Recipe

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375°F and grease an 8″ soufflé dish with butter and sprinkle with sugar.

Step 2: Bring the sugar, all but 2 tbsp of milk, and the vanilla bean to boiling point in a pan. Remove the vanilla bean, scrape out the seeds, and set aside.

Step 3: In another pan, stir 2 tbsp of the hot milk into the flour, then gradually add the rest of the hot milk, stirring over low heat until thickened. Remove from the heat. Stir the butter and vanilla seeds into the milk mixture. Mix in the egg yolks and let cool.

Step 4: In a grease-free bowl, whisk the egg whites to form stiff peaks and fold gently into the mixture. Pour into the prepared dish and gently level the surface. Bake for 25-30 minutes and serve immediately.

Note: For a lemon soufflé, replace the vanilla bean with finely grated zest of two lemons.

See more recipes from Ginette Mathiot.

Reprinted with permission from Ginette Mathiot’s The Art of French Baking, $49.95 (2011 Phaidon).