I became inspired by the frozen tubes of liquid-filled desserts, created by Alex Stupak, which I ate at wd-50. The small tubes were of one flavor, and a liquid center of another resided in the tube and was released when the diner breaks the ice cream-like shell. The secret center is something I have been a fan of and try to incorporate into a number of our dishes. It does not have to be a secret center; rather, it is the hidden surprise which adds an element of surprise and excitement.
Yesterday, we went to work on brioche and using it as a tube. In our first dish, we filled the brioche tube with king trumpet mushrooms cooked with smoked maple syrup (thanks Pops’), Meyer lemon puree, shaved jalapeno, Fiore Sardo cheese, and golden raisins. The dish is really just mushrooms on toast. It developed because we wanted to see if we could make hot tubes of brioche. If the mushroom worked or came close to working, then we would pursue our other ideas: shrimp toast, peanut butter and jelly, foie gras en brioche, truffled egg toast, lobster roll. The possibilities are now possible. And as Aki—it’s too rich—Kamozawa points out, we can use other breads like sourdough and pumpernickel, and cornbread and other exteriors completely, like celery root and potato.
While I am quite happy with what we have done, I cannot stop thinking that perhaps we just made a fancy corn dog. Is that so wrong?
Leave a Reply