Читать книгу Wild Garlic, Gooseberries and Me: A chef’s stories and recipes from the land - Denis Cotter - Страница 35

I love this earthy, sweet and sharp beetroot sauce (or syrup as it might properly be called) with the flavours in the egg rolls. You can make the sauce well in advance and it keeps for days.

It isn’t always easy to tell if it has reduced enough in the pan, so if it isn’t nicely syrupy when cooled, you can simply put it back in a pan and reduce it some more. The sauce can be very pretty on the plate or it can make a terrible mess, as beetroot always can, so it is best to put it on in a nice pattern from one of those squeezy bottles with a thin nozzle.

The rolls are also lovely with a tomato salsa, possibly with capers and/or avocado too.

Serves 4FOR THE BALSAMIC BEETROOT SAUCE
500g (18oz) beetroot, cooked and peeled
500ml (18fl oz) water
500ml (18fl oz) balsamic vinegar

FOR THE EGG ROLLS
500g (18oz) medium asparagus spears
500g(18oz) spinach
2 tbsp tomato pesto, see recipe on page 227
salt and pepper
6 large eggs
3 tbsp milk
1 tsp chopped fresh chives
olive oil
200g (7oz) Durrus or other semi-soft cow’s
milk cheese, thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. For the

sauce, chop the beetroot into small dice and put in a

large saucepan with the water. Bring this to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Blend the beetroot and water to a fine purée, pass this through a fine sieve, and return to the pan. Add the balsamic vinegar, bring it to the boil and simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly. This may take 20-30 minutes. Leave the sauce to cool, when it will thicken some more.

Snap the tough ends off the asparagus spears. Slice any fat spears in half lengthways. Blanch the spears by dropping them in boiling water for 2-3 minutes until tender but still crisp, then cool them in a bowl of cold water.

Drop the spinach into boiling water for 2 minutes or until soft, then drain and cool it in a colander under cold running water. Squeeze the spinach dry and chop it very finely. Stir in the tomato pesto and season with salt and pepper.

Beat the eggs and milk lightly together in a bowl, season with salt and stir in the chives. Heat a heavy or non-stick 15cm (6in) frying pan over a low heat and brush it lightly with olive oil. Pour in enough of the egg mixture to make a very thin omelette, and cook it until set but only lightly coloured on the bottom. Flip the omelette over and cook the other side for 1 minute, then remove from the pan. Oil the pan again and repeat. The mixture should make eight omelettes or egg rolls.

Lay an omelette on a work surface and place a layer of cheese across the middle. Place some asparagus pieces on top to cover the cheese evenly. Then press some of the spinach mixture on to the asparagus. Fold over the omelette from the near end first, then the top, to make a tight roll. Repeat with the rest and place the egg rolls, seam-side down, on an oven tray lined with baking parchment. Brush the tops lightly with olive oil. Place the egg rolls in the oven for 3-4 minutes until the cheese is just beginning to melt. Drizzle some of the beetroot sauce on each of the serving plates and place the egg rolls on top. Serve the rest of the sauce in a jug at the table.