Vegan Truffle Vichyssoise

Slice the leeks, shallots, and garlic. Peel and cube the potatoes. Keep the potato cubes submerged in cold water until needed to prevent browning.

Warm the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over the lowest possible heat. Add the leeks and shallots, season with ½ tsp salt, and sweat uncovered for 25–30 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until completely collapsed, silky, and sweet with no browning at all — this slow sweat is the foundation of the dish.

Add the garlic and sweat for a further 3 minutes until softened and fragrant but not coloured.

Drain the potatoes and add them to the pan along with the vermouth if using. Stir for 1 minute until the vermouth evaporates.

Pour in the vegetable stock, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil — this should take about 5 minutes.

Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are completely tender and beginning to break apart at the edges.

Remove from the heat and allow the soup to cool for 10 minutes, then add the chilled coconut cream and white pepper.

Working in batches, blend the soup in a high-powered blender on full speed for 90 seconds per batch until completely smooth and slightly aerated — do not use an immersion blender as it will not achieve the required silkiness.

Pass the blended soup through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, pressing gently with a ladle. Discard any solids.

Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, or overnight, until thoroughly cold — the soup must be served at fridge temperature.

Once chilled, taste and adjust seasoning with fine sea salt. Stir in the truffle oil just before serving.

Ladle the soup into chilled bowls. Use a microplane or truffle shaver to shave the fresh truffle directly over each bowl, finish with snipped chives and a pinch of fleur de sel, and serve immediately.