May 22, 2007

Won’t You Eat My Neighbor?

Grace’s Close to Home Menu

You are what you eat, eh? Guess you must be a radish from Chile, since that’s what you’re biting into right now.

If you want to feel like the Californian you really are, try Executive Chef Neal Fraser’s new Close to Home menu at Grace. Three nights a week, Fraser builds a five-course menu using farm-fresh ingredients from within 400 miles.

Or just make his roasted baby beet salad.

Ingredients:
8 assorted colored baby beets, washed, with green tops trimmed off
6 oz. green beans, tops trimmed
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus a little more to coat the beets
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
8 oz. washed baby arugula, large stems removed
6 oz. Humboldt Fog goat cheese, cut into four pieces (can substitute soy or almond cheese)
Cracked black pepper
Salt and pepper to taste

For the beets: Place in a stainless steel pan. Season with salt and pepper and coat in olive oil. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and roast at 325º for one and a half to two hours (until tender but not falling apart). Let sit until cool enough to handle. Remove the outer skin and cut in half.

For the beans: Boil a pot of water, add salt and beans and cook until al dente. Remove the beans and immediately place them in ice water. Remove from water, pat dry, and set aside.

For the vinaigrette: Whisk the olive oil into the vinegar until emulsified and then season with salt and pepper.

To make the salad: Place four beet halves around the plate’s perimeter. Toss the arugula and the green beans with the vinaigrette and place in the center of the plate. Put the cheese on top of the salad and garnish with cracked black pepper.

Serves four friendly neighbors.

Grace, 7360 Beverly Boulevard, between North Fuller and North Martel Avenues, Mid-City West (323-934-4400). Close to Home menu available Tuesday through Thursday.