Australian Gourmet Traveller – September 2019

8 large hand-dived scallops,

cleaned and thinly sliced

intorounds

Sesameoil,toserve

Herbsandleaves,suchas

fenneltops,chives,chervil

andtarragon,toserve

Oliveoil,toserve

CROISSANTDOUGH

600 gm(4cups)plainflour

7 gmdriedyeast(1sachet)

75 gm(‡⁄‰cup)castersugar

430 gmcoldbutter

2-3 eggs,lightlybeaten

foreggwash

LEMONPURÉE

2 lemons,halved

100 mlalmondmilk,plus

1 tbspextra

GREENNUTBUTTER

3 cups(firmlypacked)mixed

leavessuchasrocket,

radishandnasturtium

(seenote)

1½ cups(firmlypacked)mixed

softherbs,suchasdill,

fennelandparsley

50 gmmacadamianuts

50 gmpinenuts

35 gmpistachionuts

1 Forcroissantdough,combine

100gmflourwith100mltepid

(23°C)waterandyeast.Cover,

andstandatroomtemperature

toactivatetheyeast(overnight).

Pour200mlwateraroundflour

mixturesothatitcanbeeasily

removedfromthebowl,then

transfer(withwater)toan

electricmixerfittedwiththe

doughhook.Addsugar,

remainingflourand 2 tspsalt

andkneadonlowtocombine,

then,withthemotorrunning,

graduallyadd100gmdiced

butter,kneadinguntilasmooth

dough(15-20minutes).Remove

bowlfrommixer,cover,and

leaveinawarmplaceuntil

doubledinsize(20minutes).

2 Poundremainingbutterwith

arollingpintosoften,then

placebetweentwosheets

Herb toasts with hand-dived scallops

MAKES 16 SCROLLS // PREP TIME 1 HR // COOK 1 HR 15 MINS œPLUS PROVING, RESTINGŸ

“This is essentially an escargot or rolled croissant,” says Hunter.

At Brae they dry the roe from the scallops in a dehydrator to make

a powder and rinse the scallops to clean them in a chilled dashi

made from kombu and rainwater. Start this recipe a day ahead

to begin the croissant dough. Pictured p125.

of baking paper and roll out

to a 20cm x 15cm rectangle.

Turnoutdoughontoalightly

flouredsurfaceandrolloutto

arectanglealittlebiggerthan

thebutter.Placebutterincentre

ofdoughandfolddoughover

buttertoenclose,pinching

togethertoseal.Flattendough

slightlywitharollingpin,then

rollitoutawayfromyoutoa

30cmx18cmrectangle.Rotate

dough 90 degreessothelong

sideisfacingyou,foldthe

rightthirdover,thentheleft

thirdoverthetoptoenclose

(business-letterstyle).Cover

doughwithplasticwrapand

refrigeratetorest(30minutes),

thenrepeatrollingandfolding

processanotherfourtimes,

restinginbetweenandmaking

suretokeepdoughandbutter

atasimilarcooltemperature.

Refrigeratetorest(atleast

30 minutes)beforeusing.

3 Meanwhile,forlemonpurée,

juicelemonsandreservejuice.

Placehalvedlemonsina

saucepan,coverwithwaterand

simmeroverlowheatuntilvery

tenderandliquidhasreduced

(30-45minutes).Transferlemon

toablenderwith100mlalmond

milkand50mllemonjuiceand

blendonhigh,addingextra

almondmilkifneeded,until

smooth.Seasontotastewith

addextralemonjuiceandsalt.

4 Fornutbutter,blanchleaves

andherbsinbatchesuntiljust

tender(10-20seconds;see

cook’snotesp176).Refreshin

icedwater,drain,squeezeout

excesswater,anddryonpaper

towels.Processnuts, 1 tspsalt

and25mlwaterinafood

processortoapaste,thenadd

greensandprocessuntil

smooth.Chilluntilneeded.

5 Rollouthalfthecroissant

dough(reserveremainder

foranotheruse)toa50cmx

20cmrectangle.Turndoughso

thelongestsideisfacingyou,

spreadanevenlayerofnut

butteralongthemiddlethirdof

thedoughandpipeathinline

oflemonpuréealongthe

middle(reserveremainder).

Rolldoughawayfromyouinto

atightlog,thenplaceonan

oventraylinedwithbaking

paper.Cover,andfreezeuntil

firm(1hour).

6 Preheatovento190°C

(175°Cfan-forced).Cutloginto

1.5cm-widediscs,placeonoven

trayslinedwithbakingpaper,

leavingspacebetweeneach,

brushwitheggwashandstand

atroomtemperaturetoprove

untilincreasedby1½times

insize(1-1½hours).Brush

roundswitheggwash,bake

untilgolden(20-30minutes),

thenreduceheatto150°Cand

bake until crisp (10-15 minutes).

Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

7 To serve, spread a little

lemon purée across flat side

of herb toasts. Season scallops

with salt, dress with a little

sesame oil and lay on top

of purée. Top with a small

handful of herbs, drizzle with

olive oil, and season with salt

flakes to taste.

Note At Brae they use a

combination of herbs from

the kitchen garden for their

nut butter: parsley, nasturtium

leaves, rocket, dill, fennel fronds

and turnip and radish leaf. Use

the best produce that you can

find, depending on what’s

available at the markets.

Wine suggestion Byrne

Wines Blanc de Noir from

the Yarra Valley.

Jules Bagnato

(from left), assistant

sommelier Meg

Conway, waiter

Nicola Jacob and

Dan Hunter. Above:

Brae’s kitchen garden.

126 GOURMET TRAVELLER