SPRING VEGETABLES, VELOUTÉ & STUFFED MORELS WITH GABE BORGES

Gabe gives us a peak behind the curtain on how to make an outstanding, restaurant quality dish, at home — a little project for a spring afternoon.

Here, he puts wild foraged morels, alongside the full lineup of green spring vegetables: peas, green garlic, three cornered leeks and asparagus, “finding the balance between simple and adventurous.”

SPRING VEGETABLES, VELOUTÉ & STUFFED MORELS

INGREDIENTS

30g shelled english peas
3ea. Wild Three Cornered Leek Bulbs
4ea. Peeled, sliced Green Asparagus
3ea. Basil leaf
3ea. Bunched Spinach Leaf
10g Tarragon
5ea. Cleaned, stuffed Morel Mushrooms

50g veloute
Salt to taste
Lemon to taste

Velouté

1lb Butter, cut into cubes
300g AP Flour
2kg Blonde Chicken Stock
5g Turmeric
225g Dolin Dry Vermouth, Green Bottle
23g Salt
1 pinch, Xantham Gum

Ham Mousse

370g chopped ham
1 egg
1 cup cream
10 g tarragon chopped
30 g Dijon
4 g Salt
Black pepper

METHOD

For the velouté:

1. Melt butter in a pot in medium-low heat, add AP flour, and mix forming a blonde roux. We are looking to cook the flour without giving it too much color.

2. Once the flour is cooked, add the chicken stock and allow to fully incorporate using a whisk. Follow with turmeric and vermouth. Allow some time for the alcohol to cook off.

3. Season with salt and add the smallest pinch of xantham gum, we are only looking to make sure the sauce is fully incorporated, not to thicken.

4. Pass through a fine mesh sieve, and portion into pint containers.
We are looking for a bright yellow, velvety sauce.

For the Ham Mousse:

1. Combine all ingredients in a robo-coupe or blender and process until smooth.

2. Transfer the mousse into piping bags and stuff each morel mushroom until full.

For the Vegetables

1. Blanch all the vegetables separately in heavily salted boiling water and shock in ice water.

Final Dish

1. Grill the morel mushrooms until the farce feels stiff (cooked). You can test the middle with a cake tester, when you pull the cake tester out of the mushroom and touch to your lip, it should be hot. About 6-8min.

2. While Morels are grilling: in a pot, add your velouté and check for seasoning, add a touch of water if too thick.

3. Add all your vegetables and toss until vegetables are hot.

4. On a plate, spoon the vegetables and sauce on the bottom, arrange the morels on top, and garnish with fresh herbs or any seasonal flowers you may have.

What inspired you to become a chef?

I wasn’t really any good at school as a kid and struggled to find any motivation to perform. I always had a strong sense of independence, which came out in a lot of rebellious behavior. I was kicked out of school at 15, for “lack of effort” I suppose and instead of going back to school I decided I’d get a job.

That's how I found myself as a dishwasher in a sushi restaurant in New Orleans. One day one of the cooks walked out in a rage and they asked me to get on the line. I fell in love with kitchens then.

I think what inspired me was just me trying to find a place I felt I belonged as a kid, it turned out to be the kitchen.

Tell us about your career journey and where you've worked along the way.

I grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana and worked in several casual and fine dining restaurants in my teenage years. My dad also runs a wholesale seafood company in New Orleans, so I spent a lot of summers as a delivery driver or working in the warehouse as a fish monger.

I left New Orleans when I was 22 and moved to NYC to cook. I figured if I was gonna try and make this a career I might as well go to the hotspot. Once I got here, I worked in places like Golden Diner, ATLA, Estela, and did a brief stint at Illata in Philadelphia. I moved back to the city last year and am currently the CDC at Chez Ma Tante.

Do you have a favourite season?

Crawfish season in Louisiana (April - June) is an all time favorite. Right now I am super into spring. I think I ate so much heavy food this winter that my body is craving fresh green vegetables and light sauces.

How do you approach ingredients in your cooking?

I like to try to do the bare minimum to ingredients. I try to find a balance between simple and adventurous.

It’s ironic that I’m from New Orleans, because I don’t like to cook with a lot of seasoning. I like to take an ingredient whether it's vegetables or protein and try to get that specific flavor out as much as possible. Salt is king, I don’t like masking flavors if it doesn't need it.

What’s one of your go-to tools in the kitchen? Is there one that you consider a real lifesaver?

Without a doubt, it's an offset spatula. I use it for everything. Cooking, plating, you name it. I’m weirdly intense about it, I need an offset when I’m cooking.

Talk us through your creative process.

It’s always changing - like they say, a kitchen is a place where you never stop learning. I read A LOT of cook books. Besides reading and learning different techniques, I tend to try and find balance between simple and complexity.

I often search for pairings that are usually unheard of or even scoffed at. I can make simple, delicious food, but what excites me is creating something a little provocative and adventurous.

So the question I and I’m sure most chefs ask themselves, is how can I create things that excite me, but also excite the client.

Where do you love to eat in NYC?

Mariscos Subamarino is my favorite restaurant right now.

Finally, what’s your favourite dish to eat?

My moms Chicken and Andouille Gumbo is so unbelievably delicious it blows my mind every time I eat it. It will always be my favorite.