First, heat up a griddle or frying pan on a medium heat and melt the butter. As it starts to bubble, add the pear wedges and cook for a couple of minutes, the turn over so that the underside is evenly cooked. The add brandy. Optionally, you can carefully ignite the brandy, remove form head and allow the flames to die down.
Next, add the chopped blueberries in a small bowl or ramekin, and cover with the balsamic vinegar. Gently mash up the blueberries with the back of a spoon so that some of the flavours are absorbed by the vinegar. Add the olive oil, season with sea salt and black pepper, then set aside.
Next, salad assembly begins. Feel free to let your imagination run wild (I wanted to try and get some sense of symmetry with the ingredients). Layer the watercress at the bottom of a large bowl, then scatter the red onion, chicory, and fennel on top.
Evenly distribute the cheese slices so that they were laid down horizontally, and placed a walnut half on top.
Sprinkle the loose blueberries over the top of the salad.
Arrange the basil leaves and kumquat garnish in the centre of the dish.
Finally, just before serving, drizzle the chopped blueberry, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil dressing on top.
