Advanced Culinary P&P1 | Magic Box and Menu Design | Paper 215014 |

Lyle Robertson 1111431
4/30/2012
|

Contents Introduction 3 Summary 3 Menu 4 Menu Overview 5 Ingredients list and Usage 9 References & Word Count: 11

Introduction
The essence of a Magic box is to show culinary skills and creativity in producing a dish that has complimentary and balanced flavours. This dish is created from a list of ingredients with emphasis on texture, colour, taste, balance, nutrition and presentation. With this criteria in mind I set out to produce two menu items, one entree and one main, that utilised as many ingredients as possible from the list provided and that encompassed the above elements.
Starting with the listed proteins as the central components to each dish, I then took into consideration the season and how best I could utilise my strengths. Inspired by the composition of a dish from La Chapelle, London I began with my entree and developed a concept using the lighter of the two proteins the John Dory and Scampi.
To create my main dish, I explored the best cooking method suited for the cut of meat available, the beef cheeks. I then made the decision that beef cheeks are best braised as this enhances the flavour of the meat and ensures it is tender. With my cooking technique selected I then utilised the list of ingredients available to build and create flavours that would compliment this.
This report will set out to provide further insight into the composition of each of these dishes from this point. Furthermore it will provide an analysis of the ingredients used in relation to the mentioned elements of texture, colour, taste, balance, nutrition and presentation.
Summary
The main points of this report will cover * A clear description of the two dishes, entree and main, in menu format. * A detailed overview of the composition of each dish as it would be described to staff within a restaurant. * A dish analysis, describing each element. * List of magic box ingredients and usage. * References and word count.
Menu
Entree:
Scampi Lasagna
Baby leaf spinach, Veluota of button mushrooms.

Main:
Braised Beef Cheeks
Celeriac puree, warm confit garlic and beetroot salad, tempura artichoke heart, red wine jus.

Menu Overview
Entree:
Scampi lasagne
Baby leaf spinach, veluota of button mushrooms.

The Scampi lasagne is a three tier, cylinder stack. It is layered bottom to top, starting with blanched pasta followed by baby leaf spinach, topped with a fish mousse and capped with pasta. The fish mousse is made to in case the diced scampi meat, which is then piped onto the spinach and layers repeated. The lasagne is steamed at point of service.
To accompany this is a veluota of button mushrooms. The veluota is a white wine and vege stock base, with button mushrooms, finished with cream. “Veluota is a smooth creamy sauce made from blonde roux and white stock” (Yule & McRae, 2007. Pg 557). Using a vege stock allows this dish to be eaten by vegetarians who choose to eat fish.
This dish is served in a small broad rimmed bowl, with lasagne in centre. This is finished with the veluota softly ladled over the top, finished with sauted mushrooms, chopped parsley and tarragon.

Main:
Braised Beef cheeks
Celeriac puree, warm confit garlic and beetroot salad, tempura artichoke heart, with a red wine jus.

The beef cheeks are braised, meaning to slow cook and bring out the tenderness and flavour. This is cooked in beef stock, red wine, star anise, cinnamon stick, and brown sugar.
For the warm confit garlic and beetroot salad, the beetroot is boiled in water, sherry vinegar and brown sugar. This is cooked this way to slightly enhance the earthiness of the beetroot, and then sliced thinly. At point of service this is tossed in a hot pan with sauté shallots and confit garlic. The confit garlic has been slow cooked at 60 in olive oil, thyme and bay leaf. The salad is finished with a nob of butter to give it a nice gloss and shine.
The tempura artichoke hearts are firstly braised using a vege stock and aromatics, cooked to the point of just tender. These are then tempered at service to a crunchy exterior and softer inner.
This dish is served on a large round plate, with sliced beef cheeks upon the warm confit garlic and beetroot salad. Accompanied by a smear of celeriac puree, a tempura artichoke heart nestled to the side, and finished with a red wine jus. The celeriac puree and red wine jus finish the dish nicely, the puree giving a soft creamy texture throughout the dish followed with the rich jus, tying each component together.

Dish Analysis
Entree:
Scampi lasagne Baby leaf spinach, veluota of button mushrooms | Texture | The scampi lasagne has a silky and smooth feel through the palate. The silky texture coming from the veluota and the smooth from the fish mousse. This is finished with soft to the bite mushrooms and pasta. | Colour | The colours of this dish compliment Autumn, with its creamy yellow pasta, white mousse and pinky red flicks of the scampi meat. This soft feel is met with the deep green of the baby spinach and the wood tones of the mushroom veluota. | Taste/Flavour | The creamy soft ocean flavour from the fish mousse is a match made in heaven with the sweet scampi. Mixed with the earthy tones of the mushrooms, and once again the creamy flavour of the veluota, brings warmth to the dish. The baby spinach provides a slight bitterness that cuts through the creaminess to give balance. | Balance | As this dish has a starch component and uses cream throughout, it comes across sounding heavy. But I feel it does not fall into this bracket, due to the slight bitterness of the spinach cutting through the cream. In all, this dish is very well proportioned. | Nutrition | With the use of cream in this dish it is not one for those watching their waist line. In contrast though this dish has some great nutritional value with it’s good source of protein, essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals from the fish and scampi. The baby spinach also provides a good source of vitamin K. |

Main: Braised Beef cheeksCeleriac puree, warm confit garlic and beetroot salad, tempura artichoke heart, with a red wine jus. |

Texture | The beef cheeks to break from the back of a spoon. Soft to the bite from the beetroot with little smooth cloves of garlic. In contrast met with the crispy tempura artichoke heart, brought together with the silky celeriac puree and jus. | Colour | This dish has a lot of natural colours, deep brown of the beef, cream from the puree, dark yellow from the tempura, deep red from the beetroot and a rich brown from the jus. | Taste/Flavour | This dish has the back note of a Christmas mould wine, coming from the aromatics used in the braising. This is mixed with a rich beef flavour, earthy beetroot, creamy puree and the autumn flavour of the artichoke. | Balance | This dish is well balanced with protein from the beef cheeks, accompanied by three vege in the beetroot, celeriac and artichoke, starch from the tempura batter and finished with a red wine jus. | Nutrition | With the chosen method of braising all nutrients remain in the beef and mirepoix. The celeriac provides a good carbohydrate, the beetroot a good source of Vitamin C, and a slight sin with the deep fried artichoke, but overall this is a healthy autumn dish. |

Ingredients list and Usage Category | Ingredients | Notes | Fruit | Lemons | | | Lime | | | | | Dairy | Eggs | Fish mousse, pasta, tempura | | Butter Unsalted | Veluota, celeriac puree, beetroot salad | | Cream | Fish mousse, veluota | | Milk | | | Yeast | | | | | Central Trolley | Olive Oil / Corn Oil | Beetroot salad, pasta, | | Baking Powder & Soda | Tempura | | Gelatine | | | Cinnamon Stick | Beef cheeks | | Juniper Berries | | | Star Anise | Beef cheeks | | Black Peppercorns | Beef cheeks | | Port/Brandy/Vermouth | | | Red Wine | Beef cheeks, jus | | White Wine | Veluota | | Sherry Vinegar | Beetroot salad | | Brown Beef Stock | Beef cheeks | Meat | Beef Cheeks | Braised beef cheeks | | | | | Bacon-Piece | | Fish | John Dory | Fish mousse | | Scampi | Fish mousse | | | | Commodities | Strong Flour | Pasta, tempura batter | | Brown Sugar | Beef cheeks | | Honey | | | Verjuice | | | Lecithin | | | | | Fruit & Vegetables | Mushrooms – Button | Veluota | | Leeks | Beef cheeks, vege stock | | Celeriac | Puree | | Carrots / Onions | Beef cheeks , vege stock | | Globe Artichokes | Tempura artichoke | | Shallots, Garlic | Veluota / Beef cheeks, beetroot salad | | Beetroot | Beetroot salad | | Tomatoes | Vege stock | | Baby Leaf Spinach | Lasagne stack | | | | | | | Herbs | Bay Leaf / Thyme / Parsley | Beef cheeks, veluota, vege stock | | Coriander | | | Basil | | | Dill | | | Tarragon | Veluota |

References & Word Count
References:
Yule,L.C., McRae, H. (2007) The New Zealand Chef. Second Edition. Pearson Education New Zealand

Word Count:
1,424

SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY AND TOURISIM Assignment Cover Sheet

Student Name and ID | Lyle Robertson 1111431 | Class Code | DCA 51 | Paper No. | 215014 | Assignment | Report: Magic Box | Due Date | 2/5/12 | Lecturer | Allan Brown |

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