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No stews or soups this time of year! Chef Jeff McInnis is sharing the perfect summer recipe — light, flavorful, and exploding with all the colors of the season. Yeah, the sorbet takes a little technical know-how, and finding verjus and gelatin sheets might prove a little challenging, but the rest is as simple as it gets. And no surprise here: This recipe provides a liquid nitrogen injection option for those so inclined.
(Also, if you have nothing to do this Saturday night, check out McInnis’s stomping ground, the Ritz-Carlton South Beach, for its popular Full Moon Party. Guests can expect reduced-priced signature cocktails, DJ Edwin Adams spinning lounge music, high-tech telescopes, and the typical lunacy one expects on South Beach.)
Melon, Cucumber, Heirloom Tomato Salad With Mint, Lemon, Tomato Water Gelée, and Yogurt Sorbet
Yields 10 portions
Vinaigrette
1 ea. juice of lemon
1 ea. juice of lime
1/2 ea. juice of orange
1/4 oz. fresh ginger, minced fine
1 oz. yuzu juice
4 oz. water
5 oz. extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Salad
70 melon balls of cantaloupe
70 melon balls of honeydew
70 melon balls of watermelon
1 ea. European cucumber, sliced
1 pint (about 2 cups) heirloom, grape, cherry, or teardrop tomatoes
edible flowers of all colors, to taste
1/4 head fennel, shaved fine on slicer
25 leaves mint, sliced thin
Tomato Water Gelee
12 large red ripe tomatoes
1 T sugar
1 t salt
2 T white verjus
30 sheets gelatin
Yogurt Sorbet
2.2 lb. yogurt
10 oz. sugar
5 oz. water
1 ea. zest of lemon
pinch salt
For the sorbet:
Heat the water and sugar until the sugar is dissolved completely, and mix together with the yogurt and zest. Spin in ice-cream machine or whisk in equal parts liquid nitrogen.
For the vinaigrette:
Juice all citrus and mix well with all ingredients.
For the salad:
Cut and scoop all the melons, cucumber, and tomatoes and toss all ingredients together with the vinaigrette. Finish the salad with a big scoop of yogurt sorbet, and garnish with flowers.
