Sautéed salsify with brown butter

Squeeze the lemon and visually divide its juice into 2 equal portions. Add 1 portion to a bowl of cold water and reserve 1 portion for cooking. Wash and trim the roots, peel under running water and cut into even pieces. Drop them into the lemon water as you work to limit browning.

Drain the salsify and put in a saucepan with the broth, honey, unsalted butter, bay leaf and reserved lemon juice. Add the optional pinch of salt if wanted. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 10 minutes until the pieces are tender when pierced with a knife.

Turn off the heat and cool for 10 minutes. Reserve 100 ml of the cooking liquid, then drain the salsify and remove the bay leaf. Dry the pieces well so they can brown in the pan.

Melt the lightly salted butter in a frying pan until lightly nut-brown and fragrant, without letting it blacken. Add the salsify and sauté for about 5 minutes. Transfer the salsify to a plate and pour the cooking butter into a bowl for finishing.

Deglaze the pan with the white wine and reduce by half. Add the reserved cooking liquid and simmer for 5 minutes. Return the salsify just long enough to heat through.

Divide the salsify and sauce between plates. Spoon over the reserved brown butter and add the optional pinch of pepper if wanted. Serve hot as a side dish.