The easiest cheese souffle

We had some friends over for lunch today. One of whom is French. I wanted an easy dish that takes 40 minutes to cook because we had other things to do for a while. Also something that was likely to appeal to our French friend. When in doubt always look for something by Jacques Pepin. So we did. This is his mother's cheese souffle recipe - one that is absolutely no fuss. I tinkered with it very slightly (adding nutmeg to make a more classic bechamel sauce) and turning the oven down slightly because of the timing constraints, No matter, with a side salad this turned out to be the perfect light lunch.

Ingredients

6 oz. unsalted butter + 1t for greasing the gratin dish

6T all purpose flour

1 US pint of milk

1/2t freshly grated nutmeg

1/2t kosher salt

1/2t freshly ground black pepper

6 large eggs, beaten slightly

6 oz Gruyere, grated

2 oz Parmigiano Reggiano, grated finely

3T minced chives.

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 425F

In a large saucier or other sauce pan, melt the butter and keep on the heat until it stops hissing and crackling. This drives off all of the water - making it easier to add the cold milk without lumps forming.

Once the butter has stopped foaming, whisk in the flour and cook for about a minute to drive off all of the raw flour taste. Add the milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper and whisk to incorporate. Bring to the boil whisking at 1 minute intervals. Allow to bubble for a few seconds while it thickens up, and then let cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile grease the gratin dish with butter, and use half the Parmigiano Reggiano to stick to the bottom/side of the dish.

Incorporate the bechamel sauce gradually into the eggs, whisking after each addition. Go slowly at first - you don't want scrambled eggs. Once the bechamel and eggs are fully mixed, add the chives, salt and pepper. Stir well. Check the seasoning.

Pour the cheese/egg mixture into the prepared gratin dish, and top with the remaining Parmigiano Reggiano.

Bake on the middle oven rack for ~40 minutes - until risen, with a dark, crunchy dome has started to form.

Serve immediately with a side salad.
Thank you M. Pepin for all you do.

croque monsieur Toasted Cheese like never before (unless you are French, of course)

First make the brioche! I use this recipe and it is flawless, so wont't repeat it here. Allow the brioche to stale overnight before proceeding. That assumes you don't just eat it all - it is that good! Yes it does have more flour than you might expect for a classic bechamel. And it will have a lot less milk.

Panned up and ready to go

Ready to turn into sandwiches

Ingredients - For 6 sandwiches

The Bechamel sauce

2 Oz (half a stick) of unsalted butter
6 T all purpose flour
2 cups (1 US pint, 4/5 Imperial pint) WHOLE milk
1 shallot studded with 6 cloves
1/4 t freshly grated nutmeg
salt
white pepper to taste

The Sandwich

12 x 1/4 inch slices of brioche

dijon or tarragon mustard

12 thin slices of Gruyere cheese

6 thin slices of a high quality unsmoked ham

13 cup grated Gruyere cheese

Method

The Bechamel sauce

Heat the milk gently with the shallot/clove for about 15 minutes to allow the flavors to infuse. Make a blond roux with the butter/flour. Make sure you cook the mixture for a couple of minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Add the infused milk gradually, whisking continually until all the milk is added. add about 1/4 t white pepper, 1/4 t salt (the cheese and ham are quite salty, so be sparing at this stage) and the nutmeg. Bring to the boil to allow it to thicken, then cool to room temp. It should be very thick and spreadable.

The Sandwiches

To assemble the sandwiches, you will be spreading the mustard and bechamel on the brioche slices, then filling with ham and cheese.

On one side of each sandwich, spread a little mustard. Then top that with a thin layer of the bechamel sauce. On the other side of the sandwich, just spread the bechamel sauce. Layer the sandwich with a slice of cheese, a slice of ham, and another slice of cheese. Close the sandwich. Spread bechamel sauce on to the top outside of the sandwich and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Bake on a lined  sheet pan (using parchment paper or a Silpat mat) in a pre-heated 425F oven for 10 minutes - or until the cheese is bubbly on top. I use a pizza stone under the pan - you may want to double up the sheet pan to ensure you don't get too much direct heat from the heating element.

Cut in half diagonally and serve piping hot with a simple salad for lunch......