Fennel soup with langoustines and vanilla

Cut half a vanilla pod in 2/3 and 1/3. Reserve the 1/3 piece and remove the marrow from the 2/3 and marinate in 30 ml sunflower oil for 1 hr.

Peel and clean 6 langoustines, bask them with plenty vanilla oil and rest for half an hour, then softly cook them in 6 mins in a 100°C oven

Peel and mince 1/4 shallot and 200g fennel. Softly fry them in some sunflower oil with a sprig of thyme. Deglaze with a glug of Pernod and reduce a bit.

Add the marrow from the reserved 1/3 piece of vanilla and the pod as well

Then add 150 ml chicken stock, 50 ml double cream, 50 ml milk and a small star anise. Softly simmer for 20 mins, them remove the star anise, vanilla pod and the thyme.

Blend, sieve and season with salt and pepper

Peel and mince 1/2 shallot and 1/2 clove of garlic, softly fry them in a tbsp sunflower oil then add 1/2 tbsp curry madras for another minute. Add 2 dl sunflower oil and simmer for 15 mins. Doing this a day in advance improves the taste. Finally sieve and cool.

Flatten a slice of white bread, then cut into very small croutons. Fry them crispy in the curry oil.

Slice a young fennel bulb thinly on the mandoline, crisp in ice water. Just before serving dry the fennel and dress  with olive oil and season with salt.

Start plating with the crispy fennel. Followed by the langoustines. Pour some warm soup around it and finish with the croutons and fennel green.

(Recipe by Librijes Atelier)