Ayurvedic Easter menu

A special menu that brings the freshness of spring to your plate at Easter: with tender asparagus, braised fennel and fruity berries, it combines regional, seasonal ingredients with finely balanced spices from Ayurvedic cuisine.

Appetizer: Green asparagus soup with fresh mint

Ingredients:

• 500 g green asparagus
• 80 g green peas (frozen)
• 1 piece of celery root
• 1 spring onion
• ¼ bunch of fresh mint
• 150 ml almond drink
• 1 tsp ghee (or sesame oil)
• ¼ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 pinch of "Enjoy Pitta""
• 1 pinch of "Orient Masala""
• Salt and pepper

Preparation:

1. Peel the bottom half of the green asparagus and cut into pieces. Put the asparagus heads to one side. Peel and dice the celery. Peel and finely chop the spring onion.
2. Bring the asparagus, celery and onion peel to the boil in a pan with 500 ml water and simmer for 15-20 minutes as a vegetable stock.
3. In the meantime, heat the ghee and briefly fry the cumin seeds in it. Add the "Enjoy Pitta" spice mix. Then stir in the spring onion, asparagus pieces, peas and celery and fry briefly in the spice stock.
4. Pour the boiled stock through a sieve and add to the vegetables. Simmer everything over a low heat for approx. 15 minutes.
5. Add the almond drink and bring to the boil briefly. Then puree the soup in a blender until smooth.
6. Pour two thirds of the soup back into the pan, mix in the asparagus heads and leave to infuse for a few minutes.
7. Pluck the mint leaves, add to the rest of the soup in the blender and blend well again. Then stir into the rest of the soup.
8. Season to taste with salt, pepper and the "Orient Masala" spice mix, then divide the soup between plates and garnish with some finely chopped fresh mint.

Main course: Chickpea and saffron loaf

Ingredients:

- 100 ml cold water - a few saffron threads - 4 tbsp sesame seeds - 400 g chickpeas, pre-cooked from the jar - 1 tsp cumin, crushed - 1 good tsp salt - juice of ½ organic lemon - 2 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped

Preparation:

1. Soak the saffron in cold water for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, dry roast the sesame seeds in a pan until they are intensely fragrant.
2. First mix the saffron water with the chickpeas. Add the cumin, salt, lemon juice and parsley and mix well.
3. Shape into patties, place on baking paper and bake in the oven at 200° C for 20 minutes.

Papaya and chicory salad

Ingredients:

- 1 ripe papaya, diced - 3 chicory, finely chopped - 1 ripe avocado, diced

For the marinade: - 2 tbsp cane sugar - 100 ml orange juice - 1 ½ tsp mustard - juice of ½ organic lemon - 1 level tsp each salt, cardamom powder and coriander powder - 2 tbsp olive oil

Preparation:

1. Place the papaya, chicory and avocado in a bowl.
2. Melt the cane sugar in a small pan and allow to caramelize. Deglaze with orange juice and simmer for a few minutes.
3. Now stir in all the other ingredients. Pour the marinade over the salad and leave to infuse.

Braised fennel with pine nuts

Ingredients:

• 2 large fennel bulbs
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp agave syrup
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• ¼ tsp ajwain seeds
• 1 tsp light balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp pine nuts
• a little coarse salt
• 1-2 stalks of fresh dill

Preparation:

1. Wash the fennel. Cut off the stalks with the fennel greens and set the greens aside for garnish. If necessary, remove the outer layer of the bulbs (e.g. if they are dry or brown).
2. Carefully cut the tubers lengthwise into slices approx. 2 cm thick - making sure that the stalk remains intact so that the slices do not fall apart.
3. Heat the ghee and olive oil in a large pan. As soon as the fat starts to sizzle, line the bottom of the pan with the fennel slices. Fry the slices for 2-3 minutes until golden brown, then carefully turn with tongs and fry for a further 1-2 minutes.
4. Set the fried fennel aside on a large plate. If not all the slices fit into the pan at the same time, fry the remaining fennel in the remaining fat mixture in the same way.
5. Once all the fennel slices have been fried, add another 1 tbsp of olive oil to the pan. Add the balsamic vinegar, agave syrup, the lightly ground fennel and ajwain seeds and a pinch of coarse salt. Bring to the boil briefly until it sizzles vigorously.
6. Return the fennel slices to the pan, sprinkle over the pine nuts and allow everything to gently caramelize for 1-2 minutes.
7. Then remove the fennel from the pan and leave to cool slightly.
8. Roughly chop the fennel greens and dill and place over the braised fennel as a fresh garnish.

Rhubarb and strawberry chutney

Ingredients:

• 2 stalks of rhubarb
• 1 tbsp cane sugar
• 1 shallot
• 3-4 large strawberries
• 1 tsp ghee
• 1 tbsp agave syrup or acacia honey
• ½ tsp fennel, ground
• ½ tsp ginger, ground
• 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch of star anise
• 1 pinch of rock salt

Preparation:

1. Peel the rhubarb and cut into approx. 1 cm slices. Sprinkle with the sugar in a bowl, mix well and leave to marinate briefly.
2. Finely slice the shallot. Finely dice the strawberries.
3. Heat the ghee in a pan. Add the shallot strips and sauté until translucent.
4. Stir in the ground fennel and ginger, then add the rhubarb and sauté everything over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes while stirring.
5. Add the strawberries, close the lid and allow the chutney to simmer for approx. 5 minutes.
6. Stir in the agave syrup or acacia honey, cayenne pepper, star anise and rock salt. Season to taste with a little extra ginger.

Dessert: Ginger and berry tart with white chocolate and almond cream

For the pastry:

• 60 g fresh ginger, peeled
• 100 g jaggery
• 120 ml rapeseed oil
• 80 ml agave syrup
• 175 g wheat flour
• 1 tsp Sweet Krishna
• ¼ tsp ginger, ground
• 1 pinch vanilla
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp rock salt
• 130 ml boiling water
• 1 large egg or suitable vegan egg substitute
• 2 tbsp lemon juice

For the cream:

• 250 g silken tofu
• 3 tbsp light almond butter
• 50 g white chocolate
• ½ tsp cardamom
• 1 pinch of fennel, ground
• 1 pinch of mace
• 2 tbsp rose water

For the topping:

• 150 g blueberries
• 150 g strawberries
• 200 g raspberries
• 1 tbsp agave syrup

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (top/bottom heat). Grease a cake tin.
2. Puree the fresh ginger together with the jaggery in a blender for approx. 1 minute to a smooth paste. Add the oil and agave syrup and continue to blend. Add the boiling water in small sips and stir until a homogeneous mixture is formed.
3. Mix the flour, Sweet Krishna, ground ginger, vanilla, salt and baking soda in a bowl. Stir in the ginger and jaggery mixture a little at a time. Then add the egg (or egg substitute) and lemon juice. The batter should be smooth and rather runny.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared tin so that it is about 4-5 cm high. Gently drop the tin onto the work surface several times to release any air bubbles.
5. Bake in the top third of the oven for approx. 40 minutes until the cake is lightly browned around the edges and no dough sticks when tested with a skewer. Then leave to cool completely.
6. For the cream, melt the white chocolate in a bain-marie. Beat together with the silken tofu, almond butter and spices in a blender or with a hand mixer until smooth.
7. Pour the cream onto the cooled cake base in the tin and leave to set in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
8. Wash and drain the berries. Cut the strawberries into small pieces. Mix all the berries together and marinate with the agave syrup.
9. Spread the berries on top of the cream just before serving.