Profile: Pastry Chef Monica Glass - Clio (Boston)

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Vanilla Aloe Granita w/ Umeboshi Sorbet from Chef Monica Glass (Clio) - A Thought For Food #Boston

Juniper Crème Fraiche Panna Cotta + Grapefruit Rose Sorbet from Chef Monica Glass of Clio - A Thought For Food #Boston

Profile: Chef Monica Glass of Clio and Uni from A Thought For Food

Olive Donuts from Chef Monica Glass of Clio - A Thought For Food #Boston

Coconut Rice Pudding from Chef Monica Glass of Clio - A Thought For Food #Boston

Chef Monica Glass (Pastry Chef at Clio and Uni, Boston)

Home town: West Chester, Pennsylvania

Past Restaurant Experience: Gotham Bar and Grill (NYC), Le Bernardin (NYC), 10 Arts Bistro & Lounge (Philadelphia), Fish (Philadelphia)

Follow Chef Moni on Twitter: @chefmoni

Dishes, In order of appearance:

Citrus Creamsicle (Clio)

Kaffir Lime Parfait (mousse) sprayed in white chocolate cocoa butter

White Chocolate Citrus Biscuit (cake)

Candied Citrus – pommelo, buddha’s hand, kumquats

Fresh Citrus – Satsuma, pommelo, blood orange, cara cara, finger limes, etc.

Finger Limes

Jasmine Ice Cream “Pearls” – ice cream dropped in liquid nitrogen like dip n dots

Jasmine Meringue

Satsuma Tangerine Sherbet

Blood Orange Soup – cilantro, mint, Thai basil, ginger, fish sauce, grenadine

*nut free

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Pre-Dessert (Uni)

Hibiscus Poached Pineapple

Candied Sesame

Pineapple Sauce

Vanilla Aloe Granita

Umeboshi Sorbet

Black Sesame Tuile

*nut free

*gluten free

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Pre-Dessert (Clio)

Juniper Crème Fraiche Panna Cotta

Grapefruit Rose Sorbet

Sorghum Sponge Candy

Candied Grapefruit

Tarragon

Sorghum Juniper Tuile

*nut free

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Olive Donuts

Olive Donuts rolled in Olive Sugar

Meyer Lemon Cream (filled)

Black Currant Caramel

White Chocolate Meyer Lemon Pinenut Crumble

Honey Fried Pinenuts

Burnt Honey Ice Cream (infused with Licorice Mint)

Licorice Mint

*nut free --- 

Coconut Rice Pudding

Salted Coconut Sauce

Cilantro Gel

Mango Passion Fruit Curd

Coconut Rice Pudding

Compressed Mango (simple syrup, lime, salt)

Candied Black Sesame

Fizzy Mango (baking soda, malic acid, freeze dried mango)

Coconut and Passion Fruit Swirled Sorbet

*gluten free

*nut free

Cauliflower "Couscous"

Cauliflower “Couscous” from A Thought For Food #glutenfree #vegetarian #recipe

Image from "Cauliflower Couscous" from A Thought For Food

Cauliflower “Couscous” from A Thought For Food #glutenfree #vegetarian #recipe

Am I the only one who spends a lot of time thinking when they're in the shower?  Often I just stand there, singing along to songs on the radio, pondering the day's activities.  And when I'm gearing up to work on a recipe, it's during this time that my best ideas emerge.

I'm probably not the first person to come up with cauliflower "couscous" but when it popped into my brain, well, I must admit that I gave myself a pat on the back.  I know... I know. Show a little modesty, Brian. But, hey, I was proud of myself.  It's not often that one of my crazy concepts actually works, so when it not only met my expectations, but exceeded them, I was beyond giddy.

Just to clarify, this is not actually couscous, but a gluten-free substitute made from cauliflower.  That's why I put the quotation marks in the title... in case you were wondering.

On a separate note, I realized that I completely forgot to share this post I did for the Kinfolk Magazine online journal on the Siena Farms South End store.  Head on over to the Kinfolk site to check it out.

Cauliflower “Couscous” from A Thought For Food #glutenfree #vegetarian #recipe

Cauliflower "Couscous"

serves 4 as side dish

Ingredients

1 large head of cauliflower

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup pine nuts

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Salt and black pepper, to taste

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Special Tools

Food processor

Directions

1. Break the florets away from the rest of the head of cauliflower, making sure to leave behind as much of the stem as possible.  Chop the florets into smaller pieces and then transfer to a food processor and pulse until the pieces until they are finally chopped and resemble couscous.

2. Place the dried cranberries in a bowl and pour warm water over them to plump them up.  Let sit for 15 minutes.

3. In a small saute pan, heat the olive oil on medium heat.  Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes, or until onion is translucent.  Add garlic and season with salt and pepper, and, stirring often, cook for another minute.

4. Add the cauliflower couscous to the pan, season with cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, and additional salt and black pepper.  Cook for another 3-4 minutes.

5. In a separate skillet, toast the pine nuts over medium-low heat.  Make sure to shake the pan frequently to ensure they toast evenly and don't burn (note: watch them carefully as they can quickly go from perfectly toasted to burnt).

6. Drain the bowl of cranberries and add them, along with the toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley, to the couscous mixture. Taste for seasoning and, if necessary, add salt and pepper.

Seared Scallops with Fettuccine + Kale

Seared Scallops with Fettuccine + Kale from A Thought For Food

Whole Wheat Pasta from A Thought For Food

Every day I learn a bit more about what makes me happy.  The list changes as I go.  Cooking an elaborate meal for Eric, cuddle time with Maki, a long hot shower on a winter morning.   A song, a book, a walk, a nap.  These are the things... the seemingly "little things" that bring me joy.  As messy as life can be, these are the things that create balance and I hold onto these moments with a tight grip.

Seared Scallops with Fettuccine + Kale

Seared Scallops with Fettuccine + Kale

serves 4

Ingredients

1 bunch of kale, washed and stems removed

1 pound whole wheat fettuccine or linguini

1 pound sea scallops, rinsed

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 yellow onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, chopped

Zest of 1/2 a lemon

Red pepper flakes, to taste

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Slice the kale leaves thinly and set aside.

2. Put up a pot of salted water and bring to a boil.  Add pasta and cook based on the directions on the box.

3. Dry the sea scallops with paper towels.  Season with salt and pepper.

4. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and butter on high heat.  Once it begins to smoke, add the scallops and cook for approximately 3 minutes, or until it has browned on one side.  Using tongs, flip the scallops and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, depending on the size of the scallops.  Set them aside on a plate.

5. In the same skillet, cook the onions for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the kale and garlic cloves, season with salt and ground black pepper and cook for another 4 minutes.  Toss the pasta with the kale mixture.  Mix in the parsley, lemon zest and season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.

6. Serve the pasta and kale with scallops on top.  Grate some Parmesan cheese on top.