A Six-Course Fine Dining Tasting Menu by Sam Bacchus, featuring the bounty, the symbiosis, the absolute beauty and deliciousness of British Columbia’s terre et mer…go ahead and impress your guests.
I detest cooking on a daily basis. Creating, prepping and cooking upwards of 21 meals a week is exhausting, mundane and downright annoying…why must we eat so often?!
Oh Goodness, fill my table with a group of avid fine-diners and I come alive in my tiny kitchen facing the guests. I may have had great joy in the shopping and creating in the last day or so, I may have prepared a few sauces a the night beforehand, I may have spent the day doing the last minute preps, but it is when the first course starts and I get the attentive pause at their first bite. Oh yeah!
I love the pauses, the speechlessness – the ohs and ahs I can do without – and the closed eyes as people revel in the flavours and textures of locally grown and created dishes. Then it is that smile or grin in appreciation of love for food, for friends, for family, for life itself.
I love creating menus, feeding people, and creating more menus…the following is a celebration of all the delightful things of a British Columbia’s autumn.
This is the menu proper if you just want to grab an idea. But for each dish on this menu, you will soon find the recipe written out for you on the site, so please do follow the link (once I have linked it) or look for it in the search bar.
NOTE: A dear friend asked for this menu so I am making it public for them, they have received the recipes, and as soon as I have edited them, you will too!
Bon appetit!
Un apéritif of Exotic Woodland Skewers
Duck & Bison Salami with Pineapple and Sharp Cheese
Charcuterie with cured BC meats wrapped around sweet grill-kissed pineapple and aged BC cheeses, skewered and brushed lightly with truffled oil…et voila!
Pair with: A bold BC Cabernet Franc or a crystal glass of Homemade cranberry-infused sparkling water
Plating: Laid on a small side plate with a slash of bright and spicy mustard
Un amuse-bouche of Silken Smoke
Asian-Marinated Farmed Salmon
A spoonful of 24-hour-marinated Asian-spiced smoked salmon, topped with whipped avocado-mayo Créme Chantilly and crowned with crispy shallots and salmon roe
Pair with: Chilled BC dry Gewürztraminer or green tea with yuzu
Plating: Served on tasting spoons or oyster shells tiny dishes for a decadent one-bite elegance
Une entrée of Balance & Bite
Crispy Trout on Cilantro-Lime Rice Balls
One-inch square of blackened-seared trout balanced atop herbed rice balls, nestled into a Thai cabbage salad tossed in peanut-sesame dressing
Pair with: Okanagan Rosé or jasmine green tea
Plating: Each trout-and-rice pairing sits on its own bed of slaw on a tasting plate, with 3 scattered tangy hibiscus petals and green lime olive oil pearls/or droplets.
Un amuse-bouche of Fire & Spice
Seared Beef with Horseradish Cream
Slivers of rare filet mignon placed on rosemary crackers, topped with spicy horseradish cream and a single pomegranate aril
Pair with: Oaked Okanagan Merlot or rosemary black tea
Plating: Two per person on a slate tile, garnished with miniscule rosemary sprigs
Le plat principal is the Hearty Centrepiece
Beef Bourguignon with Duchess Potatoes
Slow-braised beef in red wine, simmered with pearl onions, baby carrots and button mushrooms, served beside piped duchess potatoes baked to golden peaks
Pair with: Full-bodied Okanagan Syrah or herbaceous mocktail with blackberries and thyme
Plating: Classic French, with sauce pooled beneath artfully placed meat and vegetables and potatoes shaped like rosettes
Le fromage & Le dessert is the Finale Board
Sweet & Sharp Dessert Platter
– Vanilla sponge square with smoky-whiskey berries
– Vanilla ice cream quenelle
– One petit butter cookie, one petit chocolate brownie square
– One shard of sharp white cheese
Pair with: A glass of port, a smoky lapsang souchong, or dark cherry tea
Plating: A long rectangular plate, each item with space to shine, berries spilling between the sweet and the savoury, a dusting of icing