Alma De Cuba
Rittenhouse Square
1623 Walnut Street
(215) 988-1799
The idea for a Latin restaurant had been on Stephen Starr’s mind for a long time. Latin, in fact, had been the original concept for the space that became Buddakan (page 69).
“I was going to Miami a lot in the late’80s and early’90s,” Starr says. “I was in love with all the little Cuban places, classic places like Versailles, and modern places like Yuca.”
Versailles is as close to Cuba as most can legally go, a four-decade-old Little Havana landmark known for its homey pre-Castro cooking. Yuca—an acronym for Young Urban Cuban-Americans—is the next generation of that Cuban cuisine. Yuca, which opened in 1989, and its superstar chef, Douglas Rodriguez, invented the term “Nuevo Latino cuisine.”
Starr partnered with Rodriguez to create Alma de Cuba, bringing his sexy style of Cuban food and cocktails like the passion fruit Alma Colada—and not incidentally, Rodriguez protégé Jose Garces, who would go on to open Amada (page 93) and numerous other Philadelphia hot spots—to Walnut Street.
The dimly lit restaurant, illuminated by portraits and landscapes from its namesake island, dresses up the classic flavors of Cuba—chorizo is sandwiched in a slider with classic Cubano additions pickle and mustard; fried oysters top fufu, the traditional mashed plantain dish; and recognizable sour orange mojo sauce shares the menu with a unique maple version. For dessert: chocolate-dusted almond cake “cigars,” with a gold-foil Alma de Cuba cigar band and a book of sugar matches.
EMPANADA DE VERDE WITH ONION CONFIT & ARTICHOKE ESCABECHE
“We wanted to make something vegetarian that would be exciting and appeal to everyone,” says Alma de Cuba chef Douglas Rodriguez. “Usually, when you see a vegetarian dish, it consists of the same usual suspects of ingredients, like mushrooms since they’re meaty. We wanted to do something different, and this dish actually incorporates vegetables in both the crust and filling.”
(SERVES 4)
For the onion confit:
1 yellow onion, diced
1 sprig rosemary, leaves only
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper, as needed
For the artichoke escabeche:
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 artichokes, trimmed and hearts sliced very thinly
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 piquillo pepper, julienned
1 lemon, juiced and zested
For the empanadas:
2 green plantains, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 teaspoons kosher salt
½ pound yucca, diced small
2 cups whole milk
Additional kosher salt and black pepper, as needed
2½ pounds baby spinach
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 yellow onion, diced small
8 ounces manchego cheese, grated
8 cups canola oil
Special equipment: Food mill or ricer, thermometer
© STARR RESTAURANTS
To prepare the onion confit: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine all ingredients for the onion confit mixture and season with salt and pepper. Simmer until everything has softened, about 30 minutes. Place mixture in a blender and blend until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.
To prepare the artichoke escabeche: Heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Sauté artichokes until soft, 3–4 minutes. Add vinegar and honey to deglaze the pan, cooking until almost dry. Remove pan from heat and add parsley, pepper, and lemon juice and zest. Refrigerate until ready to use.
To prepare the empanadas: Place plantains in a medium saucepan. Add water to cover and season with 2 teaspoons salt. Boil over high heat until plan-tains are very soft, about 1 hour. Remove plantains and process with a food mill or ricer. Allow dough to cool slightly and shape into 8 balls. Place each ball between two sheets of plastic wrap and use a rolling pin to roll dough to about ¼-inch thick. Refrigerate until ready to use.
In a medium saucepan over low heat, combine yucca and milk. Simmer until yucca is tender, about 1 hour. Place mixture in a blender and blend until smooth. The mixture will thicken like a light cream sauce. Set aside.
Fill a large saucepan with water, season with salt, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add spinach and blanch until wilted, about 1 minute. Remove spinach and plunge into ice water to stop cooking. Once cool, remove spinach and squeeze out remaining water. Place in a mixing bowl.
In a medium sauté pan over medium heat, heat olive oil and sweat garlic and onion until softened but not browned. Add onion mixture to mixing bowl with spinach.
Slowly add yucca mixture to spinach-onion mixture, stirring until it resembles creamed spinach. (You may not use all the yucca mixture.) Add cheese and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
To make empanadas, divide spinach filling between plantain rounds, mounding filling in the center of the dough. Fold dough in half and crimp the edges with a fork. Refrigerate for 3 hours to set.
In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat oil to 350°F. Place 1 or 2 empanadas at a time into the oil and fry until deep golden brown and crispy. Remove from oil and season with salt.
To serve: Divide escabeche and onion confit between four plates and top with empanadas.