“From The Earth” Potato Fondant, Porcini Potato Puree, Mushroom Soil, Potato Crisps, Crispy Hen Of the Woods Mushrooms

“From The Earth” Potato Fondant, Porcini Potato Puree, Mushroom Soil, Potato Crisps, Crispy Hen Of the Woods Mushrooms

Source:
Gerard Craft
Niche
St. Louis, MO

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

**Porcini- Potato Puree Ingredients:
**Porcini Puree Ingredients:
**Soil Ingredients:
**Aioli Ingredients:
**Potato Balls Ingredients:
**Mushroom Stock Ingredients:
**Fingerling Potato Chips Ingredients
**Crispy Mushrooms Ingredients:

Directions:

  1. On 4 warm, round plates, make a small, half-moon swoosh of porcini-potato puree. Add soil, overlapping the narrow side of the potato swoosh.
  2. Squeeze a small dollop of aioli onto center of each mound of soil. Place one potato ball (see note) atop each dollop of aioli.
  3. Arrange fingerling chips, mushrooms and raw fingerlings slices around thick ends of each potato swoosh. Alternate so they resemble a forest of sorts.
  4. Garnish each potato ball with a piece of gold leaf.
  5. Note: If you are rewarming potato balls just before planting, do so in remaining mushroom stock and a bit of butter.
**Porcini- Potato Puree Directions:
  1. Start the porcini puree the day before you plan to serve. Boil potato for 30 minutes, and then bake on a cookie sheet, in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, warm butter and milk in a pot over low heat.
  2. Puree potato in a separate pot with a hand ricer. Slowly whisk in milk and butter until incorporated, smooth and silky. Aggressively season with salt.
  3. Add porcini puree to potato. Add another teaspoon of porcini, if desired. Reserve remaining porcini for soil. Season and keep warm.
**Porcini Puree Directions
  1. Heat oil in sauté pan over high heat. Add porcinis begin to brown slightly, move them around. Cool on high 2 minutes longer, then reduce heat to low. Season with salt and pepper.
  2. Place in a blender with warm water. Puree on high until smooth, then cool in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
  3. Cut a piece of parchment paper into a 4 by 4 inch square. Spread a paper-thin layer of porcini puree on parchment. Dehydrate for 12 hours in a dehydrator, or set your oven to 250 degrees F, shut it off when warmed to temperature.
  4. Wait 30 minutes and leave square in the oven for the next 12 hours. Once dehydrated, the puree should be crispy. Reserve.
**Soil Directions
  1. Start the soil the same day you plan to serve.
  2. Fill a pot with a steamer pan a third full with water and bring to a boil. Combine tapioca and squid ink in a bowl. The mixture will have a solid but slightly crumbly texture.
  3. Roll mixture into a log about 5 inches long on a piece of plastic wrap, compressing it a bit as you form the log. Enclose entirely in plastic wrap and tie each end with twine or string.
  4. Steam log in boiling water, covered for 45 minutes. Remove log from heat and cool in fridge for at least 2 hours. When cool, shave thin strips off log with a vegetable peeler. Collect peelings on a cookie sheet, leaving an inch or 2 of space between each. Leave in a dry place overnight.
  5. Heat at least 5 inches of oil in a stockpot. Cover a cookie sheet with 4 layers of paper towels. When oil reaches 350 degrees F, place a few squid ink peelings into pot. Fry for 2 minutes in batches and cool on paper towels. Reserve.
  6. Bring oil temperature down to 320 degrees F, cover a cookie sheet with 4 layers of paper towels. In batches, fry a few potato slices at a time for just less than a minute, until golden brown. Season with salt and cool on paper towels. Save oil for fingerling potato chips component.
  7. Finely chop 10 squid ink peelings, 10 potato chips and remaining dehydrated porcini puree until mixture resembles dirt. Reserve.
**Aioli Directions:
  1. Whisk yolk, garlic, lemon juice, and water in a large bowl until combined. Gradually drizzle in oil, whisking constantly, until incorporated. Season with salt and more lemon juice as needed. Reserve in refrigerator.
**Potato Balls
  1. Make 8 spheres out of potatoes with a melon baller. Place spheres in cold water. You’re only going to need 4 in the end, but having a couple extra as backup will be helpful.
  2. Place spheres in a pot and cover with mushroom stock. Add butter and salt, then bring to a boil. Cool over high heat, covered for 30 minutes, or until most of the stock has evaporated. Taste a potato and season the rest with salt as needed. Reserve.
**Mushroom Stock
  1. Place mushroom stems and water in a pressure cooker and bring up pressure over medium heat. When pressure is set and the cooker is rocking, reduce heat to low and cool for 1 ½ hours. No steam should escape. Allow pressure cooker to come to room temperature before opening. Skim off stems and reserve stock.
**Fingerling Potato Chips Directions
  1. Bring oil temperature to 320 degrees F. Cover a cookie sheet with 4 layers of paper towels. In batches, fry a few slices at a time for about 45 seconds, until golden brown. Season with salt and cool on paper towels. Reserve.
**Crispy Mushrooms Directions:
  1. Cover a cookie tray with 4 layers of paper towels. Separate mushroom into its individual branches at their base. Heat oil in a sauté pan over high heat, add mushrooms. When mushrooms are universally golden, season with salt and cool on paper towels. Reserve.