If you're trying to impress your guests, soufflés are certainly the way to go! They are relatively easy to make, but timing is everything. So once that soufflé goes into the oven, you have to be pretty sure that whatever happens (zombie apocalypse included), people will have to sit at the table exactly 25 minutes later. Aside from that, only one thing is strictly forbidden: opening the oven door during the baking. As a side note, the cheese béchamel I make for the soufflé is the same as the one I use to make mac n’ cheese (before adding the egg yolks).

Ingredients
6 eggs, separated between whites and yolks
50g flour
50g butter
40cl milk
150g grated cheese (you can use a blend of gruyere and parmesan, blue cheese works well also)

Preheat the oven to 425ºF.

Butter a soufflé pan, then flour it all over and pour the excess out - important step to allow the soufflé to rise to a maximum.

Make a cheese béchamel: In a small saucepan, melt the butter on very low heat. Add the flour and mix well with a spoon. Cook for a minute while continuing to stir (so that it does not stick or burn), then start adding the milk very slowly, continuously stirring to avoid lumps. After about 5 minutes, the sauce should start to thicken. Remove the saucepan from the stove, add some salt, pepper and a little grated nutmeg. Let the mixture cool down for a few minutes, blend in the grated cheese, then the egg yolks. Taste to adjust seasoning, set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until slightly firm. Incorporate the cheese béchamel with a wooden spoon, starting with about 1/4 of the béchamel and adding the rest gradually. It is important to use a slow movement, making figure eight-like shapes with the spoon and avoiding mixing the egg whites brutally. They could loose the air inside, which would impact the soufflé’s ability to rise.

Once the mixture is uniform, pour into the soufflé pan and bake for about 25 minutes. DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DURING THE BAKING PROCESS! If you believe in God, say a little prayer, otherwise just hope for the best. The soufflé should have risen well and have a nice golden color. Remove it from the oven and serve right away. It goes well with a fresh green salad.