Spring Tasting

Finally, after a long, long winter, we finally have some spring ingredients to feature in a tasting! This tasting features mint, ramps, green garlic, and asparagus.

Tilefish Mojito Seviche

Tilefile Mojito Seviche. Finally we have some fresh mint to work with and this is an experiment in making it work in a savory application. The seviche contains diced tilefish, brunoise of red onion and jalapeño, green onions, grape tomato, cilantro, mint, lime zest, red pepper flakes, and lime juice. The glass, we rimmed in Hawaiian black sea salt, and the garnishes are lime, mint, and a scoop of mojito sorbet (lime, mint, simple syrup).

Smoked Bluefish

Smoked Bluefish. Bluefish, like most oily fish, takes to brine and smoke, well, like a fish takes to water. And smoky fish loves mild, creamy cheeses. So it didn't take too much to put together a crostino topped with lemon-black pepper goat cheese, ramp pesto, and smoked blue fish. And then pair it with a napoleon of cucumber and smoked bluefish-cream cheese mousse. A little lemon oil brings some citrus brightness to the plate.

Rabbit, Asparagus, and Green Garlic

Rabbit, Asparagus, and Green Garlic. I love green garlic in risotto, ditto asparagus. Here the risotto has both green garlic and asparagus stems. The asparagus tips are grilled for a smoky char that will help the dish pair with a Pinot Noir. On top is a bit of our pulled rabbit wrapped in prosciutto.

Pork and Ramps

Pork and Ramps. I bet you didn't know that I stood there and cleaned ramps for three $%#^&! hours the other day. The tops I made into a classic sopa de ajo (roasted garlic soup with bread, pimentón, and a splash of cream) and the greens Tony made into a classic cream of greens soup. These two soups are yin-yanged on the plate and garnished with grilled ramps and chorizo oil. I made some pork scraps into an awesome chorizo and this is what is in the beggars purse.

Carrots and Ginger

Carrots and Ginger. We still don't have any fruit to work with for desserts so we are still playing games with winter storage vegetables. This is a carrot and ginger upside down cake. The cake is made with polenta to give it some tooth. Crème anglaise, lemon cream cheese, crystallized ginger, and maple syrup-candied carrot comprise the garnishes.

A Mojito Spring

“Mojito: the Official Drink of One Block West Staff. Hey, you ought to put this on the blog.”—Anonymous One Block West Server

I was outside last night trying to knock some of the aphids off the roses when it struck me how gigantic and lush our spearmint is. But then, it should be. We've had a wet (16 to 20 inches of rain since April 1 according to NWS) and cool spring, ideal growing conditions for mint. Seattle, take that!

Just for grins, here's a shot of the top of a typical plant, showing the size in relation to my hand. Huge!

Besides using this bounty as garnish for desserts, we've used it in Mint Pesto for the lamb and Mojito Crème Brûlée, apparently named after our drink of choice and flavored with rum, mint, lime zest, and brown sugar. But to be fair, most of the mint has gone into Mojitos after hours. [Am I alone in thinking that those Kentuckians are wasting both good Bourbon and good mint in their juleps?]

One Block West Mojito

The following recipe is for one drink. Are you serious? Who makes one Mojito?

8-10 mint leaves
1/4 lime, sliced lengthwise and crosswise
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 ounce simple syrup
2 ounces Bacardi light rum
club soda
1 sprig of mint
slice of lime

Put the mint leaves and lime pieces into a tall glass, squeeze the 1/2 lime over that, and sprinkle in the sugar. Muddle well. Add the simple syrup and Bacardi. Stir well. Taste and adjust by adding more simple syrup or lime juice as necessary.

Fill with crushed ice and top with club soda. Garnish with a mint sprig and a lime wedge. Enjoy!