Indian Pudding Soufflé
For Thanksgiving, my family always tries to have some Native American flavors. This is one of the recipes we use. I first ate a soufflé that used a bread pudding as a base at the Commander's Palace in New Orleans. So I modified that recipe (from the Chicago Times Cookbook) to use an Indian Pudding as the base. In 1995, I was a featured cook in the Post Dispatch, and this was the recipe that I used (by the way, in 1994 I cooked it in an Aga stove -- one that you can't set a temperature with -- you just move things around to hotter and cooler places -- so if a soufflé works on an Aga, it will work anyplace!)
Indian Pudding
| 4 cups milk | 1 ½ cups dried currents, cranberries or blueberries |
| ¼ cup sweet (unsalted) butter | cup cornmeal |
| ½ teaspoon dried ginger | 1 cup real maple syrup |
| ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg |
Preheat oven to 300 degrees and butter a 2 quart casserole. In a saucepan, combine 3 cups of the milk and the maple syrup over medium heat. Heat til just barely boiling and add the butter. In a separate bowl, combine the cornmeal, ginger and nutmeg. Gradually stir cornmeal mixture into the thot milk. Reduce the heat to low and cook til thickened - about 10 minutes. Fold in dried berries. Spoon into prepared casserole. Pour remaining milk over the pudding, but do not stir in in. Bake 2 ½ hours or until all of the milk has been absorbed and the top is golden brown.
Soufflé.
| 1 ¼ cups of the Indian Pudding (above)(1) | ½ cup sugar |
| 6 large eggs, separated | cream of tartar |
| ½ cup confectionary sugar |
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a 2-quart soufflé dish (butter and sugar inside of dish and collar of waxed paper that has been doubled and tied around the dish). Mix yolks and ½ cup sugar in a double boiler over low heat til frothy and shiny. Whisk in the Indian pudding.
Beat 6 egg whites (with a little cream of tartar if you don't have a copper bowl) until frothy. Beat in ½ cup of confectionary sugar until stiff but not dry. Gently fold a little egg white into the Indian pudding mix. Gently fold in the rest of the eggwhite. Pour unto prepared soufflé dish and wipe edges clean. Bake until puffed and golden, about 30 - 45 minutes. Serve immediately with Maple Cream Sauce (below).
Maple Cream Sauce
Combine ½ cup cream and 1 cup maple syrup. Boil to soft ball stage. Beat 1 minute. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and some brandy or whiskey if desired.
1. The rest of the pudding makes a great breakfast - warmed with a little cream.