Dinner on Sunday June 15^th, 2008

This was the first attempt at proper service here in the lab and it seemed to work out spectacularly.

Menu:

Savory Pasty

Bouef Roulade de canard et de champignons

Fennel Smoked Sole

Cheese Puff

Cheese

Coffee and Cigarettes

This menu was written & executed with Mark Low and would have not been possible without help from The Genus and Tom

Photos By Missy Sue http://forkthis.blogspot.com

To be honest when we thought of this dish we were going to make doughnuts and it would have been amazing, then we forgot that doughnut dough has to sit overnight and it was already 3pm on Sunday so we embraced my Italian roots and made some zeppoli. If we are still on this honesty tip then you should also know that when I made the powdered salt, I used MSG coated salt. I am not sorry.

“You can’t sit at the table if you aren’t going to bring nothing to it.”

Blackberry Beret

Bouef Roulade de canard et de champignons – We unpeeled this beef tenderloin and stuffed it up with braised duck and softened wild mushrooms. It was then confitted in duck fat and finished in the deep fryer to give it that tasty browning. Served with Curried Sweet mashed Potatoes and Crisp Kale, and some of the delightful duck, cabernet and blackberry demi-glace

We originally had planned on wrapping it in duck skin but we ended up not having enough to wrap up the 3 of them so instead of leaving some people envious we scrapped the whole idea and ate the skin after everyone left while cleaning up.

Todd normally is in charge of protecting the meat products that are left out on the counter during prep from the straying fingers of the cooks. He might not look it but is super vicious.

Fennel Smoked Sole Filet w/Raw Mustard Greens, Tomato Caviar topped with Wasabi Tobiko, Chive Flowers (they actually taste great and last for a least a week in the fridge) dressed with Lemon and Olive Oil. This is a part of the ever evolving green menu and was extremely well balanced.

Someone with two X chromosomes said it was the best thing she had ever eaten, I told her I thought that was just her being hyperbolic and she told me to go to hell because it was good, take that interaction for what you will.

Fennel Pollen Dust

Unexplainable, but know this. It was lost and then found in michele’s bedroom which was the last place any of would have thought to look.

Cheese Course (Instrumentally orchastrated with Julie at Formaggio South End) – Pierre Robert a Triple Cream Delight with an aged goat cheese Leonora, which is named after a friend of mine, or at least i am pretty postive it is, with a soft vegetable ash. Strawberries are cheap and tasty; candied walnuts are a total pain in the ass to make, buy them other people are better at making them then you, well most likely, unless you are one of those people who are really good at making them, but then I would assume you would have to be deficient in some other area like non-sticky fingers.

Coffee Granita with Whipped Cream – This was thought about while reminiscing with Cortney about Sicily and was built by Danielle. Thank you both for your inspiration and construction.

Cigarettes were in bowls and were smoke after in proper fashion

This dish is the closest I have come to meat perfection since I began cooking. Sous Vided Beef Tenderloin to 53C then deep fried in beef tallow to brown the outside, with a fig and balsamic glaze and topped with gorgonzola crumbles and crisped sage