For an occasional treat, here is a dessert worth celebrating! The combination of chocolate, raspberry, and orange flavors is one of my favorites. You can’t taste the yams, but they provide a nice texture and structure along with healthy fiber for the soufflé.

Raspberry Sauce

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Simmering Time: 10 minutes

Makes: ¾ cup

Ingredients:

2½ cups raspberries, frozen or fresh (about 12 ounces)

¼ cup sugar

1 Tbsp Grand Marnier (or any other liqueur)

2 Tbsp orange juice

1⁄8 tsp sea salt

1 tsp grated orange zest

A few sprigs of mint or whole berries as garnish, mixed

Directions:

Heat raspberries and sugar on medium heat in a saucepan until bubbling. Simmer 5 minutes. Push the raspberry pulp through a large sieve with a spatula to remove the seeds.

Combine filtered liquid with Grand Marnier or liqueur, orange juice, zest and salt. Then simmer another 5 minutes to thicken. Set aside to cool. Garnish before serving.

Chocolate Soufflé

Prep Time: 25–30 minutes

Baking Time: 35 minutes

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

1 medium yam (or sweet potato)

3 Tbsp Grand Marnier (or other orange liqueur)

1/8  tsp sea salt

½ cup maple syrup

1/3  cup cocoa powder, preferably Dutch-processed, sifted

7 large eggs (organic, free-range, omega-3), separated into whites and yolks

4 Tbsp grated orange zest (2 Tbsp for soufflé mixture, 2 for garnish)

Nut oil (almond or walnut)

1 cup fresh berries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Prepare or buy raspberry sauce. Microwave the yam until soft, about 8 minutes. Peel yam, then mash into a puree.

Combine ½ cup of raspberry sauce with baked yam, Grand Marnier, salt, maple syrup, cocoa, egg yolks, and 2 tablespoon orange zest, and whisk until mixed to make the batter.

Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks.

Gently fold the soufflé batter into the egg whites, just enough so that most of the white of the eggs blend with the chocolate-colored batter. Don’t overmix or the soufflé won’t rise.

Grease a round soufflé dish (9-inch diameter, 4 inches high) with nut oil. Pour the soufflé batter into the dish. (It should fill 90% of the dish, but don’t fill it to the brim; use another dish if necessary.)

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the top browns slightly and an inserted long wood skewer or thin knife blade comes out clean. If you take it out too soon and the center is too wet when tested, simply put it back in the oven for an additional 5 minutes.

Have guests at the table and serve immediately. The soufflé will drop as it cools and shrinks once cut. Garnish each serving with a drizzle of the remaining raspberry sauce and a sprinkle of orange zest and berries.

Enjoy!

Steven Masley, MD