Raise your game with this easy-peasy summer dessert.

Although I have been a professional chef for at least a decade, I’d say I’m pretty underqualified to be telling you how to make soufflés successfully. Up until recently, I had made about three in my entire career, and I’m not sure any of them would have made it past the critical eye of a classically trained pastry chef, and certainly wouldn’t have been worthy of my Instagram account.

This week, I had the pleasure of cooking alongside Mr Ben Murphy, head chef at Launceston Place in Kensington. We collaborated on a menu which fused some of the dishes we cook at my London restaurant, Salon, with Mr Murphy’s witty, playful take on fine dining. We decided that the menu should peak, both figuratively, and literally, with a gooseberry soufflé for dessert.

With their tart, barely sweet flavour and plump, juicy flesh, gooseberries scream English summer to me more than any other ingredient. And their short season – they’re really only at their best for about six weeks in June, July and August – mean when they’re around, I like to make the most of them.

Given Mr Murphy’s training under culinary titans such as Mr Pierre Koffmann, when it came to the soufflé, I bowed to his expertise. The young pastry chef at Launceston Place, Ms Ope Odutayo. She was a joy to watch. She took control of snacks, pre-desserts and petit fours, while whipping up soufflé after perfect soufflé to order, each one triumphantly standing an inch or more above the lip of the ramekin in which it had been baked.

When I got back to Salon the following day, I had a go at my own version, and by fluke, it turned out spot-on first time. Below is my recipe for gooseberry soufflé. It’s actually incredibly simple, containing just four ingredients. You’ll need some ovenproof ramekins, or do what I did and use a coffee cup.

Serves 8

For the gooseberry compote

250g gooseberries 25g cornflour 50g caster sugar, plus a little extra for dusting

For the meringue

250g egg whites 250g caster sugar

Preheat your oven to 200ºC and lightly butter eight ramekins or coffee cups, then dust the insides with caster sugar before shaking out any excess.

Now make the compote. In a saucepan, add the gooseberries, cornflour and caster sugar along with about 50ml water. Cook over a medium heat, stirring continually until the gooseberries have softened a little and the cornflour has thickened. Remove from the heat and set aside. You can do this ahead of time, but make sure the compote is room temperature not fridge cold when you come to make the soufflé.

Now make the meringue. Using a free-standing mixer, whip the egg whites to soft peaks. Turn the speed of the mixer to medium and add the sugar one spoonful at a time until it’s all in. It should look stiff and glossy.

Gently fold one third of the compote into the meringue using a metal spoon. Try to keep as much air in the meringue as possible. Fold in the next third of the compote, followed by the final third. It’s OK to leave some ripples in the mix – it makes for a nice texture when baked.

Divide the mixture between the eight ramekins (or cups) and bake for 8-10 minutes until the soufflé has risen, the exterior is turning golden brown and the centre is just cooked, with a little wobble.

Serve immediately with a scoop of sorbet or ice cream on the side.

salonbrixton.co.uk