Sweet Soufflé (Austrian Salzburger Nockerl)

Aside from Apfelstrudel, Topfenstrudel and Kaiserschmarrn, the Salzburger Nockerl are the most famous and legendary dessert of Austria. This serves many restaurants to charge shockingly high prices for the soufflé made of little more than egg, sugar and air. It is said that the "Nockerl" were invented by Salome Alt, the concubine of Salzburg's Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raintenau in the early 17th century. They are quite difficult to make (or easy to mess up) and supposed to resemble the three or four highest mountains of Salzburg.

milk (150 mL)
½ vanilla pod
lemon juice, freshly squeezed
7 egg whites, cooled
1 pinch sea salt
sugar (80 g)
4 egg yolks
1 lemon, freshly zested
grated vanilla sugar (10 g)
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, unbleached
1 Tbsp. cornstarch (Maizena)
confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Heat the milk with the cut-open vanilla pod and lemon juice. Remove from the stove and leave to sit. Remove the pod. Smear an oval-shaped, ovenproof form with butter and pour in enough vanilla milk to cover the bottom.

With a hand mixer, mix the cooled egg whites with a pinch of salt and a third of the sugar until very stiff. Slowly add the rest of the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is thick and creamy.

Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C/200°C fan, Gas Mark 7). Generous grease (butter) a baking pan.

Add the egg yolks, lemon rind, vanilla sugar, flour, and cornstarch to the egg white mixture and fold three or four times with a whisk (the mass mustn’t become homogenous). Make 4 pyramid-shaped nockerl, placing them next to each other in the baking tray.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until light, golden brown.

Dust with icing sugar and serve quickly so that the nockerl doesn't collapse.