The Kitchen's New September Menu

Hello friends! We hope the end of summer is treating you more than well. This is a beautiful time of year for all kinds of foodstuffs, and we are ready to bring your taste buds from summer to autumn with a bevy of gorgeous products, nearly all locally sourced, prepared for you in five mouthwatering courses before your very eyes – plus that famous intermission of super-fresh sushi and sashimi.

You’re in for a treat if you’ve already secured your seats for September. Randall and Noah have really outdone themselves. If you haven’t yet booked, take a peek at this new menu and give us a call. We still have some Wednesdays and Thursdays available, as well as a Sunday Supper, for you to take a break and treat yourself this summer before fall sets in. You deserve it!



For Reservations Call Bobbie at 916.568.7171



The Kitchen: September Menu 2008

- First Course -

Goat Cheese Gnocchi with Crispy Potato,
Braised Baby Shitake Mushrooms, Parmesan,
Squash Blossoms and Black Truffle

Rich yet light and fluffy house made gnocchi dumplings filled with the best fresh goat cheese from Nicolau Farms in Modesto together with crispy fingerling potatoes mingle with earthy organically grown baby shitake mushrooms brought to us by Connie Green of Wine Forrest Mushrooms over in Napa. Then our chefs add julienned last-of-the-season squash blossoms for a lovely burst of yellow. Lively, piquant real Parmesan cheese and deeply flavored black truffles from Umbria add a final touch of decadence to this beautiful starter course that will get your palate revved up for more. And of course you can always ask for seconds right away or even at the end of the night!



- Second Course -

Corn and Walla Walla Onion Chowder with
Maine Lobster Fritters, Walnut-Vanilla Bean Cream,
and Parsley-Shiso Mash

We continue to get the most fabulous sweet summer corn from Beatrice Jimenez of Jimenez Farms in Woodland. (You can pick some up yourself at the Farmers Market at 5th and X under the freeway on Sunday mornings). This month, we are preparing it as a divinely silky corn chowder complimented by brightly flavored, liltingly sweet Walla Walla onions. Our favorite Maine Lobsters make their appearance on the September Menu in the form of crispy fried fritters that are light on their feet yet so full of rich, buttery lobster flavor. Two innovative and whimsical touches that play off each other beautifully are the rich and nutty walnut-vanilla bean cream drizzled on the chowder and a tangy, salty pesto-like mash of shiso leaves and parsley. The salty/sweet combination really sings on this heavenly second course soup.



- Sushi - Sashimi - Crudo -



- Third Course -

Slow Roasted Liberty Duck Breast and Guinea Hen Cannelloni
with Parma-Prosciutto, Natural Pan Juices, Thyme,
Chili Oil and a Small Salad

After savoring all the gorgeous seafood outside on the patio during the intermission of sushi and sashimi, we’ll come back to our seats for an amazing mélange of meats – duck, hen, and prosciutto – all the best things in life, or at least on a plate! Our duck, slowly roasted for maximum juicy, tender flavor comes from the inimitable Liberty Farms in Sonoma. The duck is mild and not at all gamey, just like the braised and tender guinea hen we get and stuff in a house made cannelloni shell along with real Italian ricotta cheese. On top, thinly sliced smoky prosciutto from Parma and a small salad of fresh and light baby greens give the dish a refreshing counterpoint while on the base of the plate hearty natural herbed pan juices along with thyme and chili oil make the dish robust and muscular. A balanced, beautiful dish.



- Fourth Course -

Free Range Lavender Scented Grilled Bison with
a Salsa of Virginia Sea Scallops and Heirloom Tomatoes,
Homemade Bacon Infused Cabernet and
Argentine Chimichurri

Though it does pain us somewhat to part with our beloved Five Dot Ranch Beef, we have found a meat worth straying from the beef for - at least for just this month! This is a fabulous farm-raised bison out of Montana. These are grass-fed, free-range bison that tastes similar to beef but slightly sweeter, with no gamey flavor or heaviness. We cook it in the same fashion as our beef but at a lower temperature and for slightly longer, while still going for about a medium rare to ensure optimal flavor. Our bison this month is scented on the grill with lavender from the Farmers Market and is served with a vibrant and lively “salsa” of fresh-caught Virginia Day Boat Scallops and very-last-of-the-season organic heirloom tomatoes from Heidi Watanabe in West Sac. The final touches on this course send it to another level – a smoky rich bacon-infused cabernet reduction and real chimichurri sauce. This perfectly authentic recipe for the emblematic Argentine condiment was taught to Randall by a Mendoza chef and friend of the family on our trip to South America a couple of years ago. It’s the real deal.



- Dessert Course -

Milk Chocolate-Brioche Bread Pudding, Yellow Peach Ice Cream,
Britni’s Bittersweet Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies,
Chocolate-Espresso Jus and Peppermint Extract

End the evening in decadent, sinful style by feasting on this chocolate-lover’s dessert of heavenly Sharffen Berger milk chocolate bread pudding served with refreshing homemade peach ice cream. Oh my goodness, these peaches from Brenner Farms up in Newcastle have had a starring role on our last couple of menus, but this might just be my favorite incarnation yet! Peach ice cream just seems to be one of the quintessential tastes of summer. So simple, so sweet, so good. Just to have a little fun with this dessert, we’re also serving Britni’s deadly chocolate chip cookies on the side along with a chocolate-espresso sauce and a little peppermint oil for…health purposes? Nah. Just promise to order seconds so we don’t have any cookies hanging around to tempt us.



- Come Join Us -

Well, what do you say? September is looking like a whole lot of delicious fun. Stay tuned for our Wine Flight – to be revealed next week – and give us a call to book your seats today. This amazing menu starts Wednesday, September 3rd. It’s my birthday, but I’ll be there, with bells on. Won’t you join us?

All the best in the world from our family to yours,

Gina Funk-Nelson and the Crew

- September Dinner Menu -

Presented by Chefs Nancy Zimmer, Randall Selland
and Chef de Cuisine Noah Zonca

______

Goat Cheese Gnocchi withy Crispy Potato,
Braised Baby Shitake Mushrooms, Parmesan,
Squash Blossoms and Black Truffle
__

Corn and Walla Walla Onion Chowder with
Maine Lobster Fritters, Walnut-Vanilla Bean Cream,
and Parsley-Shiso Mash
__

Slow Roasted Liberty Duck Breast and Guinea Hen Cannelloni
with Parma-Prosciutto, Natural Pan Juices, Thyme,
Chili Oil and a Small Salad
__

Free Range Lavender Scented Grilled Bison with
a Salsa of Virginia Sea Scallops and Heirloom Tomatoes,
Homemade Bacon Infused Cabernet and
Argentine Chimichurri
__

Milk Chocolate-Brioche Bread Pudding, Yellow Peach Ice Cream,
Britni’s Bittersweet Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies,
Chocolate-Espresso Jus and Peppermint Extract ?

______

Seats will fill up quickly, so please make reservations soon.
Please contact The Kitchen at 916.568.7171