Carrot-and-ginger velouté with crab salad and truffle

Start by heating a splash of olive oil in a large saucepan and add the chopped onion, cooking until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and ginger, cook for a couple of minutes and then add the carrots. Pour over the stock and bring to a simmer, cooking until the carrots are tender. To make the velouté, process everything in a bullet blender (or similar) until very smooth before returning to a saucepan to keep warm. Stir through the coconut milk and taste for seasoning. Make the crab salad by gently combining the crab meat, chopped avocado, lemon juice, olive oil and chopped chives, then chill until serving.

Pile a small mound of crab salad in the centre of shallow soup plates and then ladle the warm carrotand-ginger velouté around it (you could also serve the velouté cold if it’s a hot day). Add a drizzle of truffle oil and decorate with herbs and edible flowers.

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, grated 1tbspn fresh ginger, grated 500g carrots, chopped 750ml chicken stock 250ml coconut milk 200g white crab meat, carefully picked through 1 avocado, diced 1 lemon, juice of 1tbspn olive oil 2tbspn chopped chives Truffle oil, coriander and edible flowers to serve

Sweet and joyfully orange, new-season carrots are being pulled up in the kitchen garden