Souffle Suissesse

A dish devised by Albert Roux, father to Le Gavroche head chef Michel Roux Jr, back in the 1960's which incredibly still features on the menu today. After a couple of attempts it's really not hard to see why this dish has stood the test of time.


Serves 2-4

50g Butter, cubed, plus extra for greasing
50g Plain flour
200ml Milk
3 Large eggs, yolks separated from whites, both reserved
100g Gruyere or Comte cheese, finely grated
100g Mature cheddar cheese, finely grated
2 Tsp fine salt
200ml Double cream


1. Begin by greasing two souffle ramekin's or two tartlet mould's with the butter. Preheat the oven to 180C.

2. To make the bechamel, melt the butter over a low heat and once melted add the flour, whisk until well combined and no lumps. Gradually add the milk whisking all the while until you are left with a thick sauce, add the three egg yolks, season with a pinch of salt and pepper and place into a bowl to cool slightly.

3. Whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt until soft peaks begin to form, add one third of the whites to the bechamel and whisk in well to combine. Add the rest of the egg whites a little at a time using a folding motion to keep the air in, do this until there are no visible steaks of egg white, divide into the souffle ramekins and place on a tray.

4. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes if you have tartlet moulds and 12 minutes if you are using souffle moulds, the souffle's should be well risen,golden in colour and set around the edges. While the souffle's are cooking, warm the double cream in a pan along with 50g of each cheese and season, place two gratin dishes or serving bowls into the oven to warm up during the last 3-4 minutes of cooking the souffles.

5. Once the souffle's are ready, pour an equal amount of double cream into the dishes and turn out the souffle's onto the cream*, sprinkle with the remaining cheese and set the oven to 220C. Return the souffle's to the oven for a further 3-4 minutes or until the cheese has melted, serve and enjoy.


*If the souffle's are tricky to remove from the ramekin's, get a knife and run it around the edges and using a teaspoon to release the bottom, do not worry if the souffle deflates slightly as once baked again it will rise.