@ossobuco,
Here's the Meyer Lemon Souffle recipe. I can tell it's from the NY Times, who knows what year. I trust regular lemons can be used, but I love and miss the Meyers.
It's adapted from "Chez Panisse Desserts" by Lindsey Shere (Random House, 1985)
5 large eggs
3 Meyer lemons
5 1/2 tablespoons sugar, plus extra for coating the dish and sprinkling
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons flour
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus extra for coating the dish
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1. Separate eggs, placing 5 yolks in a small bowl, and 4 whites in the bowl of an electric mixer; discard the fifth white or reserve for another purpose.
Whisk yolks just until blended, then set aside. Set whites aside at room temperature, or refrigerate if the souffle is to be served later in the day. Rinse lemons with hot water, and grate and reserve the zest.
(osso note - there's a way to get the wax off if they are waxed and you want it off - if I remember, it's something like wash well with vinegar and then rinse)
2. In a small, heavy saucepan, combine 1 1/2 tablespoons of the sugar and the flour. Gradually stir in the milk, mixing until smooth. Place pan over medium heat, and stir constantly until mixture has boiled for 1 minute. Remove pan from heat. While whisking vigorously, slowly add several tablespoons of the hot milk mixture to the egg yolks. Add yolk mixture to saucepan over medium heat, and whisk just until the mixture is smooth and thick, and light yellow in color, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Remove saucepan from heat. Add butter, and stir until it has melted. Stir in the reserved lemon zest, and set aside to cool. The mixture may be refrigerated at this point for up to 4 hours; bring to room temperature before baking.
4. Half and hour before serving, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 1 1/2 quart souffle dish and coat it with sugar. Place the bowl of egg whites over a bowl of hot water, and stir gently until they are barely warmed. (Osso - I presume this is if they were refrigerated.) Using an electric mixer at medium speed, whisk egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar, and increase speed to medium-high. Gradually add remaining 4 tablespoons of sugar, whisking until whites are moderately stiff but not dry. They should have smooth soft peaks with very fine bubbles.
5. Add about 1/4 cup of the beaten egg whites to the yolk mixture, to loosen and smothe the yolks. Gently fold the yolk mixture into the remaining egg whites, until barely mixed. Pour into the souffle dish, and smooth the top. With the tip of a table knife, draw a circle about an inch in from the side of the dish, and an inch deep into the souffle mixture. Squeeze 1 to 2 tablespoons of lemon juice from one lemon. Trail juice over top of souffle, and sprinkle juice lightly with sugar.
6. Bake souffle until it has puffed and is golden brown on top, about 20 minutes. If souffle is browning too quickly, reduce heat to 375 degrees. Serve immediately.
Yield: 4 servings.
Well, that looks like a recipe that would take me a million years to do the first time, and become routine if done more often. I still remember many years ago visiting some people in Ventura that I didn't know with my husband, the woman excusing herself for a small amount of time, coming back and talking some more, going to the kitchen again for a few minutes, and coming back out with a perfect chocolate souffle. It was a sort of heaven.
