Thanksgiving Dinner at M Cafe
This year, I'm thankful for wonderful surprises and opportunities that came my way. I'm also thankful for being showered with love and being able to share them with others too. Lastly, I'm thankful for all these good food...
Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day and while this is still not widely practiced here in the Philippines as much as it is being done in the USA, I was fortunate enough to be invited to an intimate Thanksgiving Dinner at M Cafe which was hosted by the United States Potato Board.
Together with my favorite colleagues, we arrived just in time to hear Chef Sau del Rosario's welcome remarks and a brief introduction on the dishes that will be served that evening. Basically, that night's menu consists of potatoes, potatoes and potatoes.
Our dinner began with a warm platter of Potato Dill Sourdough. It has a salty, filling flavorful that was highlighted by the dill leaf on top.
Up next was the Crispy Seabass with root vegetable floss, parsley brandade and rosemary orange beurre blanc. While we can hardly taste the rosemary orange beurre blanc, I enjoying the soft seabass which makes a good start to our meal.
Soup was next in line and this was a huge test to my determination. Just recently, I made a vow not to eat foie gras as a personal advocacy against animal maltreatment (You see, I chanced upon an article and researched further on how foie gras is created not so long ago and this prompted my personal goal to stay away from this expensive delicacy forever). Soup was Seared Foie Gras with US scallop on Potato Pea Soup. Before enjoying my soup, I requested for a small platter where I carefully transferred my foie gras for my companions to indulge. I love the US scallop though. Every single bite is wonderful as I include this in every sip of my pea soup. Yum!
From a heavenly soup comes the best and the most memorable dish of the evening -- the Porcini & Truffle Gnocchi. I've always been a fan of gnocchi and this is actually one of the best potato dish that I've ever tasted. Gnocchi is basically a potato pasta dish that's usually mixed with different types of mushroom, veggies or cheese. For our Thanksgiving Dinner, Chef Sau prepared gnocchi with aromatic truffles and procini. Believe me, every single bite was simply bursting with flavor. I was in gastronomic heaven as I enjoyed this dish.
I was satisfied after enjoying the Gnocchi but of course, Chef Sau, M Cafe and the US Potato Board still has a lot to offer. Next was a meat dish of Baked Pork Tenderloin with potato spinach flan and mustard sauce. The pork was tender but I wasn't too fond of the potato spinach flan which was a very creamy and buttery texture.
While the pork dish was just a-ok for me, I enjoyed the star of our Thanksgiving Dinner -- the Roasted Turkey combined with roasted pumpkin with capers and rosemary cranberry sauce. I wasnt really a fan of turkey and so I was actually excited for our Thanksgiving Dinner as I was pretty sure Chef Sau can make a really delicious turkey dish. I was right! The meat was so tender and the sauce was really delicious. I also love having capers and so I delightedly took in bite after bite of the roasted pumpking with salted capers!
We were all full and a bit tipsy from the delicious California white wine. Over dinner, we exchanged office stories and of course, girl talks. Dinner was wonderful and we were just about ready to call it a night. That was until dessert came.
This sweet treat was a stellar creation, in my opinion. We were told that dinner will comprised of different potato variants but never did I expect that we would have a potato-filled dessert too! We had Potato Torte with While Chocolate. Oh happy happy me! Our little pretty cakes arrived as we readily held on to our forks to dig in. The cake was pretty similar to a sans rival and I thought the only thing with potato were the two tiny hash brown medals that were half coated with white chocolate. I'm thankful that we had Rachelle, our food editor, with us as she was able to taste a bit of potato also on the cream. Woah! She sure has a skilled taste buds.
Dinner was simply fantastic and I continue to dream about the delicious gnocchi that we had that night.
I'm thankful for the delicious food that we all enjoyed that night.
How about you? What are you thankful for this year?
Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day and while this is still not widely practiced here in the Philippines as much as it is being done in the USA, I was fortunate enough to be invited to an intimate Thanksgiving Dinner at M Cafe which was hosted by the United States Potato Board.Together with my favorite colleagues, we arrived just in time to hear Chef Sau del Rosario's welcome remarks and a brief introduction on the dishes that will be served that evening. Basically, that night's menu consists of potatoes, potatoes and potatoes.
Our dinner began with a warm platter of Potato Dill Sourdough. It has a salty, filling flavorful that was highlighted by the dill leaf on top.
Up next was the Crispy Seabass with root vegetable floss, parsley brandade and rosemary orange beurre blanc. While we can hardly taste the rosemary orange beurre blanc, I enjoying the soft seabass which makes a good start to our meal.
Soup was next in line and this was a huge test to my determination. Just recently, I made a vow not to eat foie gras as a personal advocacy against animal maltreatment (You see, I chanced upon an article and researched further on how foie gras is created not so long ago and this prompted my personal goal to stay away from this expensive delicacy forever). Soup was Seared Foie Gras with US scallop on Potato Pea Soup. Before enjoying my soup, I requested for a small platter where I carefully transferred my foie gras for my companions to indulge. I love the US scallop though. Every single bite is wonderful as I include this in every sip of my pea soup. Yum!
From a heavenly soup comes the best and the most memorable dish of the evening -- the Porcini & Truffle Gnocchi. I've always been a fan of gnocchi and this is actually one of the best potato dish that I've ever tasted. Gnocchi is basically a potato pasta dish that's usually mixed with different types of mushroom, veggies or cheese. For our Thanksgiving Dinner, Chef Sau prepared gnocchi with aromatic truffles and procini. Believe me, every single bite was simply bursting with flavor. I was in gastronomic heaven as I enjoyed this dish.
I was satisfied after enjoying the Gnocchi but of course, Chef Sau, M Cafe and the US Potato Board still has a lot to offer. Next was a meat dish of Baked Pork Tenderloin with potato spinach flan and mustard sauce. The pork was tender but I wasn't too fond of the potato spinach flan which was a very creamy and buttery texture.
While the pork dish was just a-ok for me, I enjoyed the star of our Thanksgiving Dinner -- the Roasted Turkey combined with roasted pumpkin with capers and rosemary cranberry sauce. I wasnt really a fan of turkey and so I was actually excited for our Thanksgiving Dinner as I was pretty sure Chef Sau can make a really delicious turkey dish. I was right! The meat was so tender and the sauce was really delicious. I also love having capers and so I delightedly took in bite after bite of the roasted pumpking with salted capers!We were all full and a bit tipsy from the delicious California white wine. Over dinner, we exchanged office stories and of course, girl talks. Dinner was wonderful and we were just about ready to call it a night. That was until dessert came.
This sweet treat was a stellar creation, in my opinion. We were told that dinner will comprised of different potato variants but never did I expect that we would have a potato-filled dessert too! We had Potato Torte with While Chocolate. Oh happy happy me! Our little pretty cakes arrived as we readily held on to our forks to dig in. The cake was pretty similar to a sans rival and I thought the only thing with potato were the two tiny hash brown medals that were half coated with white chocolate. I'm thankful that we had Rachelle, our food editor, with us as she was able to taste a bit of potato also on the cream. Woah! She sure has a skilled taste buds.Dinner was simply fantastic and I continue to dream about the delicious gnocchi that we had that night.
I'm thankful for the delicious food that we all enjoyed that night.
How about you? What are you thankful for this year?
