Caramelised Leek, Dill & Pecorino Pate + Salami & Burrata Tostada with Spicy Whipped Tomato
DIFFICULTY: Easy
Ingredients
✴
Ingredients ✴
Caramelised Leek Pate
Caramelised Leek & Pecorino Pate:
2 leeks, white part only, cut lengthways into quarters
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
125g Traditional cream cheese
⅓ heaped cup (45g) grated pecorino
2 Tbsp full-fat sour cream
¼ cup chopped fresh dill
3 Tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
To Garnish (optional):
Extra finely chopped chives & dill fronds
Basil & dill oil (see method)
_______________________________________________________________
Salami & Burrata Tostada
Spicy Whipped Tomato:
6 ripe small vine tomatoes, cut in half
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
75g traditional full-fat cream cheese
50g salted butter, softened
1 tsp good-quality Mānuka honey
1 tsp chilli flakes
Tostada:
2x 125g balls burrata, cut into fifths (avoid using the Massimo’s brand - it is a lovely product, but a bit too liquidy for this type of dish)
10 slices fresh sourdough baguette (or a regular sourdough slice cut into thirds)
1 Tbsp good-quality Mānuka honey
10 thin slices Milano Salami
Parmigiano Reggiano or pecorino, finely grated on a microplane
Directions
✴
Directions ✴
Caramelised Leek Pate
Preheat your oven to 200°C fan bake. Line a medium oven tray/dish with baking paper.
Spread the leeks over the oven tray and drizzle over 2 Tbsp of the olive oil. Season with ½ tsp fine table salt. Roast for about 25-30 minutes, tossing the leeks once or twice dur ing cooking, until they are very tender and starting to caramelise on the edges (discard any super blackened bits). Set aside to cool completely.
Once the leeks have cooled, add them to a high-powered blender along with the remaining pate ingredients and the remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil. Blend together for about 30 seconds, or until smooth and creamy. Season to taste with salt and set aside in the fridge until ready to serve.
Spoon the pate onto a serving plate and drizzle over some basil and dill oil, if using (or substitute with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil). Garnish with the chives and dill. I served mine with yellow and purple endive leaves.
*For the basil & dill oil: Add 1 packed cup basil leaves and ½ cup dill fronds to a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Stir for 20 seconds then drain immediately and rinse with cold running water until cooled completely. Squeeze as much water as you can out of the herbs with a tea towel. Add the blanched herbs to a high-powered blender along with ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil. Blend for about 1 minute, or until bright green and the oil starts to warm up. Strain the herb oil through a paper towel or muslin cloth into a clean jar (let it drip through slowly, don’t try and push the oil out). Discard the pulp.
_______________________________________________________________
Salami & Burrata Tostada
Preheat your oven to 200°C bake. Line a small oven tray with baking paper.
Place the tomatoes cut side up on the oven tray and drizzle over the olive oil. Season with ¼ tsp fine table salt. Roast for about 30-35 minutes, or until the tomatoes are jammy and just starting to caramelise - you want most of the tomato juice to have evaporated off. Set aside to cool to room temperature. Once cooled to room temperature, add the roasted tomatoes to a mini food processor along with the remaining whipped tomato ingredients and a pinch of salt. Blend together, until smooth. Season to taste with salt and set aside in the fridge, until ready to serve.
Pat the burrata dry with a paper towel and cut each burrata into 5 pieces (you might need to drain it a bit on a paper towel if it is an extra juicy burrata). Just before serving, toast the sourdough in a toaster (or you can toast it in a pan with olive oil).
Top each piece of sourdough with the tomato butter and the burrata. Drizzle over the honey, season lightly with salt and finely grate over a little parmesan or pecorino. Top each toast with a slice of salami and a pinch of chilli flakes, if desired.