Savory carrot and cheese souffle
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter a shallow 11⁄2-quart glass or ceramic baking dish.
- Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add 1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt per cup of water. Add the carrots, reduce the heat, and simmer until just tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the carrots and set aside to steam dry and cool a little.
- Combine the Gruyere and pecans in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the carrots and pulse until chopped. With the machine running, add the eggs one at a time and process until smooth. Add the butter and pulse to mix. Season with the white pepper. The puree shouldn’t need salt, but taste to make sure.
- Scrape the puree into the prepared dish and bake until the top is lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving warm.
- What else works? You can use roasted sweet potato or winter squash puree in place of the carrots. The puree must have the texture of canned pumpkin, so drain it in a mesh sieve if necessary.