Souffle

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. A culinary creation that features a base combined with aerated egg whites, resulting in a light dish that expands during the cooking process
2. An airy concoction developed by blending a flavored mixture with whipped egg whites, yielding a fluffy texture upon baking
3. A light and airy dish made by folding whipped egg whites into a flavored mixture, which puffs up during baking to achieve a delicate consistency

Etymology: The French "souffle" means "breath" or "puff," and it comes from the Latin "sufflare," meaning "to blow up" or "to blow on." That sense of air being blown into something explains the dish: a soufflé relies on whipped egg whites trapping air, so the mixture swells as it bakes. English borrowed the French word directly, so the spelling and accent marks have been kept, along with the original meaning of breath. Because the word was taken straight from French, it still carries the vocabulary of its source. The same root gives English the more everyday word "sufflate," an older term for blowing up or inflating, though the kitchen usage is what most speakers now recognize.

Synonyms: puff, air