Hello everybody! I recently went foraging for wild garlic (it is completely legal in Denmark btw, but I know it’s an endangered species elsewhere, but in DK, it grows everywhere). I have one specific dish in mind – I wanted to see how many ways I could include the wild garlic, which is the result. The dish might look light and fragile, but it’s packed with intense flavours. This is a great dish to kick off your dinner party, and it’s also a love letter to Spring. This dish was also made for a collaboration with Wüsthof knive, and tbh I am so stoked about working in the more gastronomy-oriented fields. Of course, Sustainability will forever be my main focal point, but I am very passionate about bringing my plant-based recipes and sustainable fine dining ideas into gastronomy. I published my Danish cookbook about sustainable gourmet last year; you can find Bæredygtig Gourmet here.
This dish consists of a few different elements, but rather than using many different ingredients, only a few selected pieces of produce are used throughout the dish. Not only does this combat food waste, but it’s also way cheaper; cooking more elevated dishes does not have to cost more than everyday food; it’s all in the technique. This dish has a sauce, wrapping, filling, oil, and powder.
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Celeriac sauce:
- ½ a celeriac
- 500 ml oat milk
- 1 shallot onion
- 2 tbsp of lemon
- Salt and pepper to taste
You can use a peeler to cut off the outer layers of the celeriac, but I prefer using a knife for this. Then cut your celeriac into small bits and place them in a pot with chopped shallots and oat milk. Let this simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the celeriac is soft and can be crushed with the back of a spoon.
Transfer to a blender or use a submersion blender and blend until smooth. You can also run the sauce through a sieve to prevent lumps. Then transfer it back into the pot and add salt, pepper, and lemon to taste.
Keep the sauce on low; it should be warm but not hot when served.
Filling:
- 3-4 tbsps almond ricotta
- 3 tbsps of wild garlic pulp or pesto
- 1 tsp of nutmeg
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 150 grams of celeriac
The recipe for the almond ricotta can be found here – if you can’t make this, you can also use plant-based cream cheese. Combine all the ingredients, except the celeriac, and place in the fridge until assembly.
Cut the celeriac into small 1×1 cm squares and bake them in the oven at 180 degrees C until soft and tender. I drizzled them with some olive oil and salt, but you can add any flavours you like.
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Wrappers:
- 1 kohlrabi
Peel the outer layer off the kohlrabi and cut off both ends to have two flat surfaces to work with. Carefully cut kohlrabi slices as thin as possible – or use a mandolin. Ideally, the slices should be as close to 1 mm thick as possible. Cover the kohlrabi slices in boiling water for 2-3 minutes, then place them on a towel to cool. This should soften the fibres and make them easier to work with. Make sure not to use the wrapper before they have cooled off.
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Green oil:
- A handful of fresh wild garlic
- 400 ml taste-neutral oil
Wash the wild garlic and dry it off carefully. Bring a pot of water to a simmer and blanch the leaves for 10-20 seconds. Then, transfer the leaves to a bowl of ice water. Then place your wild garlic leaves in a food processor or blender, along with the oil, and blend until it is as smooth and combined as possible. Once your herbs and oil are combined, transfer the contents of the blender back into the pot and bring to a boil. Then, sieve the green oil through a coffee filter or a piece of cheesecloth. Make sure not to push the oil through, but it is run through the filter on its own. That will give you the best results. Save the solids or the pulp for the filling in this recipe, or use it in baking or as pesto.
Powder:
- A handful of wild garlic
Dehydrate the wild garlic in a dehydrator or in an oven on the lowest setting until the leaves are completely dry. Then, grind it into a fine powder using a spice grinder.
How to assemble the dish:
Place 2 tablespoons of sauce in the bottom of a bowl. The bowl I used is actually for pasta, but I love the dramatically flared edge, and because we’re serving something with a sauce, I find it better to use a bowl (also, this makes arranging the kohlrabi so much easier).
To create the beautiful effect, take a few drops of wild garlic oil and drizzle on top of the sauce.
Place a teaspoon of green crème on the kohlrabi wrapper, add 4-5 squares of roasted celeriac, and turn the wrapper upside down. A steady hand goes a long way here. Repeat this process two more times.
With a brush, paint a thin layer of green oil onto the wrappers, and finish the dish with a sprinkle of wild garlic powder.
