The older you get the more time seems to slip away. Before you know it months have passed by without any new ideas floating around. Waiting to be plunked from the universe and transposed to the plate, some of these random ideas either never make it past a notion or they simply do not bode well for the palette. Recently the randomness has resulted in two new amazing dishes. The first inspiration draws from simple roots found in a wonderful culinary epicenter, New Orleans. I took a little bit of Cajun flair and formed seafood cakes, pan seared them in extra virgin olive oil, and threw some jalapeno/tomato preserves on top. The creative spark did not end there and by the time it was all finished some beautifully sauteed mushrooms and cajun spiced butter finished it off.
The next inspiration was something that came to me as I was thinking about the late consummate epicurean, David Perry, who continues to inspire my creativity to go outside the box. I wanted to make something that would please his refined tastes, and satisfy my wife's yearning for a great Valentine's day meal, and this is what I came up with.
Marinated flat iron steak with caper lime butter sauce, goat cheese, and thyme roasted sweet potatoes.
I almost forgot to mention that Mandi and I conjured some home made cream puffs, stuffed with creme chantilly, and dipped in 60 percent dark chocolate.
