than drowning the ring.

4. 4

   Fasten the collar

   Cut a double strip of baking parchment long enough to encircle the savarin and about 10 cm (4 inches) high. Wrap it snugly around the outside with its lower edge flat against the platter and at least 4 cm rising above the cake, then secure it with plain cotton kitchen twine. Use baking parchment, never waxed paper or synthetic string. The collar shields the soaked edge and contains the soufflé as it rises across the top. Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F) with a rack just below the center.

5. 5

   Cook the fruit base

   Whisk the cold raspberry purée, fruit-base sugar, and cornstarch together in a small saucepan before setting it over medium heat. Bring it just to a simmer, whisking constantly, then cook for about 1 minute until glossy and thick enough to leave a clear trail across the pan floor. Stir in the lemon juice and transfer the base to a wide bowl. Let it cool until merely lukewarm. If it forms lumps, don't discard it. Ça se rattrape: press it through a fine sieve while warm, then loosen it with a teaspoon of water if it has become too firm to fold.

6. 6

   Whip and fold

   Whip the egg whites in a spotless, grease-free bowl until foamy. Add the whipping sugar gradually and continue until the whites are glossy and hold medium-firm peaks whose tips still bend. Dry, clotted whites won't expand well, so stop before they turn grainy. Stir one-quarter of the whites firmly into the lukewarm fruit base to lighten it, then fold in the remainder in two additions with a broad spatula, cutting down through the center and lifting from underneath. Stop as soon as no white streaks remain. Every extra turn spends air you need in the oven.

7. 7

   Fill and bake

   Spoon the raspberry soufflé preparation into the center of the savarin, filling the well first and then letting the remainder form a level layer within the parchment collar. Slide the platter into the oven at once. Bake without opening the door for the first 10 minutes, then continue until the soufflé has risen 3 to 4 cm above the cake, the top is lightly colored, and the center gives a soft quiver rather than a liquid slosh, 12 to 15 minutes in all. A slight lean is no catastrophe. Cooking well is not cooking fancy.

8. 8

   Serve without waiting

   Carry the Soufflé Lucullus directly to the table. Snip the twine and peel the parchment down carefully, then serve with a large spoon, taking both raspberry soufflé and kirsch-soaked savarin in every portion. A hot soufflé waits for nobody, which is not severity, only physics. Never apologize at your own table. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Frozen raspberries picked ripe are better here than tired fresh berries. Thaw them, purée them, and press them through a fine sieve; seeds make the soufflé feel coarse and interrupt its clean rise.
• •Kirsch is a dry cherry eau-de-vie, not a sweet cherry liqueur. The syrup supplies all the sugar it needs, while proper kirsch gives fragrance without turning the savarin sticky with extra sweetness.
• •The parchment collar is not presentation theater. It protects the syrup-soaked cake and holds the expanding soufflé around it, so use a double thickness, set it flush against the platter, and tie it firmly.
• •Have every guest seated before the egg whites are whipped. The savarin and fruit base can wait, but the folded soufflé preparation cannot; once the whites meet the fruit, the oven is the next stop.
• •Serve with demi-sec Champagne or a small glass of chilled kirsch. The wine needs enough fruit to meet the raspberry, but the dessert already has all the ornament it requires.

Advance Preparation

• •Bake the plain savarin one day ahead, cool it completely, and wrap it airtight at room temperature. A slightly rested cake absorbs syrup more evenly than one still warm from the mold.
• •The raspberry base can be cooked up to 24 hours ahead and chilled with parchment pressed against its surface. Bring it back to room temperature before folding in the whites.
• •The savarin may be saturated and collared several hours before dinner, then kept covered at cool room temperature. Whip, fold, fill, and bake only when the table is ready.
• •The finished soufflé cannot be held or reheated. Leftover soaked savarin remains delicious, but the airy center belongs to the moment it leaves the oven.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 150g)