Cervelle de Canut

Ingredients

• 500 g fromage blanc, 20% fat — not 0%; the fat is essential for a creamy, not chalky, texture
• ½ clove garlic, crushed — no more per 500 g
• 1 medium shallot, finely minced
• 30 ml olive oil, 2 tablespoons
• 30 ml white wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons; sharp and clean
• 10 g fresh chives, finely snipped
• 10 g fresh chervil, finely chopped
• 10 g fresh tarragon, finely chopped — equal proportion to chives and chervil
• to taste fine salt
• to taste white pepper, freshly ground
• Optional enrichment
• 15 ml crème fraîche, 1 tablespoon; folded in last for a richer version

Method

1. 1
   Turn the fromage blanc into a wide bowl. Beat vigorously with a fork or whisk for two to three minutes, working air through the mass until the texture lightens and the surface holds a faint, mousse-like sheen. The cheese is ready to receive the seasonings when it no longer looks dense or grainy.
2. 2
   Whisk the olive oil and white wine vinegar together in a small bowl until briefly emulsified. Set aside.
3. 3
   Fold the finely minced shallot and crushed garlic into the aerated fromage blanc. Work them in with a spatula rather than beating, so as not to collapse what was just built. The mixture should remain light. This is where the dish lives or dies: too much garlic at this stage, or beaten in too forcefully, and the finished cervelle de canut will be aggressive and dense rather than gently pungent and fluffy — restraint and a folding hand are the whole technique.
4. 4
   Pour the oil-and-vinegar emulsion over the cheese in a thin stream, folding continuously. The mixture should remain cohesive and light, with a faint gloss. No puddles of liquid should remain visible at the base of the bowl.
5. 5
   Add the chives, chervil, and tarragon in equal proportion. Fold through until the herbs are evenly distributed and the preparation is uniformly green-flecked. If using crème fraîche, fold it in now. Season firmly with fine salt and white pepper, tasting as you go — the mixture should be tangy, herbaceous, and gently pungent, with the vinegar clearly present.
6. 6
   Cover the bowl and refrigerate for a minimum of two hours. The rest allows the flavours to meld and the shallot's rawness to mellow. On removal, the cervelle de canut should smell fresh, green, and lightly acidic — not raw or sharp with allium.
7. 7
   Serve scooped into a ceramic bowl — or quenelled with two large spoons into three portions on a plate — with a drizzle of olive oil and a crack of white pepper. Present with crusty bread. The texture at table should be fluffy and mousse-like; if it has tightened in the cold, fold it once or twice to restore the aeration.