PERSIMMON MOLE WITH PARSNIP PASTA, SORREL, GOAT’S CHEESE & PARSNIP CRUMB
SERVES 4 / PREPARATION 30 MINUTES / COOKING 1 HOUR
Mole is a Mexican sauce, traditionally made from a mix of fruits, chillies, nuts, seeds, spices and chocolate. The combinations are quite literally endless and while this particular recipe calls for persimmons, they can easily be swapped out for any number of other fruits.
800g parsnips, woody ends removed 1¼ cups flour, plus extra for dusting
1 cup semolina olive oil
1 small handful oregano, finely chopped 5 cloves garlic
80g macadamias
20g sesame seeds
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon cloves
¼ teaspoon ground coriander
1 small onion
1 red capsicum, charred, peeled, deseeded 2 red chillies
½ teaspoon dried chilli
2 persimmons
45g dark chocolate, the darker the better 2 bay leaves
12 decent-sized sorrel leaves
1 medium golden kūmara, medium-diced
and roasted until chewy
2 spring onions, finely sliced 200g goat’s cheese juice and zest of 2 limes
PARSNIP PASTA Pass the parsnips through a juicer – but hold onto that pulp, we’re going to use it soon. Put the flour in a bowl with the semolina, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons olive oil and 190ml parsnip juice (keep the rest of the juice for the mole). Combine using your fingers or a wooden spoon until it reaches a shaggy consistency – you might need to add a splash more juice if it just seems too dry and doesn’t come together. Tip onto a floured bench and knead for 8 minutes or so, until you have a smooth, elastic dough (a stand mixer with a dough hook will speed up this whole process). Wrap the dough and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes. Roll the dough out into sheets (about setting 7 on most home pasta machines). Dust with flour, cut each sheet into rough squares and set aside, with baking paper in between if you’re stacking them up.
PARSNIP CRUMB Heat the oven to 160℃. Lay the parsnip pulp on a tray, along with a few glugs of olive oil, a sprinkling of salt and pepper, the oregano and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Mix thoroughly between your fingers and put in the oven, turning every so often until you have a crisp, golden-brown crumb, approx 25 minutes.
PERSIMMON MOLE Gently toast the macadamias and sesame seeds in a pot with enough oil to coat. Add the cinnamon, cloves and ground coriander and let them toast for a moment. Put the onion, 3 cloves garlic, capsicum, chillies, dried chilli, persimmons, the rest of the parsnip juice and 1 cup water in a blender. Blend into a smooth purée and add to the pot. Simmer for 10 minutes or so. Add the chocolate and bay leaves and season with salt and pepper. Keep it on a low heat, stirring to combine the chocolate as it melts. Cook for another 20 minutes to give the flavours a chance to develop. Cool slightly, remove the bay leaves, put the mix back in the blender and blend to a silky, smooth mole. Use your judgement here and add a splash of water if you’d like your sauce a little looser. Keep in mind that as the nuts sit in the mix they’ll soak up even more moisture and firm it up, so at this stage it’s best to make it a little runnier than you’d ideally like it. Check and adjust the seasoning again after blending.
TO SERVE Tear up the sorrel and use to line 4 plates. Cook the pasta in well-salted water for 5 minutes and carefully lay 2 squares of pasta in each dish. Next spoon 2 or 3 decent spoonfuls of mole in the centre of the pasta, scatter the roast kūmara around, followed by the spring onions and a few blobs of goat’s cheese. Drizzle olive oil over everything and add a layer of parsnip crumb, lime zest, a delicate application of sea salt and cracked pepper, and a squeeze of lime juice.