These Sugar-Free Banana Souffles Are Easy-As
Souffles are surrounded by mystique. No doubt if you are under the employ of an exacting French-trained chef, there is a good reason for this. Your career might depend on the height of your dessert! But these souffles are neither fancy nor difficult, and they taste great, so it really doesn’t matter whether you get them puffing up like 1980s cappuccinos or they end up a little flat. As a sugar-free dessert, they are a genius idea and they work incredibly well with any type of cream or custard. It’s easiest to whip these up with a stand mixer, but you can also use electric beaters or a hand whisk.
Sugar-Free Banana Souffles
Serves 4
1 tsp butter, for greasing
3 organic eggs, separated
4 ripe bananas
⅓ cup (35g) almond meal
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp stevia
Cream, yoghurt or coconut yoghurt, to serve
Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F) and prepare four ramekins by greasing them generously with butter.
Beat egg yolks, banana, almond meal, cinnamon, stevia and ½ teaspoon salt in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until well combined. Transfer to a large bowl.
Clean and dry mixer (be thorough), then fit it with the whisk attachment. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks, then gently fold them into the banana mixture with a spatula.
Gently spoon batter into ramekins, filling them to just over the top edge, then place them on a baking tray and slide them into the oven, leaving enough room for them to puff up. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 180°C (350°F). Bake for 14–15 minutes until nicely puffed up and golden, and only just cooked through. Serve immediately with generous amounts of cream or yoghurt.
Variations Add 1 or 2 mashed dates into the banana mix | Grate 60g (2¼ oz) dark chocolate into the banana mix, then finish with more just as they come out of the oven.
Images and text from Egg of the Universe by Bryony and Harry Lancaster, photography by Alan Benson. Published by Murdoch Books, $49.99.