Shelly's Recipe

TWICE BAKED SPINACH SOUFFLES

Category: Spinach

1/3 cup (5 tablespoons) unsalted butter, more for the ramekins
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 shallot, finely chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
5 large egg yolks
7 large egg whites
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup freshly grated Gruyere cheese
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oven to 400. Generously butter six 8-ounce ramekins. Set aside.

Drain the spinach very well. (You do not want of any extra liquid, or it will bake into a soggy, tasteless mass.) Place the spinach in a fine mesh sieve and use the back of a spoon to press out as much liquid as possible. Set aside.

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a skillet; add the shallot and saute over medium heat until it is soft and translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the well-drained spinach and season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring, until the mixture is well combined and all the moisture is cooked out, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.

To make the bechamel sauce: Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in a heavy-bottom saucepan, whisk in the flour, and cook until foaming but not browned, about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk. Add the cayenne, nutmeg, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Once it is at a boil, continue cooking stirring constantly until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes.

Transfer about a third of the sauce to a small saucepan. Add the cream and stir to combine. Set aside.

Stir the spinach into the remaining sauce and taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Add the egg yolks one at a time so they cook in the heat of the sauce and thicken it slightly.

In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt on medium speed until foamy. Increase the speed to high and whip until stiff peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.

Add about a quarter of the beaten egg whites to the sauce mixture and stir until well mixed. Pour this mixture over the remaining whites and fold them together as lightly as possible.

Fill the prepared ramekins with the mixture, smoothing the tops with a metal spatula. Run your thumb around the inside rim of each dish, making a shallow "moat" around the edge of the batter. This will help the souffles to rise straight up. Place them on a rimmed baking sheet and transfer to the oven. Bake until the souffles are puffed and browned, 12 to 15 minutes.

Remove the souffles from the oven to a rack to cool. Turn each souffle out into a gratin dish. Set aside. (Do not adjust the temperature of the oven or turn the oven off.)

Bring the reserved cream sauce to a boil. Add the mustard and half of the Gruyere cheese and the freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Stir to combine then taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper.

Spoon over about 1/4 cup of the sauce on top of the souffles to coat then sprinkle each evenly with the remaining Gruyere (The souffles may be held at this point in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap for up to 24 hours.)

Return the souffles to the oven. Bake the souffles until browned, slightly puffed, and the sauce is bubbling, 7 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately. Serves 6