My Underwear Drawer, Pressed and Neatly Folded

Sorry for the delay in getting the results of my recent summer menu experimentations posted.   I've been drinking heavily and pondering the wonders of the legend that is Kenny Loggins.   (If you haven't listened to Foot Loose recently...um...don't.)

So, where were we.   I gave you the results of a brainstorm I had before making dinner for friends, with the goal of showing you how I developed a menu, and how the final results would compare with my original plans.

As expected, I had to adjust my menu based on ingredients available at the market, additional ideas I had while cooking, and finally, the reality that I needed to dial back my own ambition in order to get dinner out before midnight.

My original brainstorm ideas are located here.   All in all, I was happy with where I landed.    Pretty much all of the dishes were tasty, but what I generally look for when cooking spontaneously is to land on a core concept that can be tweaked and refined in the future.   Below is a recap of each dish and how/why the final dish evolved from my original intention.

Bloody Mary-ish Gazpacho 

My original idea was to express a single fruit in four ways.   I went with the tomato, which I realize was sort of obvious.   But the morning of the dinner party, I had a Bloody Mary on my mind.    I decided I would make a gazpacho as the base of the dish, with tons of fresh horseradish, celery and black pepper.    My second texture of tomato would be a yellow tomato gelee.  I'd make a puree of tomato, celery, horseradish and mix it with gelatin and let it cool for a few hours.   Finally, I made a tomato confit, which was essentially sliced tomatoes simmered in olive oil at 200 degrees for about three hours.   Hiding underneath the yellow tomato gelee is a slice of smoked mozzarella.  The smoky creaminess really brought the dish together.   In retrospect, I would have added cayenne to the dish for a spicier note.

Shiso Juice Ceviche 

This idea came to a grinding halt when I  became  beyond pissed and frustrated that I couldn't buy lobster anywhere near my apartment.   So I bagged the shiso, which would have required effort I couldn't muster at the time.    I decided to create little bites of ceviche as canapes for the guests as they arrived.   After buying some fresh salmon and tuna, I went completely off-the-cuff on this one, only creating the combinations in the kitchen just before serving.    For the salmon, I aimed for refreshing.    Salmon and avocado was a natural match, as was a bit of diced cucumber for texture.   Olive oil and lemon juice rounded out the flavors.   

For the tuna ceviche,  I wanted to pair the fattiness of tuna with a drizzle of truffle oil, a sprinkle of Parmigiano Reggiano, and a dice of celery.   I had never seen or tasted these flavors paired with raw tuna, so I was going with instinct on this one.   Italians all over the world most likely rolled in their graves as I presented this dish, but the cheese and tuna really worked.  I thought this was a bit of a breakthrough combination, at least in my world.

Peach Mac and Cheese

I stayed very true to my original idea with the peach mac and cheese.   I made a bechamel with Parm Regg, half and half, a bit of white wine and flour.  After the bechamel came together,  I folded in a fresh peach puree.   I simply combined the mac with the bechamel, covered the top in bread crumbs, more Parm and broiled before serving.   I was incredibly behind schedule at this point, so I didn't give the crust enough time or attention.    The peach added a fruitiness that cut through the richness of the bechamel, but didn't cross the line of sweetness that one would imagine when picturing these flavors in their head.     A crustier texture on the mac and cheese would have added another level to to the dish and made it an ace, in my opinion.   

Lobster Wellington

My original intention was to stick very close to the Wellington in appearance.  I was going to wrap pastry around large pieces of lobster, corn kernels and a lobster mousse.  But again, I was behind schedule and needed to improvise in order to expedite dinner.    I decided to eliminate the construction of the Wellington and do everything a bit free form.   I'd bake the puff pastry separately, make a raw corn tarragon puree, eliminate the mousse and juice corn to act as a sauce for the dish.     The lobster was steeped in boiling water, shells removed, then finished in a bit of butter and wine.   Overall,  the dish was excellent but I was disappointed that I didn't get to experiment with the Wellington presentation.   But like all ideas, being nimble and open to progression landed on a dish that I thought was worthy of the effort.  Corn and lobster is a perfect pairing to me.

I enjoyed showing you the before and after of the planning and cooking process in my bizarrely unorganized world.    Hopefully I can do another post based on this theme before the summer ends.

(PS - Thanks to Laren, Frankie and Mere for the pictures.  I was too involved to shoot the dishes as I usually do).

Original and Related Post:  Showing You My Underwear Drawer

Comments

[Jello Shooter]

Interesting title for this post. I love the unique ideas. The Peach Mac & Cheese doesn't seem to fit in with the others though.

J.S.

[JOE]

the underlying theme for the menu was summer, so the infusion of peach in the mac and cheese was my attempt to summerize a cold weather dish....

[Laren]

It was all delicious, thanks for having us. And I would not be at all surprised if you did in fact press and fold your underwear.

[JOE]

wait..are you suggesting that people DON'T press their underwear? Not even the tighty whities? I'm so confused.

[Chicken Fried Gourmet]

Damn that looks good, I'll have to try that peach mac n cheese.

[tami]

that first dish - the bloody mary gazpacho - has tami written all over it. your dinner looks delicious :)

[The Lovely Miss Katie]

Reading about it was almost as delightful as eating it... simply delicious! Thanks again!

[mek]

I think your approach to the Lobster Wellington was smart, cooking a traditional wellington with lobster would be an unfathomable challenge.

I've got a box of peaches and I'm simply going to have to try one of your peach pastas!

[Steamy Kitchen]

I love shiso - and just planted some shiso seeds in the garden. Hopefully they will yield plenty for a fall harvest.

However, I have never experimented beyond the traditional Korean and Japanese dishes. i'll have to try your idea of Shiso Juice Ceviche - please post when you unbag your shiso and have a photo of your creation!

[Nate]

After stumbling across this blog last Fall, I decided to take a crack at the peach mac'n'cheese. What a hit! My girlfriend loves it and now asks for it every time she comes home from college. Great stuff!

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