Fig. Pear and Witlof Salad with sustainable Foie Gras

It is Valentines again and we are cooking away a storm. Valentines here on our romantic island is something special. The couples are going first to the sandbank for a glass of Rose Champagne and some Canapes before going to Turtle beach, our most romantic beach on the island.. There they are served a 3 course menu which we cook straight at the beach. A short stroll later they are at Cinema Paradiso, our outdoor cinema for a romantic movie and a chocolate themed dessert buffet. Could it get more romantic than watching a movie under the stars? No, I don't think so, but then again, I live here on the island and love the island every moment of the day

So what are we cooking tonight? I will of course share all the recipes, but want to start with the one starter, a combination of organic lettuces, fruit and meat. We got some sustainable foie gras and made a terrine out of it, then we rolled the terrine and coated it in pistachios. We have received some amazing cured ham from Bayonne in France, it is so subtle in taste, just gorgeous. Of course we take some local lettuces and then some fresh figs, the fruit of love.

The Bayonne ham is a lovely and subtle ham from the French Atlantic coast, very close to Spain. The pigs have to be from the region, the spices, the salt, all is from the region. It has a very mild flavor which I love, it is not so overpowering and salty and combines very well with the other ingredients

Everything gets carefully arranged on a glass plate, it has to be a work of art. We made a balsamic and honey reduction and took some really amazing extra virgin olive oil, we tossed the leaves in it, ah, the combination of the freshness with the richness of the foie gras and the slight saltiness of the ham are just going so well when combined and enjoyed

We take great care of getting certified sustainable foie gras....no, again I am not going into the discussion about foie gras, but trust me, we go through great length to make sure we get the best product which is as friendly to teh geese as possible. I am not giving you the recipe for the foie gras terrine again as it is already in my blog.

The bread is more there to give the dish some extra texture, it is a thinly cut toast bread which is baked in the oven till dry, crisp and golden in color

The recipe is enough for 4 friends

Recipe
100 g (3oz) Bayonne Ham
4 each Figs
2 each Pears
60 g (2 oz) Assorted lettuces
100 g (3 oz) Foie gras terrine
30 g (1 oz) Pistachios
50 ml (2 oz) Olive oil
60 ml (2 oz) Balsamic Vinegar
10 g (0.5 oz) Honey

Method
Firstly reduce the Balsamic till only one third left, add the honey then cool down
Cut the ham is thin slices
Mush the terrine up a bit, then roll in a plastic wrap to a long sausage, cool in the fridge
Chop the pistachios, then roll the terrine in them, after that cut the rolled terrine in 1 cm thick slices
Arrange the ham on the bottom of the plate, then top with the pears
Mix the lettuce with a bit balsamic and olive oil, dress nicely on top of the pears
Garnish with the figs and top with a bread wafer