Juniper Berry Puree

USFoods (a food purveyor that many are familiar with) uses an outside source for many food items. This outside source has many different rules and guidelines that, when combined with the thousands of other rules and guidelines in life and work, may be forgotten at times.
But, who would really need FIVE pounds of Juniper berries ? Aside from a Gin distiller of course.
So, as the saying goes (and I've learned to love and adapt this saying in so many ways): "When life gives you______, you make_______"
Not lemonade in this case. But a wonderful concoction non the less. Placed in the pressure cooker along with some toasted Cumin, Honey, White Balsamic and water. These, almost fresh, dried berries took on such an amazing burst of full fledged flavor. Just making the mouth come alive with floral sweet bitterness, truly amazing points hit on the taste buds.
I think most of us are used to that one "restaurant sized" container of Juniper Berries sitting on the shelve with actual dust on it cause you really only need about twelve a year depending on how many you add to your duck confit recipe. One of my servers was determined to find a use for my five pound of Juniper and came up with very little on the Internet as far as recipes are concerned.



The power of flavor behind this pine driven herb may be it's downfall, but there are so many foods that can bare it's addition to highlight their very own existence.

Philly Mac N Cheese Steak

It's like a mishearing mixed with a mixspeaking.

Of course it led to Chimis
Thanks to this man.

Upcoming "Beer Dinner"

Beer Dinner
Green Gables Restaurant
3-28-08
Reservations are still available along with half off accommodations.

Buffalo style Sweetbreads
Celeriac Puree, Blue Cheese Consommé
Bells

“Fish n Chips”
With Beer Cheese Soup
Doritos crusted Lobster tail
Piraat , Triple IPA

Pizza…Flavors
With Kangaroo Striploin
Mozzarella foam, Parmesan crusts, basil and Tomato
Celis, Grottenbier

Bison Back ribs
Collard Greens, Onion Rings
Southern Tier, Gemini

Tootsie Roll
Blueberry Bourbon Ice Cream, Granola Crumble
Traquair Jacobite

Grape Soda

Faygo anyone?
Foodland circa 1988, you pick up an empty bottom of a box that probably held a case of 12 to 16 oz. bottles of soda at some point(pop. The south has had an effect on me, I actually gave up the term "pop", I didn't think I would.....but here we are.). You fill it back up with whatever mixture of flavors you desire, then spend the next couple days with a purple-ish blue stain on your lips and tongue. Grape was a very popular flavor. For $.25 you could get a Grape soda out of the machine in front of Jets grocery.
Grape soda, grape soda, grape soda. Throw in Cream Soda (serious favorite), some Cherokee Red and Dr. Pepper....RC cause it's local, you've got a young boys carbonated sugar future sealed in cola trademarks.
I'm always looking for ways to incoporate favorite flavors from childhood, mine or anyone elses.






A recent purchase of Methocel f5o, has led to Grape Soda Meringue.
So many other possibilities.
Desserts mainly, but Mikey did mention vinegars....croutons maybe flavored with white balsamic and garlic?
Anything.

Soy Ketchup

Beef Chain Confit

These will make a triumphant return to life on Thanksgiving.

MY KITCHEN?

I neither have the patience nor the time to go back and see if I've....,,,,sorry .., nor the memory, of whether or not I've posted the past year of construction. Never ending...construction...but, by my own ideas for the most part. Recently, it was brought to my attention that there was a large cooler up for auction....we acquired it.

It sat in the very back doorway to the place. In the dry storage room, for several days.

Very hard to move around back there.

Wouldntjano? The cooler doesn't fit through any doorways into the kitchen.

Ratchet Man, Jimmy. Just cuts this place to shreds whenever. He's been maintaining for his entire life I'm sure. Who am I to interject?

Click on the pictures to understand what needed to be done just to get a cooler into the kitchen. It was taken in through the banquet entrance then through two dinning rooms, some railings and walls had to be removed...then the rest of the doors where cut off..along with some wall and a support beam.

These pictures go through a year of movements.

Understand, this was a house that was forced to be a sandwich shack 80 some years ago and is now being "used" as a fine dining experience in Pennsylvania. We make do, and I'm proud of what it's been turning into. It may not have the latest cooking equipment, it may not have the latest cooking equipment by 1980's standards, but trust me, a lot of cooking happens here. And the challenge in that alone would stop most people.

Things to work on

Winter Projects
BBQ Ice Cream
Cigar Smoked
Truffles and Root Beer
Soda Brines / Marinades
Root beer Poached Pears
Wasabi Poached
Beets Cooked In Coconut Milk
Isomalt
Deep Dish Pizza Pot Pie
Smoked Ice Cream Pops
Poached Egg Timbale
Vodka Candies
Tuna Melt
Muhammara
Pate Satay
Dissolvable foods
"Ice Cream Soda"
Smoke Bubbles
Avocado Cheese Cakes

Puffs
Seafood (scallop) Crème Brulee
Lemonade dessert
Egg less desserts with Xanthan
Old Bay Cotton Candy
Chicken Chorizo
Turtle dessert
Coffee Caramel
Tobacco Teas
Grape Cider
Alcohol Pickle
Pancake dessert, Baked Casserole
Cherries and Truffles
Mayonnaise Ice Cream
BLT
“Banana Bread”
Orange Julius
Chili Chocolate Rice Pudding
Apple Mustard
Soy Ketchup
Curry Cheesecake
S’more Bomb
Mint Julip pate
Japanese Tea Garden
Stripes

My staff meal

This is truly not meant to be disgusting.
Years ago I ate at Ocean Garden in Mount Pleasant SC and one of two options under the "Jaw" section was either Salmon or Grouper.
I got the Grouper that night. 5Bucks for a Grouper Jaw. Braised a lot like this, I think. = Soy Sauce and Brown sugar.
That's it.
I thought about that meal, a lot, in the years since. I wondered What skill it must take, what time and patience, what time is spent baisting?, how much liquid must be needed?, How much time?
The Grouper jaw I had that night was amazing. So many hidden pieces of soft, delicately sweet flavored pieces of meat, intertwined with teeth, cartilage, bone and fat. So......not ...eye appealing. But so wonderful in flavor and texture.
While breaking down some salmon this week, I threw all the scraps into a 6in' half pan topped of with (more or less) a Soy caramel. Wrapped with plastic wrap and foil into the oven for about thirty minutes.
There it was again. The wonderful flavors of freshness, saltiness and sweet. The amazing textures of fattiness melted into the unthinkable crevices in the face of a protein.
I have to admit, there was a slight selfish point when it came to the cheeks. I shared what I could and enticed those that hadn't seen the morbid images of "left overs" with butter soft and sweet morsels of parts unknown to them. But they tried it!


It's so important to me to...just try everything, but it's amazing when a paying customer won't eat certain vegetables that are key to a plate but yet, my dishwasher will enjoy braised Salmon head with me and really pick out the finer points in what he is enjoying. And get a little pissed when the cheeks are gone.

Heaven forbid that the man at table nine appreciate the wild, domestic and (locally) picked mushrooms that should be smothering his dried out piece of well done filet mignon.
Although....If A-1 had one real purpose, it was to help filet mignon.

Tomato Mustard

yes. Another mustard.

But what do you get on your hotdog at a picnic?

Ketchup and Mustard.

Chocolate Mustard

I have discovered that I have a serious "thing" for mustard.
I LOVE MUSTARD!
That simple.
When I have the time and the thought, I will apply mustard or cheese to anything.


So...here is Chocolate Mustard.
Coco Nibs fromTerraSpice mixed with Creme de Coco and Black mustard seed. (also from TerraSpice)
I plan on pairing this with (in the very near future) with a "coffee and licorice" based tuna dish. With Raisin broth and........not sure what else yet. Working on it.
Then with smoked roe, blinis and Van Gogh Espresso Vodka.

Square Chicken

Different applications. The Agar Agar was the favorite. And it help up really well in the fryer.
I just need to play around with the proper breading.
And get some Malt.

Fried Chicken And Waffles

As far as I know this is a Left Coast thing.
I've never had it myself, but I've been infatuated with the thought of it since I first heard of it.
Just like when Expo calls out a ticket that makes it's own combinations...."Lamb,Sam,Hali,....Hali,Loaf,....Lamb,Ribeye,......Salmon, loaf,.." Millions and millions of combinations can be put together just in the Speech of an Expediter. I have a feeling that that's how "Chicken and Waffles" came to be. "Walking in:, Chicken, Waffles, ....Ice Cream, BLT........"
(total side note) (Yeah, Ice Cream BLT Right? Why not? The Ice Cream Sandwich has worked out pretty well.)


Finally taking a couple minutes to think ahead for a wine dinner, I'm playing around with a couple variations and textures on how a Square fried chicken will come out.
Leg meat braised in Maple syrup is really good, by the way.
The Waffles will be waffle in flavor, but not in waffle shape.
More on this later.

Yogurt Consomme

With inspiration (over a couple years) from Alex and Aki and their website Ideas in Food I wanted

to work on a Maple Consomme. I am in Maple country.

All the flavors that were to be addressed on the plate where as follow: Fried Brie, Maple, Strawberry, Horseradish and Bacon. Very southern, but hey, fried fat in fat with more fat flavor added? How can you resist? Something simple that can be put out in a timely manner and be shared by a table.

Strawberries, Horseradish and Brie have been a long time favorite of mine. I was also trying to figure out some way to incorporate this combo into the plate as well.

When it came time to construct the Maple Consomme, I didn't know where to start with it. What would I be clarifying? Stuck. I looked back at Ideas In Food to their Balsamic Consomme, the pureeing of items helped me.

As all my mise en place lay around me, at various ends of the kitchen, the ingredients came together a little differently in my head. It all ended up together.

And when I reached in the cooler for some more berries, I was looking at two "Fruit on the Bottom" Dannon yogurts. Why not use the protein in the yogurt to clarify my fruit stock?

It's deep in color and flavor. You know there is yogurt in there somewhere, and the mouthfeel is really something. There is a creaminess that coats your mouth that you just wouldn't expect.

So, maybe cheese based consomme? Curds?

Scallop Tagliatelle

Scallops pureed with Basil, Parmesan and Activa.
Set with some heat on a silpat.
Cut.
Poached.
Served with Pesto, Balsamic reduction and parmesan.
Simple but not.

Parmesan acting like Mozzarella

After melting, forming and chilling, like you would for Mozz curd, the Parmesan Boconccini will cut and act like fresh mozzarella. Firmer but still pliable. Still retaining the flavor profile of Parmesan.

"Parmesan Boconccini"

This happened by accident. While making Parmesan broth, about thirty minutes into the steeping....I stirred it and noticed that the Parmesan was acting like Mozzarella curd. I pulled some out and worked it into a ball and chilled it.

It set beautifully. I formed three more balls and vacd them in some of the broth and some truffle oil.

I'm telling you the texture is that of mozzarella. I don't know if it will melt like it, it might just break, but the texture was perfect. Something in the timing. Twenty minutes later when I strained the broth, what was left in the chinios was broken and grainy.

Tomorrow will be the taste testing.

Now I want to work this with Manchego or Feta. Could sheets be rolled of this? Could it be used as a wrapping?

How about cheese brines? Peeled grapes brined in cheese broth? Tomatoes soaked in mozzarella broth?....

See how this goes

I've got two teenagers left working for me this Thursday and a wine dinner for Penfolds.

Here's what's supposed to happen.


I'll post the actual outcome.....maybe.

Buffalo Wings

I'm not happy with this one at all.

The flavors are so close.

The idea is there.

But....stuck on the plate, or lack there of.

Wings and Beer! with Buffalo Sauce and Celery and Blue Cheese. It's all there........... What's missing?

Skate wings, buffalo powder breading, Freezer poached celery, guiness and blue cheese ice cream, buffalo fried chicken consomme. I've added taragon puree since this picture was taken. But, it needs so much more.

Tuna, Melt!

Someone said this a couple weeks ago. I can see it now though.
You know how melted cheese reaches that perfect point in its life when it's no longer hard or at room temp, it's not completely broken, it's at that beautiful point of simply being melted. Right when it comes out the broiler on French Onion soup, Bubbling on top of a pizza, running down the sides of a griddled sandwich.
Perfect cheese at the perfect moment. How to make it last?
Tuna Stock: I don't know how yet. tuna stock, consomme, with the color of bright raw tuna. Churnned into sorbet, with some Methocel I would imagine, or not.
A hot flat stone. with melted swiss "pudding", tomato in some form, and a bright raw colored scoop of tuna. ready to melt. tuna melt!
I guess with Methocel it would last a little longer.
If anyone has any ideas, please let me know. I would love to make this dish.