Beetroot terrine ‘comme un dauphinois’
Prep 15 min
Cook 1 hr 10 min
Rest 6 hr
Serves 4
800ml coconut oil
4 garlic cloves, peeled and bashed
2 small bunches thyme
Salt and pepper
1.2kg golden beetroot, peeled and cut into 3mm-thick slices (ideally with a mandoline)
700g waxy potatoes (eg charlotte or ratte), peeled and cut into 3mm-thick slices (ideally with a mandoline)
2 tsp cornflour, mixed to a paste with a little coconut oil
Put the coconut oil in a large pot with the garlic and thyme, then season. Turn the heat to medium, wait until the oil has warmed up and melted to the consistency of water, then gently lower in the beetroot and leave to blanch for four minutes. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on a plate covered with kitchen paper. Repeat with the potatoes, and drain on a second plate covered with kitchen paper.
Put a layer of beetroot in the base of a terrine dish (or use a 1lb loaf tin) and brush with a little cornflour paste. Put a layer of potato on top, brush with paste, then repeat the layering until the terrine is full.
Heat the oven to 150C (130C fan)/300F/gas 2. Pour three tablespoons of coconut oil over the top of the terrine, then bake for 50 minutes. It is cooked when a small knife goes in and out without resistance. Rest for at least six hours.
Serve hot (cover and reheat in a medium oven for 15 minutes), cold or at room temperature. To plate, cut into slices and serve with a frisee salad in a grain mustard, white-wine vinegar and rapeseed oil dressing.
Aubergine à l’échalote
Prep 15 min
Marinate Overnight
Cook 35 min
Serves 4 as a starter
2 aubergines, cut in half lengthways
Olive oil
Salt and black pepper
5 shallots, peeled and roughly chopped (200g net weight)
100g button mushrooms, cut into quarters
1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into 2cm dice
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed with the flat of a knife
100ml white-wine vinegar
1 tsp caster sugar
120g cooked brown rice
2 spring onions, trimmed, washed and roughly chopped
½ cucumber, halved, deseeded, cut into small cubes and refrigerated overnight in 3 tsp white-wine vinegar, 3 tsp water and 2 tsp sugar
Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4. Prick the aubergine flesh all over with the tip of a small, sharp knife, then grease with plenty of oil. Heat a large, flat pan and, when very hot, scatter a pinch of salt on the aubergine flesh and lay the four halves cut side down in the pan. Leave to fry undisturbed for at least a minute, then, once the flesh is very brown, transfer to an oven tray and roast for 10 minutes.
Heat two tablespoons of oil in a large saute pan on a medium-high flame, then fry the shallots, stirring, until they start to colour – about six minutes. Add the mushrooms, pepper, garlic and a good pinch of salt, and cook, stirring, for two minutes. Add the vinegar, sugar and 200ml water, cover and cook gently until everything is soft – about 10 minutes. Stir in the rice and turn off the heat.
Put a half-aubergine in the centre of a soup plate. Spoon on some shallot sauce and pour on a little cooking liquor. Sprinkle with spring onion and cold cucumber salad, and serve.
Tarte moutarde-tomate
Prep 10 min
Rest 4 hr
Cook 40 min
Serves 4
For the dough
350g unbleached white flour
20g fresh yeast (or a 7g sachet fast-action dry yeast), mixed with a little warm water)
1 pinch table salt
80g soya milk
80g vegan butter – I use Vitalite
100ml extra-virgin olive oil
80g vegan yoghurt
For the topping
60g dijon mustard
400g large tomatoes, cut into ½cm-thick slices
2 sprigs thyme, picked
2 big pinches mustard seeds
Ground black pepper
Olive oil, for drizzling
Make the dough at least four hours ahead of time. In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, salt, soya milk, butter, oil and yoghurt. Use your hand (or an electric mixer, but don’t overwork it). When the dough comes together, wrap it in clingfilm and rest in the fridge for at least four hours.
Heat the oven to 230C (220C fan)/465F/gas 9. Roll and spread out the dough (use your hands) like a pizza, so it’s very thin and almost at breaking point. Spread mustard over it, then lay the tomatoes on top in slightly overlapping slices, and sprinkle with thyme, mustard seeds and pepper.
Drizzle over a little olive oil and bake for 10 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and the tomatoes have collapsed slightly but still hold their shape – watch it carefully, to make sure the pastry doesn’t burn. If it’s not quite done after 10 minutes, open the oven door slightly and leave for up to five minutes, so any excess humidity in the tomatoes evaporates.
Serve with a simple frisee salad in a dijon mustard dressing.
Veg bourguignon
Prep 15-20 min
Marinate Overnight
Cook 35 min
Serves 4
60g dried ceps or porcini, soaked in hot water for 2 hours
1 red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
350g button mushrooms, cut in half
2 celery sticks, cut into 3cm chunks
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 tsp each dried thyme, rosemary and oregano
Salt and black pepper
75cl full-bodied red wine
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp flour – I use spelt or brown rice flour
2 tbsp tomato puree
250g smoked firm tofu, cut into 2cm cubes – I use Taifun
1 handful flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
½ dried chilli, crumbled
A day ahead, put the drained ceps, onion, mushrooms, celery, carrots, garlic, herbs and a pinch of salt in a bowl, pour in the wine, stir and make sure everything’s submerged. Cover tightly with clingfilm and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, drain the vegetables (reserve the wine) and pat dry with kitchen towel. In a large pot, warm the oil on low-medium heat, add half the vegetables and stir for two minutes, making sure they do not colour. Add the rest of the vegetables, gently stir for two to three minutes at a slightly higher temperature, then add the flour and tomato puree, and stir gently to coat. Add the marinade, bring to a boil, then stir in the tofu. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the liquid reduces by half and the sauce is just thick enough to coat everything, then season to taste (if you like, turn off the heat now and reheat later).
Serve hot with herby mashed potato – I make mine with olive oil, a little coconut milk and lots of chopped parsley – and finish with a sprinkling of parsley, dried chilli and pepper.
Alexis Gauthier is chef-patron of Gauthier Soho, London W1
