Two Much!

In every Gourmet's Almanac, September is an interim month. Charcoal fires have done their summer stint and the long season of pheasant, mallard duck and mountainous rib roasts is still in the planning stage. At this special interval, nothing will hold a roomful of people as spellbound as the aroma of a huge soufflé baking in the oven. And a hearty salad as a supplement will make the culinary coup well-nigh perfect.

Soufflés are as French as the Champs-Elysées; Gallic gourmets, wiser than Americans, know better than to earmark their soufflés for ladies' literary luncheons. For the soufflé, in its lofty estate, is as satisfying to the inward man as the most sumptuous chafing dish.

A soufflé, which starts with an opulent sauce and egg yolks, is, in its infinite varieties, fortified with anything from broccoli to ham to seafood. It's folded into whipped egg whites and baked. When you've mastered one, you have the clue to all of them. The glory of the soufflé emanates from two main sources. The primary one is its melting deliciousness--an inside so soft and inviting that you can't stop eating it until you've scraped every inch of the crusty brown shell from the bottom and sides of the dish. The second is its suspense. You can feel certain when you're waiting for a baked onion soup to arrive that the cheese topping will amply fill the top of the casserole, just as, later on, you can be even more profoundly sure that the oversize shell steak will ride proudly on its charred wooden plank. But the huge golden crown of a soufflé may fall, although the odds against it are fantastically high. And this dire possibility--remote though it is--is likely to send guests into joyous raptures every time a tour de force is brought to the table intact. As a matter of actual record, soufflés contract slightly after standing on the dining table (a normal phenomenon that doesn't harm them at all), but they seldom do fall.

By tradition, most soufflés are baked and served in round, fluted dishes with concave bottoms. You should invest in a set of three (from one- to two-quart sizes) before you head for the oven. The latest types are equipped with wicker baskets into which the dishes nest comfortably without any threat to tabletops. And if you've never made soufflés before and want to become a virtuoso, you should have several dress rehearsals before inviting an audience.

Of all myths about soufflés, the most prevalent--that the opening of an oven door for a quick look will cause your haughty creation to topple--is the first bit of nonsense to clear out of the beginner's path. You can open the oven door, wide enough to look in, a half dozen times, if you want to. From a practical standpoint, it's unnecessary. Toward the end of the baking period, you should make a routine check, just as you'd check a roast. But unlike roasts, a soufflé should always be well done. Almost all collapses are due to under baking rather than overbaking. French chefs in hotels are notorious for deliberately courting disaster on this point. They like their creations to be so soft in the center that they're gooey--almost like a thick sauce--rather than delicately spongy. Now, a soufflé with a runny inside is like a building with collapsible girders in the center. This is the reason French chefs and others, who paradoxically combine patience and impatience, will sometimes bake two or three soufflés when one is ordered. If the first one falls before the waiter reaches the table, a second one will be ready and primed for the race ten minutes later. All of this anxiety is completely unnecessary if you steadfastly remember to keep the soufflé in the oven until it's not only done but has reached a mite beyond doneness. The dish is literally done when it's firm to the touch, if it doesn't indulge in a jellylike wobble when moved. As the soufflé approaches perfection, the top will show a brown bloom. A deep-brown bloom is best. If the top is cracked (chefs induce a "cap" on the soufflé by running a narrow spatula around the rim of the soufflé before baking it), there should be no moist spot whatever showing in the cracked area. If you're ready to serve and your guests haven't quite finished their second round of martinis, rest easy. Reduce the oven temperature from the usual 350° to 250°; let the soufflé remain in the oven for 5, 10 or 15 minutes longer. There will be no catastrophe. Of course, after a decent interval, your guests should be seated. We seldom go for the advice of the English gourmet Dr. William Kitchiner, but there are special occasions when his words, "better never than late," do make sense.

Since eggs are so vital in a soufflé's success, heed this sober advice: When separating yolks from whites, don't go into a careless catch-as-catch-can routine. Look each yolk firmly in the eye; keep every trace of yolk out of the whites, or the whites won't rise as they should, into substantial clouds. The bowl of the mixing machine in which you whip the whites should be clean and free of any droplet of grease. Both under-beating and overbeating of egg whites are cardinal sins. Beat whites until they form soft, glossy peaks; they should not look dry or crumbly. Whites are best whipped if removed from the refrigerator about an hour before beating.

One final culinary tall tale should now be dispelled. A soufflé doesn't rise to five times its height when baked. It will, at the most, double in volume after baking. Usually it rises about half its original height in the soufflé dish. To make it look impressively tall, simply fill the dish almost to the top; or tie a collar of folded greased paper or greased aluminum foil around the dish, and then fill the dish to the very top or above it. After baking, remove the collar and the soufflé will stand like a fantastic top hat.

Like champagne and ships, salads and soufflés just naturally go together. Such salads should be more than leafy green tracery served as inconsequential side dishes with table-d'hôte dinners. For instance, the caponatina, outlined in a recipe that follows, is the Sicilian eggplant salad dressed lavishly with olive oil, celery and tomato sauce. If you've ever encountered this premeal salad in Italian restaurants, you'll also probably remember the thin slices of prosciutto, mortadella sausage and perhaps provolone cheese offered at the same time. But instead of serving as antipasto (i.e., before the meal), the same salad and its accompaniments now become, along with a parmesan-cheese soufflé, the meal itself, buon gusto. Inventive menu makers can take almost any salad and give substance to the shadow by whatever hearty supplements their imagination dreams up at the moment.

There's an aphorism that says, "You can't eat glory." Well, you can eat it. And to prove our thesis, we submit the following recipes à la Playboy. Each recipe serves six.

[recipe_title]Ham Soufflé, Chicken Livers Madeira[/recipe_title]

[recipe]8 ozs. sliced canned or cooked ham[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup instantized flour[/recipe]

[recipe]1-1/2 cups milk[/recipe]

[recipe]9 eggs, whites and yolks separated[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon ground fennel seed[/recipe]

[recipe]1-1/2 ozs. bourbon[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

Preheat oven at 350°. Put ham through meat grinder, using fine blade. Put butter, flour and milk in saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from flame. Beat egg yolks well and add to sauce. Heat over low flame 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from flame. Add ham, chives, fennel and bourbon and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Beat egg whites until stiff but still glossy, not dry. Add one quarter of the beaten egg whites to ham mixture. Stir well. Slowly add ham mixture to balance of egg whites, folding in very carefully and lightly, using a down, over, up stroke with spoon or spatula to keep mixture as light as possible. Turn into 2-quart soufflé dish, greased on bottom only. Fit dish with greased aluminum-foil collar extending 2 ins. above rim of dish. Place dish in a shallow pan with 1 in. boiling water. Bake 60 to 70 minutes or until well browned.

Chicken livers madeira are prepared separately and served along with soufflé.

[recipe]3/4 1b. chicken livers[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 1b. sliced fresh mushrooms[/recipe]

[recipe]1 medium-size onion, minced very fine[/recipe]

[recipe]1 large clove garlic, minced very fine[/recipe]

[recipe]1-1/2 cups canned brown sauce[/recipe]

[recipe]3 tablespoons madeira or sherry[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon cognac[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

Divide chicken-liver pairs into single pieces; cut large pieces in half. Heat oil and butter in large skillet. When butter has melted, sauté chicken livers until slightly brown. Remove livers from pan. Add mushrooms, onion and garlic. Sauté, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. If there is a pool of liquid in pan, continue sautéing until liquid has evaporated. Add brown sauce, madeira and cognac and bring to a boil. Return chicken livers to pan and simmer 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

[recipe_title]Watercress, Endive and Fresh Pear Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]6 medium-size ripe fresh pears[/recipe]

[recipe]1 large bunch watercress[/recipe]

[recipe]3/4 lb. Belgian endive[/recipe]

[recipe]4 ozs. roquefort cheese[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup olive oil[/recipe]

[recipe]3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon grated onion[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

(continued on page 235)Two Much!(continued from page 148)

Peel pears and cut in half lengthwise. With sharp paring knife, cut out core from each half. Cut pears into lengthwise slices about 1/2 in. thick. To keep pears from turning dark, dip into fruit juice such as pineapple or grapefruit. Wash watercress and remove any foreign matter. Dry well with paper toweling. Separate endive into as many leaves as possible. Put pears, watercress and endive into salad bowl. Crumble roquefort cheese and sprinkle over salad. In small mixing bowl, combine olive oil, vinegar, mustard, onion, 1/4 teaspoon salt and dash of pepper. Beat well. Pour half the dressing over the salad and toss well. Add more dressing to taste. Season with salt and pepper.

[recipe_title]Shrimp Soufflé, Fra Diavolo[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1-1/2 1bs. (cooked weight) peeled, deveined shrimps, purchased freshly cooked[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup instantized flour[/recipe]

[recipe]1-1/2 cups milk[/recipe]

[recipe]9 eggs, whites and yolks separated[/recipe]

[recipe]2 ozs. dry sherry[/recipe]

[recipe]1 medium-size onion, grated[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon lemon juice[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

Preheat oven at 350°. Put one third of shrimps (1/2 lb.) through meat grinder, using fine blade. Reserve balance of whole shrimps for sauce below. Put butter, flour and milk in saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until thick. Remove from flame. Beat egg yolks well and add to sauce. Heat over low flame 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from flame. Add ground shrimp, sherry, onion, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Beat egg whites until stiff but still glossy, not dry. Add one quarter of the egg whites to shrimp mixture and stir well. Slowly add shrimp mixture to balance of egg whites, folding in very carefully and lightly, using a down, over, up stroke with spoon or spatula to keep mixture as light as possible. Turn into 2-quart soufflé dish, greased on bottom only. Fit dish with greased aluminum-foil collar extending 2 ins. above rim of dish. Place dish in a shallow pan with 1 in. boiling water. Bake 60 to 70 minutes or until well browned. Serve the following sauce as an accompaniment to the soufflé.

[recipe]20-oz. can plum-style tomatoes[/recipe]

[recipe]3 tablespoons tomato paste[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]1 medium-size onion, finely minced[/recipe]

[recipe]1 clove garlic, finely minced[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon chopped dried basil[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon dried oregano[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup dry white wine[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons cognac[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

Drain tomatoes, reserving juice. Chop tomato meat coarsely. Combine tomatoes with their juice and tomato paste, mixing well. Set aside. In saucepan, heat oil; add and sauté onion, garlic, basil, oregano and parsley until onion turns yellow, not brown. Add white wine and cognac. Set aflame. When flames subside, add tomato mixture. Simmer 10 minutes. Add shrimps remaining from recipe above and cook until shrimps are heated through. Add salt and pepper to taste.

[recipe_title]Silver Onion, Green Pea and Potato Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1 lb. small silver onions[/recipe]

[recipe]10-oz. pkg. frozen peas[/recipe]

[recipe]3 medium-size potatoes[/recipe]

[recipe]3 egg yolks, well beaten[/recipe]

[recipe]3/4 cup heavy cream[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon Dijon mustard[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon dry mustard[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup white-wine vinegar[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, white pepper[/recipe]

Peel onions, slicing off root ends. Boil until tender. Drain. Boil peas, following directions on package. Drain. Boil potatoes in jackets until tender. Drain. Peel potatoes and cut into 1/2-in. cubes. In top of double boiler, combine egg yolks, cream, both kinds of mustard, butter and sugar. Cook over simmering water, stirring frequently, just until thick. Remove from flame and stir in vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Chill. Add dressing to cooked vegetables. Toss well. Correct seasoning. Serve ice cold.

[recipe_title]Parmesan Soufflé[/recipe_title]

[recipe]2 cups milk[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup instantized flour[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup butter[/recipe]

[recipe]7 egg yolks, well beaten[/recipe]

[recipe]6 ozs. shredded gruyère cheese[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (freshly grated, if possible)[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, cayenne pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]9 egg whites[/recipe]

Preheat oven at 350°. Put milk, flour and butter in saucepan, mixing well. Bring to a boil over a moderate flame, stirring constantly until sauce is thick. Remove from flame and stir in egg yolks, mixing well. Return to a low flame and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from flame and stir in both kinds of cheese. Season lightly with salt. Add a dash or two of cayenne. Beat egg whites until stiff but still glossy, not dry. Add one quarter of the egg whites to cheese mixture. Stir well. Slowly add cheese mixture to balance of egg whites, folding in very carefully and lightly, using a down, over, up stroke with spoon or spatula to keep mixture as light as possible. Turn into 2-quart soufflé dish, greased on bottom only. Fit dish with greased aluminum-foil collar extending 2 ins. above rim of dish. Place dish in a shallow pan with 1 in. boiling water. Bake 60 to 70 minutes or until well browned.

[recipe_title]Sicilian Caponatina Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1/2 cup olive oil[/recipe]

[recipe]1 small bay leaf[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup celery, 1/2-in. squares[/recipe]

[recipe]1 quart eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2-in. cubes[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons olive oil[/recipe]

[recipe]1 medium-size onion, minced very fine[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon oregano[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup red-wine vinegar[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]8 oz. can tomato sauce[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons capers[/recipe]

[recipe]12 large pimiento-stuffed olives, sliced thin[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons finely minced parsley[/recipe]

Heat 1/2 cup oil in large skillet over moderate flame. Do not let oil reach smoking point. Add bay leaf and celery and sautê until celery is semitender. Add eggplant and continue to sauté slowly, stirring frequently, until eggplant is tender. Remove eggplant and celery from pan. Add 2 tablespoons oil, onion and oregano and sauté until onion is just yellow, not brown. Add vinegar, sugar, tomato sauce, capers, olives and parsley. Simmer 5 minutes. Pour sauce over eggplant and celery. Chill in refrigerator at least one day before serving. Salad may be kept covered in refrigerator for future use.

Obviously, one is limited only by his imagination in conjuring up provocative pairings of salads and soufflés. Let your palate be your guide.