Lettuce Soufflé

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

225g British Iceberg lettuce, chopped
50g butter or margarine
20g plain flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper
150ml semi-skimmed milk
1 tsp Worcester sauce
115g grated Cheddar cheese
4 eggs, separated
¾ tsp cream of tartar
50g fresh grated parmesan

Method

Heavily butter a soufflé mould and coat the butter with parmesan. Cook the chopped lettuce in very little water until just tender and drain well. Add 15g of butter or margarine, cook and stir until any remaining water has disappeared. In a separate pan, melt the rest of the butter, blend in the flour, salt and pepper. Cook over a low heat for 3-5 minutes. Blend in the milk and Worcester sauce. Cook and stir until thickened. Remove from the heat and add the Cheddar cheese, stir until melted. Beat in egg yolks, one at a time. Add cooked lettuce. Beat the egg whites until foamy, add cream of tartar and a pinch of salt, then whip until stiff. Stir a quarter into the lettuce mixture, then fold in the remainder. Pour into the soufflé mould and smooth the top; sprinkle with parmesan. Bake in the middle of a preheated oven, 190°C/ Gas mark 5 for 30-40 minutes, until well risen and golden brown. Serve immediately.