Soufflé à l'orange

Grand Marnier Souffle Recipe

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This grand marnier souffle recipe is a beautiful French dessert with a golden, dome-shaped top and a sweet, orange-flavored crumb. It’s the kind of dessert that will impress your dinner guests and delight all of their senses!

Grand Marnier Souffle

The first time I made a grand marnier souffle, I used a recipe that had you fill hollowed oranges with the batter and bake them in the oranges rather than ramekins.

To say my beautiful orange souffle ended in failure was an understatement.

The soufflé rose a bit, but it also overflowed out of the oranges as it baked, running down the orange skin like molten lava and, thereby, destructing the little bit of rise the top had gotten.

They also didn’t fully cook on the inside, despite the fact that I had let them bake longer than the suggested time. Suffice it to say, I was intimidated by the soufflé from then on.

I share this story in case anyone else gets nervous making them like I used to, and still sometimes do.

grand marnier souffle overhead image

What does a grand marnier souffle taste like?

A grand marnier souffle is very similar in texture to a moist, bread pudding and vibrant with the flavor of orange laced throughout.

Even though a souffle can incite some trepidation, it’s still worth working through the fear and tackling this French dessert recipe.

Unlike a vanilla souffle or chocolate souffle, a grand marnier souffle has the fresh zing from the citrus elements in the recipe. Orange zest and grand marnier liqueur (an orange liqueur) give the souffle that lovely orange flavor.

That, combined with the tender and almost creamy texture of the soufflé makes this one sensational dessert.

orange souffle on a spoon image

How to Make a Grand Marnier Souffle?

I always recommend practicing a souffle recipe at least once before you attempt it for guests.

The way I look at souffles are kind of like how I view French macarons. Both macarons and souffles are heavily reliant on how well you beat your egg whites.

They both require that perfect consistency or else they won’t rise the way they should. You need to beat the egg whites until they’re stiff but not yet glossy.

This is typically the stage right after they look like shaving cream yet they’re not glossy yet like they would be for meringue cookies. An electric mixer or stand mixer is your friend here!

In the case of a souffle, the egg whites are whisked vigorously to incorporate air into tiny, protein-encased bubbles that expand once exposed to heat in the oven.

As soon as the heat is gone, those bubbles collapse. That’s why you usually only have a minute or two to serve a souffle once it’s out of the oven. After that, you can say goodbye to its puffy dome.

grand marnier souffle interior image

It’s also the reason I’ve struggled to ever get a good photo of my souffle; one of these days I’ll have to forego my usual photography set up and take a photo with my iPhone.

In any case, once you’ve whipped your egg whites to the perfect consistency, you’ll fold them into your main batter.

The batter is then poured into sugar-coated ramekins and baked until golden brown on top and puffed up.

For an indulgent finish, feel free to serve your grand marnier souffles with creme anglaise (a French custard sauce).

If you’re interested in getting the perfect egg white-whisking technique down or learn the science behind the soufflé, NPR did an interesting article on the subject. 

For another classic French orange dessert, be sure to try my recipe for Crepes Suzette! Bursting with the flavors of fresh orange and caramelized sugar, there’s a reason it’s a French bistro staple!

Crepes Suzette with orange sauce in a skillet
Soufflé à l'orange

Grand Marnier Souffle

Yield: 2
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 16 minutes
Total Time: 31 minutes

A classic French dessert made with whipped egg whites and orange liqueur.

Ingredients

  • 2 large eggs, separated
  • 1 tbsp plus 2 tsp melted butter, plus more for greasing ramekins
  • 1 tbsp plus 2 tsp all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup cold milk
  • 2 tsp freshly grated orange zest
  • 1 tbsp Grand Marnier
  • 1/8 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup white sugar, plus more for sprinkling ramekins with
  • powdered sugar to dust on top

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Use a pastry brush to coat the insides of 2 (8 oz) ramekins with melted butter. Sprinkle sugar inside the ramekins, then rotate ramekins from side to side to get sugar crystals coating the entire interior surface of the ramekins. Tap out any excess sugar. Set aside.
  2. Pour the 1 tbsp + 2 tsp of melted butter into a small pan. Add the 1 tbsp + 2 tsp flour to the pan, then turn on the heat to medium low. Use a wooden spoon (not a whisk) to combine the two together to form a roux - about 30 seconds.
  3. Once combined, stream in the cold milk. Continue stirring with the spoon until a dough has formed and doesn't stick to the pan. Turn this dough out into a clean, large bowl. Set aside.
  4. To the bowl of a stand mixer, add your egg whites. Make sure you don't get ANY yolks in the whites, otherwise repeat this step as the yolks will ruin your merengue. Once you've got your egg whites in the bowl, whisk on high speed.
  5. Once the egg whites have lost their yellowish appearance and have become frothy white, gradually sprinkle in the sugar. Continue to whisk until the egg whites until they're past the shaving cream stage and have started to form stiff, yet matte peaks.
  6. To the bowl that contains your dough, add your orange zest, Grand Marnier, and vanilla extract. Stir them in with your wooden spoon before adding the egg yolks. Use your spoon to incorporate the yolks until you have a thick, lava-like batter.
  7. Add about half of your egg whites into the batter, folding them into the batter with a rubber spatula. Be gentle so that you don't deflate your egg whites. Once incorporated, add the remaining half of egg whites and again gently fold them into the batter, using big, long strokes. Fold just until the whites are no longer apparent.
  8. Divide the batter among your ramekins, stopping a quarter inch from the rim of the ramekins if you want a straight, slightly puffy look. If you want the soufflés really high and don't mind them going slighty lopsided, then fill to the rim of the ramekins.
  9. Use an offset spatula or your finger to smooth out the tops of the batter. Bake in the oven for 16 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve immediately (soufflés will deflate within a minute, so hurry!)
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 463Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 199mgSodium: 119mgCarbohydrates: 89gFiber: 0gSugar: 84gProtein: 8g

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18 Comments

    1. Hi Debra! I haven’t tested that out but I would be careful whenever you’re adding liquid to whisked egg whites. An extra tablespoon might not seem like that much, but sometimes that little bit of extra liquid can throw off the balance with a recipe like this. If you do try, please let me know! 🙂

      1. I have made these fantastic souffle’s now twice. Last night was a success. I did use orange’s as cups. My recipe varied a tiny bit, with no dairy. I think this is the problem with the reason you had a half baked dessert.
        I am sicilian, not French, haha, perhaps souffles are coming easier to me now I’ve done this easy one?! I will try your butter and egg in a ramikin to try your richer recipe. I love eating! Thanks for you love and recipes.

      2. Hi Vince! Thanks so much for the feedback and tips – very helpful! So glad you enjoyed this souffle recipe! 🙂

  1. What beautiful photos, and a wonderful recipe. I adore oranges. You did a good job capturing the risen soufflé. It helps to have a tripod and your set ready and something standing in place of th soufflé to get the camera focused. So that way you can pull out the soufflé and take it right to set and click the button immediately. It’s a pain, but it gets a good shot!

    1. Thank you, Amanda! And great tip with having the tripod ready – very smart! I think I also caused a bit of a stall with the dusting of powdered sugar. You would have laughed though if you saw me taking these photos. I was practically talking to the soufflé, begging it to be a “pretty little thing for mama chef to take photos of” =) XO

  2. These look incredible, I have yet to master the souffle – I think last time I used the wrong dish at the wrong oven temperature. All your details are super helpful and (almost) have me wanting to try again 🙂

    1. Yay, that’s the best compliment if I’ve inspired you to think about trying it again! Honestly, it’s such a bummer when a recipe doesn’t go as plan. It’s almost better when it half goes as planned because then at least you have a bit of hope and motivation to try it again and perfect it. My very first attempt with the oranges had me cursing the soufflé 😉

  3. Mmmm Mmmm, Beeta! Your recipe is scrumptious, and I love how you’ve included GM. I made souffle’ several years ago, with success, but have not revisited them. Your post is a reminder of how delightful and satisfying making and eating souffle’ is! Thank you for posting your recipe! I’m looking forward to making it!

    1. Aww, thank you, Traci! It definitely feels great when you’re successful with a soufflé. They’re also kind of addictive to make because of that sort of nervous energy that you get (or at least I do) when you’re on the quest to make perfect ones! Hehe 🙂 Much love XO

  4. Looks divine, Beeta! Although I’m quite comfortable making macarons now, I have yet to try making souffle. Yours looks so pretty, and I just want to grab that spoon and shove it in my mouth! Lovely presentation too!

    1. Thank you, Shinee!! If you’re good with macarons, then a soufflé should be no problem! I think the difference is that when you’re beating egg whites for macarons, they’re beaten until they’re pretty stiff (like they aren’t supposed to drip off your whisk or the sides of your bowl if you hold them upside down). But with a soufflé you want the egg whites still kind of loose. I’m sure you’ll make a fantastic soufflé just like all your other beautiful desserts! Thank you for the kind words! xo

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