The National Culinary Review

sponge, then we freeze the ice cream the
rest of the way. Once it is firmed up, we
release the vacuum and open it up. It has a
sliceable texture and looks like a massive
amount of ice cream, but it is actually a
normal portion. It’s something no one else
is doing.”
Stupak borrowed the technique from
wd~ 50 owner/chef Wylie Dufresne’s
aerated foie gras terrine, which also looks
like a sponge. “I realized this technique
is highly adaptable—we’re now working
on a custard,” Stupak says. “We are even
experimenting with pure water to create
large bubbles of ice for a dessert. It will be
like eating snow.”
She developed a coconut rose foam that,
with flakes of gold, tops the Bollywood
cocktail she created for the Fairmont Bab
Al Bahr hotel in Abu Dhabi. Her gelees,
or edible cocktails, are one of the more
low-tech drinks she creates, but they are
currently all the rage, she says. She has
created a number of them—such as the
Shiso Fresh Gelee and Pomegranate
Rosemary Cocktail Gelee—for The Ritz-
Carlton and other clients.

WINTR

The Perlini Carbonated Cocktail System by Perlage produces sparkling cocktails by infusing all the components of the beverage with effervescence.

Molecular mixology Casey turns to numerous pieces of modern equipment to create specialty drinks for her clients all over the world. She uses iSi whipped-cream canisters to create foams for cocktails. “I did a lot of research on foams, and tested recipes. Many foams only last a day, but mine can last five days if made perfectly,” she says.

“It’s basically an upgraded jello shot,” Casey says. “It’s done beautifully, with gelatin leaves, fresh fruit purées, fruit juices and high-end spirits. I use a two-inch half hotel pan lined with plastic wrap and a little vegetable spray, so the gelees are easily releasable. You mix the cocktail, shake it, and then the gelee sits on top. You drink the cocktail and eat the gelee.” Casey raves about two machines developed by Seattle-based Perlage Systems, Inc. The Perlage Champagne Preservation System helps restaurants preserve opened bottles of champagne or sparkling wine by employing carbon dioxide to pressurize the opened bottles. The new Perlini Carbonated Cocktail System, which will be available later this year, creates sparkling cocktails. It functions like a traditional cocktail shaker, except the shaker itself is a pressure vessel that vigorously carbonates drinks with carbon dioxide.

Another avant-garde creation by Casey is the Cotton Candy Cocktail. “Cotton candy machines are fairly affordable, priced at around $1,000. We make a cocktail, then strain it over cotton candy, which dissolves. We’ve also made a Mocha Panna Cotta cocktail topped with cotton candy, like the foam on top of an espresso drink.”

One area Casey sees heating up is innovation in ice cubes. Erie, Pa.-based Kold-Draft commercial ice machines creates 1-inch cubes ideal for cocktails, and are the hip ice machine right now, she says. “People like these cubes because they chill cocktails very cold, don’t dilute them and keep the drinks very clear. There’s an ice revolution going on right now.”