Great Chefs Cook Vegan - Linda Long [3]
New Year’s Eve can be a problem but Chef Daniel Boulud made it happen at Daniel, always listed with the top restaurants in the country. Walter and I were joined by vegan friend Inger Lonmo, who has been on a lot of this journey with me. We enjoyed the “gazillion-dollar” tasting menu created just for the occasion. The feast began with an astounding small box with a lid made of potatoes packed full of grains and black and white truffles, and ended with a huge box made of dark chocolate filled with many chocolate morsels. It was great to see that this time I did not have to remind the chef that chocolate is a plant!
I told Walter that I think there were too many people who had no idea that these chefs were making this level of creative vegan food. As a home economist with deep roots in food, it occurred to me that perhaps I should combine my love of food and photography to share my exciting discoveries. It was all getting too good to keep as a secret. I should write a book!
I approached the chefs who first impressed me and was thrilled when the first one said, “I’ll be in it!” As I asked others, they often commented that they get bored preparing animal products over and over as there are only so many ways to work with them; but plant foods—vegetables, fruits, grains, beans, nuts, and seeds—provide endless options for fabulous dishes, as was evident to see when these great chefs prepared dishes that are included in this book in their own restaurant kitchens and were photographed in their dining rooms.
Each chef was asked to offer a vegan menu of three to four courses. The great Chef Charlie Trotter of Charlie Trotter’s in Chicago had his top chef, Chef Matthias Merges, prepare an entire tasting menu. Often several recipes are needed to make one special dish. It is exciting to realize that many of these recipes can be lifted out to become its own dish, such as making a sorbet and eating it alone, or making a sauce that can be used in your own way.
I learned a lot about plating. Since there were no food stylists (as chefs will not allow anyone to touch their food) I watched as they created their plates. It occurred to me that all the components end up on the plate. Where they land can be a wonderful creative experience, and it adds an exciting dimension to serving and sharing any food.
Most chefs like to have a three-day notice to prepare your fabulous vegan experience in their restaurants as I learned from noticing that the incomparable Chef Thomas Keller, upon opening Per Se, had a nine-course vegetarian tasting menu. I told him that I wanted to come but that the offerings were heavily dairy-laden. He was quick to solve that by saying, “We can make it vegan. Just give us about three days.” And, so I did and so did he. Wow!
If you cannot get to the thirteen cities and twenty-five chefs in this book, just turn the page and take a bite!
Alex Stratta
“When the heart and essence of culinary arts are applied to vegan cuisine, it exemplifies the importance of top-quality ingredients and time-tested techniques to create flavorful and extraordinary new dishes.”
Alessandro “Alex” Stratta’s refined cuisine marries the finest and freshest French Riviera and Italian ingredients. Coming from a long line of restaurateurs and hoteliers, Stratta found his culinary calling early in life, working in some of the world’s finest hotel kitchens. One of his mentors, Alain Ducasse, introduced him to the highest level of passion, dedication, and discipline for his craft at Louis XV at the Hotel de Paris