Sweet on Texas

So i decided to make a Texas themed tasting for Ms Lisa Fain because of her twitter handle @homesicktexan. What better way to welcome a Texan home than with a pea-can pie? sent out a cry for help on twitter, and within 5 minutes, my menu was written. i love my twitter family, so very helpful.


Texan Dessert Tasting

pecan tart, milk jam, coffee ice cream

apple and cheddar hot pockets, vanilla ice cream

"corndog" corncakes, hot dog ketchup, mustard ice cream

tres leches - my way

fried pumpkin cupcake, buttercream ice cream

texas toast pain perdu, bacon ice cream

sweet potato beignets, brown butter ice cream

oaxacan hot chocolate, alfajores

sweet sweet foie

foie cookies
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

order seared foie at a restaurant. chances are you will more than likely get something super sweet that pairs with its. gastriques, pineapples, brittle, etc. so why hasn't anyone used foie as a full on dessert?

i mean, why not?

so far i have to applications with foie (more to come in the future): buttercream and ice cream.

pictured are oatmeal cookies with foie gras buttercream and dulce de leche. the other dessert i have with foie is butterscotch bread pudding, nutella, foie gras ice cream.

coming up with the recipes was quite simple. and in sharing fashion (and if you just happen to have foie laying around), here are the recipes:

foie gras buttercream
4 oz foie gras
14 oz butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup heavy cream
pinch salt

cook foie in pan over medium heat. be sure to contantly whisk to avoid burning.
cook foie until all fat has been rendered out and foie protein has caramelized.
strain through fine chinois, press down on chinois to get as much of the caramelized foie fat (remember, foie is expensive, no waste!)
chill over night.
next day place foie fat, butter, sugar, cream and salt in bowl of electric mixer.
with paddle attachment, mix until buttercream is smooth and light. done and enjoy!

foie gras ice cream
6 oz foie gras
2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
pinch salt
1/8 tsp xantham gum

cook foie in pot over medium heat. cook until all fat from foie has rendered out and is caramelized.
add remaining ingrediemts, whisk until hot.
once hot, place in blender and blen on high.
strain foie ice cream base with fine chinois.
chill.
run in and according to ice cream machine.
done and enjoy.

if you attempt these recipes, lemme know if you need any help.hope all goes well and enjoy foie as a dessert

let them eat cake

lately i've been noticing (after a few cocktails) alot of crazy ideas are born at anvil. for example, riding the MS150 next year. and now this: a 10 course all cake dessert tasting!! very excited about this one.

heres the preliminary menu:

carrot cake souffle (charlie palmer) w/ spiced ginger ice cream
red velvet cake w/ cream cheese ice cream
german chocolate cake w/ coconut ice cream
warm pumpkin cake w/ brown butter ice cream
devils and angels food cake w/ apricot sorbet
cheesecake
"breakfast" donuts, bacon, jelly, egg
sweet potato beignet w/ bacon ice cream
funnel cake w/ spam ice cream
brown butter pound cake w/ goat cheese ice cream

also, after a few cocktails i too said that i would pair each course with an ice cream.

oh! and if you would like to do this tasting, email me. lets set a date psandalio@yahoo.com

before/after dessert tasting

a few days back i posted on twitter about doing a before and after dessert tasting. this was in response to my own fear that people think i can't make classic desserts. in order to prove to them (and myself), i will be doing very classic desserts as part of this tasting. the tasting will consist of a very classic preparation on a dessert followed by a modern preparation.

this is the tentative menu

1. classic: creme brulee / modern: vanilla custard in textures

2. classic: lava cake / modern: toasted chocolate sponge, warm chocolate spheres

3. classic: cheesecake / modern: graham cracker cheesecake, crispy cream cheese crust

4. classic: souffle / modern: 10 second microwave souffle

5. classic: lemon meringue pie / modern: lemon frozen custard, hot meringue, liquid sable

still have no date for this tasting, but if you interested email me. also, if you have any dessert requests you'd like to see on the before/after tasting, email me.

houston press interview

plinio by fabio
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

a few days back i was interviewed by david buehrer for the houston press' eating our words blog.

read the interview herehere

tenacity

ceviche
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

randy has brought back his tenacity dinners.

jj, justin basye, joseph gentempo, rainbow lodge crew and myself were fortunate to be at the tenacity rebirth.

press, reviews and links

just a word or two about textile

texas monthly: textile

gourmet: first taste of textile

houston chronicle: hot, new restaurants grace the houston landscape

houston chronicle: textile

houston press review: the tastes of textile

food in houston blog: houston's top 10 restaurants

food in houston blog: halcyon days: a dinner at textile

great food houston blog: textile

great food houston blog: textile revisited

tasty bits blog: first taste of textile

eat me houston blog: textile


just a word or two about desserts at textile

dirty kitchen adventures: dessert tasting

houston chronicle: houston's best dessert spots

houston press: best of houston: best desserts

i'm never full blog: how to spoil a girl like me

great food houston blog: crazylicious dessert tasting

from the gutt blog: textile

barley vine blog: textile

pondering fall

photo credit lancastrian @ flickr


some ideas for fall menu at textile

nutella bread pudding, roasted foie gras ice cream, butterscotch

gouda cannolie, pumpkin mousse, salted caramel ice cream

figs, brown butter pound cake, goat cheese ice cream

pear tart, mushroom iced tea

apple - lucuma terrine, apple sorbet, sweet potato chips

molecular gastronomy or not?

a few days ago i was watching a midsummer night's dream on TCM, the 1935 version. it got me thinking about my favorite shakespeare quote (from romeo and juliet).

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

so i started thinking in food terms. what's in a name? that which we call food by any other name would still be delicious.

molecular gastronomy is the study of food. molecular gastronomy explore textures, scents, temperatures and flavors in food. it's a progression of food. so why all the hate? because we dont really understand it? sometimes it's better to vent and hate than to do any research. no?

so i pose a quiz. you tell me: is it molecular gastronomy or not?

frozen aerated butter foam

encapsulated beef and mushrooms

dehydrated meat

encapsulated jalapeno and cheese

encapsulated ganache

sous vide cheese emulsion

explosion of corn

compressed and puffed grains

compressed liver

molded fat and air molecules

aerated sugar cookie

potato paper

slow oil poached flour

hot foam

dehydrated fruit puree

dehydrated ocean water

carbonized sugar crystals

extract of bones

suspended vinegar and oil emulsion


what do you think?

[photo from howstuffworks.com]
[oh, for the record, i hate the term 'molecular gastronomy']

coconut and avocado

coconut and avocado
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

part of summer a la carte menu at textile:

coconut pound cake, avocado ice cream, horchata, cilantro, citrus

peach melba vacherin

peach melba vacherin
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

part of summer a la carte menu at textile:

"peach melba vacherin", peach sorbet, vanilla meringue, white chocolate mousse, raspberry sauce

houston modern luxury magazine

houston magazine cover
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

the cover photo of the restaurant issue by houston modern luxury is of my goat cheese and rhubarb dessert.

photo by julie soefer

watermelon and feta

watermelon and feta
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

summer dessert at textile: watermelon and feta

watermelon sorbet, spiced streusel, balsamic compressed watermelon, pickled watermelon rind, feta cheesecake

corndog dessert

corndog dessert
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

fried corncake, hot dog ketchup, yellow american mustard ice cream.




corndog batter

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
1 ea egg
1 cup milk

combine dry ingredients. in separate bowl combine egg and milk. add to dry ingredients. refrigerate for at least 1 hour before use.


mustard ice cream

1 qt cream
3 cups milk
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
12 oz butter
9 oz yellow american mustard

heat cream, milk, sugar, light corn syrup and butter. once butter is fully melted, remove from heat and chill completely. once chilled, whisk in mustard and immediately run in ice cream machine.


hot dog ketchup

8 oz ketchup
1/4 oz molasses
6 oz light brown sugar
2 ea hot dogs

heat ketchup, molasses and light brown sugar until sugars have melted. chop hot dogs and add to ketchup mix. cook for 3 minutes. remove from heat and run in blender. strain through chinois.

fried chicken dessert

fried chicken dessert
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

on monday june 8th, houston had its second throwdown. this time the throwdown was fried chicken. i entered the creative category with chicken ice cream and all the fixins'. it was a tough and fun battle. at the end i came in second. first place was a deep fried chicken sausage balantine with watermelon salad and watermelon ice tea.

this was my entry.
chicken ice cream, buttermilk biscuit, guajillo honey, chicken fried chicken skin

what really surprised me was the amount of food fans dying to taste the chicken ice cream. its so awesome to live in the a city with such a diverse food scene, hungry mouths and amazing chef community.

and now, the recipes

chicken ice cream

2 ea whole chickens, bones only
18 oz butter
6 cups heavy cream
4 1/2 cups milk
4 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp black pepper, ground

blanch chicken bones for 1 minutes in pot of boiling water.
drain water, reserve bones.
toss bones in small amount of oil, place on sheet pan with roasting rack.
roast chicken bones at 325 for 30 minutes.
remove bones from oven. place in pot.
pour milk and cream over bones.
heat milk and bones mix on low heat for 30 minutes.
remove from heat. pour into container, bones and milk (chicken veloute), and store in cooler over night.
next day, heat chicken veloute until a light simmer for 10 minutes.
remove from heat and strain. discard bones, reserve chicken veloute.
pour chicken veloute back into pot, add butter, sugar, light corn syrup, salt and black pepper.
heat over medium heat for 15 minutes.
remove from heat and let chill.
pour into ice cream machine and run as machine instructs.



buttermilk biscuits

6 cups flour
6 Tbsp sugar
4 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp spice mix
12 oz butter, cold
1 1/2 cups mozzarela, grated
2 1/4 cups buttermilk

place flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and spice mix in electric mixer with paddle attachment.
run on low to mix all ingredients.
cut butter into small cubes, add to flour mix.
mix until mixture resembles corn meal
add mozzarela.
once fully mixed, add buttermilk.
mix until dough barely starts coming together.
remove from bowl and knead by hand. knead just until dough forms.
roll to about 1 inch thick. portion.
bake at 350 for 15 - 20 minutes.



spice mix

1 Tbsp cayenne
1 Tbsp smoked paprika
1 tsp curry powder
1 Tbsp chili powder

mix well.



seasoned flour

4 Tbsp spice mix
2 Tbsp salt
1 cup flour

mix well.



crispy chicken skin


2 ea whole chickens, skin only
1 cup seasoned flour
as needed spice mix

carefully remove chicken skin from chicken. keep whole.
scrape off excess fat with knife; careful not to tear the skin.
season skin with sea salt.
sandwich in between two roasting racks.
roast at 325 for 15 minutes. this will get rid of excess water and fat.
chill, vaccuum pack, store in cooler.
to order, pat skins in seasoned flour. fry at 350 until golden brown.
season with spice mix.



guajillo honey

6 oz guajillos, stem and seeds removed
1/2 oz chile de arbol, stem and seeds removed
2 lbs honey
8 oz water
1 tsp salt


thinly slice guajillos and chile de arbol
heat pan over high heat with no oil.
add chiles into hot pan, toss constantly to prevent burning.
after 2 minutes of tossing, add water and mix.
add honey and salt.
lower heat and let simmer lightly for 20 minutes.
remove from heat and store in container in cooler over night.
next day, heat on low heat for 15 minutes.
strain, discard chiles and reserve honey.
let chill at room temp.

enjoy.

egg ^ 3

egg on egg on egg
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

one of the best sandwiches ever! egg on egg on egg.

bacon gribiche and egg salad, baby romaine, fried egg and baguette

bacon gribiche
3 ea Eggs, hard boiled
5 Tbsp Mayonnaise
1 1/2 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
2 tsp Parsley, chopped
1 tsp Cayenne
1/2 tsp Lime juice
4 oz Bacon, extra crispy

chop the eggs, add mayo, mustard, parsley, cayenne and lime juice. mix well.
chop the bacon, add. mix well.

now assemble the sandwich.
toast baguette
spread a thick layer of bacon gribiche
baby romaine
top with fried egg

enjoy!

pastry cream: can you get any unhealthier?

unhealthier: yes.
more delicious: yes.

how?

i remember back in culinary school always being amazed by making mayonnaise. the ingredients are simple, the technique is simple, the end result is amazing! but what amazed me most was the texture. it was very similar to pastry cream.

so i thought, can we make pastry cream like we would make mayonnaise?

the ingredients are similar too, so in theory it should work.

mayonnaise: egg yolks, vinegar, fat, seasoning.
pastry cream: egg yolks, milk, fat, sugar.

my only concern was the sugar, how would it contribute to the emulsion? will it break it or will it stabilize it? sugar helps the structure of meringue and sabayon, so i assumed it would do likewise here.

initial test recipe.
7 eggs
12 oz brown butter
1 cup milk
2 cups sugar
pinch salt

results:
it was nowhere near like mayonnaise. instead it was more like a thick anglaise. since it had such a fat content, i decided to refrigerate it and hope for the best the next day. the next day the custard set into a beautiful thick custard, pudding.

so it kind of worked, but i'll keep working on the recipe.

future applications?
mayo style custards: bacon, olive oil, foie, nut oils, etc.

goat cheese bavarois

goat cheese bavarois
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

new dessert at textile as part of our 7 course tasting menu.

goat cheese bavarois, peppered blueberries, basil mint syrup, basil mint crisps, rhubarb compote, candied rhubarb

fried sauerkraut balls

fried sauerkraut balls
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

had lunch yesterday at wunsche bros cafe, a really nice little cafe in old town spring.

this was our appetizer. fried sauerkraut and sausage balls. and it was amazing!!

i am convinced that any food in ball form is delicious ... think about it, beignets. donut holes. rochers. pb balls. fried ice cream. fritters. takoyaki. cheese balls.

idea: HOUSTON BALLS TOUR!!!
purpose: hit every restaurant in houston that offers food in ball form and rate it on a delicious scale. also, find weird food balls.

or maybe the word balls is just too funny not to say multiple times.

balls balls balls balls

donut jucy lucy burger

donut jucy lucy burger
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

this was my dinner last night. as you can see, its almost as big as the lone star bottle.

if you have not tried it, i urge you to do so. i was in food coma last night. this was awesome!!

recipe for sucess:
glazed donuts
jalapeno monterey jack stuffed burger (jucy lucy)
bacon
fried egg

if i ever have a heart attack, i know where it started.

cocktail vending machine?

the pisco sour started my fascination with cocktails out of a siphon. i've been joking around with the idea of creating a "serve yourself" cocktail machine. it would work much like the soda machines. convenience or nuisance?

when you think about it, soda used to be made to order by a person. the person was known as a soda jerk. he would take the syrup you liked and added carbonated water. years later the soda machine came and it did the same thing. can we do this with cocktails? would we want to do this with cocktails?

i dont.

i like the idea as a novelty item, but nothing more than that. i like my mixologist making my cocktails. as you all know, i'm a huge fan of anvil. i'm there practically every other night!!

but the idea of a cocktail vending machine still lingers. its doable. its fun.

tonight at textile i served ramos gin fizz from a siphon. it literally takes me 5 seconds to put the whole thing together. 5 seconds!!

the mix is made. orange flower water, gin, st germain, lime juice, lemon juice, simple syrup, cream, egg white. then its put in the siphon. first its charge with a co2 cartridge to make it fizzy. then its charged with no2 cartridge, so that when its dispensed its foamy. the last step is to add a little of the mix (not in the siphon) and give it a stir.

haha! soon i'll just have a row of siphons with different cocktails. serve yourself.

fruit plate

fruit plate
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

sometimes all you want at the end of a meal is a bowl of fruit. enjoy!

fruits: grapefruit, orange, mango, plum, peach, apple
garnishes: yogurt, micro basil, olive oil

cheese and crackers

i thought this would be a hit at textile. much more so than the bacon fried brownies. maybe i haven't given it time yet (just put it on the a la carte menu). its not a cheese plate, but a play on it. its not a cheesecake, but a play on it. so technically, i still have not done a cheesecake at textile. woo!

crescenza "cheese whiz", graham crackers, farro "smacks", kumquats.

[picture coming soon]

olive dessert

olive dessert
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

part of 7 course tasting at textile. a savory dessert. pre dessert is a 1 second grapefruit pisco sour

olive.
pistachio oil sponge, candied olives, olive chips, olive "granola", rosemary creme, grapefruit


on a side note. i absolutely detest olives! but in this form, i will gladly eat them like a snack.

the olives are first blanched in water. blanched a second time in light simple syrup. blanched a third time in heavy simple syrup. and finally reserved in a rosemary simple syrup. the final result gives the olives the texture of canned cherries, but with a mellow salt and briny olive flavor.

investors! investors! investors!

i need your money.

i want to open an indian taco truck in the midtown/montrose area. open from midnight to 4 am targeting all the drunkies. offering delicious classic indian dishes.

gimme money!

1 minute farro puffs

this stemmed off from the original idea. can you pop farro like popcorn? tried it, and no. there is one way though, but it involved using liquid nitrogen (which i dont have!!)

so next options were corn nuts or puffed grains. did a combination of both methods and got a very very nice result. and in a minute!!

1. put grains and flavored liquid in a vacuum seal bag. (1:1 ratio by volume)
2. seal.
3. cook in microwave (power 9) for 30 seconds.
4. remove from bag, drain excess liquid. (if any)
5. fry for 30 seconds in fryer set at 350.
6. drain on paper towels.
7. season to taste.

and since ancient grains are healthy, (for the health conscious) these make for a very healthy snack.

ideas ... chocolate and puffed farro bark, puffed farro brittle, candied farro, farro streusel, etc

we are going to order sorghum and amaranth soon, try this method and the popcorn method. will report with results.

bacon fried brownies

bacon fried brownies
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

bacon fried brownies, bourbon pudding, ancho chili ice cream

yeah, its good. (needs a more pronounced bacon flavor, though)

spring spring spring!!

spring is around the corner and i can't wait! new menus!!!

gravitas spring menu
gravitas favorites:
chocolate and hazelnut mousse, caramel ice cream
butterscotch bread pudding, vanilla ice cream
smoked chocolate brownies, spiced peanuts, chocolate ice cream

seasonal:
peanut butter tart, banana ice cream, caramel
coffee flan, chicory soil, shortbread
tx style cheesecake, white chocolate bbq, pecan pralines
warm almond cake, strawberry sorbet, sesame granola

textile spring menu
"strawberry shortcake", pistachio scone, compressed strawberries, buttermilk ice cream
ginger cake, grapefruit in two textures, cocoa nib praline
"peas and carrots", carrot cake, molasses, sweet peas, dairy maids crescenza cheese
bacon fried brownies, maple pudding, ancho chile ice cream
"turtle", bittersweet chocolate torchon, liquid pecans, caramel, pecan brittle

dessert tasting, 3 course
dessert tasting, 5 course

off menu items possible for dessert tastings:
sweet potato beignets
bacon ice cream
1 second pisco sour
banana pudding lollipops
gianduja and potato ice cream cones


i still have a week to finalize my menus. what do you think so far? any suggestions? any items you would like on my menus?

i can still bake!

maddie cake
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

not everything i do is modern or "molecular". see!!

... on brownies

is there more than one way to cook a brownie?

the one way i know (and have followed since i first started baking) is to mix the flour, eggs and sugar. meanwhile, melt the butter and chocolate in a separate bowl. then mix them all and bake.

but could we do it faster?

sure, stovetop brownies!

the french laundry cookbook is still a source of endless inspiration. the idea for a stovetop brownie stems from thomas keller's veloute of bittersweet chocolate recipe. in the recipe sebastian makes a veloute of bittersweet chocolate, folds it with meringue and then bakes it. a veloute!! (on a side note: the french laundry cookbook instigated my determination to end the line between savory and sweet. we should not separate it like that. it should be more start, middle and end. afterall, its food and we all eat. and as chefs, we should excel in all fields of cooking.)

so a veloute.

stovetop brownies.
make a blond roux with the butter and flour.
add the sugar and eggs. (the flour prevents the eggs from curdling - a tip from molecular gastronomy by herve this)
cook until mix resembles a thick custard.
remove from heat and add chocolate.
mix until chocolate melts.
pour into prepared pan.


this is an idea. i have not tested it to see the results, but in theory this sounds solid. just imagine, if you cooked the roux further than blond. imagine the flavors built by adding a dark roux to a brownie.

of course, this method produces a custardy and gooey brownie. (personally, its how i like my brownies.) if you seek a brownie that is more like cake, abandon this procedure.

i will test this out over the weekend and post an update with results.

was textile reviewed today??

yes, textile was reviewed today by katharine Shilcutt.

and it was a good review, but i think/know we will be definitely overlooked by another restaurant review.

alison cook wrote a stellar review. actually, its the best review i've read by alison. she reviewed an amazing chef and friend, randy rucker of the rainbow lodge.

go randy!

its rodeo time!

rodeo brownies
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

and in the restaurant industry, we know this means business is going to be slow.

inspired by the rodeo, i have created a brownie with the flavors of the rodeo.

applewood smoked brownie, white chocolate bbq sauce, spiced peanuts, bbq crisps

pisco sour pop 'ems

when you dont have it, you really want it. while at america's we had liquid nitrogen readily available, but i didnt have any use for it. now i have an idea that requires liquid nitrogen, but i dont have it.

i believe alex and rick first played around with foams and liquid nitrogen. they would fill balloons with a siphon charged with no2 cartridges. then they would spin the balloons in liquid nitrogen to quickly freeze the foam. [if you recall, homaro cantu used this technique on his iron chef battle]. the result is a hollow orb.

idea.

what would happen if i filled a balloon with my siphon pisco sour and spinned it in liquid nitrogen? a hollow orb?

i predict the result would be a hollow orb. what then when i let it rest and thaw in the freezer? the alcohol would thaw, but the eggwhite and the syrup would remain frozen. where would the alcohol go? will it fill the hollow orb? will the end result be a crispy orb with a liquid center? how would it taste? my idea is to make pisco sour pop 'ems. a frozen orb of crispy "meringue" filled with pisco.

will it work?
dammit! where is the liquid nitrogen when i need it!

bacon ice cream

the first time i read/heard about this was from the fat duck where they featured a smoked bacon and egg ice cream.

the second time i heard and finally tasted bacon ice cream was at beaver's.

and now its featured at textile.

bacon ice cream

12 oz applewood smoked bacon
3 cups sugar
3 cups milk
4 cups cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp xanthan gum

chop bacon into small pieces.
cook in large pot until bacon is crispy.
add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
run in blender on high for 5 minutes. (you'll have to do it in batches)
pass through seive.
run on ice cream machine.

enjoy!

answer: yes there is!

pisco sour
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

pisco sour made in a siphon charged with 2 no2 cartridges.

sour mix:
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
4 ea limes, juice only
3 ea lemons, juice only

pisco sour
3 cups sour mix
4 oz pisco
3 ea egg white
1 ea whole nutmeg, zest only

pour the pisco sour into the siphon. close tightly and shake to integrate the ingredients. charge with 2 no2 cartridges. chill for at least an hour.

enjoy!

question: when your alc'is order 7 pisco sours at the same time, is there a quick way to make them?

so two nights ago, i was at beavers with friends; seven of us. we walk up to the bar and order 7 pisco sours. granted, the bar was busy at the time, but the whole process in making the pisco sours takes time. its mainly the shaking of the drink until the egg white creates a nice foam.

3 minutes into the shaking, i turn to randy and tell him they could probably make the pisco super quick in a siphon. so randy starts teasing them by telling them he's got siphons in his car.

so with that idea, last night i experimented with making pisco sour in a siphon charged with no2 cartridges.

when you think about it, it makes perfect sense! siphons (with no2 cartridges) turn heavy cream into whipped cream in seconds. could it do the same for the pisco sour?

textile dessert menu - revision

i've been saying it since i put it on there, and its finally off. the season has been done, it was time to go [aside from many other reasons]. the liquid pumpkin pie is no more. if you loved it and need to get your fix, go to Gravitas.

so here are the revisions:

a la carte

coffee and milk/ pain perdu, milk jam, ice milk, bacon streusel, coffee foam

pb/ peanut butter fudge, orange jam, candied bread, spiced peanuts

apple/ vanilla pound cake, apple confiture, blue cheese ice cream, butterscotch

chocolate/ manjari “torchon”, liquid cranberries, cocoa nib brittle

fried/ sweet potato beignets, cinnamon pudding, honey, bacon ice cream


5 course

dessert – sweet potato beignets, cinnamon pudding, honey, bacon ice cream
- or –
cheese – artisinal cheeses


7 course

intermezzo – cucumber, orange, yogurt

pre-dessert – quince, honey, milk

dessert – banana, caramel, corn fritter, mustard pudding

color menu no.1 - yellow

i have been wanting to do desserts based on color for some time now. i think this idea started after seeing will goldfarbs desserts (based on color) on art culinaire.

this week at textile i am featuring one of seven color desserts, yellow.

banana, caramel, corn fritter, mustard pudding.
[picture to come soon]

v-day at textile

i've been so inundated with work at gravitas that i completely forgot about a v-day menu at textile. so here its kiddos.

gravita's valentine's day desserts:
lavender creme brulee, citrus madeleines
or
white chocolate bavarian, strawberry sorbet, almond twists

textile's menu is a bit different. since its the day for love, i tried to cater to aphrodisiacs. chocolate obvious. and i remember a few years back reading or hearing about sweet potato/pumpkins and men. it turns out that is a scent women find arousing in men. soon after that i was first in line at bath and body works with my pumpkin body soap and shampoo and conditioner.

textile's valentine's day desserts:
for him: sweet potato beignets, cinnamon pudding, honey, bacon ice cream
for her: bittersweet chocolate terrine, lavender anglaise, compressed strawberries, almonds

happy valentine's day!

intermezzo

quince intermezzo
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

quince juice (encapsulated in bittersweet chocolate), honey and milk.

apples and potatoes

apples and potatoes
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

one night (after reading ideas in food blog about potato and apple terrine) i decided to try what apples and potatoes taste like together. we had mashed potatoes available and i had apple jam. mixed them together and then took a small bite.

inspired by the complex, yet simple, flavors, a new dessert is available as part of the seven course tasting menu at textile.

apple bavarois, apple jam, apple chips, apple sorbet, potato puree, potato chips, caramel.

this week is over and the dessert has gotten great response. though, i dont think the potato flavor is very apparent. theres alot of apple elements and not enough potato.

a few changes i will make the following week. change the apple bavarois to a potato bavarois. use less sugar in the potato puree. change the potato chips to crispy potato skins. garnish with fleur de sel and fresh cracked black peppercorn. change nasturtium leaves to micro cilantro. add a few drops of lime juice.

inca kola and saltenas

for the most part, i was raised in houston. my parents moved here when i was 3 and my sister 1. we didnt join our parents for another 5 or 6 years. so doing the math, ive been here for almost 20 years.

and even to this day, if i dont know something that is popular in american culture, i use the excuse that i am a foreigner.

that being said, i also take foods that i grew up with for granted.

have you ever drank an inca kola?
have you ever ate a saltena?

no?!!!!

well then, you my friend have not lived.

i was surprised to find inca cola at hubbel and hudson (in the woodlands). and as for saltenas ... a saltena is a spiced beef or chicken stew encased in a pastry made from lard and annatto. my grandma makes them on the weekends by orders from other bolivians in the city. want an order?

chocolate and peanut butter

this one is for ruthie!

ruthie has compiled a new year's wish list, in which she mentions banana pudding.

as it turns out, i have a dessert at textile and gravitas with banana pudding.

textile: chocolate and peanut butter terrine, banana pudding, peanuts, salted vanilla wafer [pictured]

gravitas: soft ganache, banana pudding, spiced peanuts, cranberry jam

textile - hot new restaurant

read it

alison cook has composed a list of ten great restaurants of 2008. textile made the list.