Frozen cherry tomatoes with basil oil: Albert Adrià's summer recipe

Chef Albert Adrià explains how to make a recipe at home that requires a little over thirty minutes, and good cherry tomatoes. The dish can be eaten as an appetizer or as a first course.

Ingredients for 4-6 people

• 24 cherry tomatoes
• 80 g of extra virgin olive oil
• 20 g of fresh basil leaves
• Salt
• Black pepper

Preparation

To begin, place a large saucepan over high heat with cold water, and bring it to a boil.Meanwhile, make a cross at the base of the cherry tomatoes with the help of a knife or a punch.When you have done it to all the tomatoes, set them aside.When the water starts to boil, put them in the pot.Count eight seconds on the clock, because that's the time you need to blanch them.After these seconds, remove them from the heat, strain them, cool them, and peel them. To cool them, it doesn't matter if you place them in a bowl with ice cubes or in a glass container that has previously been in the freezer. What is important is that the tomatoes change temperature, from scalded to cooled.Once they are cold, store them in the refrigerator.Meanwhile, prepare the basil. Stick to the leaves and not the branches.Place them in the blender jar along with the extra virgin olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Blend until an emulsion forms.To continue, take the cherry tomatoes you had reserved in the refrigerator, and place them in an airtight container. Season them with salt and pepper, stir them and add the basil oil emulsion on top. Shake gently.Freeze them for thirty minutes.Every ten minutes, remove the container from the freezer and shake it gently, so that the tomatoes detach and the emulsion is also well distributed over the cherry tomatoes. After thirty minutes, remove the container from the freezer. Pick them up with the help of a spoon, and place them all together on a flat plate or place them in small bowls. If you are six people, there are four cherry tomatoes per person. The quantity, you can vary it to your liking. The result is a refreshing first course, which requires very little preparation time. If you have any basil oil left over, you can store it in the refrigerator for other preparations.Cherry tomatoes

Tomatoes are a source of fiber, which facilitates the good digestion of food. Eating between 10 and 12 units means ingesting more than half of the recommended daily percentage of vitamin C.

Basil

Besides being an aromatic plant ideal for many summer dishes, which you can easily grow at home, it strengthens the nervous system and improves blood circulation.

Extra virgin olive oil

Essential in the dishes of our recipe book, its nutritional properties are infinite. Among others, it prevents degenerative diseases and acts against aging thanks to its high quantity of natural antioxidants.