mm84321

Salmon with pigeon consommé

I mostly agree. Tweezed food can look nice at times, if done right, but more often than not, it just looks silly. Per se and The French Laundry are fine examples of this silliness (or perhaps "frilly" is the right word). When I ate at Per se, the plates were all painfully composed, unfortunately, this did not prevent my lamb and lobster from being overcooked, nor my monkfish from having no taste or my foie gras from being as bland as a manilla folder. Anyway, the best looking food comes not from the plate nor the arrangement, but the overall precision in technique. And less is usually more.

I think it looks fine. I mean, it is what it is: a bowl of pasta. It would probably look silly, or at least less honest, plated otherwise. What I would suggest you working on, however, are new plates.

Some of us just have higher standards when it comes to chicken carving, I suppose.

Great looking bird, sigma. Knife skills could use a little work, but you're getting there!

Pigeon, petit pois á la Francaise

Those look delicious, Franci.

Which one? Where did you buy the tree?

Do any shops in NYC carry?

I'm as intrigued as you!

Suckling pig, sauce charcuterie

Thanks. I will try to do the same for future posts. It is perhaps not the most flattering angle. Thanks, though!

Suckling pig from Four Story Hill Farm. For this, the rack and saddle are used. The saddle is split and roasted on the bone. Ravioli are made with Brin d'Amour. The cheese is mixed with its herbs to make a smooth paste. It is then piped onto shortcrust dough, and folded like regular ravioli. These are fried quickly in olive oil and then glazed in a mixture of honey vinegar, honey and olive oil, all from Corsica. Spinach from my garden Cooked simply in butter with a clove of garlic. This is then drained and pressed into round molds. The spinach is garnished with carrots and celery root which are also cooked in butter A pork jus is made from the scraps, browned in oil first, then butter, shallots, garlic and chicken stock. The fat is clarified then added back in. The consistency should just coat a spoon. The rack and saddle are browned on the stovetop, then finished in the oven and allowed to rest for at least 10 minutes.

Thanks, Tina. Great looking julienne.

Pigeon with cumin

mm84321, you've transfigured a monstrosity there. It looks almost too beautiful to eat... Could you tell me what you have lying underneath your fish? Thanks. It is a bed of caramelized spring onion.

Sole braised with clams, pommes boulangére with lemon thyme

Season's been finished for over a month now.

Thanks, Steve. On the bottom is hard boiled egg yolk, passed through a tamis and mixed with some chopped chives. The top is cracked malabar pepper and the "shoots" of a green asparagus.

White asparagus from Provence, sauce Hollandaise

I recently purchased a bag of sorbitol for a savory madeleine recipe. What are some other good uses for it? Thanks.

That's what I figured. I wouldn't serve any fish that was not fresh enough to eat raw. I prefer salmon cooked rare, just to the point where it will flake. I let it rest for 20 minutes or so, then reheated in the olive oil just before plating. The guests loved it and ate every bit, so I was happy.

Interesting. I'll have to give it a try. I love green almonds.

That's interesting. So you eat the green shells of the almonds? How is the texture? I've never tried cooking them whole like that.

So, I did not have time to do a brine. I basically just seared the salmon on one side, then poached in olive oil at 60C until a center of 32C. Did not get one trace of albumin, so that was good.