Grilled vegetable gazpacho, honeyed Sainte-Maure de Touraine AOP Xavier David mousse

Preparation steps

1. To prepare the Sainte Maure mousse, crush cheese in a bowl. Meanwhile, soften the gelatine in lukewarm water. When soft, squeeze out in your hand and gently melt in a saucepan. Mix honey and melted gelatine into cheese.
2. Whip chilled cream with a hand mixer to obtain a Chantilly cream. Season with table salt, pepper and Espelette pepper.
3. Carefully fold whipped cream into cheese mixture and chill for around 2 hours.
4. Preheat barbecue to 250°C.
5. Wash peppers and cut in half, remove ribs (pith) and stalk then put underneath barbecue hood.
6. When skin begins to blacken and split, remove from barbecue and place in a recipient with a lid. The condensation will help you remove the skin. Grill the washed, chopped courgette.
7. Wash and chop remaining vegetables (tomatoes, cucumber, garlic clove) and mix with the grilled peppers and courgette, basil leaves, bread, olive oil and sherry vinegar. Add a little water if required. Season with table salt, pepper and Espelette pepper.
8. Leave to marinate for at least an hour. Blend in food processor until you have a smooth, even soup. Set aside in a cool place.
9. To serve, pour soup into bowls. Top each bowl with a generous quenelle of honeyed Sainte Maure mousse and garnish with a few basil leaves.

😉 Tip: You can make this into an Andalusian gazpacho by using just tomatoes. The honeyed mousse can be made with a different soft cheese, either goats’ or cows’.