Courgette soufflé
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 4 tbsp plain flour
- 300 ml milk
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp thyme leaves (best fresh)
- 800 g courgettes, grated
- 100 g Comté cheese, grated (or Gruyère, or mature Cheddar)
- 1 spring onion, finely diced
- handful of basil leaves, shredded
- 4 egg yolks
- 4 egg whites, whipped
- salt, white pepper, ground nutmeg
- generous knob of soft butter
Method
- Place the grated courgettes in a colander, sprinkle with salt and let drain for 30 minutes; then squeeze out as much water as possible, set aside. Preheat oven to 200 °C. Grease small ovenproof ramekins with soft butter, set aside.
- In a saucepan, melt butter, add flour while whisking, thyme leaves and milk in small portions, continue whisking until you have a thick white sauce without lumps. Add bay leaf and simmer gently for 15 minutes, stir regularly. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly, remove bay leave.
- Add egg yolks, mix well. Add grated courgettes, spring onion, grated cheese and basil. Mix well. Fold in whipped egg whites. Fill ramekins no more than ¾.
- Bake at 200 °C for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 175 °C and continue to bake for another 20 to 25 minutes (but do not open the oven). Serve immediately as a fluffy soufflé, or let cool and serve lukewarm or cold. Tastes good at all temperatures but becomes a little more compact on cooling.