Pressed tomatoes with whipped goat’s cheese and lovage oil
- Preparation and cooking time
- Total time
- + 6 hours infusing + 1 hour straining + overnight chilling
- A little effort
- Serves 4
Ingredients
- 400ml (see below) tomato consommé
- 6 leaves gelatine
- 300g plum tomatoes
- very finely chopped to make 1 tbsp tarragon
- very finely chopped to make 1 tbsp basil
- very finely chopped to make 1 tbsp chervil or parsley
- cut into wedges heirloom tomatoes, to serve
- blanched and skinned cherry tomatoes, to serve
- a handful of double-podded to serve broad beans
- to serve salad or nasturtium leaves
- (such as chevre) 300g soft goat’s cheese
- 50g crème fraîche
- 200ml grapeseed oil
- a bunch (about 50g) lovage leaves, leaves picked
- 1½ tsp salt
- 500g (on the vine) cherry tomatoes
- 1/8 (about 25g) fennel bulb
- ¼ stalk (about 15g) celery
- ½ shallot, chopped
- ½ small bunch basil
- ½ tsp thyme leaves
- chopped to make ½ tsp tarragon
- ½ clove garlic, peeled
Method
- STEP 1
To make the tomato consommé, put all the ingredients in food processor with a pinch of salt and pepper. Blend until fine, then pour into a bowl, cover with clingfilm and chill for 6 hours to infuse. Pour into a fine mesh sieve or a piece of muslin sitting in a sieve, and strain for at least an hour. Keep the liquid and discard the solids.
- STEP 2
Line a 20 x 10cm Tupperware container with lightly oiled clingfilm. Soak the gelatine in cold water until soft and pliable. Heat the consommé in a small pan until warm to touch, then stir in the gelatine until dissolved. Allow the jelly to cool while you make the tomato petals. Blanch the plum tomatoes in boiling water for a minute, then remove the skin, quarter and remove the seeds to get 4 petal shapes per tomato. Pat dry with kitchen paper. Mix all the herbs with the jelly mix.
- STEP 3
Build layers of plum tomato petals, covering each layer with tomato jelly. Repeat until you have filled your container. Cover and chill overnight until set.
- STEP 4
Mix the goat’s cheese and crème fraîche in a bowl until smooth and creamy. Chill.
- STEP 5
For the lovage oil, blend together the oil, lovage and salt. Chill for at least 20 minutes then sieve, removing the leaf bits, and keeping the green oil.
- STEP 6
To serve, slice a piece of terrine about 2cm thick, being careful not to break the slice. Put a slice on each of 4 plates and take 2 or 3 generous spoons of goat’s cheese and arrange around the terrine, add a few heirloom tomato wedges and a blanched and peeled cherry tomato.
- STEP 7
Scatter with a few broad beans (use frozen if they aren’t in season) and finish with a drizzle of lovage oil and a few salad or nasturtium leaves.
