Cockchafer Soup

Method

1. Put 30 g of cockchafers in a sealed tub in the freezer for 20 minutes. Tip them onto a board and pull away the hard wing cases, the wings, the legs and the heads, so only the plump bodies remain. Rinse briefly in cold water and pat dry on a cloth.
2. Melt 7 g of the butter in a small heavy saucepan over a low heat. Add 20 g of finely sliced leek white and sweat for 3 minutes without colouring, stirring so it stays pale and sweet.
3. Raise the heat to medium, add the cleaned beetles and let them brown for 4-5 minutes, pressing them lightly with a wooden spoon; they should smell nutty, like toasted crayfish shells. Dust in 1 tsp of plain flour and cook it out for 1 minute.