The Best Chef Who Never Wanted to Be a Chef: Part 2
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Lori Brown - Dec 7, 2016
- 20 min read
Part 2: Chef Ted Dorsey talks about his staff that is like his family, his actual family and the formation of The Mill.
We sat down with Chef Ted Dorsey of the award winning The Mill Restaurant to ask him some standard interview questions. What we got was so much more and it is all so interesting that I am going to divide this into two sections: The early years and Up to now. The first thing he said to us was, “You know, I never really wanted to be a chef.” This Part 2 piece goes into details about his career and family and what led to the opening of The Mill.
Anyone who has ever met Chef Ted, knows what a genuinely humble and kind person lies behind that Executive Chef’s coat. Eating his food is like eating his heart (not literally) on a plate. He and his kitchen staff, which he refers to as his second family, put their heart and soul into every item that comes out of that kitchen. Does that mean it’s always perfect? Of course not. But they certainly strive for that.
His Restaurant Family
Chef Ted has a very dedicated and loyal staff. It is almost unheard of to have seven guys that stay with and follow the same chef for over five years. Chef Ted does. His Sous Chef, Zach West aka Wookie, helped him to open Boca, Samba Room, Copperfish, Castile and The Mill. They first met when Wookie was at Datz in Tampa and Chef Ted was hiring for Boca. Chef Ted gave him the nickname Wookie back then and it just stuck. He said, “He has always had long hair and a beard for as long as I have known him. I think he started growing it after he left the NFL. He used to play for the Patriots and the Browns. It’s funny how a nickname can stick the way Wookie has!”
Also still with him are Richie, Tom, Murray, Mickey, and his two prep guys Roger and Fernando.
As Chef Ted says, “We take care of them. They make great salaries. They own equity in the business and, and that’s why we have great product and we have a great time. You know, they’ve all been…we’ve all been together a long time and we have the ability to rely on each other. I’m always a firm believer in the more minds you put on something the greater the outcome will be. And that’s why all of my Sous-Chefs have a say on the menus and that gives them great pride and I want that for them.”
I asked Chef Ted if he and the kitchen staff have a ritual that they do to break things up when stressful times occur or things break, etc. He said, “There’s a bunch of them. But when people break glasses or stuff like that, we either yell “job opening” or “drug test”. You know, one of my favorite things is our hashtag (#handsplease). That’s my thing because throughout the course of an entire shift when I’m expediting I probably say “hands please” a couple of hundred times. Every time food comes up “hands please”. So honestly there are a lot of interesting things said back there that I can’t repeat.”
He continues, “You ought to come back on a Saturday night and just watch. It’s a bit vulgar, a little racy, you know. I am a very, very serious Chef. I run a classical gate system. It’s like being in the military. I expect my crew to call back. So I call a “check”, yell out an order fire: Meatloaf Wellington, Ribeye Pittsburgh Style, Pork Tomahawk medium, Diver Scallops, Fish and Grits. Heard…. They all yell “heard chef” back to me.”
(Photo by Barry Lively)
Chef Ted says, “I make them work on verbals. They have to communicate with me and they have to communicate with each other…”hot behind you”, “knife on your left”, you know what I mean…When you see cooks get bogged down, we call it “traveling with a death spin”, because when a cook gets buried on their station, you know it holds everything up and it is hard to regain control. That’s when I look at a sous-chef and tell him to get offline and help with that station. We’ll get him out of it and then you get back online.”
He recognizes that he runs a very tough kitchen and says, ” I’m very, very hard on my guys and I demand a lot out of them. But at the end of the day they know that after working for me for a couple of years that they can go anywhere and I’m also kind of like that big brother. We’re a family. If you have a problem, as much as it drives me nuts, because I tell them all the time like dude I’m not Amscot, but like if you’re in a jam I’m going to help you out. If you get arrested, call me. I’ll come get you out. That kind of stuff. I’m always there for them. I mean I spend more time with these guys than I do my own family.”
He continues, “And it’s important to me to take care of them. I mean I’m not going to get into it, but I’ve had several restaurateurs and owners that have taken advantage of me over the years and I’m never going to put myself in a position to take advantage of one of my employees. It’s not fair to them. It’s been done to me and I don’t want to do that to other people. I just, I’m a nice guy. I’m just trying to make a good living for my family and that’s it.”
Chef Ted’s Family at Home
Chef Ted Dorsey and Lauren O’Donnell were married on November 29th, 2008. They just celebrated eight years of marriage and they have two beautiful children, Jackson who is three years old and Samantha who just turned eight weeks old.
They met while Lauren was bartending at Mise en Place to pay her way through culinary school and Chef Ted was interning. I asked Chef what Lauren would say is her favorite meal that he cooks at home and he responded that she does all of the cooking and cleaning, “My wife is a chef. She didn’t go to school to be a pastry chef. She just is one. She went to culinary school and is a classically trained chef. It just kind of worked out that she’s now our pastry chef.”
On how happy he is to have his wife as their pastry chef, he continues, “Great pastry chefs are hard to find. I’ve had some over the years that…well I had one guy who just had throat problems. I had another one who was so emotional, no lie, you can’t even make this stuff up. I swear to God. I wanted to do a reality TV show. But then you could only sell it to like HBO or cable outlet because the shit that’s said in the scene back there is unheard of.”
He then tells this story, “One time my Executive Sous-Chef walked into the walk in, turned around and walked right back out. He looked at me and Wookie and said “you have go in the walk in.” I’m like, “why?” And he said, “because you can’t make this shit up.” I’m like, “what’s up, Murray?” And he goes, “Rebecca is in there literally crying over spilled milk. She spilled the milk when she was pulling it and she’s just standing there.” It’s just like oh, my God. I was wondering where that saying came from…Don’t cry over spilled milk. But now I see somebody crying over spilled milk.”
The Dorseys are animal lovers and have two cats and a Great Dane at home. In speaking about his dog he said, “When Lauren and I eat steak, the dog gets a steak. If we eat burgers, he gets a burger. You know, he’s 120 pounds. We adopted him. I don’t think my wife’s his biggest fan right now. There’s a lot going on in the house with the newborn and all that stuff. But my son loves him to death and he’s good with my kids. So that’s all that matters.”
Chef Ted’s thoughts on work and family: “I’m just trying to put out a great product and please my customers and provide for my family. That’s all. I think having kids makes you change your mind inside a little bit. What was important before, may be not be so important now.”
The Partnership Formation of D&G
Kevin and I knew Jason Griffin, Chef Ted’s business partner at The Mill and D&G Holdings, for a year or so before the opening of the restaurant. At the time, he was bartender extraordinaire at The Cask and Ale. He always expressed to us his desire to open his own place and we watched him make that happen.
Not knowing how they met, I asked Ted. “I’d been looking for the “me” who could run the front of the house for a long time. And Jason had been looking for the “him” in the back. One of our servers, who currently still works for us, was working for me at Castile at the time. His dad asked me to meet him to look at a restaurant space on Central and give him my opinion of what I thought and if it would be a viable thing. Thinking about it now, I think they were going to try to hire me and steal me from Castile and so I showed up and it was the old St Pete. Brasserie space.”
He continues, “If you guys remember the old space, when you would go through the kitchen, it’s a giant U because it goes around those offices. I was walking through one way and Jason’s coming through the other way. I guess they asked him to come down and give them his opinion too. And I’m looking around thinking this is not going to work out. You’d have to chop it in half and split the two spaces (which is what ended up happening to form Brick & Mortar and Tony’s Pizza). This is just logistically a nightmare. If I’m yelling for hands and there’s a table out there, it’s just… And then Jason’s coming the other direction saying “this is just not going to work. This is ridiculous”. And so I said, “hey man how’s it going? What’s your name?” “Jason Griffin.” “I’m Ted Dorsey.” So we exchanged cards.
This all happened two and a half years ago. After that first meeting they talked a few times. Jason went to Castile for dinner a few times and Chef Ted went to see Jason at Cask & Ale a couple of times. He said, “I’d never even been to Cask & Ale until I met him. I moved over here having a young child so I don’t go out. My bar scene around here is pretty limited. I know a lot of chefs are famous or infamous with the bars around here. I, unfortunately, don’t indulge in the bars as much as I’d like to probably.”
He continues, “So Jason and I started talking about opening a restaurant and so we finally just decided to go for it and we formed our holding company D&G. I know it’s really creative…Dorsey and Griffin Holdings.”
The Making of The Mill
Once they formed their partnership they went full steam ahead. Says Chef Ted, “So we started looking for property and we came upon JoJo’s and started peeking in the windows. “What, what is this?” Next, we went to the Contreras, the former owner’s of JoJo’s, and met with them and they showed us the property. Albeit, it was setup completely wrong but we came in and toured it anyway. I looked at Jason and said “this is the place!” And that was that.”
He continues, “There was just something about the space with the energy that was across the street and knowing that all the people across the street thought this side will never work. It will never work on that side of Central and we really just wanted to prove everybody wrong. It was just such a unique space and it was the exact amount of square footage that we wanted. We wanted around 4,000 square feet…so we brazenly and brashly as possible secured $50,000 for the deposit.”
And so the stressful time began, “It was the most stressful probably four months of my life. And I’ve opened a lot of restaurants…So Jason and I went on the hunt. Between the two of us we know a lot of influential, big money people, so to speak. Fortunately enough, we found a group of guys that worked out to be great silent partners and let us do our thing and The Mill was born.”
With the money raised, the concept is now born, “The Mill is just kind of the concept I always wanted to do. My favorite concept that I ever opened was Boca because I’m a southerner and I enjoy infusing my southern heritage and what I learned from my grandmother, and all that stuff with growing up in the South, with my classical training. So that’s why you do see some French undertones and because of my classical training, I’m a firm believer in every dish for an entrée has to have a starch, a vegetable, a protein and a sauce…otherwise it’s an incomplete dish.”
He continues, “For the concept we knew what we wanted. We knew we wanted very rustic, chic, industrial. The name, the name kind of came later. I’ve got about 120 or so restaurant concept names in my phone. Just things that I’d like to see or I’d like to do and we were just rattling…well, I was just rattling off names and out it came…The Mill, that’s the one. The biggest thing for Jason and I was that we wanted to create a restaurant that was for locals by locals. So we hired local artists, we allowed them to do really what they wanted based on our concept. We wanted…well we’re Tampa Bay guys. Both of us were born in Tampa or raised in Tampa so we just wanted to do something unique and really kind of push the boundaries for St. Pete.”
The Evolution of the Menu
The Mill changes their menu with the seasons and they have learned along the way that there are some things your clients never want you to change, “The Mill was just, I think the reason I love it is because it allows us to do really whatever we want with food and if it works, it works and if it doesn’t, you don’t have to run it. But it allows us to test. And you know when we first opened I had the Naughty Bits on the menu which is a dish I would eat any day of the week…but Sweet Breads just didn’t move in this market.
He continues, “And the Watermelon Bruschetta. The Watermelon Bruschetta is an anomaly. It’s toast. And it’s our best selling dish. It’s probably our most notorious dish. We took it off the menu last fall and we put on a Squash Bruschetta and the city revolted. The reason that I changed it was because I heard another restaurant was running a Watermelon Bruschetta and I thought, “well look it’s fall. It doesn’t have to stay on the menu. We’ll bring it back in the spring.” I’ll never take it off the menu again. It’s just going to stay on there. I mean everybody was so mad. I mean, so mad. That and the Walnut Pie. I’ve never seen anything like that.” Other menu staples that will remain are the Sweet Pea Hummus, the Meatloaf Wellington and The Mill Burger…one of my favorites!
(Photo by Barry Lively)
As we were sitting there, Chef Ted pointed at the bar and said, “The guy sitting right here at the bar with the red shirt is my new beverage director. Bob was my beverage director in Tampa. He opened Samba Room, Boca and Copperfish with me before he moved out to go to New York to open a couple of spots up there and now he’s back…Bob is a guy who believes in training and building teams, so we had to bring somebody in like Bob to help guide the bar team and train them properly. Ryan Pinés, when he was here had a passion that Bob has. We have got to get that passion back. That was one of the things that Pinés was great at. He was very passionate. “Hey, chef try this. What do you think about this? What do you think about this? What do you think?” You know, we have got to get a little bit more of that back now. So you’re going to see a resurgence in our cocktail program that I’m excited about.”
Fun Interview Questions – The Extras
Lori Brown: “Most restaurant owners tend to hate Yelp, Trip Advisor, etc. What would you change about the process if you could and what are your thoughts?”
Chef Ted: “I would like the ability to contact them directly or to reply directly to them and have an open forum. Because I’m not an egotistical chef and I’m not a…. I don’t have a lot of time in my life for all the crap of social media, the hatred, the anger all the BS that goes on online. For me I read them every morning and I believe there’s some good and there’s some bad. You have to listen especially if there are some things that maybe we messed up on, maybe the service was off, maybe the food was undercooked or overcooked. That’s stuff that we need to know because if we don’t know we can’t fix it. But the fact that people will go on and just rudely bash a place because they felt this was done and that and it wasn’t comped. Well, you didn’t say anything either…So for me I don’t really care for Yelp or Trip Advisor. But I believe that there are some good and bad and you have to at least look and try to make adjustments when and where you can.”
Lori: “So what is your guilty food pleasure?”
Chef: “It’s amazing because I am currently In the process of losing weight. I am overweight still. I haven’t had fast food or any of that kind of stuff. I haven’t eat any of that stuff for 10 years. So my guilty food pleasure is like cheese boards and that kind of stuff. However, I love Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups out of the freezer. I can crush those. They are the best coming out of the freezer. Just ice cold. Oh, my God! I always put my chocolate and stuff in the freezer. Now I’m going to have to go buy Reese’s peanut butter cups.”
Lori: “Oh, no, I’m sorry. So if you can tell me…You named a lot of chefs that were a big inspiration to you. Who do you think was the biggest inspiration?
Chef: “It’s Marty Blitz – owner of Mise en Place – where I started my career. Marty is the father of cuisine in Tampa Bay. Marty has had more executive chefs come out from under him…Ferrell Alvarez of The Rooster and The Till, himself. It’s a long list of executive chefs. I’ve had a few come out from underneath me and I’m extremely proud about that, but if it wasn’t for Marty…If Marty believes in you and takes a chance on you then…you’re in. You can learn a lot from that guy. He’s talented.”
Lori: “How would you compare your home kitchen to your kitchen here?”
Chef:”The biggest thing is that here I have people who do my dishes.”
Lori: “Are there any foods/spices that you dislike?”
Chef: “I can cook the hell out of them but I do not care for avocado and lobster.”
Lori: “Do you have a gourmet take on a PB&J, Tuna Fish or Bologna sandwich?”
Chef: “I do. But you don’t have to look far to get a good PB&J in this town. Pom Pom’s Colossal PB&J is the bomb and tell them to add bacon. But yeah, I do have plays on some stuff like that. Like our newest dessert here is a pound cake grilled cheese. And this was Richey’s idea and I did a ton of research. Nobody’s ever done a dessert grilled cheese before. So we make the pound cake, cut it in half, cut it into squares so that it looks like bread, flipped it over and added white chocolate ganache on one side, cranberries filled with cheese on the other, melt it and then put it together. Mixed with the sauces…it’s mind-blowingly good. Mind-blowingly! I know that’s insane but…”
Lori: “What’s the worst meal that you remember ever having?”
Chef: “Let me pick a place that’s not around here. I was in culinary school in Orlando and I wanted to try one of Emeril’s restaurants but I knew I didn’t want to go to one on City Walk because it’s just….I decided I was going to try Tchoup Chop. When you make your reservation they take your credit card number and if you don’t show up it’s a $250 charge and so I knew I was going go. I grabbed a date and we went and it was so bad. My bill was $500, and I was in culinary school at the time, but I knew I could have cooked a better meal than that myself. It was a veal osso bucco and it just wasn’t done right – tough and not glazed properly. It should have been rich and succulent. It was just awful. I’ll pay top dollar for an amazing meal.”
Lori: “So what was your most memorable meal?”
Chef: “You know, I wouldn’t say that it’s a meal. I would say that it was a dish that I can’t get out of my head. There’s a bar in Manhattan called Employees Only. I’m sure you’ve heard of it. They have these bone marrow poppers. They are just so damn rich and succulent. It is amazing! You know, I haven’t had a lot of great meals though.”
Lori: “That’s the one that sticks out in your head?”
Chef: “Just that taste or there’s just something about it. Casa De Angelo in South Florida. Probably one of the most memorable dining experiences. I mean just a great all around experience from the service to the wine to the meal itself.”
THANK YOU, CHEF TED FOR THIS AMAZING INSIGHT INTO YOUR WORLD!
(Photo by Barry Lively)
Read Part 1 Here
- The Mill Restaurant
- 727-317-3930
- Southern, American, Creole
- Tue - Thu 11:00am - 11:00pm
- Fri - 11:00am - 12:00am
- Sat - 10:00am - 12:00am
- Sun - 10:00am - 10:00pm
- 200 Central Ave, St Petersburg, FL 33701, USA
The Mill Restaurant in Downtown St. Pete - Rustic American with a Southern touch and a French Creole twist.
PLEASE NOTE: Reviews reflect a certain moment in time. Some restaurants stay extremely consistent over many years, and some change for the better or worse. Some things that may change are: chefs, recipes, food suppliers, ingredients, philosophies, ownership, etc. We always hope that you have the same good, or great experience we had.
Written by Lori Brown
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French and Moroccan cuisine are two genres of food that we currently do not have enough of in the St. Petersburg area. Because of this, it is no surprise that the community has welcomed the newly-opened permanent location of Cybel French Moroccan Restaurant on 5th Ave N. in Kenwood with open arms. Cybel is actually the only French Moroccan restaurant in the area. Chef Touf, who we had the pleasure of meeting during our meal at Cybel, is the mind behind the operation. Chef started his professional cooking journey in LA as a private chef for a number of athletes and celebrities. This operation then transformed into a catering company. In 2023 Chef Touf brought Cybel to life as a ghost kitchen located at Foodie Labs, which acts as a culinary incubator. After eight months at Foodies Labs, Chef Touf announced in July that a new home for Cybel would be coming soon. On November 1st, their brick and mortar location opened to the public. Why French Moroccan fare? Chef Touf’s inspiration behind serving French Moroccan in his restaurant stems from his years spent in Morocco as a child. During this time, he grew very fond of the cuisine. Currently, Cybel is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday beginning at 5:00PM, however, they just announced on November 19th that brunch would be debuting this weekend (weekend of November 23rd) from 11:00AM – 3:30PM. The brunch will be in collaboration with Brewed Awakenings, which operates out of Cybel’s restaurant Wednesday – Monday from 7:00AM – 3:00PM. The brunch menu will feature dishes like Tagine Shakshuka, Za’atar Avocado Tartine and Merguez, just to name a few. Intriguing coffee beverages by Brewed Awakening include cold brew lemonade, a thai latte, matcha latte and an oat latte with your flavor choice of lavender or cinnamon banana bread. Reservations are now available. As for Cybel’s standard dinner menu, you’ll find an array of shareable items, vibrant salads, mouthwatering entrees like tagines, kabobs, shawarma and a must-order French taco, a selection of pitas and various sides that are not to be overlooked. We tried to order something from each section and what made this easy is the fact that a number of the entrees offer some of the sides and salads. This was ultra convenient and allowed us the opportunity to try some items that we otherwise may have not ordered on our own. Because Cybel does not serve alcohol, they encourage guests to bring their own. That’s right – BYOB. When you’re planning your visit to Cybel, make sure to bring along one of your favorite bottles to enjoy along side your meal. For their new brunch, I suggest a bottle of delicious bubbles to complement your leisurely weekend dining experience. As I mentioned earlier, when talking about their new brunch, Cybel encourages reservations. These can be secured via their website here. We arrived at Cybel on a Friday night for our 6:00PM reservation. Because we checked in before the rush, we had our pick of sitting inside or outside. The interior of the space has approximately ten tables and the exterior offers a handful more – we opted for a two top inside. Around 6:30PM, the restaurant was packed both inside and out. It was bustling which kept the staff quite busy. Our server was so attentive, especially considering how busy they were. After we placed our food order and received our appetizer, she informed us that the mains may take a bit longer than expected, but that’s never an issue for us. We really wanted to try a number of the items from the starters section of the menu and the Un peu de tout was absolutely perfect for that. It is great to share between a few people and includes falafel, labneh, hummus, Moroccan ratatouille, tabbouleh with zaatar pita bread. Each element of this platter was delightful in its own way. The falafel had perfect texture and was great with a dollop of labneh for a premium bite. Ratatouille isn’t usually a favorite of mine, but this rendition was a loaded hit of flavor that surprised both me and my husband. I highly suggest ordering this app, regardless of how many folks you’re dining with, because it is just enough to enjoy before the mains, you get a variety of bites and is as wonderful as it sounds. Our entrees didn’t take as long as expected and arrived in a timely manner. The French Taco (more like a burrito) is a must-order in my opinion. It has its own menu where you select your meat, vegetables, sauce and type of fry (the fries are served in the taco) – regular or gourmet (gourmet = extra crispy for texture). After some deliberating, we decided on the jerk chicken with onion, tomato, shredded lettuce and the six sick sauce. The six sick sauce (additional $3) is a blend of all six of their sauces in one which makes for an incredible sauce that hits all of the notes (I know, it sounds like a lot, but you have to trust me here). This item could definitely be split between two people, as it is very large. The next entree of note that we ordered is the Chicken Shawarma. It comes with marinated shawarma that is sliced thin and served with garlic sauce (Toum), Mediterranean rice and parsley salad. This was my entree of choice and I’m so glad that I selected it as it was light, fresh and chock-full of savory flavor and I couldn’t get enough of the garlic sauce. It was like a build your own bite experience which also makes this an entree that could easily be shared. We had the leftovers the next day with some pita and that whole experience was equally as tasty as the first. We really wanted to give the beef kabobs a try and the pita as our kabob vessel with a side of fries and it was a home-run. It arrived dressed with […]
The temperature here in Florida may still be quite warm, but it is in fact fall and I can’t help but shift into comfort-cooking mode. For me, that means that lots of pasta dishes and comforting soups are frequently in the dinner rotation. A few months ago, I made stuffed rigatoni for the first time and fell in love with both the process of making it and the end result. The rigatoni was filled with a mixture of ricotta, mozzarella and provolone cheese and minced mortadella and was served in a spicy tomato sauce. While enjoying this dish, a number of alternative filling possibilities entered my mind and a simple mixture of ricotta and mushroom was one of the first. I’ve been making marinara at least once (sometimes twice) per month, usually on Sundays, for at least ten years now. Over the course of these ten years, tweaks and changes have been made to the recipe and a few years ago, I landed on what works best for my taste. The ingredient list is simple, but depends heavily on quality ingredients – like premium whole peeled tomatoes, 24 month parmigiano reggiono rinds and some good red wine. Luckily, Rollin’ Oats is a mecca for premium ingredients. For the sauce, they have a few canned tomato offerings that I recommend, like Cento and also organic variations from Muir Glen and Bionature. And we all know that they have a wonderful selection of great wines to choose from and a few experts on their staff to help you make a selection. You’re only using 1/4 cup in this recipe, but I always recommend using a wine that you would drink when cooking. You could undoubtedly assemble this recipe on a weekday, however, I think it is best enjoyed on a slow Saturday or Sunday. In the recipe, I suggest cooking the sauce for at least an hour, but you can definitely allow it to simmer for up to a few hours. The smell of marinara flowing through the home is one of my favorite scents ever. You can use this sauce in many other recipes like meatballs, chicken parmesan or other pastas of course like spaghetti. Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe This comforting pasta dish is comprised of rigatoni that is stuffed with a mix of creamy ricotta cheese and savory mushrooms that is then baked in a simple marinara sauce. ovensafe skillet or large dutch ovenBlender Marinara1 tbsp olive oil1/2 white onion (medium in size, roughly chopped)3 garlic cloves (peeled and crushed)1 tsp dried oregano2 tbsp tomato paste1/4 cup red wine (pick a red that you would drink)2 bay leaves1 28oz can crushed or whole peeled tomatoesparmesan rind (optional)1 tsp salt (plus more to taste)Ricotta & Mushroom Filling1 tbsp olive oiltsp tsp salt (divided)8 oz mushrooms (diced into very small pieces – shiitake, baby bella, or most any other mushroom will work)10 oz ricotta cheese1 eggRigatoni & Assembly16 oz rigatoni (you may have leftover rigatoni – save them for another use)1 tbsp olive oil1/4 cup parmesan (grated)1/4 cup fresh basil (roughly chopped or torn) Ricotta & Mushroom FillingHeat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and 1/2 tsp salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid from mushrooms has evaporated completely – about 10-12 minutes.Add cooked mushrooms to a bowl with ricotta, beaten egg and remaining 1 tsp salt. Allow mixture to cool in the refrigerator while you prepare the marinara.After filling has cooled for an hour, add filling to a sandwich-sized ziplock bag. Cut a very small opening into one corner of the bag (smaller than the size of the opening of the rigatoni).MarinaraHeat a dutch oven or pot that is medium in size over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp olive oil and chopped onion. Cook onion, stirring occasionally, until it softens (6-8 minutes). Season with 1/2 tsp salt.Add in crushed garlic cloves and dried oregano and cook for one minute, stirring constantly, until fragrant – about one minute. Stir in tomato paste and cook until it takes on a brick red color. Pour in wine, deglaze pan, and allow the wine to reduce for 2-3 minutes. Add bay leaves, tomatoes, parmesan rinds (if using) and another 1/2 tsp salt to the pot and stir to combine.Bring marinara to a simmer, reduce heat to medium low, and allow sauce to simmer gently for about one hour. Season with more salt as needed. After an hour, discard bay leaves and parmesan rinds and blend sauce with an immersion blender or in a high powered blender until smooth. Add sauce to a large oven-safe skillet (like cast iron) or a large dutch oven and set aside until ready to fill rigatoni.Rigatoni & AssemblyHeat oven to 350 F. Cook pasta 1-2 minutes less than package instructions (you want an al dente texture to keep the rigatoni from ripping – they will cook further in the final steps of the recipe in the oven). Strain and rinse with cold water, add to a large bowl and toss with 1 tbsp olive oil to keep the rigatoni from sticking together.One at a time, pipe filling mixture into each piece of rigatoni and arrange in a single layer in prepared skillet/dutch oven with pureed marinara until you run out of room (you want to nestle them into the sauce so they are mostly covered).Repeat with remaining pieces of rigatoni. Distribute half of grated parmesan over the stuffed rigatoni in marinara.Place skillet into the oven until cheese melts and begins to take on a light golden color- 20-25 minutes. Top with remaining grated parmesan and basil and serve immediately. Dinner, Main Course, Main DishAmerican, ItalianRicotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni
Exclusive Behind the Scenes Look at the Unique Way Cassis Makes Their Pizza Cassis Pizza & Market in downtown St. Petersburg turns out pizzas that are addicting, crunchy, chewy, flavor-bombs. They are just baked treats of joy. As if that’s not enough of a reason to love them, I am also delighted that they are doing something unique in St. Pete, and maybe anywhere, as I think they invented their own version of pizza. It’s mostly based on Chicago tavern pizza, with a little bit of influence from Detroit pizza, and one aspect from NY-style. Matthew, the head Pizzaiolo, is from Chicago, so of course the tavern-style pizza is his favorite. (Side note: Chicago Deep Dish is a great culinary invention, but it is mostly for tourists. Chicago locals eat a lot more of tavern style than deep dish.) Philippe, the owner of Cassis, prefers Detroit-style pizzas. Here’s How the Pizza Comes Together The pizza dough thickness and texture is influenced by Chicago tavern-style. There is no cornicione (rim or what most people call the crust), but it has a slightly raised edge of about a half inch. Similar to a Detroit-style pizza, the raised edge has cheese on the outside that gets charred and delightfully crunchy. Lastly, the 14″ round pizza is cut into triangles, like a NY-style pie. This is the best pizza compromise ever, but that is not where the uniqueness ends. The dough recipe, construction method, and cooking technique are all distinct as well. Do I have the dough recipe? Yes! Am I giving it to you? No. (I don’t think I’d be invited into any other kitchens if I did.) Here’s what I can tell you. The dough consists of mostly white flour with just a little bit of whole wheat flour along with salt, sugar, yeast, and olive oil. Unlike a NY-style pizza where one person is elegantly tossing dough in the air, placing all the toppings and transferring in and out of the oven, Cassis has a pizza team that is run like a production line as they are cranking out over 200 pizzas a day. There are two pizza ovens with four decks each. One deck can fit four pizzas, so 32 pizzas can be baking at once – theoretically. They would have to be staggered on timing to accommodate the process though. They cook on a pan for nine minutes, then come out of the oven, get removed from the pan, and go back directly on the stone for 30-60 seconds to crisp up. That’s a lot of timers to keep track of too, so maybe we’re not going to cook 32 pizzas at once. After a batch of dough is made, it is formed into balls that rest for 24 hours. Then they are formed into the pizza base and flattened using a machine called a sheeter. This is much more efficient than a rolling pin, (which is how you would make this style of crust at home) with a guaranteed uniform thickness for making large quantities of pizzas every day. There are over a dozen different pre-determined topping combinations to choose from, and you can also choose any of your own topping combinations. Our pizza was half Genovese (right side), which is overnight tomatoes, mozzarella, salami, artichokes, ricotta, basil pesto, and parmesan cheese. The other half had pepperoni, jalapeños, and mushrooms.
Recipes
In this recipe, we are transforming simple ingredients into an elevated flatbread that is ideal for enjoying on these cooler December evenings. All of the elements involved in this sausage, pesto & peperonata flatbread are not only complementary together, but they are equally as delicious when used in different applications. The pesto can be tossed with your favorite pasta or served alongside arancini (we actually did this for Thanksgiving this year and it was a hit). Peperonata can serve as an easy appetizer spooned onto crusty slices of bread, or as a tangy topper for sandwiches, crispy cutlets or even with a steak. You can use any type of flatbread for this recipe. On a busy weeknight when time is of the essence, I suggest grabbing a flatbread option that is already baked in the package – naan could even work well here. Rollin’ Oats Natural Food Market sells a few different variations like O’Doughs flatbread, which happens to be gluten free and vegan. If you’d rather bake a homemade or store-bought dough and have the time, I recommend going for it. This way, you can control the thickness of your flatbread. The bake time is only about ten extra minutes, if you opt for this route. The ground Italian sausage brings the the whole flatbread together with its subtle touch of savory spice. Ground Italian sausage is my preference, but if you’d rather a fully-cooked version, you can’t go wrong. Simply slice it into rounds and arrange before baking the flatbread in the oven. Sausage, Pesto & Peperonata Flatbread Recipe In this recipe, sweet and sour peperonata, pesto and sausage are combined to create an elevated take on flatbread. You don't have to make your flatbread dough from scratch in order to get the most out of this recipe – there are plenty of suitable store-bought options available. Pesto5 cups basil (5 packed cups, fresh)3/4 cup parmesan cheese (finely grated)1/2 cup pine nuts3 garlic cloves (peeled and smashed)3/4 cup olive oil1 tsp salt (plus more, to taste)1 tbsp lemon juice (from 1/2 of a small lemon (optional))Peperonata3 bell peppers (about 3 cups, mix of colors of choice, thinly sliced)1/2 cup olive oil1/2 white onion (medium in size, sliced thin)4 garlic cloves (peeled, smashed and sliced very thin)5 sprigs fresh thyme2 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegarsalt (to taste)Flatbread Assembly1 flatbread (homemade or a mix like Bob's Redmill or an already prepared flatbread of choice (naan would work great too))1 lb cooked ground sausage1/2 cup parmesan cheese (grated )basil or parsley (chopped (optional)) PestoHeat your oven to 325F and spread your pine nuts on a parchment lined baking sheet. Toast for 6 minutes. Add pine nuts and all pesto recipe ingredients, except the oil, (including lemon, if using – this will add a touch of brightness) to a food processor or high powered blender. Blend or process on high while slowly streaming in the oil until the pesto is smooth. Add more salt as needed. Set pesto aside until you're ready to assemble the flatbread.PeperonataHeat oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add in peppers, onion, garlic and thyme and cook for 6 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low to cook the mixture slowly until peppers and onions soften, about 25 minutes. Discard thyme sprigs, stir in red wine vinegar and season with salt to taste. Set aside.Flatbread AssemblyHeat oven to 400F. If using a homemade or store bought dough, roll it out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet to your desired thickness. Top with a few spoon fulls of pesto (evenly dispersed), cooked ground sausage and half of the grated parmesan. Bake for 20 minutes. If using an already baked flatbread or other bread like naan, repeat steps with pesto, sausage and parmesan and bake for only 10 minutes.Remove flatbread from the oven and increase oven heat to 425F. Top flatbread with peperonata and remaining grated parmesan. Bake for another 6-8 minutes.Carefully remove the flatbread from the oven, drizzle with more pesto and garnish with chopped basil or parsley.Slice flatbread as desired and serve. Appetizer, Dinner, Main Course, Main DishAmerican, Cajun, ItalianSausage, Pesto & Peperonata Flatbread
The temperature here in Florida may still be quite warm, but it is in fact fall and I can’t help but shift into comfort-cooking mode. For me, that means that lots of pasta dishes and comforting soups are frequently in the dinner rotation. A few months ago, I made stuffed rigatoni for the first time and fell in love with both the process of making it and the end result. The rigatoni was filled with a mixture of ricotta, mozzarella and provolone cheese and minced mortadella and was served in a spicy tomato sauce. While enjoying this dish, a number of alternative filling possibilities entered my mind and a simple mixture of ricotta and mushroom was one of the first. I’ve been making marinara at least once (sometimes twice) per month, usually on Sundays, for at least ten years now. Over the course of these ten years, tweaks and changes have been made to the recipe and a few years ago, I landed on what works best for my taste. The ingredient list is simple, but depends heavily on quality ingredients – like premium whole peeled tomatoes, 24 month parmigiano reggiono rinds and some good red wine. Luckily, Rollin’ Oats is a mecca for premium ingredients. For the sauce, they have a few canned tomato offerings that I recommend, like Cento and also organic variations from Muir Glen and Bionature. And we all know that they have a wonderful selection of great wines to choose from and a few experts on their staff to help you make a selection. You’re only using 1/4 cup in this recipe, but I always recommend using a wine that you would drink when cooking. You could undoubtedly assemble this recipe on a weekday, however, I think it is best enjoyed on a slow Saturday or Sunday. In the recipe, I suggest cooking the sauce for at least an hour, but you can definitely allow it to simmer for up to a few hours. The smell of marinara flowing through the home is one of my favorite scents ever. You can use this sauce in many other recipes like meatballs, chicken parmesan or other pastas of course like spaghetti. Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe This comforting pasta dish is comprised of rigatoni that is stuffed with a mix of creamy ricotta cheese and savory mushrooms that is then baked in a simple marinara sauce. ovensafe skillet or large dutch ovenBlender Marinara1 tbsp olive oil1/2 white onion (medium in size, roughly chopped)3 garlic cloves (peeled and crushed)1 tsp dried oregano2 tbsp tomato paste1/4 cup red wine (pick a red that you would drink)2 bay leaves1 28oz can crushed or whole peeled tomatoesparmesan rind (optional)1 tsp salt (plus more to taste)Ricotta & Mushroom Filling1 tbsp olive oiltsp tsp salt (divided)8 oz mushrooms (diced into very small pieces – shiitake, baby bella, or most any other mushroom will work)10 oz ricotta cheese1 eggRigatoni & Assembly16 oz rigatoni (you may have leftover rigatoni – save them for another use)1 tbsp olive oil1/4 cup parmesan (grated)1/4 cup fresh basil (roughly chopped or torn) Ricotta & Mushroom FillingHeat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and 1/2 tsp salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid from mushrooms has evaporated completely – about 10-12 minutes.Add cooked mushrooms to a bowl with ricotta, beaten egg and remaining 1 tsp salt. Allow mixture to cool in the refrigerator while you prepare the marinara.After filling has cooled for an hour, add filling to a sandwich-sized ziplock bag. Cut a very small opening into one corner of the bag (smaller than the size of the opening of the rigatoni).MarinaraHeat a dutch oven or pot that is medium in size over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp olive oil and chopped onion. Cook onion, stirring occasionally, until it softens (6-8 minutes). Season with 1/2 tsp salt.Add in crushed garlic cloves and dried oregano and cook for one minute, stirring constantly, until fragrant – about one minute. Stir in tomato paste and cook until it takes on a brick red color. Pour in wine, deglaze pan, and allow the wine to reduce for 2-3 minutes. Add bay leaves, tomatoes, parmesan rinds (if using) and another 1/2 tsp salt to the pot and stir to combine.Bring marinara to a simmer, reduce heat to medium low, and allow sauce to simmer gently for about one hour. Season with more salt as needed. After an hour, discard bay leaves and parmesan rinds and blend sauce with an immersion blender or in a high powered blender until smooth. Add sauce to a large oven-safe skillet (like cast iron) or a large dutch oven and set aside until ready to fill rigatoni.Rigatoni & AssemblyHeat oven to 350 F. Cook pasta 1-2 minutes less than package instructions (you want an al dente texture to keep the rigatoni from ripping – they will cook further in the final steps of the recipe in the oven). Strain and rinse with cold water, add to a large bowl and toss with 1 tbsp olive oil to keep the rigatoni from sticking together.One at a time, pipe filling mixture into each piece of rigatoni and arrange in a single layer in prepared skillet/dutch oven with pureed marinara until you run out of room (you want to nestle them into the sauce so they are mostly covered).Repeat with remaining pieces of rigatoni. Distribute half of grated parmesan over the stuffed rigatoni in marinara.Place skillet into the oven until cheese melts and begins to take on a light golden color- 20-25 minutes. Top with remaining grated parmesan and basil and serve immediately. Dinner, Main Course, Main DishAmerican, ItalianRicotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni
Elevate your appetizer game with these beef kofta skewers that are laced with irresistible spices and baked to juicy perfection. A drizzle of zesty toum sauce adds a garlicky kick, while a cucumber and tomato salad brings a refreshing crunch that complements the meat beautifully. Serve this all with some warm naan bread to round out the dish. Kofta is a popular Middle Eastern dish that is typically made from ground beef, lamb or chicken that is mixed with spices, herbs and often garlic and onion. The mixture is then formed onto skewers and usually grilled or sometimes baked. Kofta is often served with rice, flatbreads, vibrant salads and a sauce like tahini or toum. There are many different variations and it is a beloved dish across many different cultures. I like to serve kofta as an appetizer for a group and often as an entree for my husband and I. My sauce of preference with kofta is usually a homemade toum sauce. Toum sauce is a recent discovery of mine that I had while dining with friends and after one taste, I knew that I loved it and needed to recreate it. It’s a creamy and flavor-packed condiment that is made from a few simple ingredients – a head of garlic, neutral oil, lemon juice and salt. The mixture is formed in a food processor until a creamy sauce forms (similar to the consistency of yogurt). We use ground beef in this kofta variation – a very high quality organic and grass-fed ground beef that can be found at Rollin’ Oats. They have a few different options, but I prefer the Simply Balanced 90/10 selection. Quality is always of the utmost importance to me when it comes to sourcing any ingredient that I use and I can always trust Rollin’ Oats to have the absolute best. Beef Kofta with Toum Sauce Recipe Savor the spiced flavors of juicy beef kofta paired with a garlicky, creamy toum sauce that elevates this Middle Eastern dish to a whole new level. skewers Beef Kofta1 lb ground beef1/4 cup white onion (minced)2 tsp garlic (minced)1/4 cup parsley and mint (finely chopped)1 tbsp olive oil2 tsp all spice2 tsp paprika1 tsp cumin1 tsp coriander 1 tsp salt1/2 tsp cinnamon1/2 tsp black pepperToum Sauce1 cup garlic cloves (peeled)3 cups neutral oil (grape seed, sunflower, vegetable or canola)1/2 cup lemon juice2 tsps Kosher saltCucumber & Tomato Salad1 tomato (ripe, medium in size & diced)1/2 cup cucumber (diced)1/4 cup basil (finely chopped)1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)To Servenaan breadlemon wedges Toum SauceSlice the garlic cloves in half lengthwise and remove any green sprouts. Transfer the sliced garlic cloves into a food processor and add the kosher salt to the garlic cloves. Process for a minute until the garlic becomes finely minced. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the food processor afterwards. While the food processor is running, slowly pour one to two tablespoons of oil, then stop and scrape down the bowl. Continue adding another tablespoon or two until the garlic starts looking creamy.Once the garlic looks emulsified by the few tablespoons of oil, increase the speed of pouring the oil and alternate with the ½ cup of lemon juice until all the oil and lemon juice is incorporated. This will take about 15 minutes to complete.Transfer the sauce into a glass container and cover with a paper towel in the fridge overnight. Makes about 4 cups. The next day, replace the paper towel with an airtight lid and keep in the fridge for up to 3 months.Cucumber & Tomato SaladCombine all ingredients in a bowl, season with salt and refrigerate until the kofta is finished.KoftaIf you're using wooden skewers, soak them in water for at least 20 minutes. This will prevent burning. Combine all kofta ingredients in a medium-sized bowl with your hands until everything is mixed well. Refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes. Heat the oven to 450F. Place a wire rack onto a baking sheet and brush it with olive oil. After the mixture has been in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, divide it into four even-sized portions. Form each portion into a snake-like shape around each skewer.Bake the kofta for 13-15 minutes or until the beef is cooked through and beginning to brown on top.To ServeServe kofta on a platter with naan, cucumber and tomato salad, toum and lemon wedges. Appetizer, Dinner, Main DishMiddle EasternKofta, Toum Sauce, Baked Kofta
Low effort and high reward is the name of the game with this take on slow-roasted salmon. The slow-roasting process ensures tender and flakey salmon that melts in your mouth with each bite. The addition of citrus makes this dish quite refreshing while the chili crunch sprinkles in bold and spicy notes. Though the ingredients involved are minimal, together they are the utmost well-balanced. There isn’t a ton of produce in season right now in Florida, but citrus, including orange varietals and grapefruit are goods that you’ll find plenty of during this time of year. Marrying together the invigorating flavors in citrus with a high-quality, fatty piece of wild salmon is quite lovely. The chili crunch aids in adding some texture and the torn fresh dill (or basil) rounds out the dish. Avocado, which is also in season in September, pairs well with all of these ingredients too. If you’d like to also incorporate that, use 1/2 of a ripe avocado and slice it into thin pieces. You can certainly go the extra mile by making your own variation of chili crunch or chili crisp (trust me, it’s much easier than you may think!), but there are plenty of solid options on grocery store shelves these days. One of my favorites is from Momofuku and you can find this at Rollin’ Oats (it’s actually on sale currently). They offer a regular chili crunch, spicy and also a hot honey version. Another reputable brand at Rollin’ Oats is by Mr. Bing – they have a mild and spicy option. When it comes to selecting your salmon, I always suggest reaching for the wild caught versus the farm raised. Rollin’ Oats doesn’t have a dedicated seafood counter; however, they offer quality frozen wild caught salmon that works great for this dish. Just make sure to safely thaw the salmon prior to roasting it. Slow Roasted Salmon with Citrus & Spicy Chili Crunch Recipe Discover a new favorite low-effort dinner with this slow-roasted salmon which is paired with vibrant bits of citrus and a spicy assist from chili crunch. 16 ounces salmon (skin on and preferably wild-caught – 1 large piece or two 8 ounce pieces are recommended)1 tsp olive oil1/2 lemon (sliced into thin rounds)1 grapefruit (peel and pith removed and cut into thin rounds and then into halves and quarters)1 orange (peel and pith removed and cut into thin rounds and then into halves and quarters)1/2 tsp salt (plus more, to taste)2 tbsp chili crunch (plus more as needed – choose your favorite brand – I love Momofoku which can be found at Rollin' Oats)dill or basil (fresh & torn into smaller pieces (garnish, optional))avocado (sliced (optional)) Heat oven to 250F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the salmon on the lined baking sheet brush with olive oil, season with salt and top with the lemon slices.Roast the salmon for an hour and remove from the oven – the salmon should be quite tender and should pull easily away from the salmon's skin in pieces. Don't worry about keeping the salmon filet in one piece – we want it to flake a bit into chunks.To plate, arrange the flaky salmon pieces with citrus and avocado (if using) on a serving platter – there is no right or wrong way to do this, so feel free to get creative with your plating. Top with 2-3 spoon-fulls of chili crunch and garnish with torn dill or basil. Season with more salt as desired. Dinner, Main Course, Main DishAmericanSlow Roasted Salmon, Slow Roasted Salmon with Citrus & Chili Crunch
Fresh Corn Polenta with Pickled Shrimp brings together the sweetness of summer corn and the tangy notes of pickled shrimp. This recipe offers a brighter twist on traditional comfort food. This take on polenta acts as an idyllic canvas for the zesty shrimp which are pickled and marinated in a myriad of ingredients which include, but are not limited to: rice wine vinegar, citrus, crushed red pepper flakes and garlic. It’s a perfect dish for highlighting popular ingredients that are used a lot in summer cooking. Creating the fresh corn polenta could not be more simple and only requires a few ingredients that you probably already have on hand. I first made this polenta a couple of weeks ago after I picked up some corn from a farmer’s market in the area. I was told that the corn had just been harvested the day prior from a farm here in Florida. The method for making the fresh corn polenta was something that I had been wanting to experiment with. It all starts by peeling the corn and then grating it with the large holes on a boxed grater. From there, the grated corn mixture is then simmered with a couple of pats of butter and some salt until the polenta thickens a bit. This process only takes about ten minutes. The polenta is then finished with a squeeze of fresh lime. Initially, I had planned to top the fresh corn polenta with poached lobster and some chive butter (which I will be trying soon), but then I found some inspiration for pickled shrimp from a recent episode of a food-related show on television (The Lost Kitchen, for those interested). The shrimp are first poached in some water, lemon and salt. Then, they are placed in a pickling mixture in the refrigerator for a few hours (and up to 24 hours). The pickling mixture makes for tangy and flavorful shrimp that not only work well on this polenta, but also with many other things. These shrimp would work well on some toasty sourdough, tossed in a salad, nestled in some rice or simply on their own as an easy appetizer. For the shrimp, I always strive to use wild caught, but use whatever you can find. Rollin’ Oats has great quality frozen shrimp by Baywinds and Wixter Seafood. Simply thaw the shrimp and devein them with the shells on if they aren’t already deveined (this is easier to do than you think – use a wooden skewer or toothpick, poke it through the side of the shrimp in the middle towards the top and slowly thread and pull the vein out – give it a google for a tutorial). You can also use shrimp that are already peeled and deveined too, but cooking the shrimp with their shell on adds to the flavor and prevents overcooking of the shrimp. Fresh Corn Polenta with Pickled Shrimp Recipe Put summer's fresh corn to good use with this fresh corn polenta recipe. The pickled shrimp add a zesty zing when served atop the creamy polenta. glass bowl or glass Tupperware Poaching the Shrimp12 shrimp (medium to large in size – shell on, but deveined (optional, you can use peeled shrimp if you prefer))6 cups water6 cups ice1 lemon (cut in half)2 1/2 tbsp saltPickling the Shrimp3/4 cup rice wine vinegar2 tbsp sugar2 garlic cloves (peeled and smashed)1/2 tsp crushed red pepper1 dried bay leaf1/2 cup olive oilt tsp worcestershire 1 tsp salt1/2 tsp hot sauce (use your preference – I usually opt for Diamond Crystal)1/2 lemon (sliced into small wedges)1/4 cup red onion (sliced thin)Fresh Corn Polenta4 ears corn (husk and silk removed)2 tbsp butter1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)1/2 limeDish Assemblymicro-greens (for garnish – fresh dill would work well too (optional)) Pickling the ShrimpAdd vinegar, sugar, garlic, crushed red pepper and bay leaf to a microwave-safe bowl or glass measuring cup. Heat mixture for two minutes, stir to combine and cool completely in the refrigerator (30 minutes to an hour).When mixture is cool, stir in olive oil, worcestershire, hot sauce and salt. Then, mix in lemon wedges and sliced onions. Set aside until poached shrimp are ready.Poaching the ShrimpAdd water, juice lemon and lemon halves and salt to a medium pot and bring to a boil.Add deveined shrimp, remove pot from heat and allow shrimp to poach for 5 minutes (or until they turn pink).Add in ice and allow to sit for another 10 minutes.Remove shrimp from pot and discard water and lemon. Peel shrimp (leave tails on if desired, optional) and place into glass bowl or Tupperware for pickling.Pour prepared pickling mixture over the shrimp. Cover shrimp and place in the refrigerator for at least three hours and up to 24 hours.Fresh Corn PolentaGrate corn on the cob with the large holes of a box grater over a medium-size bowl.Heat grated corn, butter and salt over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until corn mixture thickens – about ten minutes. Taste and season with more salt as needed (polenta should now taste a bit more rich). Remove from heat and stir in juice of 1/2 lime.AssemblyTo plate, add 1/4 corn polenta mixture to each bowl, top with pickled shrimp and garnish with micro-greens or fresh dill. Appetizer, Dinner, Main DishAmericanFresh Corn Polenta, Pickled Shrimp
Great article both parts. It is really nice to learn a little inside info about Chef and hiw the Mill concept came into being. Keep up the good work guys!⚜️
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed!