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Strawberry season deserves more than just a week of celebration, which is why I started writing about it last week. If you missed that column, let me quickly share again some important information.

For your best chance at really sweet, ripe varieties, head for the nearest farmers' market and let your eyes and nose lead you to the deepest red, most fragrant berries. Enjoy them within a couple of days, and keep them at cool room temperature rather than refrigerating them, which mutes their taste.

Properly sweetened with a little sugar to heighten their natural flavor, though, strawberries take well to chilling in many prepared desserts. How wonderful, then, that this is the start not only of strawberry season but also ice cream season!

But I know most home cooks don't have ice cream makers. That is why I would like to offer you one of my favorite recipes for a frozen strawberry dessert that you don't need any special equipment to make: my Frozen Strawberry Souffle.

I say "my" because I've fine-tuned the recipe to my own tastes and to work well for home cooks. But I must admit that I first learned to make great frozen souffles while I worked in the kitchen of the famous three-star restaurant Maxim's in Paris. In season, we made frozen strawberry souffles every day, and our guests loved them. So will yours.

And don't be put off by the word "souffle," either. This recipe isn't one of those baked souffles that make you have to tiptoe around the oven out of fear that the mixture might deflate. It gets its name not only because, like baked souffles, it's light and airy, the result of the beaten egg whites and whipped cream that are the foundation of the mixture; but also because it is frozen in and served from a big circular souffle mold, a widely available piece of equipment you should get for your kitchen if you don't already have one. But there's no heat involved in this souffle's preparation apart from making a quick little syrup to beat into the egg whites.

The combination of egg whites and whipped cream also gives the frozen souffle mixture a light, smooth consistency that freezes perfectly without any need for the constant churning that produces ice cream's rich texture. So, elegant and impressive though it is, the dessert is amazingly easy to prepare and turns out beautifully.

You'll love it so much that you may be tempted to try the recipe with other berries, too. Go ahead. It works great with raspberries, blackberries, or boysenberries -- any really juicy variety. So, depending on where you live, you can go on enjoying this dessert even after strawberry season is over.

FROZEN STRAWBERRY SOUFFLE

Serves 4 to 6

1-1/2 quarts ripe organic strawberries, hulled

2 cage-free egg whites

1/2 cup sugar

3 tablespoons water

1 cup heavy cream, whipped

Grand Marnier or kirsch, for the sauce

Reserve 4 to 6 whole strawberries as garnishes. Put the rest of the berries in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and process until pureed. Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until chilled.

Put the egg whites in a mixing bowl and beat with a hand-held electric mixer until they form soft peaks that droop when the beaters are lifted out. Sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of the sugar and continue beating until the egg whites form stiff, shiny peaks. Set aside.

Put 6 tablespoons of the sugar and the 3 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, and then continue cooking just until the mixture starts to bubble and begins to thicken.

While continuing to beat the egg whites, slowly pour in the hot syrup. Continue beating until the whites have cooled.

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold 1-1/2 to 2 cups of the strawberry puree into the egg whites; reserve the rest of the puree in the refrigerator for a sauce. Then, fold in the whipped cream until thoroughly incorporated. Taste the mixture and, if necessary, sprinkle in a little more sugar to taste.

Pour the mixture into a 5- or 6-cup souffle dish. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.

Before serving, transfer the frozen souffle to the refrigerator to soften slightly. Meanwhile, pour the remaining strawberry puree through a fine-meshed sieve into another bowl. Add a little sugar and a splash of Grand Marnier or kirsch to taste.

Scoop the souffle into individual serving dishes. Spoon the sauce around each serving and garnish with a whole berry. Serve immediately.

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Frozen Strawberry Souffle Dessert Recipe - Wolfgang Puck Recipes

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