FRIED CHEVRE AND BASIL POBLANO VINAIGRETTE
MANGO CHEVRE
4 ounces cream cheese
4 ounces montrachet goat cheese
½ mango peeled and pureed=3 tablespoons puree
Mix it by hand until smooth. Don’t over mix, stop when smooth and light yellow. Refrigerate for one hour. Pat into 8, one ounce little cakes.
The next stage is flour, eggwash and roll in breadcrumbs. Use the dry hand-wet hand method when breading. One hand for dry ingredients and one hand for wet ingredients, this way you never cross over from batter to flour and your hands aren’t caked up with the breading.
In three separate pans:
1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon water, whisked into egg
½ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
Cover with flour and then place into the egg wash pan. Coat with egg and then roll cakes in the breadcrumbs, then egg and breadcrumb them again to make sure they are completely encrusted with the breading.
FRY
1 cup corn or peanut oil
Heat to 350 degrees in iron skillet. Fry for 90 seconds per side. Turn again and remove when crust begins to brown.
BASIL POBLANO VINAIGRETTE
1 poblano pepper
1 ounce fresh basil
1 tablespoon grain mustard
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup corn oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 teaspoon ground black pepper
Roast the peppers until the skin blisters and turns black. Wrap and chill. Peel them in cold water and remove seeds. Use the flesh for the vinaigrette. This is also how you roast red bell peppers to get that smooth sweet and slight heat from them.
In food processor: peppers, basil, mustard. Slowly add olive oil, corn oil, vinegar, sugar, and then salt and pepper. Chill.
H Lamar Thomas, Executive Chef
East West Bistro
This recipe is for the restaurant section of the August Southern Distinction magazine. If you use it just remember where it came from and give me a kind word. Food is for everyone, there are no boundaries or limits to what can happen when science and love combine!
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