Violet Soufflé

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1-litre straight-sided soufflé dish, about 18 cm wide
• •Medium heavy saucepan
• •Large clean mixing bowl
• •Balloon whisk
• •Flexible spatula
• •Mortar and pestle
• •Fine sieve
• •Rimmed baking sheet

Instructions

1. 1

   Ready dish and oven

   Heat the oven to 190°C / 375°F, or 170°C / 340°F fan, with a rimmed baking sheet on the lower-middle rack. Brush a straight-sided 1-litre soufflé dish generously with the softened butter, working upward from base to rim, then coat it with the granulated sugar and tap out the excess. Crush the smaller crystallised violets in a mortar until they resemble fine sugar, then sift them and crush any shard left behind. Keep the eight large violets whole and dry.

   A hard violet shard melts into a bead of syrup and pulls at the batter. Powder disperses evenly, so be exact here.
2. 2

   Infuse vanilla milk

   Put the milk, vanilla seeds, and pod in a small saucepan. Warm gently until small bubbles gather around the edge, then cover, remove from the heat, and leave for 10 minutes. Remove the pod and return the milk to gentle heat until hot but not boiling.

3. 3

   Build the panade

   Melt the 28 g butter in a medium heavy saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook for 90 seconds without colouring to make a roux blanc (white roux). Add the hot vanilla milk gradually, whisking after every addition, then cook over medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes until the panade is smooth, very thick, and pulling cleanly from the saucepan. Whisk in the 38 g caster sugar and salt. If it forms lumps, take it off the heat, whisk firmly, and pass it through a fine sieve while warm. Ça se rattrape.

4. 4

   Add yolks and violets

   Let the panade stand for 3 minutes, then whisk in the yolks one at a time, waiting until each disappears before adding the next. Scrape the base into a broad mixing bowl and leave it until just lukewarm, about 10 minutes. Stir in the finely crushed violets until their colour and perfume are evenly dispersed. Don't add them to a hot base, which would melt their sugar into sticky pockets.

5. 5

   Whisk the whites

   Whisk the egg whites in a perfectly clean bowl until they hold soft peaks. Add the 25 g caster sugar gradually, whisking until the whites are glossy and make medium-firm peaks whose tips still bend. Stop there. Dry, clotted whites resist the fold and leave weak seams through the soufflé.

6. 6

   Fold and crown

   Whisk one-quarter of the whites into the violet base to loosen it. Add the rest in two portions, cutting down through the centre with a flexible spatula, sweeping across the bottom, and turning the bowl after each fold. Stop as soon as no large white pockets remain. Spoon the mixture into the prepared dish, level it lightly, and run a clean thumb around the inside rim to make a shallow channel. Lay the eight whole crystallised violets gently in a crown over the outer third of the surface. Don't press them into the batter.

7. 7

   Bake on steady heat

   Set the dish immediately on the hot baking sheet and bake for 24 to 28 minutes. Keep the oven door shut for the first 20 minutes. The soufflé is ready when it stands several centimetres above the rim, the top is butter-gold, the violet crown has softened into a gloss, and the centre quivers as one body rather than rolling like liquid. If the centre still waves after 24 minutes, close the door gently and give it another 2 to 3 minutes.

8. 8

   Serve at once

   Carry the soufflé straight to the table in its baking dish. Break the centre with two serving spoons and lift out generous portions, including part of the candied crown with each. A soufflé begins settling as soon as it leaves the oven, which is its nature, not a mistake. Have the plates and guests ready. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Buy actual crystallised violet flowers, not hard violet-flavoured sweets. Choose a packet with several broad, intact blossoms for the crown and use the smaller broken pieces inside the batter.
• •The mixing bowl and whisk must be free of fat. Separate the eggs while cold, when the yolks are less likely to break, then let the whites lose their chill before whisking.
• •A paper collar is unnecessary for this home-sized quantity. A straight-sided 1-litre dish, properly buttered and sugared, gives the batter all the guidance it needs without extra brigade scaffolding.
• •This dessert waits for nobody. Begin whisking the whites only when the table is cleared and your guests are ready. Serve with a small glass of demi-sec Champagne, whose sweetness can stand beside the candied flowers.

Advance Preparation

• •The vanilla panade can be prepared up to 4 hours ahead. Cover its surface directly, chill it, then let it stand out for about 20 minutes and whisk it smooth before adding the crushed violets.
• •The soufflé dish can be buttered and sugared several hours ahead and kept chilled. Crush the violets shortly before folding and keep the powder airtight, since humidity turns the sugar sticky.
• •Once the whites are folded in, the soufflé must be crowned and baked immediately. The finished dish cannot be held or reheated without losing the airy structure that defines it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 145g)