- 4
Ingredients
- For the melon juice:
- 3 lb Canteloup melon
- For the melon gelatin:
- 2 cups melon juice (see previous step)
- 1.1 tsp powdered agar-agar
- For the tomato juice:
- 2.2 lb semi-ripe tomatoes
- For the tomato cloud:
- 2 cups tomato juice
- 5 sheets gelatin (previously rehydrated in cold water)
- For the almond meringues:
- 20 young almonds, peeled
- tomato cloud (see previous step)
- For the grapefruit segments:
- 1 pink grapefruit
- For the chopped spices:
- 4 juniper berries
- 4 pink pepper grains
- To finish:
- 4 strands saffron
- 4 small leaves fresh chervil
- 4 small leaves fresh fennel
- 4 small leaves fresh tarragon
- 4 small leaves fresh coriander
- freshly ground black pepper
- curry
- Maldon salt
- virgin olive oil
Preparation
Step 1
For the melon juice:
1. Peel the melon and cut it into even pieces, each weighing approximately 5¼ oz.
2. Place the melon pieces on a baking tray and cover hermetically with foil.
3. Bake in the oven at 475ºF for 40 min. Leave to drain in a colander for 6 hours. You do not need to leave anything pressing down on it.
For the melon gelatin:
1. Place 100g of melon juice and the powdered agar-agar in a pan.
2. Stirring continuously, bring to the boil over a medium heat.
3. Remove from the heat, whisk and mix with the rest of the warm melon water.
4. Pour into a dish so that it is 1/10" thick and leave to set in the fridge.
For the tomato juice:
1. Wash the tomatoes and cut them into quarters.
2. Crush with your hands, but do not purée them.
3. Leave in a sieve for 3 hours.
4. Use the pulp for another recipe and keep the tomato juice. It should be transparent and slightly pink in color.
For the tomato cloud:
1. Place 32 oz tomato juice in the freezer at 34ºF.
2. Put the remaining ½ cup tomato juice in a pan with 5 sheets of gelatin until they dissolve. Keep in the fridge.
3. When the ½ cup of tomato juice begin to set, put it in a mixer bowl, which should be cold. Begin to whisk at a medium speed.
4. Gradually add the 2 cups of tomato juice when the foam begins to form.
5. Increase the speed and continue whisking until the mixture is in stiff peaks
For the almond meringues:
1. Arrange the almonds in the tomato foam to make a ¾" diameter semicircle.
2. Place on a tray lined with wax paper and leave in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.
For the grapefruit segments:
1. Cut off the upper and lower ends of the grapefruit until you reach the segments.
2. Peel the fruit so that you reach the flesh and there is no trace of the skin or pith, without altering the initial shape of the fruit.
3. Use a really sharp knife to separate the segments from their membranes.
4. Cut off the ends of the segment, so that you only have the central part. Cut it into 2/3" pieces.
For the chopped spices:
1. Dice the juniper and pink pepper separately.
Final Steps & Preparation:
1. Place a 2" diameter piece of melon gelatin on the plate.
2. Arrange 5 almonds with the tomato cloud around the gelatin in such a way that they do not touch and the almond can be seen.
3. Place a piece of grapefruit on each plate between the two almonds
4. Following this order, put a little juniper on the first almond, pink pepper and tarragon on the second almond, chervil and saffron on the third one and curry powder on the fifth one. Put a coriander leaf on the grapefruit.
5. Sprinkle the melon gelatin with Maldon salt and black pepper.
6. Drizzle virgin olive oil over the almonds and gelatin.