Gourmet February
February, with 28 or 29 days, is the shortest month of the year. It used to be I would spend all my days seated at my computer absorbed in computer solitaire. Now it seems I have hardly had time to play. It all began with the Master’s course I was invited to at Enderun.
By the way, have you heard of that school? If you were anything like me before November of last year, you have not heard of it. It all began when my friend Amy Besa, a resident of New York and owner of the Filipino restaurant Cendrillon — Cinderella in French — came into town and called. She and her husband, Romy Dorotan, a fabulous chef, had worked with Neal Oshima on a book called Memories of Philippine Kitchens, which won a Pamana prize. She came home to pick it up at Malacañang. Then she was invited to give a talk at Enderun and because we wanted to see each other, she invited me to her talk.
When I found Enderun — at McKinley Hill behind Blue Leaf — I was quite impressed. First, I found out it was connected with the Swiss Hotel and Restaurant School Les Roches, where my eldest daughter had once gone. Then I was impressed with the surroundings. It is a big school with three buildings almost finished and more on the drawing board. They offer a four-year course in International Hospitality Management and soon they will be offering a course on Business Administration that hopes to break new ground.
Anyway, on the day that Amy addressed the students, they were given an assignment. They were asked to research on the food traditions of their families and to bring to class a traditional family recipe, cook it and serve it to the speaker and her guests. So Amy’s guests were invited for lunch, too, and we enjoyed the meal, but were as surprised as Amy was at what the traditional recipes were. One was longganisa made from hamburger meat, delicious in its own right. Another was roast pork German-style, because his grandfather had studied in Germany. There was nothing familiar to our old palates. Amy and I agreed that the students were young and the family traditions had changed. Bagnet and lechon kawali probably had been replaced with roast pork. Nevertheless, lunch was delicious then and we made friends with some of the school’s professors, which is why I was invited to attend the Masters Lecture series to introduce three people to the press.
First to be introduced was Dr. Lance Masters, the new provost, who will be responsible for all aspects of the academic programs that Enderun offers. He earned his Ph.D. in Executive Management from Peter Drucker (my idol), who was known as the father of modern management. Dr. Lance Masters wears the funkiest bowties I have seen in this part of the world.
Then there is Alex Jureeratana, who introduced us to mixing wine with Asian food in the most charming of the three Masters sessions held that day. He is executive director of food and beverage at Enderun and is also its senior hospitality management faculty member. Most of all he is highly amusing and charming. He fell in love with the red frames of my glasses and asked the provost if he could wear them. When one of the ladies told him he reminded her of Richard Gere, he was thrilled.
Finally, the last master to be introduced was chef Marc Chalopin, who gave us a very detailed presentation of the preparation of the food we would be served for lunch, a fish with vegetables and some pistou. I have always been very fascinated with the concept of pistou. It is an additional sauce you prepare on the side and serve with the fish dish. Bouillabaisse also has a pistou that makes it more delicious than without.
But what do I know about French cuisine except that it’s delicious and worth learning if you look forward to a life of cooking? Like Bella Yuchengco, who cooked a wonderful dinner for her sister, Mona Lisa, and her friend Karen Webb. I got invited, fortunately, and still cannot forget how delicious the dinner was. It began with popcorn-crusted foie gras, served on a slice of butter cake with burnt orange sauce, followed by a twice-baked soufflé and sizzling garlic prawns with chorizo. All these were just appetizers. For the main course we had a three-cheese ravioli with sage brown butter and glazed beets and slow-roasted Kurobuta pork belly with truffle balsamic, marmalade and mushroom sauce. Kurobuta is the pork equivalent of Kobe beef. Then, baked Alaska for dessert followed by a selection of special coffees and teas. Let me tell you, that dinner was superbly delicious, too.
And now I have run out of time to tell you about all the other dinners and wine that make me end the short month of February with a big, lopsided stomach. But never mind, another time. February ends today. In another month I hope I will be thin again. Sigh.
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