A “healthy” cuisine is far from varied and even less boring. What is just a shopping search for the necessary products and ingredients that naturally go beyond the standard grocery basket! But if you make an effort, the result will exceed all expectations. Vegan and raw food chef, restaurateur, founder of Matthew Kenney Cuisine and PLANTLAB Culinary Academy Matthew Kenny taught Marie Claire readers how to prepare a Michelin- rated vegan meal.
“It's my passion to cook with plant-based foods and come up with new cooking methods,” says Matthew. "These three dishes - palm heart ceviche, seaweed noodles in carrot and ginger sauce and strawberry hibiscus cheesecake - will definitely surprise your guests."
Algae noodles with shaved carrots and ginger
Seaweed noodles
2 tbsp. l. baking soda
2 tbsp. l. lemon juice
2 packs of seaweed noodles
6 cups of warm water
¼ cup tamari sauce
2 tbsp. l. toasted sesame oil
¼ cup agave syrup
Use a broom to stir the lemon juice, baking soda, and warm water in a large bowl. Add noodles and leave for 15-20 minutes. While the noodles are soaking, stir in the tamari sauce, sesame oil and agave syrup. Stretch the noodles and rinse under clean water until the juice is completely drained. Marinate the noodles and leave for 20 minutes. Before serving, remove the remaining marinade and add the carrot-ginger sauce.
Carrot and ginger sauce
2 cups peeled and finely chopped carrots
¾ cup finely chopped green onions
½ cup finely chopped peeled ginger
¼ cup grape seed oil
¼ cup agave syrup
1 tsp tamari sauce
2 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp. sea salt
Combine carrots, green onions, oil, agave syrup, tamari, vinegar and salt in a deep bowl. Marinate vegetables for 15-20 minutes, then combine liquid and vegetables until smooth. Add salt to taste.
Grilled shiitake mushrooms
50-70 g shiitake mushroom caps
2 tbsp l. olive oil
½ cup tamari sauce
½ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup agave syrup
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
Preheat a skillet. Dip the mushroom caps in olive oil and salt. Place the hats on a hot frying pan, with the "crown" down. The mushrooms must be completely fried. Wide and thick caps can be turned over. While the mushrooms are cooking, prepare the marinade by mixing tamari sauce, rice vinegar, agave syrup, and sesame oil. Marinate the mushrooms.
Cucumbers in togarashi
1 cucumber
½ cup rice vinegar
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp. l. agave
¼ mugs of togarashi (shichimi) spice mix
Cut the cucumbers into cubes. Whisk the rice vinegar, salt and agave syrup with a broom. Transfer the cucumbers to the marinade and let sit for 10 minutes, then strain. Pour the togarashi onto a plate and lightly press the cucumbers into the sauce until crisp.
"Shaved" carrots
6 mini carrots
3 cups of ice water
Rinse carrots thoroughly and peel. Using a dehulling tool, peel off thin strips from the carrots. Put them in cold water. Strain and dry the carrot strips before serving.
Preparation
Combine the seaweed noodles with the carrot and ginger sauce. Top with carrot strips. Garnish with pickled shiitaki mushrooms and cucumbers. Optionally, add togarashi to the dish if desired and garnish it with green onions and radishes.
Palm-heart ceviche garnished with seasonal fruits, vegetables and flowers
For ceviche
400 g of cores palm, chopped strips
2 medium ripe avocados
6 small radishes, sliced
1 cup lobules ripe orange
¼ cup chopped strips kumquat
¼ cup chopped beet strips
8 cherry tomatoes, sliced
½ cup white beans
¼ cup pods peas, cut along
½ cups of radish sprouts
1 cup of flowers (edible)
1 tsp. orange oil
1 tsp lemon oil
Sea salt
For the brine
¼ cup of strained lime juice
¼ cup of strained orange juice
¼ cup of olive oil
1 tbsp. l. jalapeno, cut into thin cubes
1 tsp. salt
1 leaf of lime, cut into very thin strips
Preparation
Make a brine by mixing all the necessary ingredients and pour it over the heart of the palm tree. Leave in the refrigerator. Peel the avocado, chop into small cubes and place on a plate. Add pickled palm hearts, cherry tomatoes, orange wedges, radishes, peas, white beans and beets. Drizzle 1 tbsp. l. brine, spreading it evenly throughout the dish. Use peeled beets, radish sprouts, and flowers as decoration. Add a few drops of orange and lemon oils and some salt.
Strawberry hibiscus cheesecake
Vanilla pistachio shortbread dough
3 cups pistachio flour (1 cup - 240-250 g) ½ cup maple syrup
1 tbsp. l. vanilla extract
1 peeled vanilla pod
1 tsp. salt
Stir the ingredients. Put the resulting dough in a baking dish and align the corners. Bake at 155 degrees until a crust appears.
Cheesecake base
6 cups soaked cashews
2 cups strawberries
1 cup hibiscus tea (dissolve 1/4 cup hibiscus in 1 cup boiling water for 10 minutes)
1 cup agave syrup
2 tsp. food starter culture
1 tsp salt
1 teaspoon melted coconut oil
8 g agar
Combine all ingredients except coconut oil in a blender until smooth. Without stopping the blender, pour in the oil. Add agar agar and keep mixing. Pour the mixture into the batter mold and leave in the freezer for 3-6 hours. Then remove the cheesecake from the pan and cut it into 12 pieces. Leave in the refrigerator.
Lime cream
400 g lime puree (600 g lime, cut into wedges, mix with 100 g agave syrup)
150 g coconut oil
125 g coconut pulp
100 g agave syrup
10 g agar agar
¼ tsp salt
Place all ingredients (except agar agar) in a blender and punch for 5 minutes until the mixture is heated. Pour the contents onto a baking sheet, filling full. Leave the puree in the refrigerator until the agar-agar is infused. Place it back in the blender, add agar and mix until smooth.
Sorrel jelly
100 g sorrel
¾ cup agave syrup
½ cup ice water
¼ cup lemon juice
¾ tsp xanthan gum (or flax / chia seeds)
Stir the ingredients until smooth and strain
Making cheesecake
Remove the sliced cheesecake from the refrigerator. Garnish each bite with lime cream and sorrel jelly. Serve with candied pistachios and sorrel leaves (to taste).
About the author:
Matthew Kenny is a vegan and raw food chef and restaurateur. A graduate of the French Culinary Institute, Kenny worked for many years in New York - first in existing restaurants, then in his own - and in 2009 he founded the Culinary Academy, today known as PLANTLAB, which became the world's first raw food culinary institute. Today, the Matthew Kenney Cuisine group - from gourmet restaurants to vegan pizzerias - is represented in the United States, England, Colombia and the Kingdom of Bahrain. Kenny was also voted America's Best New Chef by Food and Wine Magazine, and was nominated twice by the James Beard Foundation for Best Rising Gastronomy Star.
It will be possible to taste the chef's dishes, as well as listen to his lecture on the topic “Innovations in Vegetable Cuisine”, on February 2 at the IKRA gastronomic festival, which will be held in Sochi (Rosa Khutor resort, January 31-February 4, 2018). At the master class, Matthew Kenny will prepare a full-fledged lunch of three courses for the guests, products for which will be provided by the Gorod-Sad healthy food supermarket chain. Read more on the festival website.
Photo: archives of press services
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