The Most Important Ingredient of All

My husband loves to cook. Ever since he retired, he happily took over in the kitchen, making dinner each day. He even reorganized the pantry and the cookware. Great guy! I admit I'm spoiled. One night, he asked if I'd make Spinach Souffle, a long time family favorite. It had been a few years since I'd made it. I hoped I'd have the right ingredients.       

Disappointment ensued, however, when I realized the recipe booklet I'd had for so many years was gone. I looked on the internet for a similar recipe, but couldn't find any that included mayonnaise, which made the souffle fluffy. 

I racked my brains to recall the ingredients. Okay, 1 cup of real Mayonnaise, 2 packages of frozen chopped spinach, 1 can of mushroom soup. That was a start, but what else? Oh, yes, diced onion, shredded cheese...and of course, eggs. Darn! I couldn't remember how much the recipe called for. 

Guessing on the amount of diced onion and cheese probably wouldn't hurt, but the eggs? That could be disaster. One thing I did remember was that the recipe called for lots of eggs. Was it six, or maybe eight? I didn't have a clue. Next problem: use whole eggs, yokes, or whites?   

I shook my head. My level of frustration was heating up to baking temperature. 

My husband glanced over at me from the couch. "What's wrong?" 

"I don't know about the eggs..."   

"I think it'll turn out fine." My husband was encouraging, but I wasn't convinced.      

"I don't know," I replied, shrugging my shoulders.   

I had no choice but to guess, so I compromised on the yoke/whites issue, as well as the number. I took a deep breath as I added eight whole eggs to the mixture, stirring well, then placing it in the baking dish.     

"It's in the oven. I'll guess we'll see what happens," I sighed, taking off my apron.    

My husband was quiet for a minute. Then he said, "Did you make it with love?"

His question caught me completely off guard. "Make it with love?" I hadn't thought about that. Certainly I wanted the souffle to turn out, but did I add love? I done a lot of grumbling; however, the gentler part of me wanted to make the souffle, just for him.

I stumbled a bit on my response, but had to smile when I said, "Yes. I made it with love." Just what my husband hoped to hear.    

And do you know that the souffle came our perfect? We sat at the table, and my husband told me how much he loved the souffle. I was glad he had reminded me of an important lesson. Love.It's the most important ingredient of all.

Wishing you Blessings--and Love--in all that you do! 


P.S. - If you're interested, here is the recipe:  
​
SPINACH SOUFFLE - Preheat oven to 425
Ingredients: 
1 Cup real Mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip)
8 whole eggs
1 can mushroom soup (can substitute cream of celery or cream of chicken soup)
1/2 onion, diced
2 Cups shredded mild cheddar cheese 
2 packages frozen chopped spinach (let spinach defrost, then drain well)
Salt and pepper to taste
​(And add Love, of course!) 
Makes 6-8 servings

Mix ingredients well. Place in greased baking dish. Place baking dish in oven-proof pan with at least 1 inch of water in it. This keeps the souffle from burning on the bottom. Bake at 425 for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hrs (until golden brown on top and knife comes out clean when inserted)