Yotam Ottolenghi’s watercress salad with quail’s eggs, ricotta and seeds

(Taken from “The new vegetarian” in the Guardian)

The seeds sprinkled over this salad at the end give it a real boost in look, texture and flavour. I’d be tempted to make more of the mix than you need, and keep it in a jar ready for your next creation that’s missing a crunch.

12 quail’s eggs
2 small garlic cloves, crushed
1½ tbsp lemon juice
3½ tbsp olive oil, plus extra to finish
15g picked dill
15g picked basil leaves, torn
15g picked coriander leaves
30g watercress
50g ricotta

1½ tbsp flaked almonds
1½ tbsp pumpkin seeds
2 tsp sesame seeds
⅓ tsp nigella seeds
inch flaked chilli
¼ tsp Maldon sea salt
¼ tsp olive oil

Start with the seeds. Put all the ingredients in a small pan and cook over medium heat for three minutes, stirring all the time, until the sesame seeds take on some colour. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

Put the quail’s eggs in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 seconds for semi-soft (as I prefer them) or two minutes for hard-boiled. Refresh in cold water, then peel.

To make the dressing, whisk together the garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and some salt and pepper.

Now assemble the salad. In a big bowl, gently toss together the herbs and watercress, and divide about half of the leaves between four small serving plates. Cut the peeled quail’s eggs in half and place three halves on each plate. Use a teaspoon to deposit tiny dollops of ricotta around and about the salad, then dribble the dressing on top. Pile the remaining leaves over each portion, giving the dish as much height as possible, then carefully dot each portion with three more egg halves and the rest of the ricotta. Drizzle a tiny amount of extra oil over each serving, sprinkle the seeds on top and serve at once.