Brown Butter Is The Secret Ingredient To Ultra Decadent Chocolate Soufflés

Chocolate desserts are the stuff of legend. They crop up in everything from family heirloom recipes to the menus of greasy spoons and temples of haute gastronomy. Chocolate is so beloved, we had to coin the word chocoholic to describe its most ardent devotees. It's the impetus of the "Is white chocolate actually chocolate?" debate (spoiler alert: it is). Chocolate desserts are ever-present and diverse, from moist chocolate cake to rich brownies to decadent cookies. 

You might feel like you've tasted it all, as far as chocolate desserts go. However, there's always more to explore; even the most familiar recipes can be made new through the use of unique ingredients. That's the tactic Claire Ptak of London's Violet Bakery took when creating a decadent chocolate soufflé for Bon Appetit's April issue. Brown butter is the secret to success, here — it brings entirely new dimension to a beloved chocolate dessert.

So, what is brown butter?  Exactly what it sounds like: Butter that has been melted and gently cooked until it turns brown. As the butter melts, the sugar and proteins in its milk solids break down and combine, a process referred to as the Maillard reaction. The result is something nutty and delicious. Brown butter's signature va-va-voom makes it even more delicious than regular melted butter, and hugely versatile. It's useful in savory dishes, including everything from pasta to mashed potatoes. But in this recipe, it shares the stage with another star: chocolate. 

Why does brown butter work so beautifully in this chocolate soufflé? A big part of the reason lies in the depth of flavor released by the Maillard reaction. Everything tastes just a little bit better when it's been browned, after all, as anyone who's enjoyed a toasted English muffin or a bronzed casserole knows well. Brown butter's nutty, ever-so-slightly dark flavor also complements chocolate beautifully, as it's also full of warm and nutty notes. But that's not the only reason it suits this soufflé so well.

Ptak's recipe is carefully crafted to showcase the richness of brown butter. This deep flavor, combined with the intensity of chocolate, is delightfully juxtaposed with the soufflé's light and airy texture. But that's not the secret to this recipe's success. This soufflé combines two types of chocolate: bittersweet chocolate and Dutch-processed cocoa. This one-two punch is what truly brings the brown butter to the fore.

Dutch processed-cocoa is made from cocoa beans that are soaked in an alkaline solution before they're fermented and dried. This gives the powder a milder chocolate taste and results in a denser dessert. The bittersweet chocolate adds an even more complex note of flavor, with just enough edge to keep things interesting. This combination of chocolates, plus that deep, rich note from the brown butter (and, okay, a bit of rum) make this chocolate soufflé into a new and exciting dessert. So go ahead and wait a little longer for that butter to brown, inhale its caramel-icious scent, and bake your way to dessert perfection. This soufflé is sure to impress even the most jaded chocoholics.