Ingredients

• 30g/1oz butter
• 30g/1oz flour
• 400ml/14fl oz milk
• 6 free-range egg yolks
• beaten
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 40g/1½oz butter
• softened
• 110g/4oz gruyère
• finely grated
• 125g/4½oz smoked haddock fillet
• 300ml/11fl oz double cream
• 8 free-range egg whites
• 1 tbsp fresh dill
• roughly chopped
• 4 quail's eggs
• poached
• 4 sprigs fresh dill

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 190C/380F/Gas 5.
• To make the béchamel
• melt the butter in a small heavy-based pan over a medium heat.
• Remove from the heat and stir in the flour (this is called a roux). Return the pan to a low heat and cook for two minutes
• whisking continuously.
• Remove from the heat again and add the milk
• stirring constantly.
• Place over a medium heat and bring to the boil
• stirring continuously. Reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes
• stirring continuously. Allow to cool slightly.
• For the soufflé
• beat the egg yolks into the béchamel and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with cling film and set aside at room temperature.
• Meanwhile
• grease the insides of four individual soufflé dishes or ramekins (10cm/4in in diameter and 6.5cm/2½in deep) with softened butter.
• Sprinkle a handful of the grated gruyère into each soufflé dish
• rotating it to coat the insides.
• Place the smoked haddock into a small pan. Add the cream and place over a low heat. When the cream starts to just come to the boil
• reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for two minutes.
• Turn off the heat and leave to rest until cool enough to handle
• then remove the skin from the haddock and flake the fish into a bowl with your fingertips
• removing any bones you may find. Return the fish to the heated cream.
• In a clean bowl
• whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt
• until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed.
• Place one third of the egg whites into the béchamel mixture and stir well.
• Add the béchamel and egg white mixture to the bowl of remaining egg whites and fold in very gently
• adding the gruyère and dill as you fold.
• Half-fill each prepared soufflé dish or ramekin with the soufflé mixture
• then spoon in equal amounts of the smoked haddock and cream mixture.
• Fill the dishes with the remaining soufflé so that the mixture is slightly above the top edge.
• Smooth the surface with a palette knife and run a knife around the inside edge of the dish to ease the soufflé mixture away from the side of the dish - this helps the soufflé to rise.
• Stand the soufflé dishes into a deep roasting pan and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the dishes (this is a bain-marie).
• Place into the oven to cook for 7-8 minutes
• or until risen and golden.
• To serve
• top each soufflé with a poached quail's egg and a sprig of dill. Serve immediately.