Confit Sweet Potato Sheet, Georgia Peanuts, Kabocha Squash, Aromatic Wild Grain & Black-Eyed Peas, Crispy Baby Kale
Serves-6
Ingredients:
Confit Sweet Potato
2 medium white sweet potatoes, peeled and thin sliced on a mandolin (yellow or purple sweet potatoes may be substituted)
1 quart olive oil (enough to fully submerge slices)
4 sprigs fresh thyme
4 sprigs fresh sage
2 cloves smashed garlic
Sea salt to taste
Braised Black-Eyed Peas
2 cups of dry black-eyed peas, soaked overnight
3 quarts of water (for braising)
1 quart mirepoix (celery, onion, carrots)
2 pieces each of star anise, cardamom, clove, cinnamon, bay leaves and nutmeg
2 tablespoons of cumin
2 tablespoons of coriander powder
2 tablespoons of cracked black pepper
1 cup parsley finely cut
1 cup chives finely cut
Aromatic Wild Rice
2 cups wild rice
1 quart water (for boiling)
2 pieces each of cinnamon, cardamom, bay leaves and cloves
4 sprigs of fresh mint leaves
2 cups of seasonal dried fruits (apricots, figs, cranberries, raisins)
Sea salt to taste
Roasted Kabocha Squash
2 whole kabocha squash (may substitute pumpkin or butternut squash)
1 cup raw, deshelled peanuts
1 cup cold butter, cubed
1 cup maple syrup
Crispy Kale
1 cup baby kale leaves
Pomegranate Red Wine Reduction
3 cups fresh pomegranate juice
2 cups of local red wine or port wine
3 tablespoons of cane sugar
Instructions
Prepare the confit sliced sweet potatoes. Preheat your oven to 250°F.
Lay thin-sliced sweet potatoes in a shallow pan. Add olive oil, herbs, garlic, spices and sea salt. Confit in oven for 16 minutes until tender, (but not break or fall apart). Remove the slices gently and set aside on parchment.
Cook the black-eyed peas in sauce pot. Combine soaked peas water and mirepoix, star anise, cardamom, clove, cinnamon, bay leaves and nutmeg. Add cumin, coriander and cracked black pepper. Simmer on medium-low until peas are tender. Then, fold in the parsley and chives, adjust seasoning if needed and keep warm.
Prepare the aromatic wild rice. In pot, combine wild rice with water and vegetable broth, and add cinnamon, cardamom, bay leaves and cloves. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer. Once rice is halfway cooked, stir in fresh mint leaves and sea salt to taste. Continue cooking until rice is tender and strain the liquid off, place aside. Add the dried fruits to the beautiful cooked wild rice.
Prepare the kabocha squash purée. Halve the kabocha squash, remove seeds, cut into wedges, and toss with a little oil, salt and pepper. Roast at 375F for 40 minutes until caramelized and soft. In blender, add the squash, maple syrup and cold butter, then blend till smooth. Fill the blended squash in pastry piping bag.
Prepare the crisp baby kale. Lightly oil the kale leaves and roast at 350°F for five minutes or until crisp, (watch closely, as kale burns quickly).
Now, let’s assemble the dish! In a mixing bowl add cooked wild rice and black-eyed peas. Then spoon the rice and black-eyed peas mixture in a ring mold, or spoon it neatly on the plates. Trim the sliced confit sweet potato and assemble it onto the wild rice & black-eyed peas. Pipe the squash purée on top of the sweet potato, garnish with crushed peanuts, add crispy kale, drizzle the reduced pomegranate & red wine on top, and ENJOY!
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