MICHAEL MINA's is celebrating their four-year anniversary this July. The San Francisco restaurant is famous for its unique trios theme where they take one main ingredient and presents it three different ways.
Cereal Milk Infusion:
Ingredients
- 4 1/2 Cups Milk
- 1 1/4 Cups Cream
- 3 Cups Corn Cereal (such as Kix)
Instructions
- Combine the milk, cream and cereal in a bowl. Let sit for 2 hours mixing every 20 minutes.
- Strain through a fine mesh sieve.
- Measure and set aside 3 cups of this infused liquid.
Cereal Ice Cream Base:
Ingredients
- 3 Cups Cereal Infused Milk
- 1/2 Cup Sugar
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/3 Cup Non-fat Dry Milk Powder
- 6 Egg Yolks
Instructions
- Combine infused milk, sugar, salt and milk powder in a pot and place over medium heat, stirring very often. Preferrably with a heat resistant rubber spatula. A whisk will also work.
- Place egg yolks in a metal or glass bowl and whisk until slightly frothy.
- When the milk reaches a scalding temperature slowly add 1/3 of the mixture to the yolks, constantly whisking.
- Add hot liquid until the yolks are very hot to the touch.
- Return mixture with the yolks back to the pot and cook on medium low heat, stirring constantly with a heat resistant rubber spatula pressed to bottom of the pot.
- Cook the ice cream base until it thickens to the point that it can coat the back of a spoon.
- Strain through a fine mesh sieve and place container over an ice bath (1/2 water, 1/2 ice).
- Cover with plastic wrap when cool. Refrigerate overnight.
- Spin ice cream in machine according to manufacturer's instructions. Freeze for at least 3 hours. Enjoy.
Candied Corn Flakes
Ingredients
- 4 Cups Corn Flakes
- 1Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 4 Egg Whites
- 1 Cup Pecans, toasted
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Toast pecans in a 300F until you can smell them. Let them cool.
- Lower oven temperature to 275F.
- whisk together the brown sugar, egg whites, and salt.
- With a rubber spatula, gently mix the corn flakes and the pecans into the sugar/egg white mixture.
- When the corn flakes are evenly coated, immediately spread them in an even layer on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
- . Place in 275F oven. Mix every 5 minutes.
- Bake until the corn flakes look dry.
- Remove from oven and let cool on sheet pan.
- Mix every five minutes while cooling. Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to one week.
Strawberry Jus
Ingredients
- 2 Pints Strawberries
- 1/4 Cup Sugar
- 1/8 Vanilla Bean
Instructions
- Wash and trim off the tops of the strawberries.
- Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise with a paring knife. Scrape out the seeds with the back of the paring knife.
- Rub the vanilla bean into the sugar.
- Toss the strawberries with the sugar, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place for at least 6 hours.
- The sugar will draw out the liquid from the strawberries.
- Strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve and reserve.
Assembly
Place approximately 1/4 cup of the candied corn flakes in a cereal bowl. Place 1 or 2 scoops of cereal ice cream onto the corn flakes. Drizzle strawberry jus over the ice cream. Garnish with a few fresh strawberries.
MICHAEL MINA
Inside the Westin St. Francis
335 Powell Street
SF, CA 94102
415-397-9222
MICHAEL MINA is celebrating their four-year anniversary this July!
About Bill Corbett, Executive Pastry Chef
Thirty-four-year-old Bill Corbett has risen rapidly among the nation's top pastry chefs. After paying his dues as a dishwasher, line cook and kitchen manager at restaurants from Canada to Florida and New York, Corbett met acclaimed pastry chef Lincoln Carson. Carson offered him an apprenticeship, and under Carson's tutelage, Corbett quickly developed the specialty that less than four years later earned him a spot as executive pastry chef at MICHAEL MINA.
Corbett was working the line at a small Brooklyn eatery in 2004 when a friend introduced him to Carson. That fortuitous encounter led to a long-term mentorship, turning Corbett on to pastry and giving him the technical foundation that transformed a casual occupation into a thriving career. Together, the two worked in the executive kitchens of B.R. Guest restaurants, managing the pastry production for seven properties.
Carson later introduced the budding chef to Sam Mason, pastry chef at Manhattan's cutting-edge WD-50, where Corbett earned the position of pastry sous chef. Through his tenure, Corbett learned specialized techniques and worked with uncommon ingredients. He credits Mason's red pepper caramel sauce with opening his eyes to the culinary world's limitless possibilities.
Corbett sharpened his skills during his first executive pastry chef posts at Manhattan restaurants Dona and Anthos. His desserts drew rave reviews from New York critics, and StarChefs named him New York's Rising Star Pastry Chef in 2007. Carson, now corporate pastry chef for Mina Group, tapped Corbett to lead the pastry program at MICHAEL MINA in fall 2007. Corbett jumped at the opportunity to work again with Carson and the two-Michelin-star team at MICHAEL MINA.
Just six months after Corbett joined MICHAEL MINA, San Francisco Chronicle food critic Michael Bauer increased the restaurant's ranking to four stars.
