Mussels, Almond Milk, Melon & Hazelnut

Remove the top ⅓ of 4 heads of garlic

Place the garlic in a pot with cold water and bring to a boil on high heat

Drain and discard the water. Add new water and the garlic back to the pot. Repeat the process 3 times until the garlic is tender

Squeeze the garlic cloves out of the heads

Transfer to a blender

Add 1 cup of heavy cream and salt to taste. Blend until the the garlic is smooth and creamy. The Garlic Purée is ready

Add 1¾ cups of vegetable oil to a saucepan over medium-low heat. Warm to 50 ºC

Add 3 bunches of lovage to a blender

Add the vegetable oil. Blend on medium-high speed until completely pulverized

Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve. Press slightly to extract as much of the oil as possible. The lovage oil is ready

Add 250 g of clams to a hot saucepan. Add a splash of water and cover. Cook over high heat for 2m until they open

Stir to ensure all the shells are open and remove from heat. Reserve with the cooking liquid

Repeat the process with 250 g of mussels. Cover and cook for 2m

Stir to ensure all the shells are open and remove from heat. Reserve with the cooking liquid

Strain the liquids and reserve. Remove the mussels and clams from the shells, store in the cooking liquids. Save the shells

Remove the seeds and peel ¼ cantaloupe

Cut into ½ inch cubes

Cut ½ cucumber into ¼ inch cubes

Split 2 tbsp of hazelnuts in half

Mix 2 tbsp of the garlic purée with 1 cup of almond milk and heat it up

Plate with 3 tbsp of garlic purée. Add shellfish, cucumber, cantaloupe and shells to taste.

Add the hot almond milk and garlic purée mixture. Garnish with chopped mint leaves and drizzle the lovage oil

Garnish with the chopped hazelnuts. Add lime zest and flaky salt to taste

The dish is ready. Enjoy!