This is a sponsored post on behalf of Goldrich Eggs, which can be found at Wal-Mart.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The holidays are right around the corner and today I want to share with you one of my ABSOLUTELY favorite recipes for the holidays.  This actual dish was shared with me by my Mother-in-Law years ago when my husband and I first started dating.  I remember visiting them and this soufflé was so good…but I was too embarrassed to get up and get a second helping.

Then everyone else got up and started getting more, so I did too 🙂

So, here it is and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Puffy Cheese Soufflé with Spinach and Ham Filling

(I didn’t use ham in my recipe, but it’s wonderful in the soufflé)

Soufflé:

9 large eggs

1 1⁄2 c. grated cheeses – a combination of mozzarella, provolone, Gruyere and parmesan (3/8 c. each)

Sauce:

1 stick butter

2/3 c. flour

3 c. milk

3⁄4 t. salt

3/8 t. pepper

Filling:

1⁄2 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1⁄4 c. sliced scallions or green onions

3/8 c. cream

about 1⁄2 lb. sliced lean ham, optional, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 12” x 18” jelly-roll pan with Pam. Line with parchment paper.

Separate yolks and whites, dropping yolks into a bowl and whites into a mixing bowl.

If you don’t have an egg separator it’s probably one of the best investments you can make for your kitchen.  I love tool.  The yolks held together great!  Just look at that beautiful #GoldRichYolk

Make a roux by melting butter in a large saucepan and adding flour, mixing until well blended. Cook mixture for two minutes, stirring constantly. Whisk in milk until mixture is smooth.

Simmer until mixture starts to thicken. When mixture thickens, stir constantly until thick and bubbly.

Remove 21⁄2 cups of the sauce into large bowl. Allow to cool for 10 minutes. To this sauce, add cheese, salt and pepper. Beat in the yolks until well-blended.

Beat the whites until stiff. Fold whites into the yolk/sauce/cheese mixture.  I am using Goldrich Eggs,  they have a rich, golden yolk with a distinctive texture and flavor.

It’s very important that you don’t get ANY yolk in your egg whites or they won’t fluff up!

Fold, fold, fold….don’t mix!

Pour into prepared pan and bake in 375 degree oven for about 17 minutes or until golden brown and set.

It should turn out something like this:

While baking, squeeze water from spinach. Blend into reserve sauce; add scallions, 3/8 c. cream, and chopped ham (optional).

Remove soufflé from oven. Invert onto tea towel and peel off waxed paper. (I ran out of was paper and used aluminum foil.  DO NOT DO THIS!!!!  I sprayed my aluminum foil with non-stick cooking spray, but it still stuck like glue)  ALWAYS USED WAX PAPER!!!  Live and learn right???

Spread with the spinach mixture. Roll, starting at long side and end up seam side down.

After you spread your spinach mixture gently roll the soufflé.

Place back in the oven and bake at 350 degrees until a little crisp and heated through.

(about 20 minutes).

Serves 8-10

You should end up with something like this 🙂

Here’s a little video about the history of this recipe and a couple of pointers:

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do, it’s seriously one of the best things you’ll ever make!