A dish by Chef Louis Robinson

Steamed Mussels | Poblano Cream Sauce | Farmers Market Vegetables | Plated on Front of The House? Tides Collection

What inspired the dish?

“This dish was part of my “Sal Marina” pop-up dinner, which was a celebration of the sea. We wanted to bring together super fresh seafood, local produce, and bold Latin-Caribbean flavors that are my strong suit. So we sourced some huge wild mussels and paired them with a sauce that had a tremendous depth of flavor and that brought the mussels and the produce together. Many of the diners that evening commented on the sauce, saying it was outstanding. A good sauce can be 70% of a dish in my opinion.” – Louis Robinson

INGREDIENTS

• 20-28 mussels depending on size (5-7 per person)
• 1 quart cream
• 1 stick butter
• 4 poblano peppers
• The green tops of 2 scallions
• 2 cloves of black garlic
• handful of cilantro
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 12 baby turnips
• 12 baby gold beets
• 3 rainbow carrots
• Splash of apple cider vinegar
• Juice of one lemon
• 1/2 cup white wine
• One large shallot finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• Olive oil for vegetables
• Ice plant blooms for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. Roast your poblano peppers over a burner, a grill, or under a broiler until all the skin has blackened. Transfer to a plastic bag, seal, and allow to steam for at least 5 minutes. Remove from the bag and gently remove all the black skin. Remove the seeds also. Roast your garlic cloves in their skin in a dry skillet until they are blackened. Remove the skin and add the garlic and poblanos to a sauce pan with half the butter and salt. Sautée until fragrant and then add your cream. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and allow to steep for at least 20 minutes.
2. Toss you baby beets and turnips with olive oil and salt and pepper. Put them in a sheet tray and roast in a 450 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until tender and browned. Remove skins from the beets with a towel. Set your vegetables aside for plating. Cut your carrots into thin ribbons using a mandolin or a vegetable peeler. Place them in a bowl of water with salt to taste, and the vinegar and lemon juice. Place in the fridge to crisp up.
3. Place your poblano cream into a high speed blender, add the scallion tops, the black garlic, and cilantro. Blend on high until completely smooth. Strain. Taste for seasoning and add salt to taste if necessary.
4. Add the rest of your butter to a large pot with the shallots. Allow to cook over high heat until shallots are soft and butter is slightly brown. Add the mussels to the pot, and then add your wine and cover immediately. Allow the mussels to steam for approx 5 minutes or until they have opened. Strain your mussels, and add the cooking liquid from the mussel pot into your finished poblano cream sauce, stir well to combine.

TO ASSEMBLE

Put 5-7 mussels in a bowl, pour over several generous spoonfuls of your poblano cream, garnish with your roasted vegetables, carrot ribbons and ice plant. To take it up a notch, serve it with some crusty bread to soak up all the sauce!

Plated on Front of the House? Tides Collection: High temperature durable porcelain in neutral-hues and a trend-forward semi-matte glaze.