early fall green market dinner, 9/21/08

Elizabeth Beer and Brian Janusiak graciously invited a group of friends over to their Brooklyn home for a lovely early Fall dinner. I wrote a menu based on greenmarket produce.



Union Square Green Market, a huge source of inspiration.








The produce in the photo says, "ratatouille!"











Like many, many New Yorkers, Jane and I prefer local and organic when we can.









Sorrel is one of my favorite herbs -- it's acidic, tasting of lemon and grass.




















I bought close to three pounds!







Jane forages yellow wax beans.






I love September, when hierloom tomatoes are in full swing.
























































Lots of potatoes.









Cranberry (Borlotti) beans, fresh limas, fresh edamame.
















Pork jowls.











Picking sorrel.























Pickin' limas.

























Where my commis at?























Braised short ribs and pork jowls.









Blanched haricots verts.






















Removing the leaves from the stems of cavalo nero (tuscan black kale). I mince the stems finely and saute them in EVO. Then, separately, I sweat hacher onion and add the torn leaves and braise them with little water.









How not to make sorrel soup. Sorrel turns puke brown when blanched. Don't do this. Instead, make a bright green sorrel soup, starting with a potage parmentier (potato and leek soup) base. Cool it and then, in the blender, add raw, washed sorrel leaves. The results won't look like dirty dish water.








The potatoes, a mix of Austrian Fingerlings and Yellow Finns, were cooked in their jackets until easily pierced by a knife. After the potatoes cooled they were peeled and put through the "ricer," a food mill-like tool.








Nuala smashes some potatoes.












Orla gets in on the action!






















Combining potatoes, flour, egg yolks, and salt into a dough.


















Dividing the dough into managable pieces, which will later be rolled into gnocchi.























Orla rolls gnocchi like a pro! Seriously, impressive.











Elizabeth and Orla cranking out gnocchi.


















Beautiful gnocchi.












The chefs taste their work.










Chopping the short rib and pork jowl meat before adding it to a roasted tomato sauce.


















Meticulous by nature and precise through training, Jane sorts greenmarket berries for the trifle dessert.

























Plating trifles with Orla.











Jane and I rocking a service.










Workin'.



















Plates coming together.



























I love the colors.

















We started with some finger food: Sheep's milk ricotta with rosemary, thyme, good EVO, salt and pepper. This was served with grilled country bread.










Sorrel soup with heirloom tomatoes and American caviar.









Salad of haricots verts, yellow wax beans, cranberry beans, fresh limas, fresh edamame, olive oil poached tuna, and old balsamico.











Gnocchi, cavalo nero, beef and pork ragu.











This was an international crew: Euridice and Thomas hoped over from Berlin; Renee and Josh flew from San Francisco; Maggie and Susana rode in from the East Village.












Happy diners.










Dessert was a berry trifle made with whipped Ronny Brook Farms cream. With this course, we drank a Brachetto.





















Grinding.









Everyone housed the dessert.












Elizabeth and Susana polishing off the trife.










Jane and Renee share a moment.









Brian raids his stash for a digestif. He's got a lot of really interesting brown liquor.




















Hudson's baby bourbon. It's made from 100% corn and it tastes young and fresh. To me it was like chewing on corn shoots, sweet, light, a little grassy. Very easy drinking.










Maggie and Susana sniff the juice and contemplate the possibilities.









Wow. Brian has a bottle from Barrel 1, of LeNell's special brew. This is very rare. There was a lot going on in that glass: tar, tobacco, stewed dark fruits, hints of coconut. It's special stuff that you could sip and ponder for hours.
















Renee plays with Lola the cat.


















Bourbons and rye whiskeys that we tasted.













The wine that we drank:
1. Gavi, Nuova Abbazia di Vallechiara, 2006
-- crisp with minerality, paired with the ricotta and the sorrel soup
2. Barbera d'Asti, Ronco Malo, Bera Figli, 2005
-- with an acidic backbone, this lighter red had spicy notes and the
versatiltiy to pair with the bean salad as well as the gnocchi dish
3. Rosa Regale Brachetto, Brachetto, 2007
-- this bubble off-dry was beautiful with the berry trifle