Boo!! Yay!!: MSM's Lemon souffle with rhubarb compote
If you have been watching Bravo's Top Chef Masters this season, you know my old boss, Mary Sue Milliken. Her character on the show is pleasant, helpful, gets along with everyone, and doesn't seem too competitive. She did provide a 911 moment when she cut off the tip of her finger. She hesitated briefly, threw the offending tip in the garbage, wrapped a towel around the finger, and cowboyed on. She lost in the finale to Floyd Cardoz, who "cooks from the soul." Floyd never won an elimination challenge, always came in second to Mary Sue and was definitely a long-shot winner. After the final cook-off, the judges scolded Floyd for his "undercooked rice" and moaned in rhapsody over MSM's lemon souffle, but chose Floyd anyway.
Mary Sue didn't present the producers with a very dramatic story—she won a few, lost a few, and was always in contention. The Portland Oregon chef, Naomi Pomeroy, was cast as bossy, confrontative and always trying to take charge (A man would have been defined as "focused.") Naomi's food won the most raves from both the critics and the amateur eaters and in the early episodes she seemed primed to pull away from the pack and win the big prize. In an exit interview, after the judges told her to "return to the kitchen and pack your knives", she defended her "undercooked" shrimp and seemed puzzled at being framed as "Miss Bossypants."
Hugh Acheson's role was the prickly guy with attitude and a readiness to take on the judges with his quick wit. He lost in the eighth episode arguing to the end about whether or not he served "broken" mayonnaise.
Anyways, far be it for me to say that the Top Chef Masters is fixed or scripted. It does seem, however, that miles of footage are edited to present a storyline with more personality clashes, angst, and drama than really existed. What does show through is how hard the chefs worked, what difficult conditions they worked under, how skilled they all are, and how shallow and mean-spirited the judges seem—but then, any good story needs a few villains.
Floyd Cardoz
Mary Sue Milliken
Hugh Acheson
Naomi Pomeroy
Mary Sue Milliken's Lemon Souffle with Rhubarb Compote
Mary Sue's lemon souffle recipe was taken from her Facebook page.
Lemon Soufflé
Makes 12 small soufflés (6 ounces each)
Soft unsalted butter, for buttering molds
Granulated sugar, for molds
1/2 cup granulated sugar
8 large egg yolks
9 large egg whites
2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (generous)
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Garnish: Powdered sugar, delivered lightly through a sieve
For serving: Rhubarb Vanilla Compote (see recipe below)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Liberally butter 12 6-ounce soufflé dishes, and then coat well with granulated sugar. Whisk together yolks, flour, zest, and half the granulated sugar (1/4 cup).
Bring milk to a boil in a small saucepan. Slowly pour milk into yolk mixture, whisking constantly to prevent yolks from cooking. Return mixture to pan, and whisk until thick like a pudding, 1 to 2 minutes. Strain through a sieve, and stir in butter and lemon juice.
Beat whites until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and beat until medium firm peaks form (but not until dry). Stir a third of the whites into the yolk mixture. Gently fold in the remaining whites using a rubber spatula.
Fill each soufflé dish to the top, and tap to settle then smooth the top with a spatula. Run your thumb around edges to ease batter from sticking to the rims. Place soufflés on a cookie sheet and bake about 15 to 18 minutes or until they rise at least an inch above the rim of the soufflé dish but are still wiggly in the center. Remove from oven and dust lightly with powdered sugar.
Rhubarb Vanilla Compote
1 1/2 cups white wine or champagne
1/3 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
3 stalks rhubarb, 1/2-inch dice (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 squeeze fresh lemon
In a small saucepan, bring wine or champagne to a boil and reduce by half. Add sugar and vanilla bean and seeds. Cook until syrup thickens slightly. Add rhubarb and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add fresh lemon to taste, and cool slightly before serving.
Mary Sue didn't present the producers with a very dramatic story—she won a few, lost a few, and was always in contention. The Portland Oregon chef, Naomi Pomeroy, was cast as bossy, confrontative and always trying to take charge (A man would have been defined as "focused.") Naomi's food won the most raves from both the critics and the amateur eaters and in the early episodes she seemed primed to pull away from the pack and win the big prize. In an exit interview, after the judges told her to "return to the kitchen and pack your knives", she defended her "undercooked" shrimp and seemed puzzled at being framed as "Miss Bossypants."
Hugh Acheson's role was the prickly guy with attitude and a readiness to take on the judges with his quick wit. He lost in the eighth episode arguing to the end about whether or not he served "broken" mayonnaise.
Anyways, far be it for me to say that the Top Chef Masters is fixed or scripted. It does seem, however, that miles of footage are edited to present a storyline with more personality clashes, angst, and drama than really existed. What does show through is how hard the chefs worked, what difficult conditions they worked under, how skilled they all are, and how shallow and mean-spirited the judges seem—but then, any good story needs a few villains.
Floyd Cardoz
Mary Sue Milliken
Hugh Acheson
Naomi Pomeroy
Mary Sue Milliken's Lemon Souffle with Rhubarb Compote
Mary Sue's lemon souffle recipe was taken from her Facebook page.
Lemon Soufflé
Makes 12 small soufflés (6 ounces each)
Soft unsalted butter, for buttering molds
Granulated sugar, for molds
1/2 cup granulated sugar
8 large egg yolks
9 large egg whites
2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (generous)
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Garnish: Powdered sugar, delivered lightly through a sieve
For serving: Rhubarb Vanilla Compote (see recipe below)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Liberally butter 12 6-ounce soufflé dishes, and then coat well with granulated sugar. Whisk together yolks, flour, zest, and half the granulated sugar (1/4 cup).
Bring milk to a boil in a small saucepan. Slowly pour milk into yolk mixture, whisking constantly to prevent yolks from cooking. Return mixture to pan, and whisk until thick like a pudding, 1 to 2 minutes. Strain through a sieve, and stir in butter and lemon juice.
Beat whites until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and beat until medium firm peaks form (but not until dry). Stir a third of the whites into the yolk mixture. Gently fold in the remaining whites using a rubber spatula.
Fill each soufflé dish to the top, and tap to settle then smooth the top with a spatula. Run your thumb around edges to ease batter from sticking to the rims. Place soufflés on a cookie sheet and bake about 15 to 18 minutes or until they rise at least an inch above the rim of the soufflé dish but are still wiggly in the center. Remove from oven and dust lightly with powdered sugar.
Rhubarb Vanilla Compote
1 1/2 cups white wine or champagne
1/3 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
3 stalks rhubarb, 1/2-inch dice (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 squeeze fresh lemon
In a small saucepan, bring wine or champagne to a boil and reduce by half. Add sugar and vanilla bean and seeds. Cook until syrup thickens slightly. Add rhubarb and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add fresh lemon to taste, and cool slightly before serving.
Posted by Marla Nichols at 6/24/2011 7:56 AM 
Categories: Dessert, Milliken Feniger, Celebrity Chefs, France
Tags: Mary Sue Milliken Floyd Cardoz Naomi Pomeroy Hugh Acheson Top Chef Masters lemon souffle rhubarb compote Rhubarb
Categories: Dessert, Milliken Feniger, Celebrity Chefs, France
Tags: Mary Sue Milliken Floyd Cardoz Naomi Pomeroy Hugh Acheson Top Chef Masters lemon souffle rhubarb compote Rhubarb
Comments