Bake: Dark Chocolate Souffle

I've been wanting to try making a souffle for a while.  My mom recently bought me some souffle dishes as a gift, so I decided to start with a chocolate souffle (that way if it fell or otherwise didn't bake correctly, it would still be a delicious bowl full of chocolate).  It was actually really easy to make, and turned out great.

Recipe after the jump...

Dark Chocolate Souffle
Prep Time: 15 minutes 
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

2 oz dark chocolate (60% cacao or higher)
3 egg yolks
4 egg whites
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
0.5 c half and half or heavy cream
0.5 tbsp unsalted butter, plus a little more
0.33 c sugar, plus a little more
0.25 tsp cream of tartar or white vinegar
pinch of salt

(1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees
(2) Prepare a 1-quart souffle dish (or smaller ones adding up to 1 qt) by coating the inside with butter and sugar; (optional extra step) Fold a long piece of foil in half, butter the top of it, wrap it around the dish, and secure with cooking twine to make a "collar"

(3) Melt dark chocolate and butter in a double boiler

 (4) Meanwhile, beat together egg yolks, salt, and all but 1 tbsp of the sugar until light yellow in color and ribbons form when the beater is lifted out of the mixture

(5) When the chocolate is melted, add the cocoa powder and slowly incorporate half and half until the chocolate reaches a creamy consistency

(6) With a clean bowl and whisk attachment, whip egg whites and cream of tartar together until they make soft peaks

(7) Slowly add in the remaining sugar and whip until the mixture forms stiff peaks, but is still glossy

(8) Stir egg yolk mixture into chocolate mixture

(9) Gently incorporate 0.25 of the egg white mixture into the chocolate to lighten

(10) Fold the chocolate into the remaining egg white mixture until just incorporated

(11) Transfer to souffle dish; bake for 30-35 minutes -- no peeking!

(12) Sprinkle top with confectioner's sugar; eat immediately

Notes:  The butter and sugar coating the pan help to release the souffle from the dish, and also form a crunchy outer crust.  The foil collar is supposed to help it rise higher, though in this case it wasn't really necessary.  Souffles begin to fall as soon as they are removed from the oven, so for visual effect it is best to eat immediately.  However, I can testify that it is equally delicious the next day, straight from the fridge!  To make it super-indulgent, serve with coffee ice cream and fresh whipped cream.  You can prepare the recipe ahead of time up through step (10), but add an extra egg white or two -- expanding air bubbles in the egg whites are what causes the souffle to rise; as the whites are mixed with fatty ingredients, the air bubbles pop.  As the mixture sits, there will be fewer and fewer air bubbles contained within, and the souffle will not rise as high; adding more egg whites helps alleviate this problem.  You can also freeze the prepared souffle mix without the need for adding extra whites.