on making purees.....

Making purees of any kind is something that is very simple but often times made to be complicated. All you really need is good quality ingredients, a high powered blender (vita mix), water, and a component that will enhance the main ingredient. Many times chefs will add onions, garlic and herbs amongst other things when making purees of different kinds. There's really nothing wrong with that, but I have always been a strong  believer in keeping things simple and letting the main ingredient shine. Lets take a carrot puree for example, I'll chop my peeled carrots and place them in a pot with just enough water to cover them. On medium high heat, I'll cook the carrots until they are nice and tender. I then strain the carrots and place them in the vita mix making sure to reserve the strained liquid. I'll blend the carrots on high speed with salt and some of the cooking water, adding more depending on the consistency I desire. At this time I'll add some lemon juice or an element of heat just to make the carrot flavor pop. Make sure to let the machine go on high for at least 2 minutes. If the puree isn't moving around in the blender add some more of the cooking liquid to get the puree going. I taste for seasoning before storing it for later use. It's very easy to make things complicated when working on menu changes, often times we over think things and add too much giving us a finished product that is both unappealing and complicated. As they say,"Less is more", especially when working with great product.