About eggs Egg symbolism Bacon & Eggs for breakfast? Deviled eggs Easter eggs Eggs Benedict omelettes souffle Western sandwiches

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When and why did humans begin consuming eggs?
Humans have been consuming eggs since the dawn of human time. The history is complicated and diverse; the culinary applications are innumerable. When, where, and why have people been eating eggs?

When? Since the beginning of human time.
Where? Wherever eggs could be obtained. Differerent kinds of eggs were/still are eaten in different parts of the world. Ostrich and chicken are the most common.
Why? Because eggs are relatively easy to obtain, excellent protein sources, adaptable to many different types of recipes (from simply boiled, fried, or stuffed to complicated quiche, custards or meringue), and fit the bill for meatless fasting days required by some religions. In this last role? Eggs have been the object of much socio-religious symbolism and tradition. Over time, some groups have encouraged the consumption/decoration of eggs in celebration of certain events. Others have decided eggs are filthy food which must avoided. None of this is arbitrary.

"It is likely that female game birds were, at some time in the early history of man, perceived as a source both of meat and of eggs. Men discovered that by removing from the nest eggs that they did not wish to have hatch (or that they simply wished to eat), they could induce the female jungle fowl to lay additional eggs and, indeed, to continue to lay eggs throught an extended laying season." ---The Chicken Book, Page Smith and Charles Daniel [University of Georgia Press:Athens] 1975 (p. 11-12)

"Eggs have been known to, and enjoyed by, humans for many centuries. Jungle fowl were domesticated in India by 3200 B.C.E. Record from China and Egypt show that fowl were domesticated and laying eggs for human consumption around 1400 B.C.E., and there is archaeoligical evidence for egg consumption dating back to the Neolithic age. The Romans found egg-laying hens in England, Gaul, and among the Germans. The first domesticated fowl reached North America with the second voyage of Columbus in 1493."
---Encyclopedia of Food and Culture, Solomon H. Katz, editor, William Woys Weaver, associate editor [Charles Scribner's Sons:New York] 2003, Volume 1 (p. 558)

Where did the English word egg originate?
"The egg...tracks it name back to a prehistoric Indo-European source related to words for 'bird'...The Old English term was oeg, which survived in Middle English as ey (plural eyren)....But in the fourteenth century the related egg was borrowed from Old Norse. For a time the two forms competed with each other (William Caxton, in the prologue to his Book of Eneydos (1490), asked 'What should a man in these day now write, eggs or eyren, certainly it is hard to please every man'), and the Norse form did not finally emerge as the winner until the late sixteenth century." ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxrod] 2002 (p. 117)

How many different kind of eggs are there?
Birds and reptiles lay eggs. Of these, some are consumed by humans. Preferences vary according to place, taste and economic conditions.

"Eggs from many species of fowl (birds) have doubtless been consumed since the very beginning of humankind's stay on earth. In historical times, ancient Romans ate peafowl eggs, and the Chinese were fond of pigeon eggs. Ostrich eggs have been eaten since the day sof the Phoenicians, whereas quail eggs, as hard-cooked, shelf-stable, packaged prdoucts, are now featured on many gourmet food counters in the United States and Japan. Other eggs consumed by various ethnic groups include those from plovers, partridges, gulls, turkeys, pelicans, ducks, and geese. Turtle eggs have been highly prized, and in starvation situations, any eggs, even those of alligators, have been relied upon."
---Cambridge World History of Food, Kenneth F. Kiple and Kriemhild Conee Ornelas [Cambridge University Press:Cambridge] 2000, Volume One (p. 499)

When did people start using eggs in baking and why?
Food historians tell us the practice was ancient but they do not venture an exact place, date, or reason. The domestication of fowl (esp. chicken) greatly increased the availabiltiy of eggs to ancient peoples. This is thought by some to have begun in China in 6,000BC. About chicken.

Culinary evidence confirms breads and cakes using eggs were made by Ancient Egyptian and Roman peoples. The reason most often sited was the recognition that eggs worked as binding (thickening) agents. How did that begin? The food historians to not venture into this territory. Possibly it was a discovery based on trial and error. Many foods and cooking methods (leavened bread, roasted meats, yogurt) were "invented" this way.

"It is clear that Egyptians enjoyed their food. Nobles and priests were particularly well served, with at least forty different kinds of bread and pastries, some raised, some flat, some round, some conical, some plaited. There were some varieties made with honey, others with milk, still others with eggs."
---Food in History, Reay Tannahill [Three Rivers Press:New York] 1988 (p. 53)

"Farming the prolific chicken has allowed us to make eggs a part of our diet without harming its reproductive cycle. However, the very few ancient Greek recipes to mention eggs date from after the time of Pericles, when the chicken was introduced to Africa. It took some times for the habit of using eggs in cooking to catch on. We do hear of thagomata, made from egg whites, and various stuffings using egg yolks. On the other hand the classic cake offered as a sacrifice by the Romans, the libum, called for one egg to a pound of flour. In the Roman period pastry cooks made much use of eggs for desserts as well as cakes. Apicius (25 BC) invented baked custard: milk, honey and eggs beaten and cooked in an eartheware dish on gentle heat. Eggs really made their way into the kitchen with Apicius, who mentioned them frequently in the Ars Magirica. Beaten eggs were used as a thickening and to bind sauces and ragouts; hardboiled eggs became an ingredient of various dishes, sometimes with cheese, but here is no evidence that eggs were eaten just as they were, as a dish in themselves. This does not mean that they were not so eaten; it could simply indicate that they were not thought interesting enough for special mention."
---History of Food, Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat, translated by Anthea Bell [Barnes & Noble Books:New York] 1992 (p. 356)

Ancient Roman libum recipe (ancient translation & modern version)

These sources are good starting points for an understanding of the topic:

• The Cambridge World History of Food, Kenneth F. Kiple and Kriemhild Conee Ornelas, Volume One: Chicken eggs [Cambridge University Press:Cambridge] 2000 (p. 499-508)
  ---includes extensive bibliography for further study; use the index to locate information on other types of eggs
• History of Food, Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat [Barnes & Noble:New York] 1992 (p. 355-363)
  ---uses & customs, including Easter traditions
• Food and Drink in Britain: From the Stone Age to the 19th Century, C. Anne Wilson [Academy Chicago:Chicago] 1991 (p. 137-148)
  ---as they relate to English cookery
• Nectar and Ambrosia: An Encyclopedia of Food in World Mythology, Tamra Andrews [ABC-CLIO:Santa Barbara] 2000 (p. 86-87)
  ---rituals, customs & myths

The Making of Stuffed Eggs, An Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook of the 13th Century, translated by Charles Perry

The practice of hard boiling eggs was popular in Tudor England: "By the later sixteenth century the boiling of eggs in their shells in water had become a common practice. Prepared thus they were more digestible that roasted eggs; but less so than poached eggs, which always earned the highest praise form the medical men."
---Food and Drink in Britain, C. Anne Wilson [Academy Chicago Publishers:Chicago] 1991 (p. 144)

According to historic cookbooks, the practice of boiling eggs, extracting the yolks and combining them with savory spices (mustard, cayenne pepper) and refilling the eggs with the mixture was common in latter years of the 16th century and was the "norm" by the 17th.

"To Farce Eggs
Take eight or ten eggs and boil them hard. Peel off the shells and cut every egg in the middle; then out the yolks. Make your farcing stuff as you do for flesh, saving only you must put butter into it instead of suet, and that a little. So done, fill your eggs where the yolks were, and then bring them and seethe them a little. And so serve them to the table."
---The Good Housewife's Jewel, Thomas Dawson, with an introduction by Maggie Black [London 1596] (p. 86)

"The Second Way
Fry some parsley, some minced leeks, and young onions, when you have fried them pour them into a dish season them with salt and pepper, and put to them hard eggs cut in halves, put some mustard to them, and dish the eggs, mix the sauce well together, and pour it hot on the eggs."
---The Accomplisht Cook, Robert May [London, 5th edition 1685] (p. 435)
[NOTE: Robert May's text lists six ways "To dress hard eggs divers ways." Though none of these recipes are specifically called "deviled" they are strikingly similar to the deviled eggs we are served today.

"Eggs in Mustard Sauce
Sodde Egges: Seeth your Egges almost harde, then peele them and cut them in quarters, then take a little Butter in a frying panne and melt it a little broune, then put to it in to the panne, a little Vinegar, Mustarde, Pepper and Salte, and then put it into a platter upon your Egges."
---A Taste of History: 10,000 Years of Food in Britain, Tudor Britain, Peter Brears [British Museum Press:London] 1997 (p.162)

"Around 1868, Underwood's sons began experimenting with a new product created from ground ham blended with special seasonings. The process they dubbed "deviling," for cooking and preparing the ham, was new. But best of all, the taste was unique. Soon thereafter, the "Underwood devil" was born."
History of the Underwood Company

Many early 19th century devilling recipes were for meat and other items:

Devilled Biscuits...Butter some biscuits on both sides, and pepper them well, make a paste of either chopped anchovies, or fine cheese, and spread it on the biscuit, with mustard and cayenne pepper, and grill them."
---The Jewish Manual, by A Lady [London:1846] (p. 98)

"Devilling, Or broiling with cayenne, is also a good expident to coax the palate when you have relics of poultry of game. Fish can likewise be "devilled," or egged and fried with a small piece of butter and bread crumbs, mixed with a little dried tyme, marjoram, and fresh parsley crumbled and chopped very fine."
---The Dinner Question, or How to Dine Well and Economically, Tabitha Tickletooth, [London:1860] (p. 51)

Recipes for deviled eggs have changed with time, probably a result of culinary fads and ingredient availabilty. Compare the following:

"Devilled Eggs
Boil six or eight eggs hard; leave in cold water until they are cold; cut in halves, slicing a bit of the bottoms to make them stand upright, a la Columbus. Extract the yolks, and rub to a smooth paste with a very little melted butter, some cayenne pepper, a touch of mustard, and just a dash of vinegar. Fill the hollowed whites with this, and send to table upon a bed of chopped cresses, seasoned with pepper, salt, vinegar, and a little sugar. The salad should be two inches thick, and an egg be served with a heaping tablespoonful of it. You may use lettuce or white cabbage instead of cresses."
---Common Sense in the Household: A Manual of Practical Housewifery, Marion Harland [Scribner:New York] 1882 (p. 246).

"Eggs, Devilled
If to be served hot, boil the eggs hard, and quarter or slice them, then lay them in a stewpan with enough gravy to cover them. Gravy a la Diable will be found excellent; but a plainer one can be made on the same principle by using a cheaper stock. A few drops of anchovy sauce is an improvement. Serve as soon as the eggs are hot throught, sith strips of dry toast, or put croutons round the dish.(p. 594)

Gravy a la Diable
Required: half a pint of clear brown stock...half an ounce of arrowroot, a tablespoonful of claret, a teaspoonful of French mustard, a dessertspoonful of Worcester sauce, and a little soluble cayenne, with salt to taste, and a few drops of soy. Mix the thickening with the claret, and the rest of the ingredients, and boil for a few minutes. Serve with kidneys, steaks, &etc., or with grilled fish. For a hotter sauce, increaes the Worcester sauce, or boil a few capsicum seeds in the gravy." (p. 85)
---Cassell's New Universal Cookery Book, Lizzie Heritage [Cassell and Company:London] 1894.

"Devilled Eggs
Boil eggs twenty minutes and when cool shell. Cut into halves crosswise and remove the yolks without breaking the whites. Put the whites of the same egg together, that they need not get separated. The yolks may be put in the bowl. Whe all are cut, rub the yolks to a c ream with melted butter, add a little made mustard or sauce from the chow chow bottle a little pickle or pilces and salt and paprika to season. Fill the mixture into the whites, put the halves together as they belong, and as if preparing them for the picnic basket fasten together with a couple of little Japanese wooden tooth picks before wrapping in waxed paper. The picks serve as handles in eating. If they are to be put on the home table press the halves together and arrange on a bed of cress or lettuce. For a change, finely minced meat highly seasoned is often added to the yolks. The devilled mixture that will be left over makes a spicy filling for sandwiches. Another way of using devilled eggs is to spread the yolk mixture left over on a shallow baking dish, place the eggs on it and cover with a thin cream sauce, veal or chicken gravy. Sprinkle with buttered crumbs and bake until the crumbs are delicate brown. A grating of cheese may be incorporated with the crumbs, if desired."
--- New York Evening Telegram Cook Book, Emma Paddock Telford [New York Evening Telegram:New York] 1908 (p. 28-9).

"Deviled Eggs
Prepare: Hard-cooked eggs
Shell the eggs, cut them in halves, remove the yolks. Crush the yolks with a fork and work them into a smooth paste with:
Mayonnaise, French dressing, cream or butter
Season the paste with:
Salt
Paprika
A little dry mustard (optional)
Fill the egg whites whith the paste and garnish the eggs with:
Chopped parsley or chives
Sliced olives, anchovies, capers, etc.
Paprika."
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1946 (p. 92).

Deep-fried deviled eggs
This departure from the usual is fun to do and fine to serve. After you have prepared your deviled eggs, dip them in fork-beaten egg, then roll in fine bread crumbs. (And this can all be done in the morning.) When cooking time comes, place the eggs in a frying basket (this is essential), and deep fry at 365 degrees farenheit until brown. Serve at once."
---Martha Deane's Cooking for Compliments, Marian Young Taylor [M.Barrows:New York] 1954 (p. 133).

All of this information is neatly summed up in this Web site (which was referenced in a recent New York Times article).

Ancient Rome
Apicius
includes several recipes for eggs in his cookbook, including one for "ova [eggs] sfongia ex lactem", eggs mixed with milk, oil, honey and pepper fried like a pancake. Recipe here.

1685
The Accomplisht Cook, Robert May, London, Prospect Books, 2000, (p. 430-1)
"To make omlets divers ways. The first way. Break six, eight, or ten eggs more of less, beat them together in a dish, and put salt to them; then put some butter a melting in a frying pan, fry it more or less, according to your discretion, only on one side of bottom. You may sometimes make it green with juyce of spinage and sorrel beat with the eggs, or serve it with green sauce, a little vinegar and sugar boil'd together, and served up on a dish with the Omlet." "The sixth way. Beat the eggs, and put to them a little cream, a little grated bread, a little preserved lemon-peel minced or grated very small..."

1769
The Experience English Housekeeper, Elizabeth Raffald , London, Southover Press, 1997, (p. 148)
"To make an Omelette. Put a quarter of a pound of butter into a frying pan. Break six eggs and beat them a little, strain them through a hair sieve. Put them in when your butter is hot and strew in a little shred parsley and boiled ham scraped fine with nutmeg, pepper and salt..."

1826
Physiologie du Gout, Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin [Paris]
L'Omlette du Cure

1845
Modern Cookery for Private Families, Eliza Acton, London, Southover Press 2002 (p. 321)
"A Common Omlet. Six eggs are sufficient for an omlet of moderate size. Let them be very fresh; break them singly and carefully...when they are sufficiently whisked pour them through a sieve, and resume the beating until they are very light. Add to them from half to a whole teaspoonful of salt, and a seasoning of pepper..."

1875
Cassell's Dictionary of Cookery, London (p. 466)
"Omlete, Plain. The following recipe is by the often-quoted M. Soyer: "break four eggs into a basin, add half a tea-spoonful of salt, and a quarter of a tea-spoonful of pepper, and beat them well up with a fork...Two table-spoonfuls of milk...may be added."

1884
Boston Cooking School Cook Book, Mrs. D. A. Lincoln, Boston (p. 200)
"Beat the yolks of two eggs till light-colored and thick; add two tablespoonfuls of milk, one saltspoonful of salt, and one fourth of a saltspoonful of pepper."

1890s
Francatelli's Modern Cook, Charles Elme Francatelli, London (p. 395)
"Omelet, with fine-herbs. Break six eggs in a basin, to these add half a gill of cream, a small pat of butter broken in small pieces, a spoonful of chopped parsley, some pepper and salt..."

1896
The Cook Book by "Oscar" of the Waldforf, Oscar Tschirky, New York (p. 585)
"Plain omelets. Beat six eggs well in a basin and season with pepper and salt and a little water. Melt a large piece of butter in a frying pan, pour the beaten eggs in and stand it at the side but not on the fire, turning it often. When the edges are done gather them together and roll over and over, and serve them very hot."
---"Parsley omelet. Break two eggs in a basin, put one tablespoonful of milk with them and beat up, mixing thoroughly but not making too light; add a little salt and a tablespoonful of finely-chopped parsley while beating..."

1903
The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, A. Escoffier, English translation by H. L.Cracknell & R. J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1997 (p. 174) "Omelettes. The theory of the preparation of an omelette is both simple and at the same time very complicated for the simple reason that people's tastes for this type of dish are very different--one likes his omelette very well cooked, another likes it to be just done, and there are others who only like their omelette when it is extremely soft and underdone. The important thing is to know and understand the preference of the guest...In a few words, what is an omelette? It is really a special type of scrambled egg enclosed in a coating or envelope of coagulated egg and nothing else. The following recipes are for an omelette of 3 eggs each, of which the seasoning comprises a small pinch of fine salt and a touch of pepper, and which requires 15g (1/2 oz) of butter for its preparation."

1919
The Hotel St. Francis Cook Book, Victor Hirtzler, San Francisco (p. 102)
---"Omlete with fine herbs. Mix equal parts of chopped parsley, chervil, and chives with the beaten eggs, season well with salt and white pepper, and make the omelet in the usual manner."

1941
Cooking a la Ritz, Louis Diat [J.B. Lippincott:New York] (p. 289)
"Omelette. Ordinary omelettes are made of three or four eggs as it is better to make them medium sized rather than too big to insure their being well cooked. For 3 eggs, use « teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon butter. Mix the eggs lightly with a fork and add the salt. Do not beat the eggs stiffly thinking to make the omelette lighter. On the contrary, the omelette will become heavier and more watery."

1966
The New York Times Menu Cook Book, Craig Claiborne [Harper & Row:New York] (p. 324) "Fresh herb omelet. 3 eggs, 1 tablespoon cold water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon butter, 2 teaspoons chopped chives, 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon, 1 fresh parsley sprig."

1972
The French Chef Cookbook, Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] (p. 105)
"Omelette gratinee aux champignons...beat the eggs, a big pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper in the mixing bowl with a fork until the yolks and whites are blended-20 to 30 seconds." [NOTE: this recipe does call for cream sauce, but it is meant for the cheese & mushroom filling, not mixed directly in the eggs.]

2001
Larousse Gatronomique, compe (p. 809) "Plain omlette. Beat 8 eggs lightly and season with salt and (if liked) freshly ground pepper; 2-3 tablespoons milk or 1 tablespoon single (light) cream can be added to the beaten eggs."

According to the food historians, modern souffles (both sweet and savoury) were a product of 18th century French cuisine. The method is related to that of meringue.

"Souffle
A French word which literally means "puffed up," is a culinary term in both French and English (and used in many other languages) for a light, frothy dish, just stiff enough to hold its shape, and which may be savory or sweet, hot or cold.The basic hot souffle has as its starting point a roux--a cooked mixture of flour and butter...This type of souffle was a French invention of the late 18th century. Beauvilliers was making souffles possibly as early as 1782 (though he did not publish his L'Art du cusinier until 1814). Recipes for various kinds appear in Louis Ude's The French Cook of 1813, a work which promises a "new method of giving good and extremely cheap fashionable suppers at routs and soirees. Later, in 1841, Careme's Patissier Royal Parisien goes into great detail on the technique of making souffles, from which it is clear that cooks had been having much trouble with souffles that collapsed. The dish acquired a reputation for difficulty and proneness to accidents which it does not really deserve...There are some Ukranian and Russian dishes of the hot souffle type, independently evolved and slightly different in composition."
---Oxford Compantion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 735)

"Patrons of La Grande Taverne de Londres, which opened in Paris in the 1780s, were perhaps the first to enjoy this dessert souffle. It comes from the repertoire of Beauvilliers, who, wrote, Brillat-Savarin, "was for more than fifteen years the most famous restauranteur in Paris"..."
---Horizon Cookbook and Illustrated History of Eating and Drinking Through the Ages, William Harlan Hale [American Heritage] 1968 (p. 713)

Why does a souffle fall if there is a loud noise?
It doesn't. That nugget of culinary fakelore is not supported by science. The rise and (and the inevitable fall) of every souffle is a direct result of temperature. Heat expands the air in the egg whites; coolness deflates it.

"Though many a cook has blamed the collapse of a souffle on the spouse who slammed the kitchen door, the force of the shock waves from that deed is too weak to pop more than a few air bubbles, if any at all. The culpable party, if truth be told, is the cook who made one or more culinary errors in the science of souffle making."
---Kitchen Science, Howard Hillman [Houghton Mifflin:Boston] 1989, revised edition (p. 285)

"Souffles--savory and sweet mixes lightened with an egg-white foam, then dramatically inflated above their dish by oven heat--have the reputation for being difficult preparations...In fact, souffles are reliable and resilient...If you manage to get any air into the mix, an inexorable law of nature will raise it in the oven, and opening the door for a few seconds won't do it any harm. The inevitable post-oven deflation can be minimized by your choice of ingredients and cooking method...The physical law that animates the souffle was discovered a few decades after its invention by--appropriately--a French scientist and balloonist, J.A.C. Charles. Charles's law is this: all else equal, the volume occupied by a given weight of gas is proportional to its temperature. Heat an inflated balloon and the sir will take up more space, so the balloon expands. Similarly, put a souffle in the oven and its air bubbles heat up and swell, so the mix expands in the only direction it can: out the top of the dish. Charles's law is part of the story, but not the whole story--it accounts for about a quarter of the typical souffle rise. The rest comes from the continuous evaporation of water from the bubble walls into the bubbles. As portions of the souffle approach the boiling point, more liquid water becomes water vapor and adds to the quantity of gas molecules in the bubbles, which increases the pressure on the bubble walls, which causes the walls to stretch and the bubbles to expand...Charles's law also means that what must go up in the oven must come down at the table...As the souffle bubbles cool, the air they contain contracts in volume, and the vapor that come from liquid water in the mix condenses back into liquid...A thick souffle mix can't rise as easily, but it also won't fall as easily...Don't worry about opening the oven door. The mix can't fall unless it actually begins to cool down, and even if that did happen, it will rise again when it heats up again."
---On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of The Kitchen, Harold McGee [Scribner:New York] 2004, completely revised and updated edition, (p. 109-113)

Souffle recipes through time

[1828] "Souffles for Entremets.
It will be sufficient to observe on the subject of souffles that they are all made in the same manner, and that they vary only in the taste you give them. If sent up in proper time they are very good eating, if not, they are no better than other puddings."

"No. 1. --Souffle of Potatoes with Lemon.
Bake a dozen potatoes in the oven; when they are well done, open them, scoop out the most floury part, and mix it with half a pint of cream that has boiled, and in which you have infused the peel of a lemon; to this add a little sugar, a large bit of butter, and a little salt; the taste of the sugar, however, must predominate; yet observe, that the less sugar you use the lighter the souffles are. Now break six eggs, throw th yolks of four only into the potatoes, breat the six whites, which pour gently with the above preparation in to a souffle dish, and put it into the oven, which must not be too hot. When the souffle is done enought, powder a little sugar over it, and use the salamander; souffles must be served up the moment they are ready, for they are liable to sink."

"No. 2.--Souffle of Orange Flower.
Dilute a little flour with half cream and milk; set this pap on the fire to boil; when the flour is hoen, put a littel salt, a little sugar, and a small quantitiy of pounded orange flower, mix well, and then add a good bit of butter, the yolks of six eggs, and mix the whole well. Next beat the six whites, and mix them with the rest: then bake the souffle as above, and when it is baked enough, glaze it and send up."

"No. 4.--Souffle of Bread.
Boil some milk with a little cream, to which give any taste you think proper. Threw into it the soft part of two or three fresh rolls to soak, put the bread through a sieve, and proceed with the eggs, butter, sugar, &c. as Nos. 1, 2, and 3."

"No. 6.--Souffle of Chocolate.
Take a quarter of a pound of chocoalte, which cut as small as you can, and melt it on the fire in a little water. When it is entirely melted, throw it into the souffle prepration, NO. 4, the same as all others...and generally all otehr souffles, are prepared in the same manner. The question is, to make the preparation well, and above all things to beat the whites of the eggs very well, for on that alone depends the rising or falling of the souffle."

"Omelette Souffle."
Break six eggs, put the whites into one pan, and the yolks into another; rasp a little lemon peel or orange flowers, beat the yolks well, add a little sugar and salt, and next beat the whites well en neige, and mix them with the yolks lightly. Then put a lump of butter into an omelette pan on the fire; when the butter is melted, our the omelette into the pan; when it is firm enough on one side to hold the liquid part, turn it over on the dish you send up; then bake it in an oven, or use the Dutch oven. When it is well raised, glaze it, and sent it up immediately, for it would soon lower. Mind, it must be convered hermetically with a large fire over it, otherwise it will not rise. To this you many give whatever flavour you think proper; but the plainer the better, when served very hot, and very high."
---The French Cook,Louis Eustache Ude, photoreprint of 1828 edition, [Arco Publishing:New York] 1978 (p. 367-370)

[1869] "Cheese souffle
Put 1 1/4 oz. of flour in a stewpan, wtih 1 1/2 pint of milk; season with salt, and pepper; stir over the fire, till boiling,--and should there be any lumps, strain the souffle paste through a tammy cloth; Add 7 oz of grated Parmesan cheese, and 7 yolks of egg; whip the whites till they are firm, and add them to the mixture; fill some paper cases with it, and bake in the oven for fifteen minutes. Observation.--All these souffles should be served immediately they are cooked." (p. 324)

Omelet souffle with lemon
Break 6 eggs; separate the whites form the yolks; put 3 yolks in a basin, with 3 oz. Of sugar,a nd half a grated lemon peel; stir, with a wooden spoon, for five minutes; Put the 6 whites in a whipping bowl, and whip them until they are very firm; then mix them lightly with the yolks;--this should constitute a very solid paste; Butter a round dish slightly; throw in the whole of the paste at once, as lightly as possible; smooth it over with a knife, and make an incision about 1 inch deep, with the handle of a silver spoon, all round the side of the omelet; put it in the oven for ten minutes, and serve immediately; Should omelet soufflee be kept for a few minutes after it is taken out of the oven, it will be spoilt."(p. 189)
---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son and Marston:London] 1869

[1903] Souffles. 4471. Cream-type Souffle Mixture (for four persons)
Ingredients: 1 dl (3 1/2 fl oz or 1/2 U.S. cup) milk, 25 g (1 1/2oz) sugar, 1 tbs flour, 10 g (1/3 oz) butter, 2 egg yolks and 3 stiffly beaten egg whites. Method: Bring the milk and sugar to the boil, mix in the flour which has been diluted with a litte cold milk and cook on the stove for 2 minutes. Remove form the stove, mix in the butter and egg yolks and then fold in the siffly beaten 2gg whites." 4474. The Moulding and Cooking of Souffles
The souffle mixture is placed in a souffle mould or deep silver timbale or in a special false-bottomed dish--in all cases these should be buttered and sugared inside. They are cooked in a moderately hot oven so that the heat may reach the centre of the mixutre by degrees. Two mintues before removingthe souffle from the oven, dredge the surface wtih icing sugar which will caramelize and form the required glaze when replaced in the oven. The decoration of souffles is optional but in any case it should be ketp to a minimum."
---The Compete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, August Escoffier, first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culinaire:1903 [John Wiley:New York] 1979
[NOTE: Escoffier provides recipes for these sweet dessert souffles: fruit puree, almond, hazelnut, camargo, cherry, chocolate, curacao, Elizabeth (vanilla & Kirsch), strawberry, fruits en croustade, Hilda (lemon, strawberries & raspberries), praline, vanilla, violet etc. Savory souffles are distributed throughout the book, use the index it locate them.]

[1941]
"Cheese souffle (serves four)
1/2 cup butter, 1 cup flour, 5 egg yolks beaten, 2 cups milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt, pinch pepper, a little nutmeg, 1 cup grated Parmesan or Swiss cheese, 6 egg whites.
Mix the melted butter and flour and let become golden brown. Add the boiling milk, mix with a whip and let boil for 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg, stirring constantly, then combine with the egg yolks. When the boiling point is reached, remove from the fire and add the grated cheese. Beat egg whites still and fold into the mixture. Place in a souffle dish and bake in hot oven for 20 minutes." (p. 399)

"Vanilla omelette souffle
6 egg yolks, 1 cup sugar, 1 vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, 6 egg whites, 2 tablespoons confectioner's sugar.
Beat the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture has whitened and is a slight as a sponge cake mix. Add the vanilla. Beat the egg whites stiff and gently fold into the first mixture. Spread on a long buttered and sugared plate in the shape of an oval mound, saving a small quantity to decorate the omelette. Smooth it all around with a spatula and decorate with the mixture set aside. (A pastry piping bag or paper coronet may be used.) Bake in a moderate oven for 10 minutes. About 2 minutes before removing from the oven, sprinkle with confectioner's sugar to form a brilliant coat when melted. Serve with Vanilla or Rum Sauce." (p. 395)
---Cooking a la Ritz, Louis Diat [J.B. Lippincott:New York] 1941

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