French Pink Praline Souffle Recipe

Quick Summary: This French pink praline soufflé is a sweet dessert baked in ramekins, made with a praline-flavored egg yolk base folded with whipped egg whites. It bakes in about 10 minutes, rises tall in a hot oven, and is served straight away with powdered sugar before it deflates. Pink praline give it its color and nutty crunch.

What is a soufflé?

Soufflé (soufflé spelled in French) is a French baked dish made of egg yolks and beaten egg whites. The word soufflé is derived from the French verb souffler, which means
"to breathe" or "to blow".

The first appearance of a soufflé goes back to the 18^th century and is attributed to French cook Vincent de la Chapelle.

The dessert was not popularized in France until the 19th century, when the chef Marie-Antoine Carême included the soufflé recipe in one of his cookbooks. Later, in the 20^th century, Julia Child introduced the soufflé to the American continent.

Souffles can be classified into savory souffles made with herbs, cheese, or vegetables, and soufflé desserts made with bananas, chocolate, berries, etc.

Soufflés are usually baked in individual baking vessels, such as ramekins, that are buttered and sprinkled with sugar before the soufflé mixture is added.

Perfect French souffle: tips and tricks

A soufflé has an egg yolk base: pastry cream and beaten eggs. What keeps a soufflé risen is the air bubbles from the beaten egg whites that expand in the well-heated oven, giving that famous rise to the sosoufflé So, preparing egg whites is essential to making this dessert.

Tips for working with egg whites

• Use fresh eggs at room temperature. Take them out of the fridge 1 to 2 hours before making a soufflé. It helps egg whites expand more quickly and easily.

• Carefully separate egg whites from egg yolks; do not let any yolk enter the egg whites, as it will prevent the egg whites from mounting correctly. Use an egg separator to make this step easier.

• Use a clean and grease-free metal bowl. According to Jeff Potter, author of "Cooking for Geeks," the best bowl for whisking egg whites is a copper bowl, as copper interacts with the proteins in egg whites, helping stabilize the foam.

• Add ½ teaspoon white wine vinegar, ½ teaspoon cream of tartar, or ½ teaspoon lemon juice while beating the egg whites. This step is essential for stabilizing egg whites.

• Beat egg whites with a hand whisk! According to Jeff Potter, "...electric beaters won't work in as much air before the foam is set." If this step seems tiring, use an electric mixer on low to medium speed. If you whip egg whites too quickly, you won't incorporate air bubbles into the meringue.

• Keep beating the egg whites until a soft peak forms (called bec d'oiseau in French, meaning "bird beak" in English). Once you stop whisking, you should see a curve of beaten egg whites resembling a bird beak; do not over-beat the egg whites to make them too thick!

Other tips for making the perfect French soufflé

• Prepare all the equipment and measure ingredients before you start making a soufflé.

• Butter ramekins with a silicone brush, making upward strokes to help the soufflé surface detach more easily from the dish. Then coat the sides and bottom of ramekins with a sugar layer, knocking out the excess to make a nice crust while baking.

• Refrigerate the prepared dishes while making the batter.

• Make the egg yolk base first, then beat the egg whites. This allows the base to cool after cooking. Second, incorporate the beaten egg whites, full of air bubbles, as soon as they are beaten.

• Combine the egg whites with the egg yolk base right away, folding them in two stages. Add a third of the egg whites and mix with a rubber or wooden spatula: slide the spatula under the preparation, along the bottom of the bowl, folding up and over. Add this mixture to the remaining egg whites and mix until fully incorporated. The mixture might look barely blended with streaks of white, which is fine.

• Once you spoon the mixture into ramekins, run your thumb around the inside rim of each dish to create a trench to help the soufflé rise. Tap the ramekins well before baking.

• Preheat the oven thoroughly, then bake the soufflé in a very hot oven. Place the ramekins on the lowest rack, where heat expansion is greatest. This arrangement will raise the soufflé to the max. However, it also means the soufflé will deflate more quickly once taken out of the oven. So, hurry up with serving!

• Never open the oven while baking the soufflé. Any sudden change in the oven temperature can cause the soufflé to collapse.

Why you'll love this recipe

1. Showstopper dessert: Freshly baked and served straight from the oven, this soufflé rises tall and makes a memorable end to a meal.
2. Perfect for celebrations: The pink color suits Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, a girl's birthday party, or a baby shower.
3. Easier than it looks: Once you read through the tips in this post, the French soufflé recipe is straightforward to make.
4. Nutty praline flavor: Pink praline gives the soufflé its color and a light crunch you will not find in a plain vanilla version.

Ingredients

For ingredients and detailed instructions, refer to the recipe card below.

• Pink Praline: It is the star of this pink-colored, nutty soufflé. Make it yourself at home or use store-bought crushed pink praline.

• Heavy cream: use heavy cream with at least 36% fat content.

• Eggs: separate egg whites from the yolks carefully. To make this step easier, use an egg separator and chilled eggs.

• Flour: use all-purpose flour.

• Sugar: use white granulated or caster sugar.

• White wine vinegar helps stabilize egg whites while whisking.

Equipment

To make this French pink praline soufflé, you will need a few tools:

• ramekins or individual soufflé dishes to bake and serve each portion
• silicone brush to butter the ramekins with upward strokes
• egg separator to separate the whites from the yolks cleanly
• glass bowl that is clean and grease-free for whisking the egg whites
• hand whisk or an electric mixer to beat the egg whites
• wooden spatula or a rubber spatula to fold the egg whites into the base
• food processor to crush the pink praline, and a saucepan to cook the praline cream base

How to make French soufflé

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Butter the ramekins with a silicone brush, then sprinkle with sugar. Chill ramekins while making the batter.

Step 2. Place pink praline in a food processor and crush until fine (photo 1).

Step 3. Bring the heavy cream and ¾ of the crushed pink praline to a simmer in a saucepan over low heat, stirring (photo 2).

Step 4. In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks, flour, and half of the sugar (photo 3).

Step 5. Pour the cream/praline mixture over the egg/sugar/flour mixture and mix (photo 4).

Step 6. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan, bring to a boil, and stir without stopping.

Step 7. Once it thickens, pour it into another bowl, add the remaining crushed pink praline (photo 5), mix, and let it cool.

Step 8. In a clean, grease-free bowl, beat the egg whites with a hand whisk.

Step 9. Add the vinegar and the remaining sugar, and continue whisking until combined (photo 6).

Step 10. Add a few tablespoons of egg whites to the pink praline preparation and gently mix with a rubber spatula.

Step 11. Then add the remaining egg whites to the main preparation and gently combine.

Step 12. The preparation will be pink/white, not entirely homogeneous, which is fine (photo 7).

Step 13. Pour the preparation into prepared ramekins (photo 8).

Step 14. Run a thumb around the inside of the dishes and tap the ramekins well (photo 9).

Step 15. Bake on the lowest rack for 10 to 11 minutes. Do not open the oven door while baking!

Step 16. Sprinkle the top of the soufflé with powdered (icing) sugar and serve immediately (photo 10).

Expert tips

1. Crush pink praline into medium-sized pieces to make a crunchy soufflé. However, it might limit the soufflé's lift.
2. Read the above-listed tips

Recipe variations

• Grand Marnier soufflé: Replace the pink praline with 2 to 3 tablespoons of Grand Marnier and a little orange zest for a classic French orange-liqueur version.
• Chocolate soufflé: Melt 3.5 oz (100 g) of dark chocolate into the warm base instead of the praline for a rich chocolate soufflé.
• Vanilla soufflé: Skip the praline and add the seeds of 1 vanilla bean, or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, to the base.
• Berry soufflé: Fold in a few tablespoons of thick raspberry or passion fruit puree for a fruity soufflé.
• Coffee soufflé: Dissolve a teaspoon of instant coffee or espresso powder into the warm cream for a mocha note.

How to serve a soufflé

There is a saying that guests can wait for a soufflé, but a soufflé cannot wait for guests!

Mr. Idoux's daughter, who seems to have inherited the "perfect-souffle-making" gene, says, "You have two to three minutes max to get it to the table before it slumps."

As per another pastry chef, Laurent Jeannin, "It has to be made to order and then consumed immediately. That's part of its legend."

To maintain the soufflé's height for as long as possible, place ramekins on a plate heated in a microwave. Sprinkle the top of the soufflé with powdered (icing) sugar. To appreciate the contrast between hot and cold, serve the soufflé with ice cream on top or to the side.

Storing & freezing

A soufflé is best straight from the oven, so it is not meant to be stored. It begins to deflate within a few minutes of leaving the oven, and the texture does not hold up once cooled.

To get ahead, you can prepare parts of the recipe in advance. Butter and sugar the ramekins and keep them in the fridge, and make the praline egg yolk base up to a day ahead. Fold in the beaten egg whites and bake only when you are ready to serve.

Freezing a baked soufflé is not recommended, as the air bubbles that give it height collapse and will not rise again. If you have leftovers, keep them covered in the fridge for up to a day and enjoy them cold, knowing the risen shape will be gone.

Recipe FAQ

Is soufflé French?
Yes. The soufflé is a French baked dish, and its name comes from the French verb souffler, meaning to breathe or to blow. It first appeared in France in the 18th century.

What is a pink praline soufflé?
It is a sweet French soufflé flavored and colored with pink praline, which are candied almonds coated in pink sugar. The praline gives the soufflé its rosy color and a nutty crunch.

Why does my soufflé deflate?
A soufflé falls as the hot air bubbles inside cool and contract. This is normal. To keep it tall as long as possible, bake in a very hot oven, never open the door while baking, and serve right away.

What size ramekin do you use for soufflé?
Individual souffles are usually baked in 4- to 6-oz (about 150 ml) buttered ramekins coated with sugar. This recipe makes six individual souffles.

Can you make a soufflé in advance?
You can prepare the buttered, sugared ramekins and the egg yolk base ahead, but fold in the egg whites and bake just before serving, since the batter loses its air over time.

Can you make a Grand Marnier soufflé with this recipe?
Yes. Swap the pink praline for 2 to 3 tablespoons of Grand Marnier and a little orange zest to make the classic orange-liqueur soufflé.

How many calories are in this soufflé?
One ramekin has about 201 calories, based on the nutrition estimate for this recipe.

Love Valentine's Day desserts? Try these next!

• French Chocolate Tart
• Blackberry Friands
• Raspberry Oreo Cheesecake
• Browse all Valentine's Day Recipes

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Recipe card

The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.

The recipe was adapted from https://www.750g.com/. It was originally published on April 10, 2019. The recipe has been revised to include improved content and photos.