4 hours Ago
When you think of classic Greenville dishes, what does that mean exactly? Is it the chili cheese dog at The Clock or perhaps the crab cakes at Soby’s? Or maybe the spoonbread that was served at The Westin Poinsett years ago? Today, the culinary landscape is vastly different than it was 20 years ago, and we want to get to the root of the flavor. So, we are launching a new recipe series. This will be a space where you can find recipes from local chefs, local restaurant classic recipes and hopefully, in the future, some local home kitchen recipes as well.
Let me know what you think, or what restaurant recipe you’d like to see. E-mail me at [email protected].
When you think of Soby’s New South Cuisine , it’s hard not to think about the crab cakes and the fried green tomatoes, but among those enduring dishes is also the white chocolate banana cream pie. By some rough estimates, the restaurant serves around 6,500 slices of the pie every year. If you multiply that by the 27 years the restaurant has been open , then you get around 175,500 slices of pie served.
At eight slices to a pie, that’s about 22,000 pies made. Math aside, the pie is one of the most popular dishes on the menu. At this point, it's akin to a Soby’s greatest hit.
“You can’t not have it now,” admitted Rodney Freidank, Table 301 Hospitality corporate chef. Freidank has observed Greenville's obsession with the pie from the beginning, when he joined the Soby’s team in 1997. He said even though the pie is so closely associated with Soby’s now, it actually has roots in another restaurant.
Pastry chef Pamela Mooney started making the pie while working at Buckhead Diner in Atlanta in the early '90s, Freidank said. The pie had many fans . Mooney continued to make the pie when she joined the team of Greenville's the 858 in 1993.
The 858 was co-owned by restaurateur Carl Sobocinski. The 858 closed and Sobocinski went on to open Soby’s in 1997. Mooney joined the opening team as pastry chef, and brought the pie with her.
Even after all these years, the pie, with its rich flavor and light, airy texture, remains a top seller at Soby’s. “You would think on any given menu maybe the chocolate dessert would beat it out,” Freidank reflected. “And yet, the chocolate doesn’t always beat it out.
” Tart Shell: White Chocolate Pastry Cream: Pie filling: Preparation For the tart shell: Place the flour and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. On low speed, add half the cold butter and mix for 30 seconds, then add the remaining butter. Continue to mix until all the butter is cut into the flour and the mix resembles sand.
Lightly beat together the egg and the vanilla in a small bowl and add it to the flour and butter. Continue to mix until a dough ball is formed. If the dough does not form a ball after 1 minute, add a few drops of water.
Remove the dough from the mixer. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Have ready an 11-inch removable-bottom tart mold. On a floured surface, roll out the dough into a 1⁄8-inch-thick circle large enough to fit the mold. Press the dough into the tart mold.
Refrigerate for 10 minutes. Bake the crust for 16 to 18 minutes or until it is golden brown and crisp. For the pastry cream: Pour the milk into a heavy-bottom 2-quart saucepan.
Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with the back of a small knife. Add the seeds and pod halves to the milk. Heat the milk until it is about to boil.
While the milk is heating, whisk together the cornstarch, sugar, salt and eggs until smooth. Temper the egg mixture with one-quarter of the hot milk and then add it back to the pan. Whisk to combine.
Continue to cook on medium heat stirring constantly. When the custard thickens, remove it from the heat and whisk in the white chocolate. Pour the pastry cream into a container and place a sheet of plastic wrap directly on top of the cream so no skin forms.
Refrigerate until completely cool. For the pie filling: Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and crème de banana and whip to very stiff peaks.
Place the cold pastry cream into another bowl and soften by mixing it with a rubber spatula. Slice the bananas into the pastry cream and stir to combine. Fold in the whipped cream.
Mound the filling in the middle of the tart shell and smooth it down to the edge. Carefully cut the pie into 8 or 10 slices before garnishing. Using a vegetable peeler, shave enough white chocolate curls to cover the pastry cream.
Dust the top with cocoa powder. Serve immediately or refrigerate..
