WHITE ALMOND GAZPACHO
Serves 6
When Richie Farina presented this course to me, I knew that one day he would take over the Moto kitchen as executive chef. This is a take on classic Spanish white almond gazpacho. Most people are familiar with the red gazpacho, a chilled soup made with tomatoes, but white gazpacho is made with stale bread, blanched almonds, olive oil, grapes, and garlic. In this dish, the grapes are left out of the soup and served alongside it in two forms, carbonated and freeze-dried, to provide textural contrast. Herbs and flowers adorn the bowl for a beautiful presentation. Finally, olive oil is frozen in liquid nitrogen to create an olive oil snow. The various garnishes are layered in the bowl and then the chilled soup is poured tableside to melt the olive oil snow and give the dish a silky finish. I recommend that you use high quality Spanish olive oil for this, because the flavor will shine through. I also recommend using the best bread you can find for the base—either homemade or from your local bakery. It will make all the difference in the finished soup.
GAZPACHO:
75 grams crustless bread
225 grams Marcona almonds
1 garlic clove, peeled
750 grams water
45 grams sherry vinegar
35 grams olive oil
4 grams salt, plus more for seasoning
CARBONATED GRAPES:
18 red grapes
FREEZE-DRIED GRAPES:
18 red or green grapes
ROASTED ALMONDS:
18 whole Marcona almonds
OLIVE OIL SNOW:
40 grams olive oil
TO FINISH:
18 lucky sorrel leaves
18 plum sorrel leaves
6 viola flowers
6 parsley leaves
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT:
Whipped cream canister and CO2 charges (see Sources, here)
Freeze-dryer (optional)
Liquid nitrogen (see Sources, here; optional)
Insulated container or dewar (optional)
GAZPACHO:
Cut the bread into ½-inch cubes and lay them out on a sheet pan to dry for 24 hours. Put the bread, almonds, garlic, water, sherry vinegar, olive oil, and salt in a blender and puree on high for 2 minutes or until smooth. Strain the soup through a fine-mesh sieve. Taste and add more salt if needed. Reserve in a covered container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
CARBONATED GRAPES:
Pick the grapes off their stems and rinse under cold running water. Put the grapes in a whipped cream canister and close the lid. Charge the canister with 2 CO2 cartridges, but do not shake the canister, as it will bruise the fruit. Put the whipped cream canister in the refrigerator and let sit for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours. The longer the fruit sits, the more CO2 it will absorb. Keep the grapes in the canister until you are ready to serve.
FREEZE-DRIED GRAPES:
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Pick the grapes off their stems and rinse under cold water. Dry the grapes and lay them out on the prepared sheet pan. Put the grapes in the freezer and freeze for 4 hours. Put the tray of frozen grapes in a freeze-dryer and run a full cycle. Remove the grapes from the freeze-dryer and store in an airtight container until ready to plate. Alternatively, you can purchase freeze-dried grapes (see Sources, here) instead of making them.
ROASTED ALMONDS:
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Put the 18 whole almonds on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring halfway through the cooking time, until the almonds are golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.
OLIVE OIL SNOW:
Fill an insulated container or dewar with liquid nitrogen. Pour 40 grams of olive oil into the liquid nitrogen. Let the oil sit in the liquid nitrogen until ready to plate. Alternatively, put the olive oil in a small bowl and put it in the freezer for at least 4 hours. Every 30 minutes, use a fork to stir the oil, breaking up the ice crystals to make an olive oil granita. Once you have a light, frozen olive oil granita, cover with plastic wrap and reserve in the freezer until ready to plate.
TO FINISH:
Put the chilled Gazpacho into a pitcher. Put 3 Carbonated Grapes, 3 Freeze-Dried Grapes, and 3 Roasted Almonds in each of 6 chilled bowls. Spoon 5 grams of Olive Oil Snow into each bowl. Add 3 lucky sorrel leaves and 3 plum sorrel leaves to each bowl. Add 1 viola flower and 1 parsley leaf to each bowl. Serve the bowls and pour 50 grams of Gazpacho into each bowl at the table.
