Strawberry Souffle

   

     Food is  intrinsic in our lives, it connects us to memories, conjures up emotions and bewitches our taste buds. For me, cooking and baking is almost like meditation. It helped me keep my family together and cheer up at the most challenging of  times. No matter, how tough the day is, a plate of hot steaming rice and a simple dal, served with love cheered the most weary soul. And, win our home, we always ate our meals together. It is a ritual , to set the table neatly and eat with gratitude, no matter what.

Desserts are the pretty part of a meal. they entice one first visually and then with taste. Its rich and decadent, so eaten in moderation! My husband has a major sweet tooth and I loved to indulge. Although, savoury is what captures my imagination and tickles my taste bud. Post my marriage and settling into the quite life of plantation wife, i kept myself busy by organizing dinners for friends in the estates. Our cook was an excellent one, turning ingredients into magic dishes. he was an old cook, who had learnt and served the Old British Planter. So, technically , he was my first teacher after my own mother. He would patiently teach me and often chide me into writing down the recipes, as he would keep saying " i'm old and won't be serving you long".  He used the old measuring system, so all measurements were in ounces and pounds and not grams and kilo grams. I learnt from him about 'Suet' , how to use it to get the flakiest of puffs and  'vol au vents'. But, its was his Souffles and flans which were outstandingly delicious. Souffles ,which were air and delicate as air. I saved up the recipes and today I taught my daughter to make a Souffle, as light as an angel's breathe.

This as an Ode our old cook, he passed away before my first born's  first birthday but I'm ever grateful to a man ,who was kind, gentle and patient.

Ingredients: 

350g (12 oz) strawberries, washed and hulled

30ml powdered gelatin

60ml ( 4 tbsp sugar)

20 ml (4 tsp) lemom juice

3 egg whites

200 ml ( 7 fl oz) double cream

Method:

To achieve the characteristic height of a souffle, support the mixture as it sets with a foil or paper collar around the dish. Always use a straight sided dish to give the maximum effect.

Reserve a few strawberries for decoration.
Puree the rest in a blender.

Put gelatin and 15ml sugar in a small saucepan, stir in 1/3 of the strawberry puree and stir over gentle heat until the gelatin has dissolved.

Remove from heat ,stir in the rest of the puree and lemon juice . chill the mixture in the fridge for a while.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites with an electric beater, until soft peaks form. Add the remaining sugar, a little at a time, whisking well after each addition, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the egg whites form stiff peaks.

Whip the cream until light and fluffy.

Take the strawberry puree and whisk with the beater.

Add the strawberry puree to the whipped cream, fold gently. Then add the stiffly beaten egg whites and fold so all the ingredients are well incorporated.

Spoon the souffle mixture into a prepared dish. Chill for 4 hours until completely set.

Carefully peel off the collar from the souffle dish. Decorate the top with the reserved strawberries.

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