Courgette & Vadouvan dish

We’re going to make an incredible zucchini or courgette dish! It’s a fennel & smoked ricotta stuffed courgette flower with a chanterelle roulleaux, a vadouvan sauce and oil. On the side we serve a crispy fennel seed tartelette with a cevenne onion cream, vadouvan marinade courgette balls and fennel flowers.

The fennel seed tartelettes

10 g	fennel seeds
170 g	flour
60 g	Pernod
15 g	egg yolk
20 g	olive oil
10 g	sugar
3 g	salt

Start by blending the fennel seeds into a fine powder. Then pour the flour on your worktop and use the bowl to make a well in the middle. Fill it with the Pernod, the egg yolk, the olive oil, the sugar, the salt and the fennel seed powder. Mix all the ingredients together and then knead it into a nice ball of dough. Now let it rest in your fridge for at least 1 hour. A great way to speed up the process is to vacuum the dough. This will relax the gluten which formed from the kneading and after vacuuming it you can using the dough straight away. Just vacuum it in a chamber for the highest possible percentage. Now dust some flour on your worktop and roll out the dough till it’s around 2 to 3 millimeters thin. If needed add some more flour in between. Once you’re happy with the thickness cut it with a round cutter. The cutter needs to be slightly bigger than the tartelette molds. Then place the dough circles in the molds and press it well to get an even result. Cover the dough with another tartelette mold and place them upside down on a tray. Now cover them with another tray and bake them at 160 degrees Celsius for around 30 minutes. You want a lovely golden brown color. After that take them out of the oven and let them cool down for 5 minutes. Then take the molds off and stack the tartelettes. Now keep them dry and covered for later.

The Cevenne onion cream

8	Cevenne onions
4 g	salt
150 g	cream 35% fat
30 g	butter
2	bay leaves
15 g	apple cider vinegar
	xanthan gum

Cut the Cevenne onions in half and clean them. Now slice them in thin slices. Add a drizzle of oil to a hot pan and start glazing the onions with the salt. Continue heating the onions on a medium low heat till all have softened. Once completely softened add the cream and also add the butter, the bay leaves and the apple cider vinegar. Keep on heating till almost all the liquid has reduced. Then remove the bay leaves and transfer everything into a blender. Blend this till smooth. This takes a couple of minutes. Once smooth add a knife tip of xanthan gum and blend it for another minute. The xanthan gum will prevent the cream from leaking once plated. Now transfer the cream into a piping bottle and keep it in your fridge for later.

The marinated courgette balls

1	yellow courgette
1	green courgette
10 g	fresh vadouvan spices
200 g	water
2 g	salt

Cut both the courgettes with a small Parisienne drill. You could also cut them into a nice dice, but I love the little ball shape. Then season some boiling water with a generous amount of salt and blanch the balls for about 30 seconds to a minute. Once blanched directly cool them down in ice water. When blanching multiple colors of vegetables always start with the light color and work your way to the dark color. So in this case first the yellow and then the green. Now we are not throwing anything away, so trim the sides of the courgettes and slice both in even slices. Add a drizzle of oil to a hot frying pan and pan fry the slices on a medium heat. Add some salt for seasoning. Continue heating till almost all the moisture has evaporated. This will create a lovely intense flavor and a soft texture. Then transfer it into a bowl and keep it in your fridge for later. Now for the marinated mix the vadouvan spices with the water and the salt. Bring this to a simmer for 30 seconds. Then turn off the heat and let it cool down completely. Once it has cooled down pass the liquid through a fine sieve. Now divide the marinade on both the yellow and green courgette balls. Let it marinade in your fridge for a couple of hours or use a vacuum to properly marinade in a couple of minutes. I use my Henkelman Aura vacuum chamber which has a great marinate program. Henkelman is also a new partner of the channel. Keep the courgette in your fridge for later.

The smoked ricotta & fennel filling

300 g	ricotta cheese
1	fennel
1	shallot
3 g	salt
15 g	Pernod
100 g	vegetable broth
1	bay leaf

First place the ricotta cheese on a tray and place the tray in a perforated container. Cover the container with a metal tray and seal the edges as tight as possible with plastic wrap. Then cover the bottom of a deep metal container with some hay and light it on fire with a blowtorch. Directly cover it with the perforated container and press it well to ensure the smoke stays inside the containers. I always wrap it once more to be sure. Let the ricotta smoke for 1 hour. After that remove the wrap and keep the ricotta in your fridge. Now take the fennel and trim the bottom. Then separate the layers. Take the layers and also trim the top and the thin sides. Keep your trimmings, I’m not using them for this dish, but I always save them up for a lovely broth. Now cut the fennel layers in thin slices and cut those slices in small cubes. Then cut the shallot in half and clean it. Now finely chop it. Then drizzle some oil in a pan and glaze the shallot with the salt for seasoning. Only soften and not color the shallot. Now add the fennel with the Pernod, the vegetable broth and the bay leaf. Cover the pan with a parchment paper cartouche. This will slow down the vaporizing and give the fennel more time to properly cook. Once cooked remove the paper and the bay leaf. You still want some texture, so keep on tasting in between. Then spread the fennel on a tray and let it cool down in your fridge. Now measure 200 grams of the smoked ricotta and also add 200 grams of the cooked fennel. Season it with salt and black pepper. Then mix it well and transfer it into a piping bag.

The stuffed courgette flowers

Take some courgette flowers and trim the bottom with a thin sharp knife. The bottom is quite though and bitter, that’s why I remove it. Now also remove the pistil. Then season some water and blanch the flowers for 30 seconds. Do this at a soft simmer to protect the texture. Now cool them down in ice water. Once cold gently open up the flower. This takes some practice, but it’s very important that the flower does not tear. Then fill it with the ricotta and fennel filling. Now cover the filling with the flower paddles and then keep them covered in your fridge for later.

The chantarelle and courgette rouleaux

200 g	chantarelle mushrooms
30 g	butter
2 g	salt
3 sprigs	thyme
20 g	white wine vinegar
1	yellow courgette
1	green courgette

Wash the chantarelle mushrooms in salted lukewarm water. Refresh the water till no more dirt, bugs or sand come off. Now place them on a kitchen towel and let them dry for 30 minutes. Then transfer them on your cutting board and chop them into a nice fine tartare. I always prefer to do this by hand, in a food processor it tents to become quite mushy. Now melt the butter and add the chopped chantarelle with the salt and the leaves from the thyme. Pan fry this for another 5 minutes to create a nice color. Once you’re happy with the color deglaze the pan with the white wine vinegar and then add it to the pan fried courgette we made before.

Then trim the bottom of the yellow and green courgette and portion them to four even pieces. Cut those pieces in four. Now cut the seeds off and trim the first half a centimeter. The seeds you can keep for the next time you make the pan fried reduction. Cut the portioned courgette in thin slices on a sharp mandolin. The slices need to be around 1 to 2 millimeters thin. Safe the trimmings for later. Then lay some plastic foil on an oven tray and lay the slices slice by slice on there. First the green, then the yellow and so on. This is going to be the outside of the roll, so be sure it’s nice and tight. Now steam the slices at 100 degrees Celsius for a minute. If you don’t have a steamer just blanch the slices first and then lay them on the foil. Cool them down after steaming.

Meanwhile take the courgette trimmings and slice the white meat off. Then cut them in a thin julienne and cut those in small cubes also known as brunoise. Blanch the brunoise in salted water for 30 seconds. Cool the brunoise down in ice water for 2 minutes and then add them to the courgette and chantarelle. Mix it well and give it a final taste for seasoning. Now transfer it into a piping bag. Then use some plastic wrap to cover your worktop and turn the steamed slices around on the wrap. Gently press it down and remove the foil. Once you’re happy with the base divide the chantarelle filling on the slices. Then gently roll the courgette in a tight rouleaux. Roll it as tight as possible and press out any air. Now roll it up all the way and use the sides to roll it even tighter. Then make a knot on both sides. Trim the sides and then let it set in your freezer for 30 minutes. This will make portioning a lot easier. After that portion the rouleaux to the desired size and gently press them out of the foil. Lay them with the least pretty side down and keep them covered in your fridge for later.

The vadouvan sauce

40 g	butter
30 g	fresh vadouvan (or 6 g of dried powder)
4	shallots
2 cloves	garlic
250 g	white port
500 g	vegetable broth
500 g	cream 35% fat
1	bay leaf

Melt the butter on a medium heat. Then also add the fresh vadouvan spices or the dried powder. Turn down the heat and let it infuse. Meanwhile cut the shallots in half and clean them. Now slice them in thin slices. Add the shallot to the vadouvan butter. Then clean the garlic and slice them as well. Also add it to the pan and glaze the shallots and garlic on a medium low heat. You only want to soften it, so no color. Then add the white port and let it reduce till almost all port has evaporated. After that add the vegetable broth with the cream and the bay leaf. Let it simmer till it has reduced for around 30%. Then pass the sauce though a fine sieve and use a ladle or spatula to speed up the process. Now emulsify it with a hand blender to thicken the texture and with that improve the flavor. Give it a final taste for seasoning and then keep it in your fridge for later.

The vadouvan oil

300 g	neutral oil (I use sunflower oil)
75 g	fresh vadouvan spices

Pour the oil in a pan. Now heat it up till the temperature is 40 degrees Celsius. Once it has the right temperature add the fresh vadouvan spices and mix it well. Then turn down the heat to the minimum and let infuse for 3 hours. You’ll end up with a beautiful fragrant oil. Now pass it through a super fine sieve or a kitchen paper to clarify it. I always leave it overnight to insure nothing is wasted. Keep it covered in your fridge for later.

The paring

The onion vadouvan broth

6	onions
3 g	salt
1/2	celeriac
250 g	Madeira wine
2 liters	water
8	black peppercorns
12	coriander seeds
3 sprigs	thyme
10 g	fresh vadouvan spices

Cut the onions in half and clean them. Then slice 4 of the onions in thin slices. Add a drizzle of oil in a pan and caramelize the onions with the salt. Do this on a medium high heat. Meanwhile cut the remaining 2 onions in 6 and lay them on a upside down tray or pan. Toast the onions with a blowtorch to give them a nice smokey flavor. You can also do this on a barbeque. Then cut a celeriac in half and clean one of the halves by cutting off the peel. Now cut it in big cubes. Once the sliced onions have a nice golden color and caramelization deglaze the pan with the Madeira wine and also add the water, the toasted onions, the celeriac, the black peppercorns, the coriander seeds and the thyme. Then turn down the heat and let the broth simmer for at least 6 hours. After that pass the broth through a fine sieve and let it drain for at least 30 minutes so you don’t waste a single drop. Then bring it to a simmer once more and use a ladle to remove any oil that’s floating on top. Once that’s done add the fresh vadouvan and turn off the heat. Let it infuse till the broth has cooled down completely. Now pass it through a fine sieve once more and keep it in your fridge for later.

The fig leaf oil

90 g	cleaned fig leaves
450 g	neutral oil (I use sunflower oil)

Start by removing the core from some fig leaves. You need 90 grams of cleaned leaves. Now transfer it into a blender and also add the oil. Then blend it till the temperature of the oil is 65 degrees Celsius. It will heat up from the friction. After that pour it on a super fine sieve or a sieve that’s lined with a kitchen paper and let it drain in your fridge. We do this to cool down the oil and preserve the beautiful vibrant green color. You can keep the oil in your fridge for a couple of days and in your freezer for months.

How to finish the dish

First you need to reheat the components. The cream, stuffed flowers and rouleaux I reheat in my heat draw for around 20 minutes. The sauce you can just bring to a soft simmer.

Once you have reheated all the components pipe the Cevenne onion cream on the bottom of the tartelette. Now take the courgette balls out of the marinade and place them on the cream. I alternated the colors for a beautiful design. This will match great with the rouleaux. Then decorate the top with some fennel flowers. Now we can start to finish the main dish. First glaze the hot rouleaux’s with the vadouvan oil. Then take the hot sauce and use it to glaze the filled courgette flowers. Also season both with some flaky salt. Now gently place a rouleaux and flower on a place. Then take the sauce and use a hand blender to foam it up. Pour it into a saucier and serve it together with the main dish, the tartelette and the vadouvan oil.