When a talented private chef meets up with a couple of blue-chip furniture dealers, and ends up with a design-inspired cocktail menu? We call that an eat cute. New York chef Antoni Porowski sat down with his friends and clients Barry Rice and Roger Ward — owners of the 20th century furniture gallery Full Circle Modern — to create party-ready recipes inspired by the look, mood, and materials of some truly stunning design pieces. In the third of a series of five posts, Milo Baughman’s cane-backed dining chairs serve as the jumping off point for a haute cheese dip. To learn more about Porowski and Full Circle Modern, read the full profile in Introspective.
Milo Baughman is perhaps the most exotically named native Kansan in the state’s history. To honor Baughman’s Midwestern heritage, Porowski started with the concept of the crowd-pleasing cheese dip, and, in a nod to the designer’s unfailing elegance, dressed it up by using whipped ricotta blended with roasted figs. The whole dish has a whiff of the ‘70s — there’s something so decadent about cheese on cheese — an era whose glamorous-yet-earthy vibe is exemplified by Baughman’s deft pairing of shiny chrome and natural caning. Rice notes that, “the back has the most lovely, graceful arch,” which Porowski echoed in slim, cross-hatched Parmesan crisps. “These chairs are extraordinarily comfortable — great for a dinner party that keeps going.”
Parmesan Crisps with Roasted Fig and Ricotta Dip
Parmigiano-Reggiano
Flour
Roasted Mission figs
Balsamic reduction
Ricotta
Fresh black pepper
Maldon Sea Salt
• Grate Parmesan cheese and mix with a sprinkling of flour and pepper
• On a Silpat, form rectangular mounds with cheese mixture
• Bake at 400 degrees for 8-12 minutes and let cool
• In a food processor, combine ricotta, figs, balsamic reduction, salt and pepper
• Pulse until mixture is well-blended
• Garnish with Parmesan crisps
Milo Baughman Cane-Back Dining Chair, circa 1970s
