French Cheese Soufflé

While soufflés have a reputation for being challenging to make, following a few simple techniques can deliver you a beautiful soufflé each time. This is one of those recipes that encourages the exact right kitchen tools for an accurate result. In case you were thinking about getting rid of that old wooden spoon, think again!

1. Start with a spotlessly clean bowl and balloon whisk (an electric mixer with a whisk will work too)
2. If you don’t have a copper bowl, a pinch of cream of tartar is the secret ingredient to stabilize the egg white foam
3. Use a rubber spatula to fold (sweeping over & under motion) the egg whites into the soufflé base. Your goal is to keep the egg whites as puffy as possible

cheese souffle
French Cheese Soufflé
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Sausage & Egg Bake

I was looking to clean up some items in the fridge and freezer when my husband suggested an egg bake for breakfast. We had 1/2 bag of hashbrowns that needed eating in the freezer and some left over sausage from a round of pigs in blankets. So, I took stock of the veggies on hand and put together the following recipe in time for breakfast. It’s one thing I love about cooking breakfast – it’s so quick and easy! Enjoy…

Sausage & Egg Bake

Course: Breakfast
Servings: 4
Author: Tina Cusker

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup sweet onion, chopped
  • 1/4 cup green or orange pepper, chopped
  • 6 eggs
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 2 large handfuls spinach
  • 1/2 tomato, chopped
  • 4-5 sausage links, cooked & chopped
  • 3 cups frozen hashbrowns
  • 5 oz Gruyere cheese, shredded
  • 1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare 11×7 pan with non-stick spray.
  • Whisk together eggs and milk. Set aside.
  • In a small skillet, saute onion and green pepper in olive oil until softened. Mix in chopped sausage and spinach, cooking until spinach is wilted. Add tomators, salt & pepper.
  • Layer hashbrowns in the baking dish. Top with the vegetables. Pour eggs over the top. Add cheese over all before sprinkling paprika.
  • Bake for 30 minutes or until eggs are done. Serve with muffins or toast.

Copyright © 2020 Montana Mountain Maven / Tina R. Cusker. All rights reserved.


A Raclette Dinner Party

We thoroughly enjoy hosting a “gathering” of friends and co-workers for a party. The only problem is getting around to visit with everyone in attendance. It doesn’t seem to matter if there are 20 or 50. With good intentions, almost everyone is personally greeted at the door but if you’re lucky, you may get a chance to say a quick goodbye. Lots of activities and conversations steal your attention throughout the evening and make it challenging to fairly make the rounds. So, this time around, we decided to invite 3 couples for an intimate dinner party of 6. It didn’t take long to decide the menu – Raclette.

What is raclette? It’s a fondue-type Swiss and French meal made with potatoes and melted cheese, but without a pot of melted cheese and long sticks. First, make sure you have a raclette grill. Mine is a square Hamilton Beach grill with 8 cheese trays, but it is best used with only 6 guests. Therefore, if you really want to serve 4 couples, I would recommend Amazon’s Choice SwissMar grill as the grill surface is larger and the rectangular shape would make it easier for guests 7 & 8 to reach.

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