This was one of the starters that we featured on the Valentines menu. I wanted to have a dish that would be rich and decadent, but not to heavy. The chicken thighs were cured and then cooked confit style; we picked the meat and then folded in fresh herbs, and micro mirepiox that was blanched. The thighs were then set with aspic made of chicken broth and gelatin. The inside of the ballontine is garnished with confit of foie gras (this almost comes off like an oxymoron). The foie gras was cured and then rolled into a cylinder and poached in duck fat for about 30 minutes. Once we removed the foie gras we re-rolled it into a cylinder and hung over night. Once the foie gras was set we placed it into the middle of the meat mixture and rolled it into a cylinder and hung once again in the cooler to let set. Needless to say a lot of plastic wrap and cheese cloth were used during this process.

For the jam I wanted to use a seasonal fruit, but also wanted something that would be a bit dramatic. Andy Ayers of Eat Here St. Louis was selling an elderberry cordial, which was intriguing to me. Once I started to think about the flavor profile that I was after grapefruit and elderberry seemed to be a perfect fit, and I am happy to say that they were a match made in heaven. The jam provided a sweet/tart component to the dish which really lightened up and cut the richness of the ballontine.

As far as the rest of the garnishments, I did not want to stretch to far from the classic accompaniments. Hence chopped pistachios and petite salad, which consisted of mache greens, shaved radish lightly dressed with lemon juice and seasoned with salt and pepper.

All in all I was very pleased with how this dish turned out. When everything is eaten together, well let’s just say it is a true party in your mouth!