Just Another Day

Buffet 10.11.07
30人

 

Citrus Poached Asparagus
Yuzu and White Soya
***
Steamed Canadian Chanterelle Custards
White Truffle Oil
***
Crab Claws and Wasabi Cocktail

 

***
Japanese Greens
Toasted Peppercorn Vinaigrette
***
Grilled Roots and Shoots
Aged Balsamic and Goats Cheese
***
Maple Smoked Sockeye Salmon
Pickled Shallots and Fried Capers
***
Canadian Inspired Sushi
Salted Cod Roe and Giant Kelp Nigiri
Arctic Surf Clams Scented with Cedar
***
Blackened Fillets of Ling Cod
Sauce “Fire Cracker”
Chilled Chinese Vegetables
***
Herb Incrusted Rack of Spring Lamb
Spiced Dijon
***
Sautéed Green Peas with Mint
Vegetable Confetti
***
Dessert Table

Just Another Night

Buffet 09.11.07

60人

 

Citrus Poached Asparagus
Yuzu and White Soya
***
Steamed Canadian Chanterelle Custards
White Truffle Oil
***
Chilled Homemade Tofu
Sliced Scallions, Ponzu Jellies
***
Grilled Roots and Shoots
Aged Balsamic and Goats Cheese
***
Maple Smoked Sockeye Salmon
Pickled Shallots and Fried Capers
***
Canadian Inspired Sushi
Salted Cod Roe and Giant Kelp Nigiri
Arctic Surf Clams Scented with Cedar
***
Blackened Fillets of Ling Cod
On Braised Fennel and Winter Herbs
***
Herb Incrusted Rack of Spring Lamb
Spiced Dijon
***
Sautéed Green Peas with Mint
Vegetable Confetti
***

Assorted Desserts

Oh The Flavor Flave

Mamma pajama! The pickles are so good after only one week, but I think the carrots will need longer due to their density.

Donnie Brasco says;

“Forget about it eh!”

Spraying Chocolate, Cuisine=innovation + passion

Not long ago I was in Canada renovating my house with my brother. Memories provide a vivid account of yet another 14-hour shift completed in an apprentices cramped kitchen. Upon a short walk home and dripping with self worth we quickly dove into our work cloths and, at 1am, started gutting the bathroom, living room or dinning room.

One of the most pronounced projects we embarked on was the installment of a wood burning stove. It was to be placed upon a brick and mortar slab and would eventually save us during the winter months. My father and I laid a foundation, began placing the bricks and mortar in its place but found it difficult to keep the bricks clean and we didn’t want to damage the newly refinished floors by cleaning the bricks after. It wasn’t until we were about 10 bricks in that I realized the addition of mortar and brick essentially was no different than icing a cake. I ran to my tool kit and grabbed my largest pastry bag I owned, filled it with mortar and piped the “icing” between the bricks. The smile on my fathers face, a carpenter by trade, as I combined both our passions into one it was something I will never forget.

Recently I embarked on little experiment of spraying chocolate over my desserts to give a powdered look to the exterior. With a painter’s spray gun and a mix of cocoa butter and chocolate it turned out to be a great way to present the desserts to our guests. Crisp; impossibly thin chocolate that melts into oblivion when consumed.

This is what cuisine is all about, doing what is close to your heart and in an innovative way.

Imagine what can happen when you combine your daily passion with a lust for food.

 

 

 

 

The Best Pickles

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Currently making 4L of persimmon shochu, I added a little rock sugar to take the edge off the rice wine. I’m also slinging together 15kg of Pate Maison

 

Also I refuse to go another season with out some homemade pickles.

 

Grandma, this one is for you.

Stock Market Crashes 2.0 :A Market of Bear Cost and Bull Shit

I’m spoiled.

No it’s true. As a young professional (just turned 27) I have worked hard all my life to allow myself the opportunity of putting passion, morals and integrity ahead of the business. Although I am capable of performing the biz angle when necessary . The truth is that I don’t own a restaurant nor do I have a swelling mortgage. Grandma Ledarney always said “pay in cash or pay the price”. I don’t have a stack of letters every month from outstanding purveyors all demanding payment in full by months end, oh and no credit [sorry]. I receive no “friendly reminders” from the bank that the payments need to be made and I don’t hold a daily circus show of juggling credit cards to make ends meet. Hemorrhaging money is no fun.

This said, I find the choice to make everything in my kitchen from scratch an easy one. Chefs have been doing so, economically I might add, since Mr. Caveman made his first mud pie. Butter in butter cream, bones in broth. There is nothing that brings on a dry heave quite like the oil slick coating of butter cream which has been made from an emulsified shortening containing 33million other ingredients I couldn’t pronounce whether it be in English or Chinese.

Like I said, I’m spoiled.

Growing up in a family with little money, not starving but still a bean counting nuclear unit, I find myself hardwired to excel through hard work perseverance and the understanding of the classics.

In light of making a living and the horrors of inner industry competition one could understand the need for 100L of flavor, spray dried and packaged into a can.

Let’s face it, the choice is all of ours to make. When do we let go of an inch to gain a mile? I far do we travel down that mile before we u-turn and return to our roots?

It is life’s great irony that the hard things are easy to let go but hard to regain.

I’m a chef.

Prep, Plate, Publish

 

 

 

Just think of how amazing it is that with in 5 minutes of plating this dish I published it in real time to my website, blog and flickr account. Technology truly meshes with us at every part of our day and in the subtlest ways.

The Stock Market Crashes!

The Stock Market Crashes!

Sell, Sell, Sell

It seems that restaurants everywhere are unknowingly taking the soul out their foods. With an ever-growing disposable income now growing in the world, new markets rising while others fall. It becomes difficult to find a proper broth, sauce, soup or stock that hasn’t either come from can or sprinkled between the digits of the most famous “chefs”. Productivity is everything these days. Now, more than ever, kitchens are expected to push larger quantities of consumers to the trough while the margin for food cost, yield percentages and kitchen space don’t change.

Base, oxo or ninja powder, they have many forms. I personally have five cans of the Knorr “consommé” powder in my kitchen. I find it adds a sturdy base to my cuisine. I should clarify that by sturdy base I mean I use the cans under the legs of my kitchen counter to level it off [ha ha]. What’s the point of adding powdered flavor to something if the end result is hollow, salty and not flavorful?

Take the time to cook properly. Actually scratch that. In this day and age we should all try to take the time and do anything properly.

Do it because it’s worth doing, not for advancement.

Bouillabaisse For Lunch Today

At the moment I’m entertaining a wonderful bouillabaisse for lunch today. A delicious broth of lobster bodies, leeks, fennel and celery leaves and tomatoes. For the seafood selection I have opted for Canadian black cod, lobster from Nova Scotia, king prawns, divers scallops and Pacific salmon.

My favorite part is the roullie. I love the zesty addition of this little potato aioli; I’ve added saffron and some chili to give it some kick.

Keep in mind this dish originated from the icy decks of fisherman’s boats. Large cast iron caldrons would be piled high with the bones and heads of the daily catch. It provided a hot meal on those lonely nights that was not only cheap but incredibly nutritious as well.

The word rouille in French literally mean “rust”. It is this tangerine color that gives the potato aioli its name due to the change in color from oxidation. It is used to add body and flavor to this otherwise light meal and pairs well with the crusty breads of the day.

The process is simple, as most great foods tend to be, braise the seafood in the broth, season, add a selection of roots and shoots, reseason and then plate. I like to dollop the roullie into the bowls and crown it off with some fresh winter herbs such as hearty thyme and elephant basil.

Of course what is life, and love for that matter, without crusty bread.

Yes, I love my job but I lust for crusty bread.

12 Years In, 390 Plates, 6 Distinct Courses…1 Sore Back

There is simply nothing like the feeling of pride and pain consuming your body simultaneously

 

 

 

Trilogy of Elixirs
Rock Lobster Consomme Perfumed with Saffron
Minted Green Pea Harvest Brûlée
Jellied Tomato H20 with Fried Oysters
***
Crisp Honey Glazed King Prawns
on Ruby Red Tuna Tataki
Leek Compression and A Few Herbs
***
Homemade Silken Tofu
White Soya and Yuzu Nagé
Sea Grass Wafer
***
Lamb Loins Grilled Over Lava Rock
on Poached Ivory Asparagus
with Burgundy Potato Fondue
and Spiced Dijon Confiture
***
Ice
“Gin and Tonic”
Juniper Sorbet with Tonic Bullion
Dried Olive Staccato

 

Umeboshi Granité
Paired with Red Shiso
and Kinako Brittle
***
“Life By Chocolate”

 

Lacquered Bitter Cocoa Diplomat
Milk Chocolate and Nougat Mousse
Pistachio Crescendo
24 Karats