February 14th, 2012
This post is also available in: French
We’ve been writing about it for a while now, sharing all our preparations with you, talking through it, brainstorming. After months of planning and development, the evening of our Argentinean tango inspired 3D event came and went.
And it went very well! Things ran smoothly and calmly, there were no major setbacks, and everything fell into place gracefully.
The idea to use Argentinean tango as inspiration dates back to the time, when Natalie and her husband took tango lessons with Victoria and Federico. Natalie fell in love with the dance – not only its incredible romance and beauty, but also its mechanics.
Tango is designed to showcase the allure of the woman, while the man is the one responsible for the leading. The dance requires a great amount of intuition and sensual connection between the partners.
Elena of Wholistic Inc. generously hosted the event in her beautiful house. We are very thankful for having had such an accommodating venue and amazing hosts.
Fruit and Root salad ingredient prep
As we usually do in 3D, we chose three colours to work with in both decor and cuisine. We stuck with a very Valentine-friendly monochromatic palette of white, pink, and red to highlight the romantic nature of the evening, upcoming holiday, and the dance.
Natalie tried to capture the mechanics of the dance in material form, when making the center pieces for the tables. She found two-necked chemistry flasks, which resemble the anatomical heart, and filled them with pomegranate juice – something we used quite a lot in cooking the dinner. The single rose acts as an arrow through the heart, while the fizzling dry ice and small candle at the base complete the allusion to chemistry, the kind that happens between two people. The rose also refers to that moment in tango, when the man dances with a red rose clenched between his teeth.
Preparing the dessert plates
The guests participated in the preparation of two courses – the Fruit and Root salad and the Flatbread pizza.
All elements marked with our three signature brushstrokes, this time in white, pink, and red
In an attempt to draw a parallel between cooking in couples and dancing tango, we decided to turn the act of topping the pizza into a bit of a game. Natalie has talked about her first dance class and learning the tango walk, where she was to blindly follow the lead of her partner by walking backwards. That’s where the blindfolding came in – the ladies, momentarily sightless, prepared their pizzas by following their partners’ verbal directions. This was a fun way to prove that it does indeed take two to tango.
Flatbread pizzas just out of the oven – one per couple
Rose Mille-Feuille
Projected on a large screen behind the dining tables was the 1997 film The Tango Lesson. In short, the film is about two people falling in love over tango lessons and the conflict of leading roles in both life and dance. The projection contributed to the theatrical atmosphere of the evening.
Roasted Pepper Lasagna
Victoria and Federico gave an unforgettable performance between the courses. We are incredibly thankful to them for such an important contribution.
Irina making perfect hearts with pomegranate reduction on the Yerba mate infused Sunchoke soup
For party favours, we made raw chocolate bars. They were wrapped in vintage music paper, dated 1913. Cecil Macklin’s Tango is the Dance for Me is the featured song, and the words ‘Tango – it makes your heart glow’ were strategically placed at the center of the chocolate bar.
The proceeds from this event are directed to Jamie Oliver’s Food Foundation.
Of course, none of this would have happened without our amazing sponsors and friends.
Thank you:Whole Foods Market in Tampa for donating all the ingredients. Special thanks to Maria and to Amanda and Jessica for making the drive all the way from Ft. Lauderdale.
Elena of Wholistic Inc. for being a lovely host. Howard of Rent-All City Inc. for helping us achieve a unique dining setting.
Irina Bilka of Salon Lofts for our pretty hairstyles.
Victoria and Federico at Atelier Dance Studio for the unforgettable performance and inspiration.
Anastasia M. for the great photos.
Ziggy for the video.
Masha, Zhenya, Irina, Yana, Larisa, and George for the great support in and outside of the kitchen.
Our husbands Ernie and Max for all their hard work and love.
To all our guests for such a magical evening.
Menu:
Yerba Mate Infused Sunchoke Soup
Fruit and Root Salad
Roasted Pepper Lasagna
Flatbread Pizza
Valentine Dessert Plate
Ice Cream Trio of Rose and Vanilla Ice Cream, and Pomegranate Sorbet, Rose Mille Feuille
Tags: 3D, valentines
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February 6th, 2012
This post is also available in: French
Today we continue our series of posts, describing the preparations for our Argentinean tango inspired 3D gathering, which will be held around Valentine’s Day for ten lovely couples. Learn more in posts I, II, III, and IV.
Since Valentine’s Day and sweets go hand in hand, we wanted to pay special attention to our dessert plate and finish the evening off right.
Providing the nature of the holiday, it seemed logical to explore the possibilities of using roses and their essential oil in our dessert. That turned out to be a very interesting and therapeutic experience, and we could hardly wait to share these treats with you.
One of our sponsors, Wholistic Inc., work exclusively with food grade ingredients in their wonderful skin care line. The essential oils they utilize are the purest out there. Wholistic gave us a generous donation of steam distilled rose oil and dried edible roses, which we used to make the most amazing rose ice cream.
Essential oils work by “waking up” certain receptors in the brain, and thus having a healing effect on the body, both emotionally and physically. Rose oil is capable of treating anxiety and is a wonderful mood elevator. When those benefits combine with the amazing taste and aroma, the whole experience becomes incredibly dimensional.
It is impossible to put the taste of that ice cream into words. It seems as if all the senses are engaged when taking a bite – every spoonful of that ice cream transports me onto a different planet. I used one tiny drop of the essential oil in a batch of rose ice cream, but the house smelled like an entire rose garden while the ice cream machine was on.
The rose ice cream will be served with a fresh, perfectly tart pomegranate sorbet and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
We will also be serving mille-feuille, for which we used fresh organic rose petals. They are gently crushed in a mortar and soaked in raw honey. Combined with a vanilla bean cream and layered between thin coconut sheets, they make for a unique dessert.
Happy Valentine’s Day to you! Stay tuned, we will let you know how the event went in our next post.
Vanilla Ice Cream
1 1/2 cups meat of fresh young Thai coconut
1 1/2 cups water of fresh young Thai coconut
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of raw agave syrup
3 tablespoons coconut oil – liquified
seeds of 1 vanilla bean
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon lime or lemon juice
Combine all the ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth. Let it chill completely and process in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.
Rose Ice Cream
1 batch of vanilla ice cream (see above) – before processing through the ice-cream machine
4-5 teaspoons dried rose powder (I started with dried culinary roses, and then ground them into powder using a coffee grinder)
3-4 teaspoon beetroot powder (optional) – for additional colour
1-2 drops of good quality steam distilled, undiluted rose essential oil
Combine all but the last ingredient in a high speed blender until smooth. Let it chill completely and process in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Add the rose oil towards the end. Freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.
Pomegranate Sorbet
2 cups freshly made pomegranate juice
1/2 cup purified water
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons raw agave, or more to taste
squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Combine all the ingredients in a high-speed blender. Let it chill completely and process in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.
If served a dessert plate like ours, with all the components, you can optionally give it a drizzle of chocolate sauce. That what I decided to do at the event. It is Valentine’s Day, after all.
Rose Petal Mille-Feuille
Coconut Crust
2 cups meat of fresh young Thai coconut
1 cup water of fresh young Thai coconut or more if needed
In a high-speed blender, blend the coconut meat and water until completely smooth, adding more coconut water if needed. The amount of coconut water and resulting coconut pasta can vary depending on the coconut meat quality. Thicker meat, from more mature coconuts, will require more water, and therefore will yield more crust.
Spread the mixture onto two Teflex-covered dehydrator trays and dehydrate at 115F for 2-4 hours, until pasta is dry enough and ready to be separated from the Teflex sheets. Flip over and carefully peel away the Teflex. Dehydrate for another 30 minutes or so, to make them completely dry. Take care, as they will be very thin and delicate, don’t over dry them before cutting. Cut each coconut sheet into 4 even squares, then cut each square in half lengthwise. You should end up with sixteen even coconut pieces. You can start layering the mille-feuille immediately or store the coconut sheets in the refrigerator, separated by parchment paper.
Honey-Rose Petals
3-4 organic roses – separated into petals and gently crushed in a mortar
raw honey to cover
Generously drizzle honey over rose petals. Let soak for 1-2 hours.
Vanilla Cream
1 cup meat of fresh young Thai coconut
1 cup cashews – soaked for 4 hours
1/2 cup raw light agave syrup
1/2 cup purified water
seeds of 1-2 vanilla beans or 2 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
pinch of salt (optional)
squeeze of fresh lemon (optional)
1/2 cup coconut oil – liquified
Combine all of the ingredients in a high speed blender until very smooth, adding coconut oil at the end with the motor still running.
Assembly
Start with laying down the coconut sheets one on top of another, two pieces at a time. Top each layer with vanilla cream using a squeeze bottle, pipping bag, or a spoon. Continue with honey soaked rose petals, followed by another set of coconut sheets. Alternate your layers until all coconut sheets are used up. Finish with a coconut pasta layer. Optionally, garnish with more cream, toasted almonds, and rose-infused honey.
Let it sit in refrigerator for several hours or overnight before slicing. I cut a large rectangle in half, then cut each square into four small squares. Make it any shape you like.
The Mille Feuille holds very well in the refrigerator for a couple of days. Although it is very good if served right away, it becomes even better after some time in the fridge, when the flavours are fully integrated.
Tags: 3D, dessert, raw food, recipe, valentines
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February 1st, 2012
This post is also available in: French
Today we continue our series of posts, describing the preparations for our Argentinean tango inspired 3D gathering, which will be held around Valentine’s Day for ten lovely couples. Learn more in post I, post II, and post III.
Both pizza and flatbread are very popular in Argentina. When researching Argentinean cuisine, I learned about faina, which is flatbread made with garbanzo or chickpea flour. Faina is often served as an appetizer, but also, surprisingly, on top of pizza. In this case the dish is called pizza a caballo, or horseback pizza. Napoletana pizza, served with sliced tomato, garlic, and olives is another Argentinean favourite.
Our toppings are similar to those of Napoletana, and of course follow the monochromatic colour palette set for the event.
We drizzled our flatbread pizza with chimichurri – the characteristic Argentinean sauce, which is mostly used for grilled meat. But I love chimichurri on everything, it’s so simple, delicious, and can enhance the flavour of almost any dish. There are tons of variations to this sauce, and I used one of the most basic versions – just parsley and garlic.
The crust recipe emerged from the idea for my gluten and dairy free bread. It took many experimental pizzas to get it to everybody’s liking. Since then, several friends and my husband have told me that this is the best pizza they ever had. That’s when I decided to serve it at the event.
I like to lightly dust the pizza with raw coconut flour for the most authentic look and additional, slightly sweet flavour.
Flatbread Pizza Crust
1 1/2 cup sprouted quinoa
1/4 cup sprouted amaranth
1 cup raw sprouted oats (or the same amount of quinoa and amaranth combined)
1/4 cup golden flax seeds
1/2 cup sprouted sunflower seeds
1/2 cup hemp seeds
1 cup purified water
1/4 cup Irish moss gel
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
To sprout or germinate, soak quinoa, amaranth, oats, and sunflower seeds in purified water overnight. Rinse thoroughly and dehydrate at 115F until completely dry.
Start pre-heating your oven at 350F. In a high-speed blender, combine the grains and flax seeds, grind into a flour and pour into a food processor. Next, grind sunflower seeds into a flour in a high-speed blender, at a lower speed, taking care not to turn them into butter. You can also use a coffee grinder and work in batches. Add the sunflower flour to the food processor, followed by hemp seeds.
Combine water, Irish moss gel, salt, honey, and lemon juice in a high-speed blender until smooth. With the motor still running, add olive oil to incorporate. Turn the food processor on, mixing your dry ingredients together. Then start slowly pouring the wet mixture into the dry one through the tube. When the mixture becomes completely incorporated, your dough is ready. Place about 1/5 of it a flat surface covered with thoroughly oiled parchment paper. Flatten the dough with your hands and cover with another sheet of parchment paper. Roll into even and thin crust, using a rolling pin. It is important to make sure that the crust is as thin in the middle as at the edges. Prick the crust with a fork several times. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes. To make sure that your crust bakes evenly, use a pizza stone if you have one, or just place an oven-proof dish with water on the rack underneath your crust.
Toppings
1 roasted garlic
1-2 tomatoes – sliced
1 onion – thinly sliced
1 roasted bell pepper – sliced
1/2 fresh bell pepper (optional) – sliced
10 olives of any kind – pitted and sliced
Queso Blanco and crumbled goat cheese – to taste
For a vegan version, you can substitute with your favourite vegan cheese
Chimichurri
1 cup firmly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley – finely chopped
3-4 garlic cloves – finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves (optional) – finely chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Place parsley, garlic, and oregano into a small bowl. Stir in the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Adjust seasonings if needed. Serve right away or refrigerate. Holds well for a couple of days.
Assembly
Smear roasted garlic on top of your pre-baked crust. Top with the rest of the ingredients and bake for another 10 minutes. Optionally, dust with raw coconut flour, sprinkle with chimichurri, cut and serve.
P.S. This flatbread is also very good with any kind of greens on top, such as kale, spinach, arugula, etc.
Tags: 3D, recipe, savoury, valentines
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January 29th, 2012
This post is also available in: French
Today we continue our series of posts, describing the preparations for our Argentinian tango inspired 3D gathering, which will be held around Valentine’s Day for ten lovely couples. Learn more in post I and post II.
When developing the menu for the event, I certainly tried to include some flavours of Argentinean cuisine and build on popular dishes. However, the first thing that comes to mind at the mention of Argentina is, well, beef and steak -it’s inevitable. Of course in the context of this blog we couldn’t go in that direction.
Argentinean cuisine is largely influenced by the European food culture, especially Italian. Pizza and pasta are widely popular.
Here is our version of Italian lasagna, which is light, delicate, and fits into our monochromatic colour theme. Our “pasta” is made of fresh young coconut meat and water, no flour or eggs involved. The result is amazing – the pasta comes out very delicate and subtle in taste and complements the peppers perfectly.
Light roasted garlic creme and toasted almonds complete the lasagna and make it irresistible. If you’re not vegan, it is also nice to add some good quality crumbled goat cheese. I did a lot of menu testing on my friends, and the goat cheese variety won the popular vote. Just put a little bit on each layer, together with the rest of the ingredients.
Roasted Pepper Lasagna
(Makes 8 lasagna triangles)
Coconut pasta
3 1/2 cups fresh meat of young Thai coconut
1 cup coconut water, or more
pinch of salt
Blend all the ingredients in a high-speed blender until completely smooth, adding more coconut water if needed. The amount of coconut water and resulting coconut pasta can vary depending on the coconut meat quality. Thicker meat, from more mature coconuts, will require more water, and therefore will yield more crust.
Spread mixture onto Teflex-covered dehydrator trays and dehydrate at 115F for 2 to 4 hours or more, until pasta is dry enough and ready to be separated from the Teflex sheets. Flip over and carefully peel away the Teflex sheets. Cut each coconut sheet into 4 even squares. Take care, as they will be very thin and delicate, don’t over dry them before cutting. Dehydrate for another 30 minutes or so, to make them completely dry. The coconuts that I’m getting lately are pretty thick inside, so I ended up with 3 1/2 14″ x 14″ trays of pasta, or fourteen large squares. You can start layering the lasagna immediately or store the pasta in the refrigerator, separated by parchment paper.
Roasted Pepper
4-5 large red bell peppers – washed and dried
Preheat your broiler. Place peppers onto a baking sheet under the broiler. Wait a couple of minutes for the skin to start burning. Turn the peppers, exposing uncooked sides to the broiler, until the skin is blackened and wrinkled all over. Check frequently, there is no need to burn peppers longer than you have to in order to remove the skin. Take care not to burn yourself in the process. Let peppers cool completely. Remove the skin and seeds and slice into stripes.
Roasted Garlic
4 garlic heads or more to taste
olive oil for drizzling
sea salt, freshly ground black pepper
Preheat oven to 400F. With a sharp knife, cut the top of each garlic head exposing the inside of each clove. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with some salt and pepper, wrap it into parchment paper, or place it into a special garlic baking dish. Roast for 30 minutes, or until soft inside.
Roasted Garlic Creme
1 cup raw cashews – soaked 4 hours or more
1 cup meat of fresh young Thai coconut
1/2 cup purified water
1/2 cup coconut oil
roasted garlic cloves – to taste
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste
In a high-speed blender, blend all the ingredients until smooth. Store refrigerated.
Assembly
Start with laying down the coconut sheets one on top of another, two pieces at a time. Top each layer with roasted garlic cream using squeeze bottle, pipping bag, or just a spoon. Add some additional roasted garlic and crumbled goat cheese for a stronger flavour. Continue with roasted pepper slices and a few slivers of toasted almonds, followed by another set of coconut sheets. Alternate your layers until all coconut sheets are used up. Finish with a coconut pasta layer, optionally garnish with more cream and toasted almonds. Let it sit in refrigerator for several hours or overnight before slicing. I cut a large square into four even squares, and then cut each of them in half diagonally. You should end up with eight triangular lasagna pieces. The lasagna holds very well in the refrigerator for a couple of days. Although it is very good if served right away, it becomes even better after some time in the fridge, when the flavours are fully integrated.
Tags: 3D, recipe, savoury, valentines
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