An Apple A Day....

Welcome to Apple Week!
This week I found two new recipes that I've fallen in love with...Apple Juniper Soup and our Dessert Terrine.
I'm beginning to see the beauty in terrines. We started ours with Lemon-Olive Cake, then Italian Meringue followed by Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse and topped with Molasses Gelato. The frozen combination of this dessert was unreal. The other big hit this week was our table side soup. We started the bowl with Parmesan, pomegranates and a vanilla-arugula oil. Then, the server brought a silken Apple Soup and poured it table side...this is the way soup should be done!
I'll get the recipe up in a few days~

Amuse: stuffed date with apples, garlic, shallot, honey and mascarpone

The Beginning of the Apple-Juniper Soup.....

Pork Rillette with House-Made Crackers, Herbed Goat-Cheese and Apple Chutney

Brioche Bacon Roasted Tomato Melt with Grilled Apple Salad and Parsnip Chips

Dessert Terrine with Apple Caramel, Cocoa Soil and Cinnamon Apple Chips

Mini Milkshakes with Apple Zeppole

(apple doughnuts dunked in Calvados syrup) 

Fig Week At The Restaurant~

This week we celebrated Figs for our seasonal item. I decided to do another set-menu since it worked so well the previous week. When the customer doesn't have options, it's usually a good thing. This reasoning has to do with "forcing" new ingredients and ideas upon the public. Most times customers get stuck in an eating rut and never venture in a new direction.
This menu is dedicated to those who think they dislike figs or just haven't had them.
Don't worry all diners were rewarded with Bacon Ice Cream...yep I said and we did it!

Let The Prep Begin!

Amuse: Baby Artichoke in Yuzu Beurre Blanc

Beginnings of the Free-Form Tart

The Finished Tart!

Three Elements for Success: Cream Cheese, Figs, Wonton Wrappers

Second Course

House-Made Meatballs: Braised Pistachio, Mozzarella, and Pork!

Entree Was Zucchini Corn Bread with Mushroom-Fig Ragu and House-Made Sausage

Brioche with Figs, Butterscotch, Pepita Glass and Bacon Ice Cream, Oh My!

Have You Had "Fresh" Water Chestnuts?!

Water chestnuts are one of those ingredients that creates a spark of excitement. When you first taste a fresh one, you say to yourself, "wow, I have been missing out." The explanation for this discovery has to do with most people only knowing canned water chestnuts. Chestnuts out of a can taste like...a can!
Fresh ones taste like a combination of jicama, Asian pears and orchard apples.
Take a field-trip, find an Asian market and look for these beauties!

Yep, Not a Nut at All!

Water Chestnuts and Thai Eggplant~

Opening Week at the Restaurant~

Although you've seen the menu from the first week of the restaurant, here are some photos of what we prepared. The flat bread was a fan-favorite. Everyone was surprised that peaches and buffalo mozzarella would work together...but they did!  Below each photo are the simple innovations the students came up with that made this menu even better than I could have planned.....it's a treat to have bright, talented and respectful students!

Course One: Late Harvest Peaches with Arugula, Crispy Prosciutto and Candied Lemon (baked Prosciutto "chip" instead of fried adds nice crunch)

Grilled Flat-Bread with Peaches, Buffalo Mozzarella, Pasilla Pesto and Blackberries

Creamy Mascarpone Polenta with Pulled Pork, Peach Salsa and Grape Reduction (the grape reduction was bright and floral, a mixture of grapes and plum wine)

Pink-Peppercorn Meringue with Lime Curd, Peaches, Cocoa Nib Glass and Blueberry Froth (we froze the peaches after they were sauteed which added a nice "cool" element to the crunchy meringue) 

Table Decorations of Black Beans and Sage

Ode To Heirloom Farmers~

Today my class had the pleasure of having two wonderful Heirloom Farmers come in as guest speakers.
Patricia and Heidi from Late Bloomin' brought in a bounty of amazing vegetables, seeds and herbs. The only thing better than the Autumn harvest was Patricia and Heidi's words of wisdom toward respecting the food we cook and always giving more then we take from our customers. Their passion for what they do is yet another reason I continue to put my heart and soul into teaching~
Here are a few of the wondrous culinary samples we saw today:

Scarlet Runner Beans

Shallots

Aji Chilies and a Few Others

Purple Tomatillo

Carrots

Nasturtiums

Heirloom Beans

A Mix of the Bounty!

ODE TO PEACHES~

Late Harvest Peaches....Mmmm!

Today I ate one of the best peaches of the Summer, I mean Fall~ I was so enamored with this peach I decided to dedicate a menu to Late Harvest Peaches!  Since tomorrow marks another first day of school, the peach celebration can continue. Starting this week I'm taking over the Restaurant at our school.

Here's a sneak peak of what's happening:

Course One

Roasted Peaches and Prosciutto over Arugula with Red Wine-Vanilla Reduction

Course Two

Grilled Olive-Oil Pizza with Fennel, Peaches and Pasilla Peppers

Course Three

Smoked Pork and Peaches with Stone-Fruit Salsa over Creamy Chevre Polenta

Course Four

Pink Peppercorn Pavlova with Sauteed Brown Butter Peaches and Blackberries

Bon Appétit