Orange Soufflé Nantaise Recipe

Today we have a grown-up dessert to round-off the recipes for your Valentine's day meal. A classic orange souffle from the Cordon Bleu school of cookery. However, this dessert is not a baked souffle, so it's much easier to prepare than the name suggests!

Spectacular but easy, just the kind of recipe you want for Valentine's day!

Orange Soufflé Nantaise Recipe

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

4 tbsp crushed macaroons
a little Grand Marnier liqueur
3 large eggs, separated
165g (6 oz) caster sugar
finely-grated zest of 1 lemon
finely-grated zest of 3 small oranges
juice of 3 small oranges, strained
300ml (1 1/4 cups) double (heavy) cream
15g (1/2 oz) powdered gelatine
juice of 1/2 lemon, made up to 5 tbsp with water

For the Garnish:
6 tbsp double (heavy) cream, whipped and sweetened
2 tbsp macaroon crumbs

Method:

Soak the macaroons in the liqueur and set aside.

Combine the egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest and juice and orange zests and juice in a bowl over a pan of hot water. Whisk the mixture until thick and mousse-like. Remove the bowl from the heat and continue beating for 5 minutes more, or until the bowl has cooled.

Lightly whip the double cream until it just holds its shape then fold into the egg yolk mixture. Warm the lemon juice and water mix slightly and dissolve the gelatine in this then stir into the cream and egg yolk mixture.

Add the egg whites to a clean and dry bowl and whisk until stiff but not dry. Set the bowl of soufflé mixture in an ice bath then fold in the egg whites with a metal spoon.

As the mixture begins to thicken turn into a soufflé dish around which a band of doubled greaseproof (waxed) paper has been tied (this should come 3cm [1in] above the top of the soufflé dish to help support the gelatine mix). As you add a layer of the souffle mix, add a layer of the soaked macaroons.

When all the mixture has been used up, set the soufflé aside in the refrigerator to set. When firm, rum a hot palette knife between the two layers of greaseproof paper to loosen then carefully peel the greaseproof paper off.

Press the remaining macaroon crumbs gently around the outside of the souffle to coat the sides. Decorate the top with rosettes of whipped cream. Add a few small macaroons and serve.

For a Complete Valentine's Day meal, you can choose from the recipes presented on this blog:

Starters:

Sole à l'Indienne (Fish)

Main Courses:
Pork Tenderloin with Prunes (Pork)

Desserts:

Orange Soufflé Nantaise

Savarin Chantilly

Other Recipes:

Chocolate Truffles (to serve with coffee)

For hundreds more Valentine's day recipes, and a brief introduction to Valentine's day please visit the Celtnet St Valentine's day recipes and Information page.