gary danko: vanilla shortbread with bittersweet chocolate ganache

gary danko's in san francisco is completely fabulous! i had an incredible dinner with the boys from amano chocolate and my fiancé while we were up there for the chocolate salon. gary danko's food was astounding and the service was impeccable.... it brought a sweet reminiscence of taillevent in paris.

here is my menu from that divine epicurean nite:

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risotto with lobster, rock shrimp, zucchini, crispy artichokes and lemon-herb butter
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seared sea scallops with salsify, fava beans, frisée and pancetta
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roasted loin of bison with king trumpet mushrooms, glazed cipollini onions and herb spätzle
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vanilla shortbread with bittersweet chocolate ganache
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the vanilla shortbread with bittersweet chocolate ganache dessert (basically a power chick's version of the girl scout's samoa cookies) was/is an astounding creation by the belinda leong, gary danko's pastry chef. her composition was absolutely masterful by starting with a layer of shortbread, then ganache, a dusting of toasted coconut, coconut ice cream atop, then a couverture disk of chocolate and coconut. after the dessert was presented, hot caramel sauce was poured onto the couverture which allowed the chocolate to slowly melt onto the work of edible art.

please stay tuned... i will post the recipe for this decadence tomorrow.