Sweet Potato Souffles

Name: Sweet Potato Souffles
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4 5-ounce souffles
Ingredients: 2 orange-fleshed sweet potatoes; 4 large eggs, at room temperature; 2 teaspoons butter, at room temperature; ¼ cup milk; 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste; 1 pinch cayenne pepper; 4 fried sage leaves

Rating: 4.5 stars

12 Ratings
8 Reviews
5 Photos

It's a universal fact that people love puffy food, souffles being one of most versatile. As long as you don't knock all the air out of the egg whites in the batter, not much can actually go wrong. Since mashed sweet potato is the base, these souffles are even easier than the traditional method that requires a saucy base. They'll deflate quickly after exiting the oven, so hurry and snap those photos! Serve with cayenne-seasoned maple syrup if you like.

By Chef John

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Recipe Summary

prep:

15 mins

cook:

25 mins

additional:

10 mins

total:

50 mins

Servings:

Yield:

4 5-ounce souffles

Nutrition Info

Ingredients

Original recipe yields 4 servings

The ingredient list now reflects the servings specified

2 orange-fleshed sweet potatoes
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons butter, at room temperature
¼ cup milk
1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
1 pinch cayenne pepper
4 fried sage leaves

Directions

Step 1

Place sweet potatoes on a microwave-safe plate. Prick sweet potatoes with the tip of a knife. Microwave until very soft, about 10 minutes. Let cool briefly until safe to handle.

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Step 2

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Step 3

Halve sweet potatoes and scoop flesh out into a bowl.
Step 4

Separate egg whites and yolks into individual mixing bowls. Generously butter four 5-ounce ramekins.
Step 5

Transfer 1 cup mashed sweet potato to the bowl of egg yolks. Pour in milk. Season with salt and cayenne. Whisk until smooth, slowly at first and faster once mixture starts to come together.
Step 6

Add a pinch of salt to the egg whites. Beat with a clean whisk until peaks are well-defined but still soft. Transfer 1/2 of the egg whites to the sweet potato mixture. Fold in with a spatula somewhat gently until most of the white streaks disappear. Add the remaining egg whites and fold in very gently, turning the bowl and scraping the sides, until whites are mostly blended in; a few streaks should still be visible.
Step 7

Gently spoon sweet potato mixture into the ramekins.
Step 8

Bake in the preheated oven until fully inflated and browned, about 15 minutes. Garnish with sage. Unmold or serve in ramekins.

Chef's Notes:

Sometimes even red-skinned sweet potatoes aren't necessarily orange inside; you can scrape the skin to check.

Instead of microwaving, feel free to roast them in the oven at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

I kept these very plain, so as not to distract you, but you can add all sorts of things - cheese, bacon, or herbs, etc. These will also shine as a dessert. Just add some warm spices and maple syrup or brown sugar to the mashed potatoes.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:

220 calories; protein 9.1g; carbohydrates 29.8g; fat 7.4g; cholesterol 192.6mg; sodium 648.8mg. Full Nutrition

Reviews (8)

Most helpful positive review

carguy chris

01/22/2020

Made mine with some leftover butternut squash that had been slathered with butter salt and brown sugar. Absolutely amazing. Thanks chef John! Read More

Most helpful critical review

Mama

11/28/2018

Deplorable. My poor soufflés did not pouf so all payed there like rocks. I don t give up will try again some other time. Read More

12 Ratings

5 star values: 8
4 star values: 3
3 star values: 0
2 star values: 1
1 star values: 0

Reviews: Most Helpful

Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest

carguy chris

01/22/2020

Made mine with some leftover butternut squash that had been slathered with butter salt and brown sugar. Absolutely amazing. Thanks chef John! Read More