Fun Playing with Chef Ellis Cooley at the Culinary Vegetable Institute

As you've read over my last few posts, Bob and I were invited to share in the goodness of a  monthly Earth-to-Table Dinner at the Culinary Vegetable Institute on Saturday night. Adding to the fun, we'd be sharing our table with some friends, including the lucky winners of the ticket contest on this blog. Even more fun - our friend Dave, who blogs as Live to Cook at Home, would be in the kitchen as sous-chef for a day. We couldn't wait!

The Terrible Trio Plot and Plan

Left to right - tonight's featured chef, Ellis Cooley, and his co-horts in all things culinary (including Dinner in the Dark) - Brian Okin and Jeff Jarrett. The gentleman with his back to you is CVI Chef Michael Lyons.

Dave W joins the confab at the left.

When our host, Farmer Lee Jones, rings the dinner bell, he does not fool around:

And so - on to the fabulous food, featuring of course the amazing produce of the Chef's Garden.

Velvet Mushroom Soup - Chives, Truffle Oil, Dehydrated Mushrooms

Regular readers of this blog know that I have a slight issue with mushrooms - mostly with their texture. I am actually growing more and more enamored with their flavor - this amazing soup may have brought me fully over to the mushroom side (so long as I don't have to chew on them). This item periodically appears on the menu at AMP 150 - all I can say is that if it is on the menu when you eat there - ORDER IT!

Assorted Baby Beet Salad - Lake Erie Creamery Goat Cheese Fondue, Candied Spiced Nuts, Baby Herbs

 

A lovely cold counterpoint to the warm soup. Perfectly balanced textures and flavors, with the beets singing through.

Charcuterie Platter - Port Relleitte, Liver Pate, Red Cabbage Kimchi

Again, these are items you might see at AMP 150; Chef Ellis is fond of pairing spreads and jams on toast to delicious effect.

I enjoyed the rillettes.



But I inhaled the pate. Two of them. And I'd do it again.

Dinner Rolls

Served with a lovely sweet butter.

Slow Roasted Duck - Braised Caramelized Endive, Citrus

The duck, from Hickory Acres Meats in Oberlin, was perfectly cooked and succulent. 

Whole Roasted Carrots - Parsnip Puree, Picholine Olives

When I first read the menu, I didn't see how green olives could possibly pair well with sweet carrots. But damn if Chef Ellis didn't make it sing!

Baby Fennel and Figs -Fines Herbs and Fronds

This dish had me channeling an old Fig Newtons TV commercial from my youth. Tender, tasty (but not flaky)  fennel cooked with gooey gooey rich and chewy figs - darn tootin!

It took all of my self control to stop after a taste of each dish - but another round was in the offing and it proved a wise strategy.

Brown Butter Kale - Homemade Smoked Kielbasa

I've tried kale a few times, but never been a huge fan - until now. Ellis and his crew cooked the kale to it's taste and textural sweet spot, and the sausage was truly worthy of a midwestern meal. 

Braised Lamb in - Stew of Dried Beans, Mint, Natural Juices

 

This, my friends, was a beautiful thing. But wait, there's more!


Roasted Cauliflowers - Pine nuts, Lake Erie Creamery Goat Cheese, Beet Vinaigrette

Note the plural on "cauliflower" - there were at least two varieties in this dish. Simply fabulous and it didn't matter a bit that we'd already "had" beets and goat cheese - it all worked to delicious perfection. 

Anson Mills Organic Farro Piccolo - Celery Root & Leaves, Pickles

Regular readers of this blog also know that celery is not a favorite of mine, particularly raw celery. Despite the celery (which I took a bunch of, because I wanted to try it anyway), the farro was so lovely - not a side you see every day, and eating this dish, I wondered, why not? It reminded me a little of barley; slightly chewy, creamy and wonderfully savory.

Dessert was next.

We were first presented with this plate, with a large hole in the middle, between a Fennel Nut Bread and Meringue cookies (Paplova) infused with Sichuan Peppercorn. 

Floating Island

Chef Ellis explained this unusual dessert, which Wikipedia says at its base is "a French dessert consisting of meringue floating on crème anglaise (a vanilla custard)." Chef Ellis kicked his version up with blood orange and shiso. It filled the middle of the dessert plate nicely.

But alas, I was past "uncle" and could barely eat half. A shame, because it was so light and tasty.

A ticket to dinner at CVI will set you back $75, plus beverages and gratuity. But the experience is truly amazing. If you enjoy farm to table dining, this is the dinner ticket for you. April's dinner will spotlight Chef Jeremy Martindale from the Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale, and  May will feature Ellis's partner in Dinner in the Dark, Palate's Jeff Jarrett. CVI's endeavors also raise funds for Veggie U, a most worthwhile cause for anyone who cares about food and how our next generation is learning about it. If you love vegetables, you will have fun playing with the food at the Culinary Vegetable Institute!

Fun Playing with Sunday Supper at Crop

I am ashamed to admit how long it has been since I first dined at Crop Bistro in Cleveland's Warehouse District. Owner Steve Schimoler is passionate about his food, and one of the most playfully creative Chefs I know. He and his wife Jackie are the forces behind Cleveland Food Rocks and localcrop.com, "an online farmers market linking Northeast Ohio's small farmers and producers with local chefs. In an innovative and timely twist, the market is "powered" by SYSCO, whose refrigerated trucks delivery the goods to local restaurants over already-established routes, thereby conserving fuel and maximizing efficiency. " We were determined to get our friend Kris to Crop before she had to leave for Japan.

Six of us assembled at Crop for the unique Sunday Supper. It was close to perfect, and an amazing bargain at $25 per person. We started with not one, but two amuses:


Chile Deviled Eggs with Crisp Pork

What combination could be better than a deviled egg topped with crispy bacon! And dusted with a satisfyingly hot bit of chile pepper. As per usual, Chef Schimoler encouraged us to play with this food by taking the egg with fingers and dredging it in the sauces decorating the plate. Yum.










Crop-pacho

Fresh tomatoes were the star of this chilled soup. Truthfully, I'm not a big fan of Gazpacho - but this dish wowed; we all practically licked our bowls.



The cheesy crouton was a perfect foil for the acidic tomatoes, and the cilantro was garden-fresh.


Bread Service

Freshly baked cornbread was the next table guest, accompanied by a softened compound butter.

Salad came next, served family style:





Watermelon, tomatoes, and two varieties of beets, together with assorted lettuces, were the base of the salad. There were also cubes of an extremely mild Swiss cheese, cucumbers, and a bacon topping. The dressing was a simple balsamic vinaigrette - simply delicious. Even though this was the first official course - the six of us could not finish it.



This intermezzo followed the salad course:


Crop-Sickle - Lime and Honey



I'm not really into frozen - I thought I'd clean my palate with a few licks, then return this to the glass. Wrong! I ate the whole thing - simple but delicious, and refreshing to the palate.

We had our choice of six entrees for the next course. Chef Steve explained that Crop had hosted a "Julie and Julia" dinner the night before, and so had magnificent Massachusetts Sole in the house. Sold.


Herb Crusted Baked Sole With Citrus Cream



Chef Steve applied the cream from a seltzer bottle at the table. This dish was simply perfect. Though I thought I tasted something nutty in the crust, Chef said that it was a simple combination of fresh herbs and bread crumbs. The Citrus Cream complimented the mild fish - there was none of either left on my plate!


Seared Hiramasa (Amberjack) and Scallops

Two of our tablemates sampled this delicious dish, with Olive Tapanade and Salsa Verde. Chef Steve said the Citrus Cream would go well with this dish also, and allowed our tablemates to help themselves to his siphon.






Grilled Hangar Steak with Chimichurri

Two tablemates opted for this dish - and my taste was heavenly. The meat was perfectly cooked to medium-rare, and the sauces on the plate truly enhanced that which was already pretty darn tasty. Our remaining dining companion had the Tasmanian Salmon wtih Coconut Curry and pronounced it delicious.

Side dishes were Chef's Choice and served family style:


Cool Bean Salad


Grilled Ohio Corn


Plucot in Pastry, Unsweetened House Made Whipped Cream

I just learned about Plucot at the Geauga Farmers' Market on Saturday (Herbthyme had some Plucot Jam), but it didn't stick to my brain that it was a specific fruit until this dessert was served.



The fruit was slightly cooked, but still firm to the bite. The pastry added a desserty feel to the lovely fruit, and the cream was perfect with it - picking up the sweetness from the fruit without added sugar of its own.

Sunday Supper at Crop is even more of a "play with your food" experience than the regular menu - while I'm sure that Chef Steve would love to have his Sunday off - we could see how much he loves finding creative ways to utilize his bounty, and to show off ideas in process. We were so glad to finally play with Sunday Supper at Crop!