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FOR THE BOTAN SHRIMP TARTARE

4 botan shrimp, shelled but with tails left on

Oven-Dried Tomatoes

¼ teaspoon ground coriander

¼ teaspoon Dried Lemon Zest (page 270) or a tiny pinch of fresh-grated lemon zest

½ teaspoon minced chives

Sea salt and cracked black pepper

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon Dehydrated Feta (page 232)

TO ASSEMBLE

Oven-Dried Tomatoes

Tomato Vinegar Syrup

4 reserved tail-on botan shrimp pieces

Botan Shrimp Tartare

Tiny leaves basil

OVEN-DRIED TOMATOES

Preheat the oven to 250°F. Toss the tomatoes with the garlic, a little olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and thyme.

Place the tomatoes rounded-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until the tomato pieces are wrinkled but not black, about 6 hours. Cut the pieces into julienne strips.

TOMATO VINEGAR SYRUP

In a saucepan, reduce the vinegar over medium heat to a thick syrup. Cool.

BOTAN SHRIMP TARTARE

Slice down the center of each shrimp toward, but not through, the tail. Lift off half of the butterflied shrimp, leaving the tail attached to the other half. Reserve the tail-on shrimp.

Mince the tail-free shrimp halves into a tartare. In a bowl, combine with the Oven-dried Tomatoes, coriander, Dried Lemon Zest, chives, a little sea salt and pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Toss together and fold in the Dehydrated Feta.

TO ASSEMBLE

Place a dot of the Tomato Vinegar Syrup in the base of each vessel. Place a piece of tail-on shrimp over the syrup. Mound the tartare on top of the tail, and garnish with tiny basil leaves.

HOMAGE TO THE OLD

All the dishes at Anthos pay homage to the old ways. The ultimate praise a student can offer to his or her teacher is to evolve the teacher’s lessons, to present and represent what was learned in new and different ways. I take great pride in being Greek and in cooking Greek food. I am honored to use my chosen profession to show people the possibilities of Greek food. This is my way of giving back.

PSAROKORIZO: SEA URCHIN TSATZIKI WITH CRAB & LOBSTER RISOTTO WITH YOGURT & CAVIAR

SERVES 4

Every once in a while, a chef creates a dish and the kitchen brigade suddenly steps back and becomes very quiet. Everyone knows that something very special has just happened. This is one of those dishes. It is theatrical and cerebral and one of the most spectacular presentations we serve at Anthos.

My inspiration was the classic Lenten dish Spinach Rice (page 167). I wanted to play around with the idea of that dish, which is made with rice stewed together with spinach and tomatoes, but I wanted to refine it and bring in another dimension. We began with lobster and crab, using their bones to make a really rich, classic French-style stock, to enrich the rice. To take it a step further, we brought in the briny influence of sea urchin and added a little fat by incorporating yogurt in the form of tsatziki. We discovered that when we added sea urchin to the tsatziki, it not only mellowed its inherent bold flavor but also enhanced the underlying notes of pure ocean brine. Now that we had created the dish, we decided to plate it in a way that would showcase all the individual elements. After the plate is delivered to the table, the lobster and crab-rich rice is spooned onto the plate from a cooking vessel. The guest is then asked to fold all the ingredients together, unifying the complexity of all the individual flavors at the table. The guest ultimately becomes the last cook, adding the final dimension of design and finishing the plate. Visualize the egg’s richness and the yogurt’s creamy texture engulfing the lobster and crab as the sea urchin starts to break down in the hot rice, and the oils begin to come out and bloom, creating layer upon layer of flavor—all in front of your eyes.

FOR THE SEA URCHIN TSATZIKI

3 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

3 cloves garlic, peeled

¼ cup Greek or sheep’s milk yogurt

1 cup sea urchin tongues (available at some fish markets and Japanese markets)

Kosher salt and cracked black pepper

FOR THE RISOTTO

4 ounces (1 stick)