Gruyère and bacon soufflé

Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas mark 6. Place the milk in a saucepan, add the thyme, bay leaf and nutmeg, and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat and leave to infuse for a few minutes. While the milk is infusing, generously grease six ramekins of 7cm x 4cm

Heat a frying pan until hot, add the olive oil and bacon and cook until the bacon is crisp. Remove and place on a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain all the fat

Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour and mustard powder. Combine and cook for a couple of minutes until a nutty aroma is released

Strain the infused milk, pour it slowly into the saucepan containing the flour and mustard and whisk continuously until thick. Separate the eggs, keeping both the yolks and the whites. Then beat the egg yolks into the sauce and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Allow to cool slightly

Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl until firm, adding a pinch of salt. Then add one-third of the egg whites to the soufflé base mix and beat in. Fold in the chives then carefully fold in the remaining egg whites

Spoon the mixture into the buttered ramekins and bake for 5-7 minutes, or until the tops begin to brown. Remove from the oven and set aside

Preheat the grill to high. Meanwhile, warm the double cream in a saucepan and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Increase the temperature and cook until the volume of liquid has reduced by one third. Add the crispy bacon to the cream and mix well. If needed, add some more salt and pepper.

Pour the cream into six serving bowls and turn the gruyère and bacon soufflés out onto the cream. Cover the soufflés with the grated gruyère cheese and place under the grill. Once golden-brown and bubbling, remove from the grill and serve immediately

If making the bacon rings, place 6 x 6cm metal rings on a lined baking tray. Wrap 1 piece of bacon around the middle of each ring overlapping to seal. Place in a pre-heated oven at 150˚C/gas mark 2 and cook for 15-20 minutes until crispy. Remove from the oven , allow to cool and gently remove from the ring to garnish the soufflé