Steamed Courgette ‘Soufflé ’ with Aged Comte

A delicious start to a meal; courgettes really benefit from steaming, both in flavour and texture

1. Prepare the courgettes – half them length ways into two even halves. Then very carefully scoop out the white flesh, leaving approximately 3mm of flesh, near the skin. Place the courgette skins on a cooling rack and sprinkle evenly all over with a little table salt, set aside for 15 minutes. Do the same with the flesh (but keep them separate from the skins).

2. Place the courgette flesh and the skins on two separated perforated containers and steam on 90°C for 5 minutes. When finished, remove the flesh and steam the skins for another 3 minutes. Drain on kitchen towel and transfer to greased ovenproof dishes.

3. Make the béchamel sauce – melt the butter in a small saucepan. Stir in the flour and simmer gently for a minute, then remove from the heat and stir in the milk, little by little until all has been absorbed. When all added, continue to cook the sauce, whisking consistently until it thickens. Simmer for two minutes, remove from the heat and then transfer into a food processor with the steamed courgette flesh, cheeses and the mustard. Blitz until smooth. Transfer the béchamel to a large bowl and stir in the egg yolks.

4. When ready to serve, preheat the oven on Fan Plus at 175°C. Whisk the four egg whites in an electric mixer with a pinch of salt, until stiff peaks, then carefully fold into the béchamel base in two batches and check the seasoning.

5. Divide the mixture between the eight dishes and bake for approximately 8 minutes for an individual soufflé or 12 minutes for a large soufflé, until risen slightly. Serve immediately.