The Greenway's head chef to bring signature flair to Cheltenham Food & Drink Festival

The head chef behind one of Cheltenham’s leading fine-dining restaurants, The Garden Room Restaurant at The Greenway Hotel & Spa, will share the secrets behind one of his most popular summer dishes when he debuts at Cheltenham Food and Drink Festival on Friday, 20 June at 2.30pm.

Festivalgoers will be treated to a summer salad masterclass from the acclaimed chef, Abhijeet Dasalkar, who will demonstrate how to make an elderflower compressed heritage tomato salad, complete with a grissini spiral, herb bouquet, burrata cream, basil pesto and tomato essence.

The dish - which has both a vibrant look and taste – is currently one of the most popular items on the menu at The Garden Room Restaurant, according to Abhijeet, who grew up in Mumbai before training in classic French cooking.

The three AA Rosette restaurant offers a changing seasonal menu, with renowned afternoon teas and Sunday lunches also available.

He said: “This dish really does help to banish any misconceptions about salads are bland or boring – and not only that – it is the perfect dish for those novice cooks who love the process of cooking and seeing something come together. That’s why I wanted to showcase it at Cheltenham Food and Drink Festival.

"Key parts of the process involve making grissini spirals by wrapping dough around copper spirals; blending burrata cheese; and also making a ‘herb bouquet’.

“The tomato essence – which is a clear liquid - is made using a combination of ripe bright red cherry tomatoes on vine, and ripe beef tomatoes among other ingredients, and is crushed together by hand before leaving for four hours for the flavours to infuse.

“Another important part of the salad – the heritage tomatoes – are made using Isle of Wight tomatoes. They should be boiled for 10 seconds and then cooled in ice before removing their skin, cutting them up into bite-sized chunks and spraying with elderflower vinegar.

“The dish is then assembled by brushing a generous amount of pesto in a bowl, arranging the tomatoes, and then placing the creamed burrata cream next to them before tucking the grisiini spirals into the creamed burrata. The herb bouquet can then be placed on top and served with tomato essence.”

For more information about dining at The Garden Room Restaurant, visit www.thegreenwayhotelandspa.com