On February 11th, President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama received the French president François Hollande for a state dinner at the White House in Washington, D.C.. Purple irises in honour of the French national emblem were the decorations, alongside glasses with allium heads, and Mary J. Blige sung to entertain the French and American guests. In catering to François Hollande, his dislike* for artichokes (or is it asparagus?) and his predilection for mousse au chocolat are well-known. The menu:
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Cook-at-Home Version:
MINIATURE vegetables in a 'garden,' instead of a terrarium, are also part of British chef Heston Blumenthal's past menus. In the recipe published at the Guardian's website, in 2011, his 'garden' has potting soil of fragmented black olives and grape nuts, a layer underneath of sauce gribiche, and tended lines of asparagus shoots, leafy baby carrots, as well as miniature growths of the longdrawn Chinese cabbage bok choi, etc.
(Radishes, leeks or fennel in miniature will work, too, writes Blumenthal.)
Recipe: "Heston Blumenthal's garden salad with sauce gribiche recipe" ([Theguardian.com], December 14, 2011)
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What is Merlot lettuce? — Merlot lettuce is a leafy, maroon salad.
'Merlot' [Wild Garden Seed]
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IN the dinner, the vegetables were nestled on a white sauce, green sprinkles presumably the herbs from the First Lady's garden. Since the summer had been fruitful, as the White House's executive chef Cristeta Comerford explained in a film before the State Dinner, fennels and mustard, onions and capsicum from the White House grounds were kept. Pickled throughout the autumn and winter, these reappeared in the night's repast.
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THE White House's type of dressing — i.e. a red wine vinaigrette with honey — likewise fits in a salad of satsuma, fennel, chèvre and Belgian endive. Vinegar, pomegranate, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper, and honey are mixed. (From the UK restaurant Fitzbillies's chef, Rosie Sykes.)
Satsuma, goat's cheese and chicory salad with pomegranate dressing (From: "Why pomegranate is good for you" [The Guardian], by Joanna Blythman and Rosie Sykes (November 2, 2013))
Untitled [The White House: Instagram], February 10, 2014
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THE blue cheese was farmed in Vermont; the oyster mushrooms are a frequent fungus in Europe, North America and elsewhere, growing on decomposing tree trunks or stumps rather than in the soil, and are ribbed on the underside with a grey or white or brown, waved, oyster-shaped cap.
Rib eye beef is taken from the forward-leaning centre of the animal, wedged between the chuck toward the neck and the short loin at the sixth to twelfth ribs, and tucked above the plate at the belly, according to the American style of cuts.
"Bon appetit! White House to throw an all-American state dinner for French president" [Today: NBC], by Danika Fears (Feb. 11, 2014)
"Pleurotus ostreatus" [Wikipedia]
"Rib eye steak" [Wikipedia]
Beef diagram, "File: BeefCutRib.svg" [Wikimedia Commons], Uploaded by JoeSmack, July 25, 2006
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This time the petits fours were served on a marbled sugar platter, the triumph of the pastry chefs — a red American rose and a French purple iris — attached to it, and the traditional American treats were maple fudge, amongst others — even cotton candy.
Untitled [The White House: Instagram], February 10, 2014
Cook-at-Home version: "Chocolate Ganache Cake" [Taste of Home]
(Note: 'Originally published as Chocolate Ganache Cake in Light & Tasty February/March 2008, p53')
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Further sources:
"Behind the Scenes at the France State Dinner: See the Menu" [White House], by Megan Slack (February 11, 2014) [Read February 13, 2014]
"Behind the Scenes: Inside the Kitchen for the France State Dinner" [YouTube: The White House] (February 11, 2014) [Watched February 13, 2014]
"Presidential chefs swap recipes for world diplomacy" [Reuters], by Vicky Buffery (July 24, 2012)
"Le Club des chefs des chefs: le G20 des cuisiniers reçu par François Hollande" [Huffington Post: France], by Geoffroy Clavel (July 24, 2012)
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First course
American Osetra Caviar
Fingerling Potato Velouté, Quail Eggs, Crisped Chive Potatoes
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Second course
Petite Mixed Radish, Baby Carrots, Merlot Lettuce
Red Wine Vinaigrette
*
Cook-at-Home Version:
MINIATURE vegetables in a 'garden,' instead of a terrarium, are also part of British chef Heston Blumenthal's past menus. In the recipe published at the Guardian's website, in 2011, his 'garden' has potting soil of fragmented black olives and grape nuts, a layer underneath of sauce gribiche, and tended lines of asparagus shoots, leafy baby carrots, as well as miniature growths of the longdrawn Chinese cabbage bok choi, etc.
(Radishes, leeks or fennel in miniature will work, too, writes Blumenthal.)
Recipe: "Heston Blumenthal's garden salad with sauce gribiche recipe" ([Theguardian.com], December 14, 2011)
*
What is Merlot lettuce? — Merlot lettuce is a leafy, maroon salad.
'Merlot' [Wild Garden Seed]
*
IN the dinner, the vegetables were nestled on a white sauce, green sprinkles presumably the herbs from the First Lady's garden. Since the summer had been fruitful, as the White House's executive chef Cristeta Comerford explained in a film before the State Dinner, fennels and mustard, onions and capsicum from the White House grounds were kept. Pickled throughout the autumn and winter, these reappeared in the night's repast.
*
THE White House's type of dressing — i.e. a red wine vinaigrette with honey — likewise fits in a salad of satsuma, fennel, chèvre and Belgian endive. Vinegar, pomegranate, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper, and honey are mixed. (From the UK restaurant Fitzbillies's chef, Rosie Sykes.)
Satsuma, goat's cheese and chicory salad with pomegranate dressing (From: "Why pomegranate is good for you" [The Guardian], by Joanna Blythman and Rosie Sykes (November 2, 2013))
Untitled [The White House: Instagram], February 10, 2014
***
Main Course
Dry-aged Rib Eye Beef
Jasper Hill Farm Blue Cheese, Charred Shallots, Oyster
Mushrooms, Braised Chard
*
THE blue cheese was farmed in Vermont; the oyster mushrooms are a frequent fungus in Europe, North America and elsewhere, growing on decomposing tree trunks or stumps rather than in the soil, and are ribbed on the underside with a grey or white or brown, waved, oyster-shaped cap.
Rib eye beef is taken from the forward-leaning centre of the animal, wedged between the chuck toward the neck and the short loin at the sixth to twelfth ribs, and tucked above the plate at the belly, according to the American style of cuts.
"Bon appetit! White House to throw an all-American state dinner for French president" [Today: NBC], by Danika Fears (Feb. 11, 2014)
"Pleurotus ostreatus" [Wikipedia]
"Rib eye steak" [Wikipedia]
Beef diagram, "File: BeefCutRib.svg" [Wikimedia Commons], Uploaded by JoeSmack, July 25, 2006
***
Dessert
Hawaiian Chocolate-Malted Ganache
Vanilla Ice Cream and Tangerines
This time the petits fours were served on a marbled sugar platter, the triumph of the pastry chefs — a red American rose and a French purple iris — attached to it, and the traditional American treats were maple fudge, amongst others — even cotton candy.
Untitled [The White House: Instagram], February 10, 2014
Cook-at-Home version: "Chocolate Ganache Cake" [Taste of Home]
(Note: 'Originally published as Chocolate Ganache Cake in Light & Tasty February/March 2008, p53')
*****
Further sources:
"Behind the Scenes at the France State Dinner: See the Menu" [White House], by Megan Slack (February 11, 2014) [Read February 13, 2014]
"Behind the Scenes: Inside the Kitchen for the France State Dinner" [YouTube: The White House] (February 11, 2014) [Watched February 13, 2014]
"Presidential chefs swap recipes for world diplomacy" [Reuters], by Vicky Buffery (July 24, 2012)
"Le Club des chefs des chefs: le G20 des cuisiniers reçu par François Hollande" [Huffington Post: France], by Geoffroy Clavel (July 24, 2012)
!["File: BeefCutRib.svg" [Wikimedia Commons]](http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BeefCutRib.svg){kind=link}
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