Beef consomme clarified with an egg-white raft, garnished with Escoffier's royale (a savory custard cooked in a bain-marie) and asparagus

In a clean large pan, mix the finely chopped celery, tomatoes, carrots, leek greens, coriander, mint and minced beef with the two egg whites.

Scoop the hardened fat off the cold broth, then add the cold broth to the raft mixture.

Heat on medium, stirring gently so the egg white does not coagulate at the bottom, until just short of boiling.

When bubbles come through, turn the heat to very low and simmer 45 minutes without touching or stirring while the raft sets.

Through the chimney in the raft, ladle the clear consomme bit by bit through coffee filters (or muslin or cheesecloth) holding ground black pepper and coriander until the pan is empty.

For the royale, mix three egg yolks and one egg with 100 ml cream, then about 100 ml warm consomme until smooth; add a little white pepper.

Strain the custard and pour it into the molds.

Cover with foil, set in a deep container, pour in boiling water from a kettle part way up, and cook in the oven 30 to 40 minutes until set. Spoken temperature: '120 degrees centigrade', later '120 degrees Celsius, which is about 150 Fahrenheit, was for me way too low... I put the temperature at 140 degrees Celsius, which was 180 Fahrenheit'.

Chill completely in the fridge or freezer before unmolding.

Run a knife around the edge and unmold; cut the royale into uniform shapes with small cutters.

Serve the consomme with the royales, asparagus and coriander.