GATHER JOURNAL

Photograph by David Malosh Food Styling by Maggie Ruggiero 
Prop Styling by Amy Wilson


    
Bitter: Taste

Fennel with Horseradish Aïoli

Amuse-Bouche from Issue 12 - Winter 2018 – The Senses

As the ancient Greek myth goes, the oracle at Delphi once told Apollo: “The radish is worth its weight in lead, the beet its weight in silver, the horseradish its weight in gold.” It’s the gnarled roots of the fiercely aromatic plant that have been prized for many centuries, used medicinally for everything from stoking metabolism to lowering blood pressure, and, at the table, to give recipes a wallop of pungent heat. We made an aïoli headily packed with the stuff to be served with crisp fennel.

makes 1 cup



  • 1 small clove garlic
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 2 Tbsp Tbsp vinegar from a jar of horseradish, plus about 6 Tbsp drained horseradish
  • ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • ⅔ cup canola oil (or other neutral oil)
  • sliced fennel for serving

  • 1

    Mince garlic, and then mash garlic and salt into a paste. Add it to the bowl of a food processor along with the egg, egg yolk, and vinegar. Pulse together to combine.
  • 2

    Combine the oils into a single measuring cup and, with the motor running, slowly drizzle in allowing the mixture to thicken into an aïoli. Stir in horseradish to taste. Chill several hours before serving with fennel slices. Leftover aïoli can be used as a sandwich spread or served alongside warm vegetables.