RECIPES
High school reunion and the gourmet meal
Marcelyn Benitez and Edward
During my vacation in my home province, Silang in Cavite, I attended our high school reunion. After several decades, I got together with my elementary school classmates.
While we were drinking, I told them I'm a chef. They couldn't believe it because they've known me to be a silent kid who wants to be alone most of the time.
Thus, they wanted to eat at my house the next day. Well, I wanted to impress them but didn't want to burn a hole in my pocket. But I fed them anyway and here's our reunion menu.
Were going to start with our 1st course for this
photo session with the floral centerpiece made of
santan, gumamela and pandan leaves
My menu was entitled Fruitful Boundy because our house pantry was filled with fruits and james (kidding!). Actually, I designed the menu to be less fatty during the holidays. It was an exciting melange of flavors, a product of my reflection on the bountry on the year to come.
My house is only a five-minute drive to Old Kano's Farm, the biggest organic lettuce farm in Cavite. There I got my showcase of Mesclun with Sautéed Chili Squid with Grapes and Pears in Strawberry Dressing. I handpicked the lettuce from the farm for only P30. I got some ½ kilo of assorted crisp and fresh lettuce from Lola Rosa and Green Ice.
Edward dela Cuesta (Dindong Dantes look a like),
Elma Belardo Rivera
The diners raved about the salad because they couldn't imagine squid blending with the strawberry. A nice contrast to the strawberry dressing was the garlic vinaigrette that I prepared using ordinary oil layered with fresh dalandan juice for acid.
The pasta dish was Spiral or Trivelle Pasta with Tomato and Tuna Sauce. I placed a bar of quickmelt cheese in the freezer and later on grated it over the pasta. It closely resembled parmesan cheese.
The main course was Pan-Seared Pork Medallion and Batonne of Chicken on Guava Reduction and Herbed Vegetables and Pan Roasted Potatoes. The perfectly seared pork and chicken are an upgrade to the diners' usual fried foods; the sweetness of the guava complimented the slight saltiness of the potatoes and gave the main course a lively contrast. By the way, the medallion came from marinated pork chops that I trimmed to a circle. The Chicken Batonne are made of chicken thighs marinated in dalandan.
Pork and Chicken with Guava Reduction
For dessert I came up with a duet of fried banana and ripe lakatan banana that I paired with dulce de leche and vanilla ice cream, capped of with tea and coffee.
The guests were so amazed and said that it was the best dinner they had. They haven't even encountered such cooking in a restaurant, they said.
For only P1,000, I was able to feed five of us with a gourmet meal.
Until next time. Ciao !