Time Travel Kitchen
Sara Moulton, Sally Darr and La Tulipe’s Signature Soufflé
I’ve always gotten a kick out of the French term “amuse-bouche” — those tiny, one-bite morsels offered to restaurant guests, a surprise to ‘amuse the mouth’ — a little gift from the chef served ahead of the appetizer.
It’s a way for chefs to signal a taste of what’s to come as the meal will unfold.
Today’s newsletter is kind of like that — a small preview of a larger story — the story being the brilliant four-decade career of Sara Moulton who I was lucky enough to work for thirty years ago at Gourmet and am even luckier to call friend.
I was a bit overwhelmed as to where to start writing about and sharing the highlights of her career: Gourmet magazine? The Food Network? Radio? PBS? Being mentored by Julia Child and working with her on her TV show Julia Child and More Company?. I could go on.
So I decided the best place to start would be with…well…food. A signature dessert from the beloved (now sadly gone) La Tulipe in New York City, part of an important early chapter in Sara’s career. (A recipe by the way that would be a showstopper for Mother’s Day). And if the thought of making soufflés stops you in your tracks, press on. This recipe works beautifully.
My complete interview with Sara will appear in next Friday’s newsletter. But today we’ll start here, with some thoughts about soufflé and the influence of Sally Darr (who had also been an editor at Gourmet) on her career.
Sara Moulton on La Tulipe, Sally Darr and Apricot Soufflé
“In the early eighties, I worked at La Tulipe, a little gem of a French Restaurant in Greenwich Village as the chef tournant, covering a different station every day which allowed all the other chefs a second day off every week. It was a terrific gig because I had to learn everything, including those things I might not have focused on otherwise, like desserts.”
La Tulipe’s chef/owner was Sally Darr. Sally had no formal restaurant training, but she had a world-class palate and she was a perfectionist who expected perfection from everyone in the kitchen.”
“ I probably learned more from Sally than from anyone else in my career. This recipe is a wonderful example of her talent.” — Sara Moulton
“Traditional soufflés are notoriously delicate. They can fail to come together properly at any number of steps along the way. But Sally’s apricot soufflé is basically bullet-proof. The base consists of nothing but puréed and sweetened dried apricots. The soufflé batter is sturdy enough to be shaped and to hold that shape when baked.” — Sara Moulton, Sara Moulton’s Home Cooking 101
La Tulipe’s Apricot Soufflés from Sara Moulton’s HOME COOKING 101
I was so busy taking pictures of the soufflés that had just come out of the oven (and patting myself on the back) that by the time I started scooping out the soufflé mounds they had started to collapse — but they still tasted great. Also: my ramekins were larger, so my yield was 4.
I hope you’ll try these, the taste is so bright, the texture is beautiful, full of flavor and just so pretty — a perfect celebration dessert.
See you next week with more, including Sara’s lifelong friendship with Julia Child.
Have a good weekend!
Jolene
I love the color and how you describe it as sunny and then later the taste as bright. Sure seems like the perfect spring treat to me!
Looks fabulous (and I'm sure tastes fab, too—I'm a big apricot fan!) The story is also a treasure. Can hardly wait to read the full interview!