Hi! I’m back after a VERY extended break. Spring quarter got crazy with difficult classes and I got out of the habit of writing/posting. With that said, I did get to work in the kitchen and pulled off an 8 course tasting menu for my family last month- my real project of the year.

Today, I’ll share my favourite recipe from the menu: Sprouts.

I was inspired by the “Dig for Victory” edible gardens contestants on season 8 of Great British Menu to create my own “edible garden” with an Asian-ish twist. The dish consists of pea shoots “planted” in edamame puree topped with edible soil, and works as a simple, delicious and out of the box starter or salad.

The real trick with this dish is the presentation. The idea is to make it look like homegrown sprouts. For the dinner, I used coffee cups cut in half. Tupperware, takeaway containers or even mini jars are other good options. Personally, I needed a workaround for the lack of suitable tableware and this fit the bill.

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Ingredients

• 100g pea shoots (you will have extras)

For the puree

• 250g edamame, skin removed
• 30g miso
• 3tbsp greek yoghurt, room temperature
• 1/4-1/3 cup heavy cream, room temperature
• salt, to taste
• optional, 20g chicken liver mousse

For the Edible Soil

• 1/4 cup roughly chopped black olives
• 1 small dark bread roll (~50g)

Directions

For the Edamame Puree

1. Boil edamame in salted water or chicken stock until fork tender. Cool to room temperature.
2. In a food processor, blend edamame with miso, greek yoghurt, mousse and cream. Taste and add salt as needed and cream as needed. The puree should have the consistency of thick greek yoghurt.
3. Pass through a fine mesh strainer and chill.

For the Edible Soil

1. Tear up the bread into small pieces. Place with olives in an even layer on a baking sheet
2. Turn oven to the lowest setting and bake for 4-6 hours until dry and crumbly, some moisture is okay
3. Blitz in food processor until the mixture resembles soil

Assembly

1. Wash the pea shoots and dry completely. Trim so that the pea shoots are 1.5-2in taller than the container
2. Fill the serving container(s) halfway with puree and sprinkle on a layer of edible soil
3. Carefully put the pea shoots stem side down into the puree. Don’t worry about uniformity it will look more natural that way
4. Serve and enjoy!

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That’s it for this week! I’ll be back next time with more fun recipes. Until then, Bye!

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