Of souffles and jamon...

It has been a while since my last post, and I swear I have an excuse...I lent my camera to my mother and father for their trip to Madrid in January, and I have just gotten it back. I have been cooking, but unable to take pictures, so I haven't bothered to post anything for a while. However, this post has several purposes. 1) One to share some pictures of jamòn Serrano from Spain. 2) Talk about my recent success and goals in souffle making. 3) Mourn the loss of the Minimalist, Mark Bittman, from the New York Times.

My parents spent a week in Madrid, Spain, and as readers of this blog well know, I am a great lover of all pork products, and that affection is directly inherited from my dear parents. My father went to medical school in Spain and has never been able to return to Cuba, so Spain took on the role of adopted homeland. The music and food of Spain have always been prevalent in our household, and my earliest travel memories are eating tapas in Las Cuevas de Luis Candela (a series of restaurants situated in caves) in Madrid.



Here are a couple of shots taken at El Museo del Jamòn (translation The Museum of Ham)
Now on the subject of souffles: I have a personal goal to make a large savory cheese souffle. I've successfully made small chocolate souffles in a myriad of circumstances, and I've never had a Sabrina type failure where the souffle does not rise. I've only had the luxury of using actual ramekins twice; all the other times I've simply made the souffles in coffee mugs. Rustic, yes, non-traditional, yes, but more importantly, available and functional. David Lebovitz posted a recipe for goat cheese souffles that seemed like the perfect transition recipe from sweet to savory souffle. The base of the souffle is goat cheese, cream cheese, egg yolks, sugar, and citrus zest. I used the orange zest of several clementines, and my souffles had a wonderfully tangy sweet taste. I'd love to post pictures...but they don't exist. However, take my word for it, the souffles rose, they stayed fluffy, and the inside was gooey and cheesy as expected. In my (expert) opinion the key to a successful souffle is beating the egg whites until they are extremely stiff, so stiff that you can lift your metal bowl over your head and the egg whites don't move. After that, just make sure you fold the whites in gently to the base and don't over mix the batter. Souffles are often considered too difficult to make by the amateur home cook, but with a strong arm and a whisk or cheap hand held mixer, anyone can beat egg whites and make a successful souffle.

Finally, sad news from the New York Times. Mark Bittman is ending his tenure as The Minimalist, but staying on at the New York Times to write about current food news and American views on what and how to eat. I love Mark Bittman, as the home cook, and I have prepared many successful meals based on his recipes that focus on simplifying technique but maximizing flavor with just a few ingredients. The Minimalist and the Bitten blog were my favorite section of the New York Times. Thus in honor of the Minimalist and Bittman's contribution to food blogging and establishing a norm of how to discuss cooking and everyday food experiences on the internet, I'm going to spend the next few blog posts cooking Minimalist recipes. My next blog post, with pictures, will be about preparing fresh pasta and grinding your own meat for meatballs.


Stay tuned...