Itsa Cheese Souffle'a

... said my husband every time he asked if it was ready yet. Not yet! But it sure smelled good.  The November Daring Cooks challenge was to make a souffle.  I was excited because I had printed out a cheese souffle recipe about three months ago and now I had an excuse to make it.

Can I just say - I am really excited about how it turned out. A little brown on top? Yes. But I don't think that's a bad thing, personally. It still tastes awesome.  I'm also excited that I woke up early to make this, because the lighting in my house was perfect. Daylight Savings is a killer for an 8-5 worker. I can't take [good] photos unless the weekend!

Things I did different than the recipe: I added whole grain mustard since I didn't have any powdered mustard. I also learned a few things from Alton Brown's show a few weeks ago. He did an episode on souffle's and though very informative, I only caught a few things. The first, was to put the dish in the fridge after buttering it up - to keep the butter cool and prevent the batter from sticking to the pan.  The second was to run my finger along the top edge of the dish after the batter has been poured. This is supposed to encourage the souffle to rise upward, instead of up and out.

I found my recipe on Serious Eats on their "Sunday Brunch" section. It's called Lucy Dobson's Cheese Souffle. Apparently it's the only kind you should make? That's what the recipe post said.

A Cheese Souffle'a
From Lucy Dobson's Cheese Souffle

Ingredients
2 teaspoons unsalted butter, softened
6 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
1 teaspoon whole grain mustard
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound of cheddar cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
11 ounces cream cheese, cut into globby 1-inch cubes
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 375*F.  Use the butter to grease a 5-cup souffle dish.  Put the eggs, cream, Parmesan, mustard, pepper and salt into a food processor or blender. With the motor running, add the cheddar, piece by piece. With the motor still running, add the cream cheese, piece by piece. When all the cheese is added, process or blend the mixture for 30 seconds. It will be very thick.

Half-pour, half-scrape the mixture into the prepared dish and bake it for 50 to 60 minutes. Don't peek at it before the 50 minutes are up-- unless, of course, you have a glass oven door.