This is an excerpt from the Spring issue of Positive Life. Read the rest of the intro, recipe and notes by subscribing so we can send you a copy or pick up one at one of our stockist. Subscribe | Stockists
Intro & Recipe by Tony Keogh, Head Chef at Cornucopia
This is a romantic dish as befitting the arrival of spring when our love quickens and we emerge from the caverns of our winter hibernations.
George Bernard Shaw, the notorious curmudgeon, once claimed that “there is no sincerer love than the love of food.” Having served the pictured dish to our love-struck diners on Valentine’s Day, I can’t help thinking that the love of food and romantic love were both very much on show on the night.
The ingredients I used are reflective of the sparse produce available at that time of year. That being said, this meal can be enjoyed in any season as most of the vegetables are interchangeable. Peppers, aubergines and courgettes can be substituted in the recipe below.
The main course detailed here, pavé of late winter roots with a sour cherry, cashew and port reduction, is a real comforting treat. With it, we served two side dishes: roast cauliflower in kimchi cream and braised bay fennel with bagna cauda.
Flanking the main course, we had romantic sharing platters. For the starter we had our very own cashew blue cheese, candied walnuts, raw beetroot tahini and mint soup served with basil crackers, radish and cucumber salad with chili pea shoots and a beetroot gel.
The dessert comprised of a quartet of sweet treats: a meringue with passion fruit buttercream; a date and oat slice with banana caramel; chocolate mousse; and a strawberry cheesecake. These tasting platters were very well received.
Fine dining and romance have always been inseparable. On Valentine’s night in Cornucopia, love was in the air and the diners were being seduced by the variety of tastes laid out before them. This dish is sure to warm the cockles of whomever’s heart you are hoping to melt.
This is an excerpt from the Spring issue of Positive Life. Read the rest of the intro, recipe and notes by subscribing so we can send you a copy or pick up one at one of our stockist. Subscribe | Stockists
