Spring in full swing so much flavour!

STARTER

​Salad with roasted asparagus and smoked gravad lax

Wine tip: Dry Riesling from the Rheingau

MAIN COURSE

Artichoke stuffed with slow-cooked lamb shoulder accompanied by baby new potatoes and a grilled bell pepper salsa

Wine tip: Red Côtes de Provence

DESSERT

​Roasted pineapple with mascarpone and verveine syrup

Wine tip: Glass of ice cold Limoncello

For the salad (two days in advance)

Start at least 48 hours in advance: mix the ingredients for the marinade and rub these into the salmon. Wrap the salmon in a double layer of cling film and allow to marinate in the fridge for 48 hours.

Saled (on the day)

Start smoking the salmon and cooking the meat for the main course in the morning: after 48 hours remove the cling film, rinse the salmon under the cold tap and dab dry using paper towels. Soak the Cherry Wood Chips and the Wooden Grilling Plank in water for approximately 60 minutes.

In the meantime, light the Big Green Egg® using a single fire lighter and raise the temperature to 90 °C. Sprinkle the Cherry Wood Chips on the glowing charcoal, place the convEGGtor and put the Stainless Steel Grid in the EGG®. Wait until smoke develops then put the salmon on the Cedar Grilling Plank on top of the grid and smoke the salmon for around 10 minutes. Make sure the temperature stays low as the salmon doesn’t need to cook.

Remove the salmon and the Cedar Grilling Plank from the Big Green Egg. Allow to cool, then store in the fridge until needed.

To make the croutons, cube the sourdough bread. Sprinkle with olive oil and salt and grill for approx. 10 minutes on the Half Moon Cast Iron Plancha Griddle or in an oven dish until browned. Allow to cool.

Remove the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon or the oven dish, the grid and the ConvEGGtor. Put the Cast Iron Grid in the EGG and raise the temperature to 200 °C.

In the meantime peel the white asparagus remembering to cut off the hard ends. Cut out 10 sheets of parchment paper approx. 25 x 30 cm in size. Put a white asparagus on every sheet and sprinkle with salt. Roll the asparagus up as tightly as possible and tie using butcher’s string. Cut the ends off the green asparagus, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with pepper and salt. Grill the green and white ‘en papillote’ asparagus for 10 minutes on the grid in the Big Green Egg turning them over once halfway through. Allow to cool down to room temperature.

To make the dressing beat together the egg yolk, the mustard, the vinegar and sugar in a bowl. Keep beating whilst slowly adding the sunflower oil (this will make more dressing than needed for the salad, but this stores well for up to a week in the fridge).

Stuffed artichoke

Remove the grid, put an oven dish or the Round Drip Pan on the convEGGtor, then replace the grid. Raise the EGG’s temperature to 120 °C and wait until the Cherry Wood Chipshave burnt away entirely. Put the lamb shoulder on the grid and allow the meat to cook for approximately 5 hours until the meat separates from the bone.

In the meantime, cut the stalk and the top off the artichokes. Wash the baby new potatoes and halve two cloves of garlic. Put the potatoes, garlic, the sprigs of thyme and rosemary in a large pan. Put the artichokes on top, then add enough water to cover the latter and a big pinch of salt. Weight the artichokes down to keep them submerged using a lid slightly smaller than the pan itself. Bring to the boil and cook until done which should take approximately 10 minutes. Drain, cool and then remove the hairy nodules from the artichokes using a spoon. Store in the fridge covered.

Remove the cooked lamb’s shoulder from the EGG, allow to cool and pick the meat from the bone. Remove the grid and the oven dish (or Drip Pan) then replace the grid. Raise the temperature to 180 °C.

Wash the peppers, brush with olive oil and sprinkle on pepper and salt. Grill the peppers on the grid until soft, turning them over halfway through. Allow the peppers to cool then remove the skin, the stalk and de-seed. Subsequently finely dice the flesh.

Reduce the temperature of the EGG to 150 °C to roast the pineapple for dessert. In the meantime, peel the onion and the remaining clove of garlic and mince. Cut the spring onion into rings. Fry the onion and garlic in olive oil. Then stir in the capers, the paprika powder and the diced grilled peppers. Season the salsa with pepper and salt, then allow to cool.

Mix half the salsa with the lamb. Store in the fridge with the rest of the salsa until needed.

Roast pineapple

Twist the crown off the pineapple and roast the latter for approximately 90 minutes in the EGG. In the meantime finely chop half the verveine. Heat the sugar with 100 ml of water and bring to the boil. Stir until the sugar has dissolved then remove the pan from the heat. Add the chopped verveine and allow to steep for at least 10 minutes. Beat the mascarpone until fluffy.

Remove the pineapple from the EGG, allow to cool slightly, then cut four attractive slices (you can use the rest of the flesh for a dessert the day after or just snack on it). Cut the slices from the rind using a large, circular cutter and use the small cutter to remove the core. In the meantime, heat the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon or an oven dish on the EGG’s grid. The latter should still be at 150 °C.

Cut the almond macaroons into small cubes and bake these until brown in approximately 10 minutes on the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon or in an oven dish. Allow to cool, then raise the EGG’s temperature to 180 °C. Store the mascarpone in the fridge. The remaining ingredients can be stored at room temperature as it won’t be long before they are used.

Salad

To make the salad, pluck and wash the Little Gem, the lamb’s lettuce and the garden cress. Slice 2 white and 6 green asparagus and add to the salad. Finish with the dressing and season with pepper and salt.

Cut the smoked salmon into 16 good slices and distribute these across the plates along with the remaining asparagus and the salad. Sprinkle with croutons and extra dressing then enjoy! In the meantime, for the main course, allow the artichokes, the potatoes, the lamb and the salsa to come up to room temperature.

Stuffed artichoke

Place the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon on the grid or put an oven dish on it and raise the EGG’s temperature to 180 °C. Distribute the meat across the artichokes (serve what may be left over with, for instance, rice the day after). Mix the baby new potatoes with the spring onions and a dash of olive oil then spoon some salsa into a small oven-proof dish.

Cook the new potatoes on the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon or in the oven dish until golden brown in approximately 15 minutes. Simultaneously place the stuffed artichokes and the salsa alongside the potatoes on the grid so they can warm up.

Put a stuffed artichoke on every plate, add some potatoes and serve with salsa. Clean the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon or the oven dish and put it back on the grill for the preparation of the dessert.

Roasted pineapple

If so desired, briefly heat the pineapple slices on the Cast Iron Griddle Half Moon or in the oven dish. Put a slice on every plate adding a scoop of mascarpone. Sprinkle the verveine syrup on and around the pineapple and garnish with the almond macaroon croutons and verveine leaves.