0317 碧綠 SPRING FESTIVAL


SAINT PATRICK'S DAY

Serves 8

AMUSE-BOUCHE
Parsley Cheese Balls with Emerald Isle

HORS D'OEUVRE
Crab Avocado Duet
Spring Pea Soup
Shamrock Rolls

ENTRÉE
Butter Poached Dover Sole with Herb Pistou
Sautéed Ramps

INTERMEZZO
Carambola-Lime Sorbet

RELEVÉ
Herb-Crusted Rack of Lamb with Rosemary Infused Lamb Jus
Smashed Fingerling Potatoes

SALAD
Watercress, Pear, and Gorgonzola

SAVOURY
Vegetable Terrine

DESSERTS
Key Lime Mousse
Pistachio Millefeuille

PETIT FOUR
Mint Leave Petits Fours with Irish Coffee


Parsley Cheese Balls

10
grams flat-leaf parsley, chopped
10
grams grated parmesan
80
grams cream cheese, at room temperature
1
clove garlic, minced
aa
freshly ground white pepper
aa
Melba toasts

Stir together flat-leaf parsley and parmesan. Combine cream cheese and garlic; season with white pepper; mix well. Divide in eight. Roll each in parsley-parmesan mixture to form a ball. Cover; chill for 2 hours to let flavors mellow.

Arrange balls on a platter with Melba toasts. Serve as guests arrive.

32x32-cm platter

Parsley Cheese Balls 


Emerald Isle

For each serving:

60
ml gin
10
ml green crème de menthe
2
dashes Angostura bitters
aa
cracked ice
1
lime-peel shamrock

Shake first three ingredients with cracked ice; strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with lime-peel shamrock. Serve as guests arrive.

8 @ cocktail glasses

Emerald Isle


Crab Avocado Duet

1
avocado, 240 g
50
ml lemon juice
aa
sea salt
aa
freshly ground white pepper
5
grams English mustard
240
grams lump crabmeat
aa
pea sprouts

Pit and peel avocados; cut into 1-cm chunks. Toss with 20 ml lemon juice; season with sea salt and white pepper. Whisk together mustard and the remaining 30 ml lemon juice; season with sea salt and white pepper. Add crabmeat; toss to combine.

Stand a 6-cm Ø ring mold on a plate. Scoop in one-eighth of the avocado; top with one-eighth of the crabmeat. Press down evenly to form the shape; pull off the mold gently. Repeat with the remaining seven plates. Garnish with pea sprouts; serve.

8 @ 20x20-cm plates

Crab Avocado Duet


Spring Pea Soup

100
grams leek, tender part only, sliced
5
grams unsalted butter
1000
ml Pea Stock
aa
sea salt
aa
granulated sugar
400
grams fresh peas
aa
cream
aa
snipped chives
8
chive blossoms

Sweat leek in butter. Add 200 ml Pea Stock; simmer for 5 minutes. Add the remaining Pea Stock; bring to a boil. Season with sea salt and a pinch of sugar. Add peas; simmer until bright green. Purée; strain. Ladle into bowls; drizzle with cream. Garnish with snipped chives and chive blossoms; serve.

Pea Stock

100
grams leek greens, sliced
8
parsley branches
8
Bibb lettuce leaves, torn
5
grams butter
400
grams fresh pea pods
1
black peppercorn

Sweat leek, parsley, and lettuce in butter. Add pea pods, black peppercorn, and 1500 ml water. Bring to a boil; simmer for 20 minutes. Strain. Makes 1000 ml.

8 @ 240-ml bowls

Spring Pea Soup


Shamrock Rolls

240
grams all-purpose flour
2
grams sea salt
60
ml milk
60
grams unsalted butter
10
grams granulated sugar
½
package active dry yeast, 3.5 g
2
eggs
aa
grape seed oil

Mix flour and salt. Warm milk and butter to 40°C; stir in sugar, yeast, and eggs. Add flour mixture to form a smooth dough. Turn into an oiled bowl; cover; let ferment for 2 hours. Chill overnight.

Knock back; divide in three. Cut each into 12 pieces; roll into balls; dip in oil. Place 3 balls in each cup of a 12-hole muffin pan; brush tops with oil. Let proof just to the rims of muffin cups, about 45 minutes.

Bake in a 200°C oven for 15 minutes. Brush liberally with oil; bake for 5 minutes more, until golden brown and flaky. Transfer to a napkin-lined basket; serve.

napkin-lined basket

Shamrock Rolls 


Butter Poached Dover Sole

8
Dover sole fillets, 120 g each
120
grams butter
aa
Sautéed Ramps
aa
lemon juice
aa
Osetra caviar
aa
Herb Pistou
aa
petit celery leaves

Pat dry fillets. Heat butter to 85°C. Poach two fillets at a time just until edges start to lose translucency. Drain. Keep warm while poaching the remaining fillets.

Mound Sautéed Ramps in plates. Arrange sole fillets on top; splash with lemon juice. Dot fillets with Osetra caviar; stroke plates with Herb Pistou. Garnish with petit celery leaves; serve.

Sautéed Ramps

600
ramps, roots trimmed off
10
grams butter
10
ml grape seed oil
aa
sea salt
aa
freshly ground white pepper

Separate white bulbs from ramp greens. Cut greens into 4-cm sections. Heat butter and grape seed oil. Add ramp bulbs, sauté until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add ramp greens; sauté just until wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with sea salt and white pepper.

Herb Pistou

80
grams flat-leaf parsley
60
grams chervil leaves
40
grams tarragon leaves
aa
sea salt
½
clove garlic
30
ml grape seed oil

Blanch herbs in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 seconds. Refresh in ice water. Squeeze dry; coarsely chop. Reserve and chill 180 ml blanching liquid.

Purée herbs, garlic, and chilled blanching liquid. Drizzle in grape seed oil; purée until smooth. Season with salt.

8 @ 28x28-cm plates

Butter Poached Dover Sole


Carambola-Lime Sorbet

6
carambolas, 120 g each
100
grams granulated sugar
20
ml light rum
1
lime, zest and juice

Extract juice from carambolas, yielding 500 ml. Add sugar, rum, lime juice, and lime zest; stir until sugar has dissolved. Chill. Churn in an ice cream maker until frozen. Scoop into 8 chilled champagne coupes; serve.

8 sets @ champagne coupe w/ saucer

Carambola


Herb-Crusted Rack of Lamb

2
racks of lamb, 8 ribs, 800 g each
4
cloves garlic, cut up
20
grams thyme
5
grams rosemary
aa
grape seed oil
aa
sea salt
aa
freshly ground white pepper
aa
English mustard
aa
Herbed Breadcrumbs
aa
Smashed Fingerling Potatoes
aa
Rosemary Infused Lamb Jus

Cut lamb into 8 two-rib servings; trim off excessive fat; pat dry. Marinade, chilled, in garlic, thyme, rosemary, and 60 ml oil for 12 hours. Wipe off herbs; season with sea salt and white pepper. Sear in oil to brown all sides. Drain. Place in a baking pan, fat sides up. Bake in a 200°C oven for 6 minutes. Drain.

Coat lamb generously with mustard; press on Herbed Breadcrumbs liberally. Let rest for 5 minutes. Return to oven; bake until lightly golden brown and crusty, about 4 minutes.

Mound Smashed Fingerling Potatoes in plates. Cut each serving of lamb in half. Place, cut side up, on potatoes. Stroke plates with Rosemary Infused Lamb Jus; serve.

Herbed Breadcrumbs

150
grams stale white bread, sliced
50
grams parsley leaves
10
grams thyme leaves
5
grams rosemary leaves
50
grams grated parmesan
10
ml grape seed oil

Crumble bread in a food processor. Add herbs; process to fine crumbs. Stir in parmesan and oil.

Smashed Fingerling Potatoes

300
grams fingerling potatoes
30
ml grape seed oil
aa
sea salt
aa
freshly ground white pepper

Place potatoes in a saucepan; add cold water to cover by 2 cm. Bring to a boil; cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain. Coarsely break potatoes with a fork; toss with oil, sea salt, and white pepper.

Rosemary Infused Lamb Jus

5
grams rosemary
500
ml lamb stock
aa
sea salt

Simmer rosemary in lamb stock for 20 minutes; drain. Reduce to 120 ml. Season with sea salt if necessary.

8 @ 28x28-cm plates

Herb-Crusted Rack of Lamb


Watercress, Pear, and Gorgonzola

60
grams red onion, chopped
5
grams English mustard
3
grams honey
½
lemon, zest and juice
30
ml red wine vinegar
120
ml grape seed oil
aa
sea salt
aa
freshly ground white pepper
300
grams watercress, stemed
2
large Bartlett pears, 240 g each
100
grams gorgonzola, crumbled

Combine onion, mustard, honey, lemon juice, vinegar, and oil. Purée into a smooth dressing. Season with sea salt and white pepper. Toss with watercress.

Quarter pears; core; thinly slice. Arrange slices of each quarter on one side of a plate; sprinkle the other side with gorgonzola. Mound watercress in the middle; garnish with lemon zest. Serve.

8 @ 20x20-cm plates


Vegetable Terrine

1
large zucchini
60
grams carrot, 20-cm long, blanched
1
scallion, 20-cm long, blanched
100
grams haricots verts, blanched
3
eggs, beaten
150
ml cream
10
grams grated parmesan
aa
sea salt
aa
freshly ground white pepper

With a mandoline, thinly slice zucchini into strips at least 20-cm long. Line a 6x6x20-cm U-shaped mold with cling film. Lay zucchini strips into the mold crosswise, leaving enough length hanging over sides to wrap over top after the terrine is filled.

Slice carrot into thin strips; half scallion lengthwise. Lay haricots verts, carrot strips, and scallion into the mold lengthwise. Mix eggs, warm cream, and parmesan; season with sea salt and white pepper. Tip into terrine; cover top with the hanging zucchini strip ends. Place in a steam oven; steam at 85°C until set, about 20 minutes.

Remove from steam oven; let rest for 10 minutes. Unmold; slice into 8 slices. Place on plates; serve.

8 @ 20x20-cm plates

Vegetable Terrine


Key Lime Mousse

½
envelop unflavored gelatin, 3.5 g
10
key limes, zest and juice
150
grams granulated sugar
aa
sea salt
3
eggs, separated
180
grams strained yogurt

Soften gelatin in 30 ml water. Heat to dissolve.

Grind half of the key lime zest with 100 g sugar. Add to key lime juice (80ml) along with a pinch of sea salt; heat to dissolve sugar. Whisk egg yolks in a stainless-steel bowl. Stream in key lime syrup, whisking until smooth. Set the bowl over a small pan of boiling water; heat, whisking, until the custard has thickened. Set the bowl over an ice bath; whisk until the custard is fluffy and pale. Stream in gelatin, mixing well. Fold in yogurt.

Whisk egg whites to soft peaks form. Tip in the remaining sugar, whisking to stiff peaks form. Fold into custard mixture; divide among 8 cups. Cover; chill until set. Garnish with the remaining key lime zest; serve.

8 sets @ 160-ml cup w/ saucer

Key Lime Mousse


Pistachio Millefeuille

160
grams puff pastry, 9x4x4-cm, chilled
60
grams pistachios
240
grams crème Chantilly
100
grams blueberries
aa
mint leaves
aa
icing sugar

Roll out puff pastry to 24x16-cm. Cut into 8x3-cm rectangles, yielding 16. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment; chill 30 minutes. Cover with another parchment, then another baking sheet to weigh down and to keep the pastry from puffing. Bake in a 200°C oven for 12 minutes. Remove the top baking sheet and parchment; bake until golden brown and flaky, about 8 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Grind 20 g pistachios; fold into crème Chantilly. Pipe half amount onto 8 of the pastry rectangles. Top with half of the blueberries, pistachios, and mint leaves. Place on the remaining 8 pastry rectangles. Pipe on the remaining pistachio cream; top with the remaining blueberries, pistachios, and mint leaves.

Transfer to plates. Dust with icing sugar; serve.

8 @ 16x16-cm plates

Pistachio Millefeuille


Mint Leave Petits Fours

1
chocolate cake, 16x8x2.5-cm
120
grams bittersweet chocolate, cut up
16
Frosted Mint Leaves
1
doily

Cut chocolate cake into 2.5-cm cubes. Select 16; brush off crumbs. Melt chocolate; drizzle over each cube to cover completely; chill until set.

Heat to soften the remaining chocolate, at about 35°C. Pipe a pea-sized dot on each petit four. Carefully place on Frosted Mint Leaves while dots are still soft. Chill for 5 minutes.

Arrange on a doily-lined platter; serve.

Frosted Mint Leaves

1
bunch mint
1
egg white
100
grams superfine sugar

Gently wash and dry mint bunch. Pick one leaf at a time, paint both sides with egg white. Sprinkle with sugar, making sure both sides are entirely coated. Place on a cooling rack. Repeat to coat 16 leaves. Allow to harden, about 8 hours.

32x32-cm platter

Mint Petit Four


Irish Coffee

640
ml freshly brewed coffee
320
ml Irish whiskey
30
grams light brown sugar
240
ml cream

Heat coffee, whiskey, and sugar to 85°C, stirring to dissolve sugar. Pour into 8 glass mugs. Float cream atop; serve.

8 @ 160-ml glass mugs

Irish Coffee

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