Potato and Blueberries Recipe

"Blueberries and potatoes might sound like a strange pairing, but it makes a lot of sense—in my mind—because it's earthy and very acidic. (Growing up with a Mexican palate, everything has a lot of acid.)"

Prep time: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

for the roasted potato mousse:

10 teaspoons granulated sugar
4 ¼ teaspoons honey
4 large egg yolks
¼ cup cream
¼ cup whole milk
1 sheet of bloomed gelatin
½ cup diced potatoes

for the blueberry granita:

2.2 pounds fresh blueberries
sugar syrup
kosher salt, to taste
lime juice, to taste

for the blueberry jam:

4 cups blueberries
¼ cups granulated sugar
pinch of kosher salt
pinch of malic acid

for the potato crumble:

½ cup milk powder
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup potato flakes
1 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
kosher salt, to taste

for the caramel mousse:

1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon glucose
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup unsalted butter
pinch of kosher salt
pinch of citric acid

Directions

1. Roast the diced potatoes in a 160°C oven until golden-brown. While still hot, put in a deep container and cover with the 100 grams of cold cream. Let infuse overnight.

2. Make a custard with the sugar, honey, egg yolks, milk, and the 180 grams of cream. In a medium-sized bowl, soak the sheet of gelatin in ice cold water for 5-10 minutes until it "blooms" or softens. Mix in the bloomed gelatin into the custard while still hot and allow to cool down.

3. When cool, add the potato infused cream. Mix well. Pour into a whipped cream siphon and charge twice. Keep cool until serving.

4. Next, make the blueberry granita. Juice the blueberries through a juicer and strain. Create a sugar sugar by combining 500 grams of sugar and 500 grams of water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat when sugar crystals have dissolved in water and cool. Adjust the blueberry juice with sugar syrup, salt, and lime juice to desired taste (it should taste quite acidic.)

5. Freeze the mixture in a deep container. When frozen, scrape with a fork and store in the freezer until needed.

6. Next, make the blueberry jam by combining the blueberries and sugar in a sauce pan over medium-low heat until all of the moisture has evaporated. Cool down and season with salt and malic acid.

7. Make the potato crumble by sifting the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Add the potato flakes and butter and incorporate until the consistency of a crumble. Bake for 20 minutes in a 160° C/325° F oven. Stir every five minutes during the baking process until it is golden brown throughout. Cool down and keep in an airtight container.

8. Next, make the soft caramel by placing sugar and glucose in a pan over medium heat and cook until caramelized. Remove from heat and add the cream and then the butter, making sure its properly incorporated or it won't have the right texture. Cool down.

9. When cold, season with salt and citric acid.

10. To plate the dessert: one hour before serving, put plate into freezer until very cold. Dispense about 2 tablespoons of the potato mousse in the middle of the plate, arrange 3 mounds of the blueberry jam, and 3 mounds of the potato crumble around the mousse.

11. Cover with a good amount of caramel and around 4 or 5 fresh blueberries (make sure you keep the really plump blueberries for this—they have to be quite acidic and very sweet at the same time). Cover everything with 2 tablespoons of granita and enjoy.

From It Takes a Calculating Mind to Be a Pastry Chef