Feeling overly ambitious, the two items on the menu were: "Open Ravioli of Spot Prawns and Avocado with Chilled Tomato and Basil Consomme" (recipe by West Restaurant in Vancouver B.C.) and "Roast Rack of Pork with Romesco" (Neil Perry).
After 3+ hours of slaving in the kitchen, we dove into our meal and it was well worth it! Not trying to pat myself on the back or anything but it was SCRUMPTIOUS.
OPEN RAVIOLI OF SPOT PRAWNS & AVOCADO W/CHILLED TOMATO & BASIL CONSOMME
Like the name of this appetizer, it takes just as long to make (but again worth it!). First I had to blanch and marinate the prawns with juice from a lemon and an orange, cilantro, chile, EVOO, salt and pepper.
That was the easy part. Next was step to create the consomme. The tomato consomme consisted of carrots, onion, celery, a fennel bulb, leeks, garlic, tomatoes to name just a few. The clarification included chicken breast, beet root, carrots, onions, celery and egg whites.
Served with the consomme was an open ravioli filled with an avocado mixture and the marinated prawns.
Looks simple but the process was extremely tedious. But once we took a bite, our mouths were bursting with fresh and heavenly flavors! There were some ouiiiiis and ahhhhs with each bite.
ROASTED RACK OF PORK W/ROMESCO
I rubbed the pork rack with sea salt and some red wine vinegar. Then I slowly roasted it in the oven. Next I created the Romesco which is a Spanish sauce that is usually served with barbecued or roasted foods. I hand crushed some garlic, sea salt, chillies, almonds in a mortar. Then folded in some homemade breadcrumbs along with paprika. A dash of red wine vinegar and EVVO to create a saucy consistency.
The MAIN dish! Doesn't look super fancy but tasted SUPER fancy.
Finally - to celebrate our first Easter in Santa Barbara, we toasted to some local Pinot from Costa De Oro. Not as "oaky" as our NW Pinots. However, filled with lots of fruit notes but not sweet. Loved it!
