Week Three of Spring Restaurant!

I'll have to admit that last week felt a bit like    X-mas, and it wasn't because I was skiing in a foot of fresh powder! The abundance of Spring produce makes a chef giddy with delight. If you were lucky enough to open our fridge at school you'd see: rhubarb, fiddle heads, white and green asparagus, corn shoots, ramps, radishes, fava beans, watercress, pea tendril, sorrel and chocolate mint. This is an amazing start to building a menu. Here is what we were able to do with our Spring harvest:

AMUSE: Rhubarb Sushi

BREAD: Brie and Sage Biscuit with Molasses-Fig Butter

SOUP: White Asparagus with Smoked Pea Tendril and Rhubarb 'Chips'

SALAD: Greens, Wild Rice Crouton, Goat Cheese Mousse, Figs

PASTA: Spinach Ravioli with Zucchini and Ricotta, Ramps, Sunchokes, Saffron-Coconut Froth

ENTREE: Crayfish, Blue Cheese Polenta, Hominy-Ramp Pesto

DESSERT: Confit Pineapple En-Papillote, Seville-Meyer Lemon Sorbet, Shaved Biscotti

Spring Restaurant Week 2

This week was highlighted with some incredibly creative dishes. To begin with we re-created a Noma inspired dish for our amuse. Noma is a Norwegian restaurant that was just voted the best restaurant in the world. We also gave an upscale twist to our soup based on Cup of Noodles.

AMUSE: Edible Parmesan Rocks

SOUP: Dried Carrots, Beets and Onion with Vegetable Consomme

SALAD: Zucchini Two Ways: Grilled and Crudo

Pasta: House-Made Chive Blossom Pasta with Caper Butter

Entree: Brisket with Crepes and Slaw

DESSERT: Parmesan Cake with Goat Cheese and Honey Tuile

Spring Restaurant Has Begun!

Week One of Spring Restaurant at the Savory Palate has started. The food this week was seasonal, exciting and pretty smooth for the new students. We did fried gnocchi for the first time which turned out like golden-molten nuggets. We also had some interesting flavors such as avocado and sorrel in our dessert-

AMUSE: Lemongrass-Citrus Shooter

SOUP: Shishito (Pepper) Soup with Cream Cheese Froth and Caramelized Onions

SALAD: Beet Cesar with Beet Green Parmesan Crouton

PASTA: Fried Potato Gnocchi with Black Trumpets and Blood Orange

ENTREE: Shrimp and House-Made Cajun Sausage with Rosemary Beans

DESSERT: Sorrel Coconut Panna Cotta with Avocado Puree and California Bay Leaf Ice Cream

Week 9

This week we tried to make pasta out of rice instead of flour. We toasted the rice in the oven to get it nice and nutty and then ground it up to make a "flour" The pasta had an interesting texture and was a nice substitute for anyone who can't have wheat. We also made mock mushrooms for you felt like you were in a forest while you enjoyed your s'mores....
Here are a few other creations we came up with:

AMUSE: Peanut Butter and Persimmon Gelee

BREAD: Grilled Mini-Pizza, Supreme!

SOUP: Apple-Juniper

SALAD: Arugula, Pickled Fruit and Drunken Goat Cheese

Pasta: Toasted Rice

ENTREE: Fish and Chips

DESSERT: S'Mores