Celeriac Medallions with Truffled Puree, Roasted and Pickled Cauliflower

These vegan and gluten free celeriac medallions are the perfect part canapé. They're a little fiddly to make but so delicious and attractive for a special occasion. We’ve made them as a canapé, but you could make larger sized medallions for a lovely dinner starter. Each step of the preparation can be done up to two days in advance, so can be heated and assembled last minute. Try to find prettily coloured cauliflowers if you can as they make all the difference to the appearance, but if not, you could add turmeric or beetroot to the pickle marinade to add colour. If you don’t have truffle oil you can use a fruity olive oil, a walnut or hazelnut oil.

Celeriac Medallions with Truffled Puree, Roasted and Pickled Cauliflower

Makes 12 small biscuit sized canapés | Dietary: Vegan, Gluten free

Prep time: 45 minutes | Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 medium cauliflower weighing approx 400g (or for extra impact, use 2 or 3 coloured varieties such as orange, purple and green)
• 1 large celeriac
• 100ml water from steaming or veg stock
• 1-2 tbsp truffle oil
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 tbsp chopped pistachios or hazelnuts

Pickle marinade:

• 100ml white wine vinegar
• 100g caster sugar
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed lightly
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 small red chilli
• 2 sprigs thyme
• ½ lemon, zest and juice
• Optional: ⅛ tsp turmeric or beetroot powder

Method:

Prepare the pickle:

1. Make the pickle marinade by placing the vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and heating gently until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Add in all the other ingredients and the turmeric if you want a marinade that turns the cauliflower yellow or beetroot powder for a purple marinade.

Prepare the cauliflower:

1. Cut the cauliflower into quarters. Take one of the quarters, cut into florets and either slice thinly with a mandolin or very sharp knife. You will find that as you slice, there will be fragments that will break off that you can set aside to steam and purée later. Keep the better shaped slices for pickling.
2. Place the slices into the pickle marinade and leave for a minimum of an hour. If you have time you can prepare this the day before.
3. Place another quarter of uncooked cauliflower onto a roasting tray. Break it into small florets and then into smaller pea sized pieces, then drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil to lightly coat. Roast for 10 minutes in a hot oven (200°C) until golden and slightly charred in places. Set aside.
4. Steam the rest of the cauliflower including any trimmings and stalk for 8-10 minutes until tender and set aside for making into the puree. Keep the water from the steaming pan.

Prepare the celeriac:

1. Peel the celeriac and slice into 1.5 cm slices. Place in a steamer or colander sitting above a saucepan of simmering water with a lid, and steam for 8-10 minutes or until tender. You may need to do this in batches unless you have a large chinese two tiered bamboo steamer.
2. Place the cooked celeriac on a board and cut out small rounds with a biscuit cutter or into triangles if you prefer a rustic look. Set aside to cool. Keep the trimmings for the purée.
3. To make the purée, place the steamed celeriac trimmings and steamed cauliflower in a blender with 100ml of the cooking water.
4. Blend till very smooth, adding more water if necessary, but keeping the purée thick.
5. Add 1 tbsp of truffle oil and ¼ tsp salt. Blend again then taste and adjust the seasoning and truffle oil if needed. Transfer the puree to a small saucepan.
6. When you are ready to serve the canapés, heat 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil in a frying pan.
7. Fry the celeriac rounds until crisp and golden on both sides. Blot on kitchen towel.
8. Heat the purée gently.

Assemble

1. To assemble, place the celeriac rounds onto a serving plate.
2. Top with a teaspoon of the purée, then a few pieces of roasted cauliflower.
3. Carefully place a few slices of the pickled cauliflower on top followed by a sprinkle of chopped pistachio nuts. Serve immediately.

Delicious food photography by Rob Wicks of Eat Pictures.

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