a Fruit Souffle for Valentines' Day

[Guest guest]

I'm planning on a souffle for Valentine's Day. If I make a fruit dessert the

Vitamix will be perfect. I thought I'd share a recipe from my friend Pastorio, a

restauranteur and chef from whom I learned a great deal. He died a couple of

years ago but his recipes are still around on the net and I have several hundred

in my collection.

terry

Anything Fruit Dessert Souffle - Serves 6

Recipe By: Bob Pastorio

Ingredients

for the mold:

butter

sugar

glaze:

2 cup ripe berries -- mashed

3/4 cup preserves of same berries

1/8 cup fruit brandy or cognac

souffle:

6 egg whites

3/4 cup sugar

2 cup very ripe berries

Instructions

Heat oven to 375. Butter and sugar the mold. Combine berries and preserves in

saucepan over low heat, cover, bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir to

mash the berries. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Add brandy. In

bowl of mixer, whip whites at medium speed until soft peaks form. Add sugar

gradually while beating. Chop and crush 1/3 of souffle berries and add them with

the remaining whole berries to the whites, gently folding them in. Pour into

mold and bake for about 20 minutes or until puffed. Serve immediately.

Variations: Substitute any soft fruit for the berries like mango, persimmon,

peach or plum. Use a combination of fruit. Add one teaspoon of grated lemon

peel, orange peel or grapefruit peel. Add two tablespoons cocoa powder to the

souffle.

I use a round, white, ceramic,

high-sided, souffle mold that says " 20 cm " on the bottom. My ruler says it's

about 7 3/4 inches.

Recipe Notes

This will work with any berry - raspberry, strawberry, blueberry - and is an

example of the type of souffle made with a puree instead of Bechamel sauce.

Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar or the glaze below. Serves 6 if you're

lucky.

Exported from A Cook's Books -- Recipe management for Macintosh