{"id":14221,"date":"2014-05-09T11:06:58","date_gmt":"2014-05-09T18:06:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chefmorgan.com\/?p=14221"},"modified":"2014-05-10T12:22:43","modified_gmt":"2014-05-10T19:22:43","slug":"mothers-day-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chefmorgan.com\/engine\/mothers-day-2014","title":{"rendered":"Mother’s Day 2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

\"chef<\/p>\n

Mother\u2019s Day 2014<\/p>\n

“Rising to the Occasion”<\/p>\n

&<\/p>\n

your favorite chocolate souffl\u00e9<\/p>\n

Each year in honor of Mother\u2019s Day I write a personal recipe of life inspired by and for my daughters accompanied by a family (food) recipe relevant to the message. This year\u00a0it is about souffl\u00e9s and \u201crising to the occasion\u201d that phrase we so often hear. The recipe is for a classic chocolate souffl\u00e9 and you can find it in the following post. If you would like to skip directly to the souffl\u00e9 recipe you may do so by clicking here<\/span>, <\/a>otherwise read on.<\/span><\/p>\n

To all mothers I wish you a very Happy Mother\u2019s Day (Joyeuse F\u00eate des M\u00e8res<\/i>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

warmly,<\/span><\/p>\n

LM<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

Ava and Julia,<\/span><\/p>\n

This year June means graduation bringing big changes academically and socially for you both. It is an exciting time and I see you both eager to test your wings (and eyeing my shoe closet with a more relevant interest\u2026). As you both ready yourself for the new challenges and opportunities that await I cannot help but think of not only the excitement that next year will\u00a0bring but also the nervous anticipation that will begin to set in after the graduation parties\u00a0and the distractions of summer. Anxious thoughts about what is to come when facing new\u00a0circumstances (whether it be a school, a job, or a new place to live)\u00a0are universal and never go away with age (we just learn to handle them better). When facing new situations every<\/em> person questions themselves and their abilities to some degree. Thoughts like: How different will this be? What if I am not good at things? What if I fail? Can I succeed in my new circumstances? Will I be able to \u201crise to the occasions\u201d that come my way?<\/span><\/p>\n

When you have these thoughts I want you to remember this: if \u201clife is like a box of chocolates\u201d (and you never know what you will get), then you are like a souffl\u00e9 and souffl\u00e9s always rise.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chef<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

souffl\u00e9 = souffl\u00e9 base <\/b>(flavor\u00a0 +\u00a0 foundation)<\/span>\u00a0+ leavening agent<\/b><\/p>\n

Souffl\u00e9s are versatile. They come in all shapes, sizes, different flavors, and colors. They can be sweet or savory. Regardless of the differences, a souffl\u00e9 is composed of two parts: (1) the base which is the combination of the flavor and the foundation; (2) and the leavening agent.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chef<\/span><\/p>\n

A souffl\u00e9 flavor can be made of a fruit or vegetable pur\u00e9e, chocolate, cheese, citrus zest, herbs, and\/or liquor. The chosen flavor is what makes the souffl\u00e9 a chocolate souffl\u00e9 or a blue cheese souffl\u00e9.<\/span><\/p>\n

The foundation of a souffl\u00e9 is equally versatile but the ingredient combination lays the groundwork for the souffl\u00e9’s structure. It typically involves a starch: egg yolks, flour or a roux (butter with flour); and a liquid (i.e. b\u00e9chamel for savory souffl\u00e9s or pastry cream for sweet souffl\u00e9s). The starch in the foundation will strengthen the air bubble walls to set the souffl\u00e9 and the moisture will contribute to its rise. The foundation must be the proper consistency: If it has too much moisture (too liquidly) it will rise before the egg proteins can set the shape and it will pour over the sides of the dish. If the foundation is too thick it will not rise very much.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When the flavor and the foundation are\u00a0combined you have the souffl\u00e9 base.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chef<\/span><\/p>\n

A leavening agent causes food to rise. There are different types. Yeast is a living leavening agent which creates gas that\u00a0makes bread rise. Baking soda and baking powder are chemical leavening agents that react with liquid and\/or oven heat to give a product height.\u00a0In a souffl\u00e9, the whipped egg whites act as a leavening agent because the air bubbles in the whites (created when the whites are whipped to form stiff peaks) expand with the heat of the oven. The oven heat also causes the moisture in the batter to vaporize into steam (there is moisture in the egg yolks, the milk, the butter, etc). Both the steam and the expanding air bubbles cause the souffl\u00e9 to rise up out of its dish.\u00a0(source: Harold McGee, On Food and Cooking<\/em>, Scribner (First Revised Edition\u00a02004).<\/span><\/p>\n

If you put a souffl\u00e9 in a hot oven it will always rise. Always. The only time a souffl\u00e9 does not rise is if you forget to spoon the batter in the dish. The only question then is how high <\/i>the souffl\u00e9 will rise <\/i>and whether it can maintain its shape and for how long<\/i>. Those issues are determined by whether the egg whites were properly whipped into stiff peaks and whether the base is the proper consistency.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chef<\/p>\n

When you remove a souffl\u00e9 from the oven (merely opening the oven door will NOT do it) the internal temperature of the souffl\u00e9 begins to cool and as it does the expanded air bubbles begin to shrink and the vapor returns to moisture. This is why a souffl\u00e9 falls back into its dish. If you put the souffl\u00e9 back in the oven, it will rise again (although not as high as the first time).<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chef<\/p>\n

you, the souffl\u00e9<\/b><\/p>\n

You are like a souffl\u00e9. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Your<\/span>\u00a0flavor<\/span> is akin to your personality, your talents, and your shortcomings. Your flavor is what makes you\u00a0unique.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Your foundation<\/span> is the sum of those things your family, church, and school have instilled in you since you were young. It is your character,\u00a0values, morals, manners, and education. It is the core of who you are and combined with your flavor, this is your base.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The heat of the oven is like\u00a0life and all of its trials, challenges, opportunities, tests, and lessons that you will encounter next year and throughout your lives.<\/span><\/p>\n

The leavening agent<\/span> is your actions, your words, your thoughts, and basically what you do or fail to do with your talents and character. Rising to the occasion is never about having enough\u00a0talent or knowledge,\u00a0it is about your effort and what you do to meet the challenges when life “heats” up.<\/span><\/p>\n

This graduation, as you face new exciting challenges and situations in your lives, keep the following in mind:<\/span><\/p>\n