New-season asparagus mousse with morels and langoustines – by Aiden Byrne

Ingredients (Serves four)

250g asparagus
25g butter
50ml Noilly Prat
10g chervil, chopped
3 eggs
2 yolks
200ml single cream
2 large shallots, finely chopped
150g cleaned morels
50ml Madeira
100ml white chicken stock
25ml double cream
12 large langoustine tails
Olive oil
Chervil sprigs for garnish

Method

Peel all the green from the asparagus, chop and set aside. Chop the white of the asparagus and sweat in a warm pan with a knob of butter and a pinch of salt until soft. Add the Noilly Prat and reduce until it's almost gone, then add the green of the asparagus and the chopped chervil. Cook for a further minute.

Place in a liquidiser and blend until smooth, then pass through a fine sieve and chill immediately. Mix the purée with the beaten eggs and single cream and re-season. Pass again and pour into a dish (preferably a ramekin) that has been lined with soft butter. Cook at 80°C for 10 minutes in a water bath.

Sweat the chopped shallots in butter until translucent, add the morels and sweat for a further minute, then add the Madeira and reduce until dry. Add the white chicken stock, reduce by half, add the double cream and re-boil, then re-season (maybe with a dash of lemon juice for a little bite of acidity).

Simply sauté the langoustine tails in olive oil and a knob of butter, turn the mousse out on to the plate with the langoustines, and cover with the creamed morels.

Dress with a few sprigs of fresh chervil.

by Aiden Byrne, head chef, the Grill at the Dorchester, London

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