Lifetime Moms

Guest Post by Katie Hostetter from Frugal Femina

Sometimes it's nice to keep your treats simple, like my old standby of mint chocolate chip cookies. Other times it's fun to glam things up a bit by making homemade candy canes or these Mini White Chocolate Souffles with Pomegranate-Chocolate Sauce. I recently saw a recipe in Fine Cooking using raspberries, and I thought, "Why not do something similar with pomegranates?" So I did. :-)

INGREDIENTS: Pomegranate-Chocolate Sauce

1. 3 Tablespoons juice from 1 pomegranate 
2. 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
3. 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
4. 1 Tablespoon sugar
5. 1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Mini White Chocolate Souffle

1. 3 eggs, separated
2. 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour, sifted
3. 1/8 teaspoon salt {I used kosher, because that's what I had.}
4. 3/4 cup whole milk
5. 6 ounces white chocolate , finely chopped
6. 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
7. 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
8. 2 Tablespoons sugar

PREPARATION:

Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature. You can put them in a bowl of lukewarm water if needed. Put a cookie sheet in the freezer to chill. Lightly butter six 6-oz. ramekins, coat with sugar, and tap out the excess. {I especially love them in my Fiesta ramekins, because I *heart* Fiesta. In case you didn't know.} :-)

THE SAUCE:

1. Melt all of the sauce ingredients in a double boiler on low. Stir constantly until the mixture is smooth.
2. Scrape sauce into a puddle on the chilled cookie sheet, and put it back in the freezer for 20 minutes.
3. When it is firm, use a teaspoon to make 6 rough balls. Put them back on the cookie sheet, and keep them in the refrigerator until you're ready to use them.

THE MINI SOUFFLE:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine the flour and salt in a small saucepan.
3. Whisk in enough milk to make a thick paste. Then whisk in the remaining milk.
4. Cook on medium heat, whisking constantly, for 3 minutes or until it's a thick cream sauce.
5. Whisk 2 Tablespoons of the cream sauce into a bowl with the 3 egg yolks.
6. Once the egg yolks are gently warmed, scrape them into the saucepan, and whisk constantly for 2 minutes or until it's a thick pastry cream.
7. Scrape the cream into a bowl, and add the white chocolate. Whisk until it's completely blended.



8. Stir in the almond extract, and set the mixture aside.
9. In another bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on high until it has soft peaks. {I always mess this up the first time around and end up having to do it again. It helps if you use a bowl that's a little cold.}
10. Gradually beat in the sugar until you have medium-stiff peaks.
11. Use a rubber spatula to fold in part of the egg whites into the white chocolate cream mixture. Then gently fold the rest in.
12. Put one chocolate ball in the bottom of each ramekin. Divide the batter evenly among the ramekins.



13. Bake for about 16 minutes. The tops should be golden brown. Feel free to drizzle some chocolate on top, too. Can't go wrong with that!

If you like pomegranates as much as I do, you can also check out my Dried Cherry Meatloaf with Pomegranate-Balsamic Glaze and my Pomegranate-Banana Smoothie.