Zucchini, Confit Garlic and Sunflower Seeds

Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

3-4 medium size green zucchini (it’s great if you can find a mix of green and yellow zucchini)

6 heads of garlic

250ml olive oil (for the confit garlic)

60 g white wine vinegar

90ml orange juice

90ml extra virgin olive oil (for the sauce)

70g confit garlic purè

1 orange

Few sprigs of thyme

Few spoons of sunflower seeds

We will need some micro herbs for garnish (ideally also some society garlic flowers)

Method

Remove the outside skin of the garlic head (leave the skin on the garlic cloves) and place the garlic in a pot, add the 250ml of olive oil and cover with a lid.

Place the pot in an oven set at around 130°C for about one hour or until the garlic becomes very soft.

After about one hour, remove the pot from the oven and let it cool down at room temperature. Then strain the oil and reserve it for another recipe, and pass the garlic through a fine sieve.

This process will remove the skin of the garlic and leave you with a beautiful confit garlic purè. This process will make more than the confit garlic amount that you need for the recipe.

For the dressing, mix 70g of confit garlic puree with 90ml olive oil, the orange juice, white wine vinegar, grated zest of one orange, and adjust for seasoning. This dressing can be stored in the fridge for up to a week and used for other recipes.

For the zucchini, slice them lengthwise about 5 mm thick with the help of a mandolin. Quickly cook the zucchini in a hot pan over high heat until slightly browned.

Once cooked, transfer to a plate, season with salt and a little bit of thyme leaves (chop the thyme if required).

Now form a nest looking shape by placing the zucchini pieces in a long row slightly overlapping, carefully rolling together. You can make one large zucchini nest or multiple ones as you prefer.

Place the zucchini nest in a plate, season with a generous amount of the confit garlic sauce and finish with an abundant amount of toasted sunflower seeds.