Vegan tiles

This dish is founded on two ingredients I find very interesting: linseed and umeboshi vinegar. Linseed oil is perhaps the richest oil in nutrients. It contains higher percentages of Omega 12 when compared to the same amount of sea fish. It has a strong flavour which is particularly suitable to be paired with raw vegetable salads. Unfortunately, it becomes rancid only a few days after the bottle was opened. Therefore it is advisable to buy small bottles of linseed oil and keep them in the fridge as soon as you buy them. Some brands guarantee the cold chain has been followed, from the moment of its production to that of its sale.

The umeboshi vinegar, instead, is produced thanks to the fermentation of the small Japanese plums. Its flavour is delicately sharp and it’s therefore suitable for the pairing with raw vegetable salads. It has important healthy characteristics: it activates the metabolic functions and it can strengthen the immune system. In Japan, umeboshi is served as a sauce and it is recommended to those who suffer from minor indispositions such as a cold.

Lindeed flour tiles with lollo salad tips seasoned with umeboshi

INGREDIENTS
for the tiles
185 g “O” flour
50 g linseeds
25 g corn flour
100 g water
30 g corn oil
4 g salt

Simone Salvini, vegan chef

for the seasoning
30 g water
15 g linseed oil (cold pressed*)
15 g umeboshi

METHOD
1) Blend the linseed, corn flour and salt at the highest speed until you obtain a sort of very thin flour. Add the “O” flour and mix together. Mix the two liquids together and pour them over the dry ingredients. Knead with your hands for a few minutes. Make a ball of dough, wrap it in cling film and leave it to rest for at least 1 hour. Roll it out with a pasta maker so as to obtain a very thin layer. With a pastry cutter, cut out disks (6 cm diameter). Put them between two metal cannoli (one inside and one outside) so as to give them an undulated shape. Cook at 160°C for 6 minutes, remove the tiles from the moulds and leave them to cool completely.

2) Blend the water, oil and umeboshi together. Wet the lollo tips with the Japanese sauces and serve on the serving dishes placing them next to the flax tiles.