Corn Souffle

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 large ears fresh corn

¼ poblano chile pepper

2 ounces Gruyère cheese

3 large eggs

½ cup half-and-half

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

10 stems fresh chives

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Use the butter to grease the ramekins. Place them on a baking sheet.

Discard the husks and all silk of the corn. Use a sharp knife to cut the kernels off the cobs; reserve the cobs for making broth, if desired. You should have 2½ to 3 cups of kernels, which you can transfer to a blender as you work.

Seed the poblano, then cut into small chunks and add to the blender. Cut the cheese into small chunks and add to the blender. Add the eggs, half-and-half, salt and pepper. Puree for about a minute, or until smooth.

Meanwhile, mince the chives. Add three-quarters of them to the souffle mixture and pulse just enough to incorporate.

Divide the souffle mixture among the souffle dishes. Scatter the remaining chives on top of each portion. Bake (middle rack, on the baking sheet) for 25 minutes, until puffed, golden brown on top and more set than jiggly. (If the dishes are different sizes, you may need to pull the smaller ones out after 20 minutes.)

Serve right away, in the souffle dishes, with sauteed, minted snap peas or a colorful tomato salad.

Serves 4

Nutrition | Per serving: 260 calories, 13 g protein, 20 g carbohydrates, 16 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 180 mg cholesterol, 330 mg sodium, 3 g dietary fiber, 4 g sugar

Adapted from Jacques Pepin's "Heart and Soul in the Kitchen" (Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015).