EVEN some of the most experienced home cooks I know are afraid of soufflés. The fears: they’ll never rise, they’ll immediately fall, they’re difficult to make, they’re temperamental.

A soufflé is the kind of dessert you order in a fancy restaurant on a special occasion. Yet people want to make soufflés — or want them made for them, as was evidenced by the number of readers who responded to my query on my blog, Bitten (nytimes.com/bitten), saying a chocolate soufflé would top the list of things they’d like to be served on Valentine’s Day.

Image Chocolate souffle. Credit... Evan Sung for The New York Times

Hence this recipe, which is not only not scary, it’s also easy. It can be made ahead of time, it’s rich and light, it will dazzle your significant other (or anyone else), and it requires no more effort than it takes to beat a few eggs.