Souffle Roulade with Mushroom, Zucchini, and Bell Pepper
Souffle Roulade with Mushroom, Zucchini, and Bell Pepper also known as Souffle “Roulade” Aux Champignons, Courgettes et Poivrons
What is a vegetarian main course idea?
Here’s another way to make a Souffle: bake it in a jelly-roll pan, fill it with sauteed savory vegetables, roll it up, slice it and serve with a creamy sauce. Quite ingenious, oh so delicious and perfect as a vegetarian main course.
Are vegetables in souffles interchangeable?
While I have used mushrooms, zucchini and bell pepper, other vegetables would work just as well.
What is the difference between a béchamel and a velouté
The difference between these two French sauces is whether a stock is used or milk. Béchamel is a creamy sauce using milk, cream, or even a dairy free substitute. A velouté sauce begins like a béchamel but uses a white stock instead of milk and cream. A stock from fish, chicken, or veal. The sauce I serve with the roulade is a combination of a béchamel and velouté. Does it make it a bechoute or a velamel?
Souffle Roulade with Mushrooms, Zucchini and Bell Pepper
Equipment
- Jelly-roll pan
Ingredients
Vegetables
- 3/4 pound cremini mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 2 teaspoons salt, divided
- 3/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 1 pound zucchini, about 3 medium
- 1 large onion (about 8 ounces), peeled, halved vertically and thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 large green, red, yellow, and/or orange bell peppers (about 1 1/2 pounds total), cored, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch-wide-strips
- 4 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Souffle Batter
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided, plus more for pan
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pan.
- 1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk, plus 1 to 2 tablespoons, divided
- 6 large eggs, separated, room temperature
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 pinch salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 cup Comte cheese (4 ounces), coarsely grated
Serving Sauce
- Reserved Zucchini juice
- whole milk
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- nutmeg, freshly grated
Instructions
For the vegetables
- Separate mushroom caps from the stems and cut both into 1/2-inch dice. Melt the butter with 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and toss to coat. Cook, tossing occasionally, until mushrooms take on a shine and are nicely browned and cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Cool and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.
- Cut the ends off the zucchini. Set a box grater in a large bowl. Shred the zucchini on the large holes of the grater into the bowl. Toss zucchini with 1 teaspoon salt. Let stand 1 hour. Squeeze zucchini by handfuls over another bowl to extract as much liquid as possible. Cover liquid and refrigerate until ready to use. Set shredded zucchini aside.
- Heat remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion, cover and cook without browning until translucent and almost tender, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the garlic.
- Add the shredded zucchini and cook until almost tender, stirring and tossing constantly, about 5 minutes.
- Add the peppers and herbs.
- Season with remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until the peppers are tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.
- Uncover the pan, and if there are any juices, raise the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring constantly, until the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and cool uncovered. (Can be prepared 1 to 2 days ahead; cover and refridgerate.) Reheat when ready to assemble the souffle.
Some prep
- Adjust an oven rack to the center position and preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Butter a 15½ x 10½ x 1-inch jelly-roll pan. Line with parchment or wax paper, allowing for an overhang of about 2 inches at each end. Butter the paper and dust all over with flour, shaking out excess.
- Combine the panko breadcrumbs and 2 tablespoons butter in a small heavy skillet over medium heat and toast, stirring frequently, until the crumbs are golden brown, about 5 minutes.
For the souffle batter
- Heat 1½ cups milk in a small heavy saucepan until bubbling but not boiling; keep warm.
- Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a medium heavy saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Cook and stir 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and whisk in hot milk; sauce should be smooth.
- Return pan to medium-high heat and bring to a boil. whisking constantly. Cook and whisk until very thick, about 2 minutes.
- Remove pan from heat and whisk in the egg yolks one at a time. Whisk in nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Scrape into a large bowl and film the top of the béchamel with 1 to 2 tablespoons cold milk to prevent a skin from forming. (Sauce can be tepid to warm when folding in the beaten egg whites). Instructions below.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat egg whites with a pinch of salt on medium speed until frothy, about 1 minute. Add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Increase speed to medium-high, and beat until moist stiff peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Whisk the béchamel until smooth. Whisk in one-fourth of the egg whites to lighten. Gently fold in remaining whites. Sprinkle on the cheese as you fold, and fold just until no white streaks remain.
- Spread the souffle batter evenly and gently in prepared pan. Bake about 10 minutes, until souffle has puffed, springs back when gently pressed in the center, and is nicely browned on top with large cracks in a few places. Do not overbake or the souffle may be too firm to roll up later.
For the serving sauce
- While the roulade bakes, pour the reserved zucchini juice int a 2-cup glass measure with a pouring spout. Add enough whole milk to make 1⅔, then add the heavy cream. Pour into a small heavy saucepan and heat almost to the boiling point.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in another small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Cook and stir 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and whisk in the hot liquid; sauce should be smooth.
- Return pan to medium-high heat and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Cook and whisk until thick, about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Season sauce to taste with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
Putting it all together and serving
- When the souffle has settled, sprinkle the top with toasted breadcrumbs. Cover with a sheet of parchment or wax paper with an overhang of about 2 inches at each end. Set a cookie sheet over the souffle and invert the two. Wait 2 minutes, then lift off the baking pan and carefully remove the wax paper. If you see brittle edges, cut them off.
- Spread the heated vegetables evenly over the souffle, to the edges. Roll up the souffle from one of the long sides using the parchment or wax paper to help you.
- When completely rolled and the seam side down, transfer the roulade to a serving platter or large board. Cut into 12 slices and place 2 on each dinner plate. Spoon a generous amount of sauce over the slices and serve immediately.