Archive for April, 2007
Burnt Sugar + Black Salt
Posted on April 30, 2007, under Food.
The first time I tasted burnt caramel ice cream was at the dinner table of Will and Leah in Massachusetts. Since then, I’ve scanned freezer cases all over the east coast for ice cream labels promising the flavor that haunted my taste buds. This search turned up a few decent caramel ice creams and a memorable dulche de leche, but nothing that even approached burnt caramel.
Now, those of you whose tongues have never tasted this best-of-all ice cream flavor may be saying to yourselves, “Burnt? Isn’t burnt caramel ruined caramel? Don’t caramel recipes always urge you to be super-vigilant so as not to let the sugar burn?” True…all true. In the spirit of truth, burnt caramel ice cream might more aptly be named slightly scorched caramel ice cream. Scorched caramel ice cream tastes like butterscotch with a curious bitter kick at the finish that lures you to have another taste. Truly burnt caramel ice cream would taste like a terrible, terrible mistake.
wd~50, in pictures
A lovely collection of photos of a wd~50 meal.
Sound of the Sea
When I was at the Fat Duck a couple of months ago for dinner, one of the dishes we were served on our Tasting Menu was not food at all. Rather, what came on a small square plate were two shiny new iPod shuffles. They were intended to accompany a dish that was perhaps even more bizarre than the gadgets themselves.
Heston Blumenthal, the chef, said he wanted to experiment with using sound to enhance a dining experience. Hence the iPod, playing the soothing sound of the sea breeze and waves gently caressing the seashore. The dish itself was dubbed Sound of the Sea, with different components on the plate representing something from the seaside. No Seagulls’ poo or oil spill residue though, instead we had sand made of tapioca infused with miso, with medallions of Monkfish liver (Ankimo) in a seawater foam. There were also some bits of Abalone, clams, and Samphire, which, appropriately enough, is sometimes called Sea Asparagus.
– Chez Pim