The North Side Inside and Out

Posted March 23, 2011 - 12:08pm by Jenise Celestin

Ceres' Table debuts new recipes for Swedish Covenant Hospital

Giuseppe Scurato, owner and chef from Ceres' Table, really knows his stuff. At our event on Monday night, he carefully and intentionally created each course to feature a particular olive oil. He collaborated with Karen Olive from City Olive on which oils to incorporate, and Karen then supplied Ceres' Table with the olive oils for use that evening. The results were nothing short of amazing.

So, first - Karen from City Olive guided attendees through a tasting of the three olive oils that would be featured in each of the three courses for the evening. We learned about how to properly taste olive oil, ways to describe the flavors and what to look for. Incidentally, if you're interested, Karen offers olive oil tastings at City Olive throughout the year, and you can find out more on her website, www.cityolive.com. Stop by the store this Sunday, March 23 to celebrate their 4-year anniversary and meet some of their producers from around the world! 

Ok, back to the event - so our first dish was a house-made tagliatelle pasta with cuttlefish, olive oil and garlic - lovely presentation too. The second course was olive oil poached cod, olive oil cured black olives, oven roasted tomato, spring onions and capers - this is where it really got interesting for me. The fish was light and delicious, and you could really appreciate the flavor of the olive oil in the dish. Giuseppe explained that this was a challenge at first - as olive oil is not typically the featured ingredient for a dish but rather secondary to other flavors. Also interesting - the fish was place atop the vegetables, and the sauce almost appeared cream-like. Not so! Giuseppe in fact created an emulsion of the olive oil and lemon juice to create this light, wonderful sauce.

And now, I've saved the best for last - at least in my opinion: passion fruit mousse with olive oil and black pepper tuille. That's right, we had a dessert that featured olive oil and OMG was it outstanding. What a burst of flavor, plus the varied textures really added dimension.

The dinner was complemented by some nutrition tips courtesy of Maryam Naziri, a registered dietitian from Galter LifeCenter. She spoke about the differences between MUFA (monounsaturated fatty acid - olive oil, avocados, oatmeal) and PUFA (polyunsaturated fatty acid - fish, nuts, leafy greens "omega-3 and omega-6") and the importance of avoiding trans-fats (fast food, baked goods, snack food) whenever possible. Turns out, cooking with olive oil or canola oil is pretty healthy and can really enhance the flavor of your dish, particularly if you're using a high quality oil like those sold at City Olive, for example.

Our next dinner series will be held at Mia Figlia, where we'll focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients. Don't miss another opportunity to enjoy a dinner out with friends while learning a little about your health along the way. Learn more and make your reservation today - cheers!

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