Great Chefs Cook Vegan - Linda Long [32]
1/2 cup (4 ounces) truffle oil
Sea salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
1 tablespoon minced truffles
To make the Truffle Mustard Emulsion: In a wooden bowl, whisk lemon juice and mustard until smooth. Slowly stream in truffle oil, whisking vigorously. Season with salt and pepper. Add the minced truffles. Whisk again just before serving.
Frisée and Truffles
3 ounces baby frisée, center leaves picked, washed, and cut into small pieces
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large winter or summer truffle: thinly slice half, fine julienne other half
To make the Frisée and Truffles: Place the baby frisée into a mixing bowl, lightly dress with the Truffle Mustard Emulsion, season with salt and pepper, and then toss. Add truffle julienne.
How to Plate: Pack Wheat Berries into a triangular mold and place in the center of a chilled plate; or spoon onto the center of the plate, pressing into a desired shape.
Gently place the Frisée and Truffles on top of the Wheat Berries. Drizzle the Truffle Mustard Emulsion around the plate. Garnish the frisée with the sliced truffles and serve immediately.
Brûlée of Vermicelli Pasta with Lobster, Matsutake, and Blue Foot Mushrooms, and Tomato Marjoram Bouillon
Serves 4
Brûlée of Vermicelli Pasta
1-1/2 quarts corn oil
1 pound vermicelli
Salt
To make the Brûlée of Vermicelli Pasta: Place the oil into a large saucepot and heat to about 325 degrees F. Carefully place the pasta into the oil and stir until golden brown. Turn off the heat and carefully remove pasta from oil; blot off any excess oil on a paper towel. Place the pasta into salted boiling water and cook until al dente, about 9 to 10 minutes depending on the pasta.
Mushrooms
3 tablespoons olive oil
2-1/2 cups mixed wild mushrooms (lobster, matsutake, blue foot, enoki), cleaned and sliced
2 tablespoons finely minced shallots
2 tablespoons tomato concassé (see note)
1 tablespoon margarine
2 tablespoons fresh marjoram leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
To make the Mushrooms: Place the oil in a hot sauté pan over medium heat. When it starts to lightly smoke, add the lobster mushrooms; toss and cook for 1 minute. Add the matsutake, and blue foot mushrooms and shallots, and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Add the enoki mushrooms, tomato concassé, margarine, and marjoram. Season with salt and pepper, remove from the pan, and reserve.
NOTE: To make tomato concassé, chose Roma tomatoes that are not too ripe. Score an X in the skin at the base of each tomato and blanch in boiling water for about 10 seconds until the skin begins to loosen. Remove from hot water and plunge into a bowl of ice water. The skin should now come off easily; if it doesn’t, plunge back into boiling water for a few more seconds. Cut the tomatoes in quarters, remove the core and seeds, and cut into dice of the desired size.
Tomato Bouillon
2 cups fresh tomato juice (whole tomatoes cored and processed in a blender with a pinch of salt until liquefied, then strained through a cheesecloth)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram
1/2 tablespoon chopped lemongrass
Salt and pepper to taste
To make the Tomato Bouillon: Add the tomato juice to a saucepan with the marjoram and lemongrass. Bring to a boil, and continue to boil for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and strain with a cheesecloth. Reserve, keeping it hot.
Garnish
Whole marjoram leaves
4 small bunches baby snow pea sprouts
How to Plate: Toss the Brûlée of Vermicelli Pasta into the Tomato Bouillon. Using a cook’s fork, twirl the pasta onto a fork and place in the center of a hot plate. Remove the fork so that the pasta stands up on the plate. Artfully arrange the Mushrooms around the pasta, garnish with marjoram leaves and pea sprouts. Serve immediately.
Terrine of White and Green Asparagus with Truffles and Beet Horseradish Dressing
Serves 8
White Asparagus Purée
6 tablespoons agar-agar
1 onion, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and white pepper to taste
2 bunches white asparagus
1 cup asparagus stock, made by reducing cooking water
1 teaspoon