Entertaining in the Raw - Matthew Kenney [12]
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 tablespoon date paste
Nut flour
2 cups walnut halves
2 cups pecan halves
2 cups almonds
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon sea salt
1-1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1-1/2 cups maple powder
“ricotta”
1-1/4 cups cashews, soaked 1–2 hours
1/4 cup coconut meat
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons raw agave
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
Confit
8 unripe green tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/2 cup raw agave
1/4 teaspoon salt
“Ice cream”
1 cup cashews, soaked 1–2 hours
1/2 cup coconut meat
1/2 cup raw agave
1-1/4 cups water
Pinch sea salt
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup basil
Crust Mix all ingredients together well by hand. Line 1 tart shell with plastic wrap. Press dough very thin into tart shell. Dehydrate 48 hours. Chill crust in freezer for 15–30 minutes before filling.
Nut flour Soak nuts overnight; drain. Dehydrate 24 hours. In a large bowl, coat dehydrated nuts with maple syrup. Combine vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and maple powder, and stir into nuts until they are well coated. Dehydrate on screens for 48 hours. Grind to flour in a food processor.
“Ricotta” Blend all ingredients in a Vita-Mix until very smooth. Fill candied nut crust and chill in freezer overnight. Remove pie from metal tart shell and wrap in plastic wrap. Store in freezer.
confit Toss tomatoes with agave and salt. Dehydrate 30–45 minutes on Teflex sheets. Reserve.
“Ice Cream” Blend all ingredients until smooth. Pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions.
Assembly Cut tart into 8–10 slices with a sharp knife. Optional: You can make 4 small tart shells instead of 1 large. Store any extra crust in quart containers in the freezer.
Spread the green tomato confit across the tart and garnish with “ice cream.” Serves 4
Contemporary
Although nature commences with reason and ends in experience it is necessary for us to do the opposite, that is to commence with experience and from this to proceed to investigate the reason.
—Leonardo Da Vinci
You’ve probably already guessed that contemporary would be my favorite chapter. What most interests me about food is the relationship between time, history, experience—and taste. The spatial differences are profound in some cases, and I was fortunate to learn this early in my career. On a trip to Morocco many years ago, I was taken to a very traditional restaurant in the Medina of Marrakesh, a place where time seems to have stopped and the narrow streets are paved with history and tradition. Upon entering Yacout through a massive old wooden door, you are transported into a magical world of sensory feelings: the feeling of warmth, the smell of spice, the glow of lanterns, the silence of greenery, and the pull of seduction placed on all diners. It is, for the most part, indescribable; but many, including me, will try to convey the experience in words.
It was there that I first tasted the famous Moroccan Lemon Chicken, which is known for its distinct flavor of salty preserved lemon, green olives, and ginger. The chicken was cooked like a stew, with bones, and in a sauce rich with onion, saffron, ginger, and hot pepper. It is a haunting flavor that one can never forget. I left Morocco after that visit with an eagerness that I will always seek to replenish—the desire to be in a kitchen and apply my own set of culinary skills—armed with my newly acquired taste memories.
Back in New York, one of the city’s most esteemed chefs, Jean-Georges Vongrichten, was in the process of opening his first restaurant as an owner, called JoJo, on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Jean-Georges is known for his wildly inventive use of infused oils and juices, all rooted in traditional cooking, and I was very excited to try his new restaurant. I was there on opening night and dozens of times in the next two years. On one of my early visits,