Global Gobbler guest #11 - Janne

Name: Janne
Age: 23
Occupation: Student of the arts
Favourite food: Chocolate and coffee.
Why she deserves the Global Gobbler experience: I have travelled from Canada and I like trying new things.

The Verdict

I was not ready for four courses and the first dish was too many flavours I think to start with. I did like the presentation of the lettuce parcels and slice of apple. Maybe it would have worked better with a few less flavours. Sometimes less is more.

The second dish was a lot better and I think and was beautifully presented. Even if the pumpkin filled my plate! The pumpkin was very sweet and soft and I liked the herb (I can’t remember its name?) I don’t think I have tasted fennel before but it was very good with lots of lemon juice.

The red pepper soup was very tasty. I thought it was tomato to start with but the flavour was very strong and sweet. The salty bean bread was good as well. I think to improve this dish maybe you could add some sour cream or cheese and more herbs. The presentation was great again and perfect for the cold temperature.

I have never tasted truffles like this before and Joel assured me that they were good for you – I find this hard to believe! The cocoa coating made me think they were chocolate truffles but once I bit into one I could taste the crunchy pecans and maple syrup. I liked the wine cherries as well and felt like licking the plate.

I am glad I came to try Joel’s food and think that if he ever opens a restaurant I will have to visit. Good luck with this experiment!

Canada - A Mouthful of Maple - RIP 24 May 2008

Chef Notes
Was Romaine too bitter? It might have been without the apple and raisins. A combination which definitely challenged the palate with pungent mustard and sweet fresh basil. Textures worked well thanks to the crunchy walnuts and creamy avocado.


Chef Notes
I was looking forward to both making and tasting this. Slow cooking the pumpkin over 2 hours with the regular baste of maple marinade created the sweetest of flavours while the sage added some herbal subtlety. The fennel coleslaw was a continuation of the maple/pumpkin theme and added a fresh and sour crunch to the dish.

Chef Notes
The roasted flavour of the soup was incredibly rich but perhaps needed tomato to really complete it. Cannelini bread worked as a visual but the softness of the cannelini beans was lost during the cooking transformation and ended up a little too salty and dry. Caraway seeds were the right flavour though.

Chef Notes
My favourite of the evening. The buttery maple flavour of the truffles lifted by creamy pecans was decadent and completely Canadian. Shiraz cherries gave the dish some juice and the sour yogurt flavour was a perfect foil for the diverse flavours of sweet.

My research into Canadian cuisine was not extensive – does it show?! I loved working with these flavours though especially as the days get colder. A review which is set to once again expose my lack of portion control – “It is a whole plate of pumpkin!”

Canada - A Mouthful of Maple

E
Romaine lettuce parcels filled with coconut sautéed red cabbage, grated red delicious apple, crushed walnuts, seeded mustard, avocado, fresh basil and raisins and spiced with cinnamon.

S
Butternut pumpkin basted in sage, maple syrup and olive oil and served with a coleslaw of shredded fennel, olive oil, lemon juice and maple roasted pumpkin seeds.

M
Sweet red capsicum, brown onion and oregano soup served in flasks to be poured over a cannelini bean, caraway seed and rosemary flat bread and garnished with fresh flat leaf parsley.

D
Pecan, sage and maple truffles with a roasted pecan centre rolled in a mix of nutmeg, cloves cinnamon and cocoa and resting atop lemon zest then served with minted red wine cherries and natural yogurt topped with micro sage.

A menu which will hopefully be impossible to confuse with the cuisine arising from neighbours to the south. Canada - a menu for the winter with the warming flavours of pumpkin, pecans and sage with the unique addition of maple syrup. A seat at the table (indoors now!) beckons. Email globalgobbler@gmail.com for details. O Canada...