Corn couscous with smoked Almond curds, dried Zucchini Flowers and Vegetables
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A tasty vegan dish prepared by Italian chef Daniela Cicioni, presented at 'The Vegetarian Chance' challenge: corn couscous with smoked almond curds.
01 July, 2014
ingredients
Pine nuts
20 g
Baby spinach
50 g
Cucumber
210 g, with its skin and seeds removed
Lemon juice
5 ml
Extra virgin olive oil
40 g
Mint
10 g leaves
Salt
Basil
10 g leaves
Almonds
250 g, almonds with their skin on (to be soaked for 8 hours)
Apple cider vinegar
40 ml
Salt
2.5 g (table)
Pistachios
Green curry
Couscous
280 g, corn
Almond curd
160 g, smoked
Zucchini flowers
8, with their pistil removed and cut into 5 sections, slightly oiled, salted and left to dry for 8 hours at 42°C
Vegetable stock
made from leek, celery, carrot, bay leaf, juniper, sage and fennel seeds
Zucchini
520 g, small, half of which are to be cut into rounds on the diagonal while the other half must be cut into longitudinal slices and dried for 8 hours at 42°C
Dwarf beans
160 g,blanched for 4 minutes in boiling salted water and cut into 2 cm diagonal slices
Flat beans
160 g, blanched for 4 minutes in boiling salted water and cut into diagonal strips of 0.5 cm
Peas
160 g, fresh blanched for 3 minutes in boiling salted water
Celery
60 g, green, cut into 2 mm cubes
Leeks
120 g, cut on the diagonal into 2 mm rounds
Chives
10 g
Extra virgin olive oil
80 g
Salt
Lemons
4, rind
Saffron
1 sachet
Capers
1 dessertspoon, powder
Mint
1 large bunch
Marjoram
1 large bunch
Thyme
1 large bunch
Basil
1 large bunch, fresh chopped
Peas
shoots
Marigold
fresh or dried
Chickpeas
Preparation
For cucumber and mint emulsion
Blend the ingredients to obtain a smooth emulsion.
For the curds
Prepare the almond milk by blending the almonds with 1 litre of water.
Filter through a clean wet cloth, set the pulp aside. Heat 1 litre of the milk obtained to 85° C, while stirring the bottom of the pan from time to time with a wooden spoon.
When the temperature has reached 80° C, salt (lightly) and stir. At 85° C pour in the vinegar and stir slowly two or three times using a wooden spoon, remove from the heat and cover.
Leave to rest for 20-30 minutes.
Prepare a sieve lined with a non woven fabric gauze or a muslin cloth placed on top of a bowl.
Using a ladle, pour the curded liquid into the bowl (two or three ladles at a time).
When about half of the whey has been filtered, use a spoon to collect the semi-coagulated curds from the colander and pour them gently into the special container fitted with a tray for collecting the whey that will continue to filter through for two more days.
Cover and place in the refrigerator for 24-36 hours.
It will keep for about 5 days. Cold smoke for 3 minutes in a portable food smoking device, using apple or cherry wood.
For the couscous
Cook the chick peas in water with bay leaf and sage for 1 hour, salt and set aside.
Bring the vegetable stock to the boil and add the chopped herbs and spices, 40 g oil, saffron and the couscous, before removing from the hob.
Stir and leave to rest for 5 minutes.
Pan toss the non dried half of the zucchini, the mange tout, the dwarf beans and the leak in a little oil.
Sprinkle the curds with finely chopped chives.
Separate the couscous grains with a fork and add the vegetables, peas, chick peas, herbs, lemon rind, caper powder, pumpkin seed flakes and celery.
Spread 30 g of mint and cucumber emulsion on the bottom of each plate, place the couscous on top and then distribute 40 g of curds divided into 6 little mounds.
On top of which, arrange the slices of dried zucchini, the zucchini flowers, the pea shoots, the calendula petals and the pistachio and leek flakes.
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