Maitake Mushroom Souffle

Miette Culinary Studio

Chef Paul Vandewoude

INGREDIENTS:
6 eggs
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp finely and freshly grated
Parmesan or Asiago cheese
3 tbsp flour
1 cup milk or light cream, warmed (a perfect use for the microwave)
¾ cup maitake mushroom, chopped
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly grated pepper, preferably white
2 tbsp finely chopped chives
½ cup finely grated Gruyere, cheddar, or other melting cheese of your choice


PROCEDURE
Preheat the oven to 375 degree.
Separating the eggs: Put all the egg whites in a perfectly clean, grasefree large bowl. Put 4 of the egg yolks into a smaller bowl. You will have 2 egg yolks left over. (If you are new to separating eggs, the easiest way is to crack the shell firmly, then pull the halves apart over the egg whites bowl, catching the yolk in one half and letting the white run out. Rock the yolk back and forth between the two shell halves, letting as much of the white run out as possible. Drop the yolk into the yolk bowl. It is very important not to get any yolk into the egg whites-they don’t beat up if you do. But it doesn’t matter if there’s white in with the yolks-there always is.) Set the 2 bowls of beautifully separated eggs aside.

Preparing the baking dish: With your fingers, lightly rub a tablespoon or so of the butter all around the inside of the dish. Sprinkle the Parmesan inside the dish and roll the dish around in your hands to lightly coat the entire inside-the bottom and all the way up the sides. Set the dish aside in the refrigerator to chill a bit. A chilled dish seems to keep the butter in suspension better as the soufflé bakes.

Preparing the sauce base: Melt the remaining butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 – 3 minutes without letting it brown (this step cooks the flour so that it doesn’t have a raw “floury” taste). Slowly whisk in the warm milk, a little at a time. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly, and cook for 3 – 4 minutes. The sauce will be very thick. Stir in the nutmeg, salt, and pepper and remove the pan from the heat. What you’ve made here is a white sauce, or béchamel. Beat a little of this warm base slowly into the egg yolks. This “tempers” or gradually warms them so that they are less likely to scramble. Whisk this mixture back into the rest of the base and set aside.

Beating the egg white: In a clean bowl, with a hand or stand mixer beat the egg whites just until stiff but still shiny and moist looking. This means that the fluffy egg whites should stay in standing peaks when you lift out the beaters. (If the whites are no longer shiny and start to “clump,” they have been over beaten.

Folding the egg whites and finishing the soufflé: Sprinkle the chives over the sauce base and with a rubber or silicone spatula, stir a quarter of the whipped egg whites into the base. Do this quickly. This lightens the mixture so that you can fold in the remaining whites. Here’s a little lesson in folding: Scoop the rest of the whites onto the top of the sauce base. With the edge of the spatula, cut down into the whites, drag the spatula along the bottom of the bowl toward you, and bring the sauce mixture over the top of the whites. Turn the bowl a quarter of a turn, and sprinkle on some of the grated Gruyere. Cut down through the whites, drag the spatula along the bottom, and bring the sauce mixture over the top. Repeat until the whites, cheese, and sauce are just combined.
This is one of those techniques that’s harder to describe than to demonstrate, but it’s worth trying to do it right. What should be going through your mind is that you are doing everything you can to thoroughly and evenly mix the egg whites, sauce base, and cheese without deflating the egg whites. Stirring will deflate them.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared dish, gently smoothing the top and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until the soufflé is puffed and golden brown. Keep the door closed for at least the first 20 minutes so that the soufflé can set. If your oven doesn’t have a glass window and you’re tempted to peek, don’t! When done, serve immediately. To maintain as much of the puff as possible when serving, plunge an upright serving spoon and fork straight down into the center of the soufflé and then pull the crust apart and scoop out a serving.

(Serves 4 – 6 people)

King Trumpet Mushroom: An alternative to meat

The King Trumpet mushroom has a firm and meaty texture, and a mild and elegant flavor. It is characterized by its thick stem, short gills, and tender flesh. King Trumpet is a tasty meat substitute and a good source of dietary fiber. Low in calories and cholesterol-free, King Trumpet is also a good source of antioxidants to help support a strong and healthy immune system. This mushroom variety has been proven to support healthy cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of fat accumulation in the liver.

To prepare, simply cut the ends off the stem, and enjoy sauteed, grilled or steamed. Use in meat, fish, and pasta dishes, and makes an excellent meat-replacement in your favorite recipes. Butter helps to bring out the King Trumpet’s exceptional flavor.

Other names for the King Trumpet include gourmet scallop, king oyster, French horn, and eryngii.

Discover delicious and healthy recipes on the Kinoko fan page! Check it out! http://bit.ly/aOZfpG

Los Angeles Times- From our kitchen to yours:

The Times' best recipes of 2008

The Food Staff

December 31, 2008

A recipe has to travel a long road to make it into the Food section, and that's why there's almost always something cooking in The Times' Test Kitchen. It might be a recipe in development being tasted and tweaked, tested and re-tested to get it right. It might be a nearly finished recipe being put through its final paces just to make sure the instructions are as clear as can be. Or it might be a finished dish being primped and powdered, made ready for its close-up moment in the photo studio.

At a conservative estimate, the Test Kitchen staff follows this process for more than 200 recipes every year. With a bar set so high, we have to believe that -- like the children of Lake Wobegon -- all the recipes are above average. But still, objective tasters all, we have to acknowledge that some are more above average than others. Every year around holiday time a note goes out to staff members, asking for their nominations for the best recipes of the year. Thus ensues a flurry of paper-shuffling and e-mails and when everything is tallied -- almost everyone has chosen something different. Whether this speaks to the uniform excellence of the recipes or to our diverse palates, who knows? Most likely, it's a combination. And when you look down the list of this year's top 10, you can easily understand how this might happen.

Want something exotic? How about Noelle Carter's pumpkin seed stuffing spiced with Spanish chorizo. Want something homey? You've gotta try Donna Deane's midnight chocolate brownie bites. In the mood for a project? The panforte from the "Tartine" cookbook will take several hours to prepare but will repay that effort with an utterly spectacular Italian fruitcake. If, on the other hand, you just want something great for dinner, Russ Parsons' halibut and shimeji mushrooms comes together like a breeze. Something for everybody -- that's what we aim for in the Food section -- and thanks to the Test Kitchen, all of it as good as we can make it.

Recipe: Halibut and shimeji baked in parchment

October 1, 2008

Some exotic mushrooms may be becoming commonplace. A San Diego company is opening a plant this spring that will more than triple the total U.S. output of king trumpet, shimeji and maitake mushrooms within just a couple of years. Just as portobellos came out of nowhere to become supermarket staples in the 1990s, so might these flavorful Japanese mushrooms find their own place on the American table. This recipe by Food editor Russ Parsons is a perfect way to show off the delicate flavor and graceful shape of the shimeji. And it couldn't be simpler to make. Cook the mushrooms, wrap them in a parchment-paper pouch with halibut and bake -- that's all there is to it. Even better, you can prepare the packets in advance and refrigerate them until you're ready to cook. If you don't have parchment, you can use aluminum foil.

Total time: 40 minutes

Servings: 6 to 8

Note: Shimeji mushrooms are generally available at Asian markets.

Canola or vegetable oil

1/2 pound brown or white shimeji mushrooms, tough base removed (leave stems on), and broken into sections
Salt

2 teaspoons minced shallots
1 teaspoon minced tarragon
1/4 cup white wine
Freshly ground black pepper
2 (1-pound) halibut steaks

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut 2 (15-inch-square) pieces of parchment paper or aluminum foil and lightly oil one side.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the mushrooms, three-fourths teaspoon salt and cook, tossing frequently, until the mushrooms start to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. They'll begin to sizzle and shine as they release their moisture.
3. Add the shallots, tarragon and white wine, reduce the heat to medium and cook until the wine evaporates, about 2 minutes. The mushrooms should be tender and lightly browned in places. Season with just a dash of black pepper.
4. Lightly season each halibut steak with three-eighths teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Place a steak in the center of each piece of parchment paper and spoon the mushrooms evenly over the steaks. Crinkle together the edges of the parchment paper to make an airtight packet, with some room left for the packet to expand. Place the packets on a baking sheet. (The recipe can be made to this point several hours in advance and refrigerated until ready to cook.)
5. Bake the packets until they puff slightly, 25 to 30 minutes (you may need to unwrap the packets a little to make sure the halibut is firm and opaque). Remove from the oven and place the packets, still sealed, on a platter. To serve, open the packets and divide the halibut and mushrooms onto plates.

Each of 8 servings: 152 calories; 25 grams protein; 1 gram carbohydrates; 0 fiber; 4 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 36 mg. cholesterol; 390 mg. sodium.