MANY consider the International Culinary Arts Academy Cebu (Icaac), “Salle a Manager” to be Cebu’s finest food center. Thanks to its culinary superstars dean/chef Jeremy and Fatima Young.
These two standouts celebrated “devastating degustation” (as my heavenly foodie says with superlatives). To make the grade for the Icaac final culminating dinner, the graduates of the two-year Culinary Arts Chefs Programme had to come up with a 15-course Trio Menu Concept preparing a single item (in this case, crab, salmon, organic chicken, beef and dessert) in three ingenious and inspired ways.
Crabmeat is fine and delicate as the salade de crabe of mango and imperial Russian caviar (introduced to France following the exile of Russian princes). Crab cakes were piquant, served with pineapple relish. There was the hearty crab rRavioli with tomato and sweet corn relish.
Salmon, known for its pink, fatty, highly nourishing flesh was served as a trio with goat cheese terrine salad, and as an appetit sushi roll with saffron mayo, and poached salmon with cannellini and French beans on coconut cream sauce.
No less than organic chicken was dressed for the flaky curry pot pie, phyllo with foie gras, and pan seared with fresh mushrooms.
Beef, prime angus came in a trio tatake salad style, short ribs braised with red wine in prawn slivers, and beef Wellington, brushed with pate and baked golden encased in bread, the tang of peppercorns.
Lusciously fabulous- the trio of hazelnut flavors: coffee bavarois (a cold cafe whipped with gelatine cream); the tricky souffle of hazelnut; and one to sing arias for coffee hazelnut opera. Encore! Bravissimo for the graduating students of Icaac, to their parents and their esteemed faculty. (Myra Isabel Magsaysay Sun/Contributed photos.)
