Tourne by Chef Sandralyn Hataway: Menu for July 16 - 31

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I have featured the opening of Tourné here in my blog a few weeks back (check it our here). They are advocates of slow food and sticking to this advocacy, they change their menu every two weeks to provide only the most mouth-watering dishes from the freshest Philippine produce from all over the country.

Two weeks back, they celebrated the start of July with an American themed menu. In the next two weeks here is their offering and I hope something catches your fancy to make you go to The Fort Strip at Taguig.

A sandwich that is filling enough for a meal. The red cabbage slaw and Russian sauce gives it a colorful twist. The battered tilapia sandwich is served with fresh cut potato and sweet potato fries, pickles and home made ketchup. - Php 278

A Vietnamese inspired sandwich. The marinated and grilled pork is wrapped in freshly made pandan (screw pine) scented tortillas served with  carrots, cucumbers and atsara (pickled papaya) - Php 288

Half a Barbecued Spring Chicken is made from young and tender poultry that is grilled to a nice golden brown. The watermelon brunoise gives a nice refreshing balance to the rich house barbecue sauce and sweet mashed sweet potatoes. - Php 608

Local Batangas Beef is made into a Persian classic. The Beef Tenderloin Kebab is served with a sauce similar to a Ratatouille (okra, eggplant, tomatoes), a fried saba banana ring and Moroccan-inspired rice using a long grain variety. - Php 488

Love Parrot Fish - both seen when snorkeling at sea (super colorful and exotic looking with colors ranging from blue, green and yellow) and cooked to perfection. White meat fillets well and has a clean taste and tender flakiness. Here it is pan-seared with a Beurre Blanc (white butter sauce), turmeric (yellow ginger) rice, baby bok choi and fresh tomatoes. - Php 368

Tarragon Spiced Chicken. Tarragon and chicken is always a good pairing. The squash risotto is made from starchy short grain rice has a piquant sweetness to it. Chayote (sayote) tops accompany the dish. - Php 398

Parpadelle are wide flat noodles (made in kitchen, fresh) and it holds up well to the rich and creamy tomato goodness of braised beef shortribs - stroganoff style. A nice familiar flavor with a twit brought by a kangkong (swamp cabbage) saute. - Php 318

Langoustine is a crustacean that is a cross between a shrimp and a lobster. Found these in local markets and so happy to source these (to cook and eat) easily in wet markets now. Made with fresh spaghetti (more fettuccine I suppose), peas, and tournéd carrots; the langoustine is meaty and the rich seafood flavor complements the cream sauce. - Php 408

Due to the overwhelming response, you can now bring a whole 8 inch "PILI PIE" to your home or in your workplace for only P728! Not too sweet and oh so crunchy, makes the classic walnut pie a run for its money. Please place your order at least 3 days in advance. Best with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

For reservations, please call 5550267 or you may also get in touch with Mark de Jesus through 09267421571 or 09178275685. Tourné is now accepting bookings for small parties and corporate events.

Tourné is located at The Fort Strip, Taguig.

Email: Tourne.Restaurant@gmail.com
Telephone: +63917-8275685
Facebook: Tourne by Chef Sandralyn Hataway
Twitter: @ChefSJHTourne
Business Hours: 10 AM to 10 PM daily, extended hours on weekends
Looking forward to the next menu! :)

Let me know what you think if you get a chance to sample this week's spread. Spread the word!

Mediterranean Lunch

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Sunday morning and just rummaged through the fridge and pantry to see what I can cook for lunch. It had to be something quick that I can pop it in the oven to cook so I can leave and not worry much about it when I go to Church and do other errands prior to 12 noon. Let's see... chicken, prunes, eggplant, couscous, lemons, cinnamon barks - I was on to something... potatoes, yogurt, olives, crusty bread. I will do something Mediterranean - along Greek and Moroccan lines.

I love this cuisine because it's rustic, exotic and very flavorful. To many this is still an acquired taste as sweet, savory and hearthy flavors are paradoxically both mild and bold. It has been long since I cooked something a little less than "ordinary" so I was all smiles preparing for this. Here are my versions - nothing authentic but equally delicious.


CHICKEN TAJINE
A tajine is an earthen cookware that has a big flat bottom and a conical cover. This shape ensures proper heat and steam distribution that creates tender and flavorful stews cooked on top of the stove. Haven't seen one here in Manila, let me know if you see one (or you know what to gift me already!).

image from Google

But even without one, you can still cook this recipe in a heave bottom casserole or like me, on a glass dish / earthenware to be put inside an oven.

Ingredients:

 

1 kilo chicken, cut into serving pieces (used all breast for this)
1 head garlic (15 cloves)
1 small red onion, quartered
1 small can pimientos (2 pcs), sliced
10 prunes, cut in half
1/4 cup dried kumquats (got these from HK, available in Asian specialty stores)*
juice of 1 lemon, peel reserved
1 cup cubed potatoes
1/4 cup melted butter, plus some for greasing dish
1 3/4 cup water
* traditionally prepared with preserved Mylar lemons which are hard to find here. Seems to work for this recipe.

Spice Mix

2 teaspoons Turmeric (yellow ginger)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cinnamon bark
1 tablespoon local saffron (kasubha), or 1 small pinch real saffron threads
1 teaspoon anise seeds
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
big pinch of chili flakes

Procedure:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400F. Grease a large oven casserole with butter.

2. Place chicken on the dish and rub thoroughly with the spice mix.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

4. Cover tightly with foil (double up the foil to make sure steam does not escape), and bake for at least 2 hours.

5. Then lower the heat to 325F, uncover the dish and bake for 30 minutes.

COUSCOUS
Couscous is semolina grain that is staple for medit food as substitute to rice. It is very easy to prepare (in fact just soak in boiling water for 10 minutes and serve) but here is my take on it to add more flavor and complement the Chicken Tajine.

Ingredients:

Chicken bones
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup dried couscous
lemon peel
1 teaspoon local saffron (kasubha) or 1 pinch real saffron threads
2 tablespoons butter
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup sunflower seeds (or slivered/sliced almonds)
pinch of salt
handful of cilantro, chopped

Procedure:

1. Make chicken broth by sauteeing chicken bones in its own fat for 10 minutes, over medium heat. You can skip this and add 2 chicken bouillon cubes instead.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients and boil for 10 minutes. Remove chicken bones after.

3. Add couscous, turn off heat and cover tightly for at least 10 minutes.

4. Add cilantro, sunflower seeds and fluff with fork.

To serve, arrange couscous on a big serving platter and top with the Chicken Tajine and more chopped cilantro. Spoon over sauce on the couscous for flavor. Crusty bread, pita and rice also works well with this Moroccan stew.

MOUTABAL
A Lebanese appetizer/dip which is commonly served in Greek and Persian restaurants, it is made up of roasted eggplants. Here is my twist to this classic.

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant, roasted in a 400F oven for 30 minutes, skins removed
1/4 cup yogurt
10 green olives
2 teaspoon lemon juice
salt to taste (small pinch)
olive oil

Procedure:

1. Chop eggplant and olives together and place in a bowl.

2. Add yogurt, lemon juice. Taste for seasoning - olives are already salty.

3. Chill for at least 30 minutes. Top with olive oil before serving with warm & tasty bread.

I loved how my dishes turned out and they were "authentic-tasting" enough for me. I still believe Mediterranean food is best eaten with bread as utensils and with bare hands. Can't wait to go visit Marrakesh in Morocco sometime - paradise!!! For now a Hossein's or even a Mister Kebab can satisfy. :)

Shoukran Bazzef!

Tokyo Bubble Tea and Honeybee Patisserie

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Saturday was spent mostly sleeping and eating. Slept around 3AM Saturday morning after a fun SpinD event of Planet Zips but had to wake up at 8AM for my Dance Class (BEP's Don't Stop the Party! Yeah!). Was so tired when I got home that i just went straight back to bed - mom had to cook lunch. Woke up at 4PM and fetched my nephew and niece, Adrian and Arianna, from their Math Training class (geeks!) and they had to accompany me to my dentist.

Having not had anything to eat the whole day, we just had to go binge and eat our hearts out. From the dentist, called Pizza Hut to order our fave Family Meatlover's Cheesy Volcano! Thanks to the ever reliable Palm Card, we get a free Family Pepperoni and Bacon Pan Pizza. After the 15 minute drive, our order was ready for pick up. We were so hungry we ate it inside anyway with 1.5 L of soda! Arianna had 4 slices, I had 5 and Adrian had 7 slices!!! No pictures here - just so embarrassing to post but pizza  was soooooo good! We were out of Pizza Hut in 20 minutes and we think the crew there thought we were such piggies! :)

On the way to San Juan where I was supposed to drop the kids off at their house, I felt the craving for something sweet to rid my tongue of all the grease and carnivorous deliciousness. We had to get dessert. We were just planning to drive thru McDonald's and get a sundae on drive-through but we passed by Bubble Tea at Wilson. Perfect, the also have Honeybee Patisserie here where they serve delicious cakes! Good thing there was parking as the rain was getting harder already.

The interiors are very cozy and modern - they have a 2nd floor too if the place gets crowded. The kids went straight to the low tables where we can enjoy our cakes and bubble tea with throw pillows.

The display of cakes is just too beautiful to pass on. I am sure you will get at least one dessert even if you just went there for a bubble tea.



Here is their menu with description and prices (from their FB page)

 We ordered the Mt. Fuji Choco, Tokyo Tiramisu and the Strawberry Matcha Mousse.

The Tokyo Tiramisu had a nice crunchy and caramel-y cookie crust with layers of light sponge cake. The coffee syrup gives it a nice kick (which even kids will enjoy) - no need to worry about it being drenched in alcohol. Over-all a perfect coming together of tiramisu flavors finished with coca powder-dusted whipped cream.

The Strawberry Matcha Mousse is a spectacle of the senses. The cake is whimsical with layers of Matcha green tea cake, green tea mouse, strawberry mouse and strawberry cream topped with white chocolate and a dusting of green tea powder. What seems like an unusual flavor combo is surprisingly delish. Only that the strawberry flavor is a tad too candy sweet and has a more artificial note to it than if you expect a fresh and bright strawberry flavor.

Arianna enjoying her Tokyo Tiramisu.

Adrian ordered the Mt. Fuji Choco. Chocolate and caramel mouse alternates inside this pyramid. What's inside is oh so good you can;t help but stick your fork in over and over again. It is then covered with green tea crumbs and topped with white chocolate and a chocolate disc. I will climb Mt. Fuji for this one!!!

Adrian licked the cake board clean! That proof enough?

Empty plate in minutes...

The strawberry mousse was just too much. But the green tea cake layer was yummy!

Honeybee also serves bread and snacks! Will grab some of these next time. Check out what was on display!

Most intrigued by the Takoyaki Bread! :)

The kids had a go at the Bubble Tea! Got the Cold Tea Slush (fresh fruit shakes) with combination pearls.

Green Apple

Mango

You can ask for your drink to have 50% less sugar or use Splenda Artificial Sweetener. Yey!

Bubble Tea also serves an exhaustive array of real hot Japanese-Western dishes (which most milk tea places do not offer). I will also try out these meals soon! Salivating as I went through the menu.

Check out their Facebook pages linked here: Tokyo Bubble Tea & Honeybee Patisserie
The webiste of Tokyo Bubble Tea was not working at this time but here it is anyway Tokyo Bubble Tea

Tokyo Bubble Tea and Honeybee Patisserie is located at:
Unit 3, 229 Wilson St., Greenhills
San Juan, Metro Manila, Philippines
Phone Number: (63 2) 584-1998
(Mon - Sun 11am - 1am)
Other branches at:
SM North Edsa
LG/F SM North Edsa, The Block, Quezon City
(Sun - Thur 10am - 10pm)
(Fri - Sat 10am to 11pm)

SM Megamall
LG/F SM Megamall, Mandaluyong City
(Sun - Thur 10am - 9pm)
(Fri - Sat 10am to 10pm)

Tomas Morato (Now Open!)
#220 Tomas Morato Ave., Quezon City (beside Alfredo's steak house)
(Mon - Sun 11am - 1am)