The Palace Hotel is the birthplace of the iconic green goddess salad dressing.
The historical Palace Hotel in San Francisco, featured in the January 2017 issue, has been restored to its golden age glamour with a bonus updates for modern convenience and luxury. But one thing has not changed: The Palace restaurant continues to serve its iconic green goddess salad dressing, created at the hotel in 1923 by executive chef Phillip Roemer.
Chef Roemer first presented the dressing, made with mayonnaise, chives, parsley, minced anchovy, lemon juice, and more, during a banquet held at the Palace in honor of actor George Arliss, who was the lead in William Archer’s hit play The Green Goddess. Modern diners are offered the classic dressing in the Palace Signature Crab Salad, a mix of English cucumber, herbs, and toybox cherry tomatoes topped with the tangy concoction. But you don’t have to trek to San Francisco for the signature condiment. We have the recipe (plus web exclusive recipe for crab cake) below.
Green Goddess Dressing
Yields 1½ cups
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
¼ cup snipped fresh chives or minced scallions
¼ cup minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
3 anchovy fillets, rinsed, patted dry, and minced
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Stir all the ingredients together in a small bowl until well-blended. Taste
and adjust the seasonings.
Use immediately or cover and refrigerate.
Dungeness Crab Cake
For Mousse
½ pound U- 10 scallops, dry pack
½ pound fresh halibut scrap, ice cold
1 egg, whole
1 cup heavy cream
For Crab Cake
2 pounds Dungeness crab (legs only) crab meat, shelled
2 tablespoons chive, minced
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
Lemon juice
1 pound whole butter, cubed
Salt and black pepper, to taste
In a blender combine cold scallop and halibut scraps. When pureed, add in whole egg and slowly add cream until balled mix runs smooth.
In an ice-cold bowl place crab meat in a layer on the bowl surface. One tablespoon at a time add mousse to crab, sprinkle cilantro, and chive. While being careful not to break up crab meat, fold mix together until it is combined. Portion cakes – 1½ ounces each. Reserve in cooler until service.
In a hot sauté pan, add clarified butter. Place seasoned cake in butter, turn when golden on one side. Immediately following, squeeze fresh lemon juice on crab cake, add cube of whole butter and fresh thyme, baste spoon over heat until butter turns brown. Place cake on plate with paper towel to drain.
Recipes courtesy of the Palace Hotel in San Francisco.
For more information on the Palace Hotel and The Garden Court or to make reservations, visit their website.
From the January 2017 issue.
