Credit-crunch recipe – Market salad, roast beets and goats' curd, by John Woodward
Are you trying to work out how to offer your customers great meals while keeping costs down? To provide the level of cooking that regulars want while maintaining gross profit? As part of our series aimed at battling the credit crunch via the kitchen, John Woodward, head chef for Malmaison Charterhouse, suggests another low-spend recipe.
Market salad, roast beets and goats' curd, by John Woodward
Food costs per portion: £1.50
INGREDIENTS
(Serves four)
For the dressing
- 50ml white wine vinegar
- 150ml extra virgin oil
- 50ml extra virgin rape seed oil
- 3 sprigs tarragon
- 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
- 1 bunch red beets
- 1 bunch candied beets
- 1 bunch golden beets
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 100ml olive oil
- 50g fresh peas
- 60g fresh broad beans
- Innes goats' curd (or mild creamy goats' cheese)
- Micro leaves or young shoots
- Aged balsamic
METHOD
To make the dressing, mix the vinegar, olive oil and rape seed oil together with the garlic and tarragon and allow to infuse. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Slice the beets into segments, wrap in foil with the garlic cloves, thyme and half the olive oil and bake for one hour until soft. Peel and season, sprinkle with more olive oil and keep warm. Blanch and peel the broad beans and blanch the peas. Pick and wash leaves and shoots or cress (whatever looks nice in the market at that time). Place the beets, goats curd and salad leaves on a plate. Remove the garlic and tarragon from the dressing then place the peas and broad beans in some dressing and spoon over the plate. Finally drizzle some aged balsamic over and serve.
