Simple yet creative, the dish is a take on a Greek salad, featuring marinated vegetables in a roasted zucchini, wrapped in a ewe and sunflower-seed tahini, which is designed to taste like feta.
Instructions
Marinade
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
2 tablespoons citric acid (available at Bulk Barn) or yuzu juice
1 clove garlic
200 millilitres oil
In a small mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients. Reserve.
Filling
2 green peppers, small dice
6 red pearl onions, cut on mandoline and small dice
3 small zucchinis, roasted, medium dice
2 red peppers, roasted, small dice
In a mixing bowl, combine the diced vegetables and marinade and mix thoroughly. Let the vegetables marinate for about six hours.
Zucchini
2 small zucchinis
1 tablespoon oil
Dill, beet-marinated pearl onions and edible flowers, optional garnish
Salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat oven to 375F. With a melon baller, cut zucchinis in half lengthwise and hollow out each piece, so they resemble half a marrow bone. Toss the zucchinis in oil, salt and pepper, then place them on a baking sheet. Roast the zucchini for 20 to 30 minutes or until softened. Remove and let cool.
Sunflower seed tahini
300 millilitres sunflower oil
1 cup sunflower seeds
4 cloves garlic
4 tablespoons citric acid
3 small raw zucchinis, innards only
4 pinches of salt
Combine all ingredients and pulse in a food processor until smooth.
Ewe and tahini gel
500 millilitres ewe yogurt (available at Herb & Spice or substitute goat or regular yogurt)
4 tablespoons sunflower-seed tahini
1 pinch salt
3 tablespoons gelatin
In a medium-sized pot, add all of the ingredients and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, making sure everything is dissolved. Pass the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer and spread onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the refrigerator and allow it to set for approximately 2 hours.
To assemble, carefully place the marinated vegetables inside the four hollowed-out zucchinis. Cut the set gel into rectangles roughly the size of your roasted zucchini. Turn the zucchini over onto a plate and then place the gel onto the top of the zucchini and lightly heat with a blow-torch until it forms to its shape. Trim any excess gel and return to the fridge to set for at least another hour. Garnish with dill, beetmarinated pearl onions and edible flowers.
