Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/760410
w i n t e r 2 0 1 7 | 4 9 You may be the kind of home cook for whom a recipe is a vague, ever-moving target, filled with pinches of this, dashes of that and a little bit of whatever you have lay- ing around in the back of your fridge (That's me to a T, at least!). But for professional chefs, each in- gredient in a recipe is purposeful, intentionally called for, precisely measured out and expertly added. So when a chef takes one dish and tweaks its star ingredient by offering three different variations on a theme, it's safe to say this is a chef whose experimental spirit is thriving. In honor of our Cooking with Spirits issue, The Clever Root challenged one chef to create a classic dessert three ways, with each version designed to pair with a specific expression of Glenfiddich Whis- ky, a single malt Scotch whose 12, 14 and 18 Year Old expressions are nuanced and varied, thanks to flavors imparted by wood barrels' influence over time. From the Glenfiddich 12's lighter, crisp pear and apple notes, to the Glenfiddich 14's sweeter vanilla and caramel flavors (which shine thanks to aging partially in new American oak casks), to the 18 Year Old's more complex, baked apple, cinna- mon-oat profile, the Glenfiddich range provided the perfect palette for a chef to get creative. We turned to Tim Graham, Corporate Chef for Chicago-area's GemStone Restaurant Group, which operates Citrine, a Mediterranean-meets-American restaurant in Oak Park, IL. The Clever Root put Chef Graham through his paces with a pairing challenge to see just how creative he could get by swapping out one basic ingredient: sugar. Specifically, brûléed sugar atop a classic crèma Catalana, the Spanish cousin to the internationally beloved crème brûlée. But as Graham points out, there's there's more that separates the dishes than a southerly continental drift: "Crème brûlée has to bake in a water bath to set the cus- tard," he explains. "For crèma Catalana, you cook eggs in a pot with corn starch to set the custard. It's not as refined, but it's more approachable for everyone." THREE SUGARS AND THREE WHISKIES PLAY FOR PERFECT PAIRINGS Three different sugars, each designed to pair with a different spirit. by Rachel Burkons / photos by Rebecca Peplinski David Allardice is the Brand Ambassador– Central Region for Glenfiddich Whisky.