Cost: $70
Early Ayurvedic medical texts (ca. pre-2nd c. CE) were the first to mention any kind of citrus fruit, where the name "Nargarunga," from which our word orange comes through the Arabic. Nargarunga is a label for the primordial bitter orange and large, rough-skinned citrons. Sweet oranges, which came about probably due to accidental seeding in some part of southern China, were known to cultivators perhaps as early as the 13th c., and were much more quickly introduced to other parts of the world than had been the case with the bitter type. They reached Europe some time in the 14th c. by way of Palestine and Syria, and again through Portuguese navigators in 1498 and later, becoming known as "Lisbon" and "Portugal" oranges.
Three original species in the citrus genus that have been hybridized into most modern commercial citrus fruits are the mandarin orange, pomelo, and citron. Within the last few thousand years, all common citrus fruits (sweet oranges, lemons, grapefruit, limes, etc.) were created by crossing those original species. So much for my amateur botany lesson; what I really want to do is to invite you to a five-course dinner celebrating citrus in all its hybrid glories and familiarizing you with some of its lesser-known varieties. Won't you join us on Saturday, January 27th at 6 p.m. when every course will contain citrus as a prominent ingredient and will be artfully paired with the perfect wine?
To open the evening before we gather at the table for the dinner, I've prepared a cocktail built from freshly squeezed Texas orange juice, Aperol and Amaro Montenegro. This cocktail, called "Adriatique," is not terribly sweet due to the bitter ingredients, and it tastes like the best orange you've ever eaten. An amuse bouche of tiny pork meatballs, scented with garlic, onion and cumin and served in a pool of house-made spiced kumquat marmalade make a lovely pairing.
We'll gather at the table for the rest of the evening, starting with an appetizer of shrimp cevice marinated in mandarin and lime juices with just a pop of serrano pepper, atop a chilled avocado, cucumber, mandarin and grape salsa, and served in an elegant glass with a dollop of mandarin reduction/sambal oelek sauce on the bottom. This Avocado Salsa Shrimp Ceviche and Mandarin-Chili Verrine is both a visually exciting and tasty experience. Served with house-made Lime and Black Pepper Tortilla Crisps, this combination is a winner. The wine paired with this course is Hugl Grüner Veltliner, a bright, zippy Austrian white. Expect flavors of fresh-squeezed lime and crunchy apple with a snappy finish of sea salt and pepper.
Our second course is a pleasantly tart curried citrus lentil soup, spiced with aromatic vegetables, ginger, cumin, coriander and Madras curry powder, the flavor profile heightened by fresh lemon, lime and grapefruit juices. Red and du Puy lentils give the soup its body and its vibrant color, and a dollop of rich Greek yogurt complements the citrus. This course is paired with Wagner Dry Reisling from the Finger Lakes Region of upstate New York. This is an Alsatian-style Reisling described as fruit-driven and medium-bodied. It shows beautiful notes of apple, peach and white flowers. The ripe nose explodes with fresh aromas of stone fruit and apple blossoms and a crisp acidity provides a lovely and refined finish.
The third course offering is a beautiful salad: Beet Carpaccio of Golden and Ruby Beets, nuanced with goat cheese, pistachios and beautiful rosy-fleshed Cara Cara oranges, drizzled with a Cara Cara orange vinaigrette. This eye-popping plate is paired with Armani Schiava Rosé Vallagarina, an elegant medium-bodied wine from Trentino, Italy. It has a soft cherry color and the appealing scent of cherry and strawberry. Fragrant and lively on the palate, this rosé is a lovely pour.
Our fourth course, Seared Ahi Tuna with Puttanesca Sauce and Grilled Meyer Lemon, is a celebration of vibrant citrus flavor. While the puttanesca sauce is lively and bright in its own right, full of olives, capers and tomato, the warm juice and the floral fragrance from the grilled sweet-tart Meyer lemon is a good counterpoint to the richness of the tuna and the plentiful extra-virgin olive oil in the puttanesca sauce and the other components on the plate. Vermicelli Aglio e Olio is a supporting cast member, as is Roasted Broccolini with Fried Capers and (the impossibly enormous) Ponderosa Lemon. There are two wines to choose from for this course. A lovely Sant' Orsola Barbera d'Asti, from Piedmont, Italy is one of them. Full of fresh cherry, this light-bodied red is fruity with good acidity, warmth, intensity and harmony. Your other wine choice is Donnachiara Greco di Tufo from Campagnia, Italy. This crisp, full-bodied white wine is balanced by its well-executed acidity and brings notes of kiwi, basil and grapefruit introducing a lightly fleshy texture. Bright and refreshing, this is a wine white that drinks like a red.
The dessert course is a Blood Orange and Basil Panna Cotta with Blood Orange Gelée and Candied Blood Oranges. These oranges have a distinctive dark red flesh and give a dark red juice due to the presence of anthocyanins, antioxidant pigments common to many flowers and fruit, but uncommon in citrus fruits. Botany aside, the panna cotta is a delicious ending. Enjoy your panna cotta with coffee or tea and a taste of Pomelo Digestif, a house-made liqueur made from the zest of the citrus, the flavor of which is described as most like a grapefruit. And the pomelo does indeed look like a giant grapefruit.
This very special dinner of five courses, including wine pairings, is yours for the suggested donation of $70. Come, join us, and experience an intimate, relaxed evening at The Voluptuous Table. Please RSVP by Thursday, January 25th by responding to this email, or by calling 512-55 EAT 44. We (and our collection of unusual citrus) look forward to your company.
Yours in good taste,
Vindaloo Tiramisu
