Eating out can be a frustrating task for vegetarians. My partner and youngest son were non-meat eaters for 12 years, and finding a restaurant with good vegetarian choices was never an easy task.
But living with non-meat eaters challenged me to develop lots of new vegetarian dishes, and I am proud of the vegetarian menu at Thornton’ s.
A ridiculously high proportion of vegetables consumed in Ireland are imported from other countries. When cooking with vegetables, try and opt for locally grown, seasonal produce, which should have a good flavour.
Ingredients – open celeriac ravioli with St George mushrooms and shallot sauce
Celeriac mousse
1 diced shallot
200g celeriac, peeled and diced
100ml cream
3 egg yolks
1 whole egg
7g sea salt
4g fresh milled pepper
10ml of truffle oil
Butter for the mould
Ingredients – lasagne
12 celeriac slices (thinly sliced)
1 celeriac mousse
2 shallots
5 strings of chopped chives
10g unsalted butter
12 sliced St George mushrooms
4 morel mushrooms
10ml olive oil
250ml water
Sea salt
Fresh milled pepper
Sliced spring truffle
Ingredients – truffle sauce
1 diced shallot
100ml of truffle juice
200ml of vegetable stock
5g truffle trimmings
20ml Madeira wine
Drop of truffle oil
20g unsalted butter, cubed
Sea salt
Fresh milled pepper
Ingredients – garnish
12 peeled pearl onions
12 morel mushrooms
12 white turnips, washed and peeled
12 slices of truffle
10ml truffle oil
5ml olive oil
1tsp honey
5g unsalted butter
100ml water
Sea salt
Fresh milled white pepper
Method: celeriac ravioli
1. Heat a pot and add the truffle oil, then add the celeriac season with salt and pepper. Cook on a low heat for ten minutes without colouring the vegetable. Add the cream and bring the mixture to the boil. Reduce the heat and cook until the celeriac is soft.
2. Remove from the heat and pure´e the mixture in a blender, then cool slightly.
3. Mix in the egg yolks and whole egg, taste and correct the seasoning.
4. Butter a medium-sized terrine dish, add the celeriac puree and put the lid on top.
5. Place the terrine in a bain-marie (a container half-full with hot water) and put it in the oven at 110C for approx 50 minutes.
6. Stick a knife into the mousse to test if it’s done – if it comes out clean, it’s cooked.
7. Remove from the oven and let the mousse rest for 20 minutes. Place a tray on top of the terrine, turn it upside down carefully and remove the terrine from the mousse. Cut into slices for use in the lasagne.
Method: lasagne
1. Heat a pot and bring the water to the boil, along with the butter and sea salt. Add the sliced celeriac and cook for two minutes. Remove and season with pepper.
2. Season the St George mushrooms and saute in a hot pan, using a drop of olive oil. Add the chopped chives, taste and correct the seasoning.
3. Assemble the lasagne by placing a slice of the celeriac mousse in the centre of the plate, then laying a celeriac slice on top.
Add another layer of mousse and place the sliced mushrooms on top. Place a few slices of truffle on top of the mousse, then cover with a slice of celeriac, then mushroom, then truffle.
Finish off the top with a whole St George mushroom.
Method: truffle sauce
1. Heat a pot, add the oil and saute the shallot without colouring it.
2. Add the truffle juice and Madeira and reduce by half. Add the vegetable stock and reduce the liquid by three quarters, taste and season. Fold in the butter and serve.
Method: garnish
1. Melt the butter in a pot, add the pearl onions, season and pour over 20ml of water. Cook at low heat for five to ten minutes, and correct the seasoning.
2. Heat a little olive oil in a pan, add the turnips and season. Add the honey and cook over a low heat for a few minutes (do not let the honey caramelise, all you are trying to do is take the bitterness out of the turnip). Add the rest of the water and cook over a low heat for a few minutes, then correct the seasoning, When all the liquid has evaporated the turnips should be cooked.
3. Wipe the mushrooms clean with a cloth, then heat a little truffle oil in a pan. Add the mushrooms, season and saute for one minute. Remove and serve.
To serve
Place the lasagne in the centre of the plate, arrange the vegetables around the plate, add the truffle sauce and serve with new potatoes.
Kevin Thornton is a Michelin-starred chef and owner of Thornton’s Restaurant on St Stephen’s Green in Dublin.
www.thorntonsrestaurant.com