INGREDIENTS:

• Vegetable oil spray
• 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• ½ cup finely chopped shallots
• 8 ounces cremini or baby bella mushrooms, stems removed and caps minced
• 4 teaspoons unbleached flour
• 1 cup milk
• 3 ounces chèvre cheese, crumbled
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 large egg yolks
• 5 large egg whites
• 1/8 teaspoon lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

1. Prepare 6 8-ounce ramekins by spraying with vegetable oil, then coat insides with Parmesan cheese.  Put ramekins on a sheet pan, and chill until time to bake.

2. Preheat oven to 425°F, and position a rack in lower third of oven.

3. In a 2-quart saucepan, melt butter and sauté, stirring constantly with a heat-safe spatula, until mushrooms are shrunken and soft, about 3 minutes.  Sprinkle flour over mushrooms and stir to incorporate.  Remove pan from heat and add milk a bit at a time, stirring to mix.  Return to pan back to medium heat and cook, stirring constantly.  When mixture comes to a simmer, stir for a minute more, then remove from heat.  Stir in chèvre, then transfer mixture to a large bowl.  Let cool for 5 minutes, the stir in tarragon, salt and pepper.  (The mixture can be made up to this point and chilled for assembly later-let the mixture come to room temperature before adding the yolks.)  Stir in egg yolks.

4. Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites with lemon juice until they make firm peaks.  Using a rubber spatula, fold ¼ of the beaten whites into mushroom mixture.  Fold in remaining whites, the divide mixture between the 6 ramekins.  Put sheet pan with ramekins in oven and reduce heat to 350 °F.  Bake until puffed and well-browned and a toothpick inserted in a center soufflé comes out clean, about 40 minutes.  Serve immediately.

SERVES 6