Gravetye Garden Salad

— Starter by Executive Chef George Blogg, Gravetye Manor

Preparation time: 1 hour (not incl overnight vegetable baking) Cooking time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Makes 4 portions

7 different vegetables per salad (eg beetroot, Jerusalem artichokes, white asparagus, peas, broad beans, baby leeks, green asparagus, carrots, baby turnips, romanesco, courgettes, cauliflower, parsnips, onions) 1 egg yolk per portion of salad (we use our own hen eggs) sea salt, to taste

10ml aged Chardonnay vinegar

15ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for frying puffed buckwheat, to garnish herbs/cress/shoots, to garnish flowers, to garnish

METHOD Cooked Vegetables

1. Depending on your choice of vegetables, season and bake some beetroot/Jerusalem artichokes/white asparagus overnight in an 85°C oven so they are very soft.

2. In a saucepan of boiling water blanch the likes of peas/ broad beans/baby leeks/green asparagus/carrots/baby turnips/ romanesco, so that they are a little softer.

3. In a pan of olive oil, slowly caramelise some courgettes/ cauliflower/parsnips/onions.

Puree

1. Cook the egg yolks at 64°C for 75 minutes to semi-set them, and season with a little salt. Cool and put the mixture in a piping bag. Set aside, to serve.

2. Make a puree using vegetables (10g of puree per serving of salad), which could be anything, depending on what is being harvested. Set aside, to serve.

Vinaigrette

1. In a bowl, combine the Chardonnay vinegar and 15ml of the extra virgin olive oil. Set aside, to serve.

TO SERVE Puree

1. Add the egg yolk to the centre of each plate using a piping bag. 2. Pipe three dots of vegetable puree around the yolk, the three dots probably totalling the same amount of yolk on the plate.

Cooked vegetables

1. Serve 7 different vegetable pieces per plate, dressed lightly with the vinaigrette on top of the purees.

2. Decorate with the buckwheat, herbs and flowers.