Food for Thought with Suzanne Dunaway
(check Suzanne out on SUBSTACK)
MY MAMA’S FAUX SPINACH SOUFFLÉ
So much beautiful fresh spinach around…here’s what to do with it.
My mother loved to tell the story of a friend who, testing her first soufflé for doneness, plunged a broom straw into it to see if the middle was cooked, just as she was taught to do with cakes. You can imagine the rest.
- 1 kilo fresh spinach or two packages frozen, steamed, drained and chopped fine (steam only until wilted)
- 1 half of a large sweet onion, chopped fine
- 1 cup of rich sauce bechamel, seasoned with 2 tablespoons of grated parmesan and pinch of nutmeg
- Juice of large lemon
- 2 large eggs
- Salt and pepper
- Pinch of espelette pepper
In a large bowl, mix everything, adding the eggs last.
Pour into a buttered soufflé dish and set in a bain marie (pan of hot water).
Bake at 350F/180C for 20 minutes or until the soufflé feels firm when pressed lightly and the top is golden and shiny.
This soufflé holds up well as it is not as airy as a normal one and can be made in little timbales for individual servings.
If you wish to separate the eggs, add the yolks to the spinach and then whip and fold in the whites, no one will stop you, and the soufflé will be more of a classic soufflé.
Meet the chef
P-O Life reader, Suzanne Dunaway, has cooked since she was 5 years old, when she made cinnamon pinwheels from her mother’s pastry dough.
She LOVES to cook. Some might say she LIVES to cook. The smells, the tastes, the textures…
She is a firm believer in simplicity and creates her recipes in the ethos of ‘anyone can cook’.
After years of experience in her own kitchen, cooking schools and private classes all over the world, in this weekly blog, Suzanne shares with us her PO-inspired creations.
With many strings to her bow, she is also an artist and columnist, with two published cookbooks.
Get a copy of her ‘No Need to Knead: Handmade Artisan Breads in 90 Minutes’ here
Or her 5 star rated book ‘Rome, at Home: The Spirit of La Cucina Romana in Your Own Kitchen’ here
All content and recipes are copyright of Suzanne Dunaway.
