Recipes » Hot Gingerbread Soufflé
Ingredients
- 50g (2oz) unsalted butter
- 135g (43/4oz) caster sugar
- 210g (71/4oz) dark or couverture chocolate
- (70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp dark rum
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 5 eggs, separated
To serve
- Vanilla custard
This dessert contains all the flavour of traditional gingerbread, but is presented in a much lighter way. Don’t be scared of souffles – just remember that you have to make them just before you are ready to serve, and take them straight to the table to dazzle your guests!
Method
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 11 minutes
- Preheat the oven to 180.C (fan 160.C)/350.F/gas mark 4.
- Melt half the butter and use to brush the inside of eight small ramekins.
- Tip 25g (1oz) of the caster sugar into one ramekin and tap around the sides to lightly coat.
- Pour the excess into the next ramekin and repeat until all the ramekins are butter- and sugar-coated.
- Melt the chocolate with the spices, rum, vanilla extract and remaining butter in a large heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water (the base of the bowl must not touch the water).
- Stir until smooth.
- Remove the bowl from the heat and mix the egg yolks in one at a time.
- In a large clean bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft, moist-looking peaks.
- Mix a little into the chocolate mixture, then gently fold in the rest, using a large metal spoon.
- Divide the souffle mixture between the ramekins, spooning it in, and place the ramekins on a baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven for exactly 11 minutes.
- Serve with vanilla custard poured into the centre of each soufflé
Tip
These soufflés must be cooked just before eating; they will flatten within 2 minutes of being removed from the oven.
Be careful not to open the oven during cooking, as this may prevent them from rising.
