Carrot Souffle
I was looking for some inspiration for new things to try for Thanksgiving this year, so I asked my friends on twitter for some ideas. There were a few things that peaked my interest, but the one that caught my attention was the suggestion of a carrot souffle. Not only had I never heard of such a thing, I was instantly determined to make one.
I wasn’t sure a vegan souffle would puff up and have those wonderful qualities that make a souffle what it is, but this sure did. It was a beautiful thing.
The recipe I based this on was a bit sweeter than I was interested in, so I cut down the sugar a fair amount. While it was lovely this way, you might want to forgo the sugar in the topping altogether and instead use some savory seasonings. I would go as far as to say that one might not even need the crumb top, but it’s also nice to have the crunch.
Also, I should note, that even though this is a recipe with carrots as it’s main ingredient, it isn’t the healthiest thing ever. But who cares? Make some as a side dish for Thanksgiving. Your guests will love it, I’m sure. And yeah, it’s got carrots!
Vegan Carrot Souffle
adapted from here
Crumb topping
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp Earth Balance, softened
Souffle
- 1 cup firm tofu
- 1 lb carrots, cooked until soft (I boiled them)
- 1/4 cup apple cider
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 3 Tbsp flour
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup melted Earth Balance
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Clean, cut and cook your carrots. They should be soft but don’t need to be mushy.
- Preheat the oven to 350°
- Combine the bread crumbs, brown sugar and Earth Balance in a bowl using a fork. Set aside.
- Crumble your tofu into a food processor and mix until it is fairly smooth, scraping down the sides when necessary.
- Add the carrots to the food processor and blend together until the mixture is smooth, light and fluffy.
- Add in the remaining ingredients for the souffle and continue to blend until combined.
- Pour into souffle dishes, being mindful not to overfill as they will puff up a they bake.
- Bake for 40 minutes.
- Remove the dishes from the oven and sprinkle with the crumb topping. Bake for 8 minutes, turning on the broiler for the last minute or so to brown.
- Let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.