This is my favorite chocolate souffle recipe. It's very easy (it's the first souffle I ever made and it turned out great!) and is a bit unique, too, with the addition of chile powder. I'm sure you could omit it, if you prefer. What really sold me over on this recipe is that I prepared it ahead of time (by a couple hours), kept them in the fridge and then popped them in the oven while we ate dinner. They still rose beautifully.
Chocolate Chile Soufflés
1/4 cup sugar plus additional for coating gratin dishes
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 ounce semisweet chocolate, chopped fine
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 large egg yolk
2 large egg whites
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Butter two 3/4 cup gratin dishes and coat with additional sugar, shaking out excess.
In a small bowl blend together 2 tablespoons sugar, flour, butter and a pinch salt until mixture forms into small pellets.
In a small saucepan, bring milk to a boil and whisk in flour mixture, chocolate and cayenne. Cook mixture over moderate heat, whisking until thickened, about 15 seconds and cool 30 seconds.
In a bowl, whisk yolk lightly and whisk into chocolate mixture. In another bowl, whisk whites with a pinch of salt until they hold soft peaks and whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, a little at a time, until meringue holds stiff peaks. Fold in remaining meringue gently but thoroughly.
Divide soufflé batter between gratin dishes and put on a baking sheet. Bake chocolate soufflés in middle of oven for 15 minutes or until puffed. Serve immediately.