CHOP Manila (Culinary Historians of the Philippines) Meeting, 26 March 2012

The Culinary Historians of the Philippines (CHOP Manila) had a successful meeting Monday, March 26, 2012, at the beautiful home of one of its founding members, Gracita.

The meeting was a lot of fun, a gaggle of girls gathered together to eat, drink, laugh and gab, and then to sit down and discuss serious CHOP business. We covered a lot of ground during the meeting, and so CHOP marches on, as Nigna would say.



The plan was to have lunch first at 12:30 pm, start the meeting at 2:00 pm, then break for merienda at some point (despite the huge lunch!), and then adjourn at 4:00 pm.


We had pica-picas first, and Gracita had laid out  crisp lavash crackers with a very delicate dulong dip. There were also crudités (carrots, turnips, celery, etc.) with a yogurt dip, as well as cheese rolls (courtesy of Rica). For drinks, we had a choice of a chilled guava juice, hot lemongrass tea, or iced water.

This was followed by a feast for lunch, with everyone bringing a dish or dessert, to complement the wonderful dishes that Gracita had prepared (photos below). Some of us had a a very lovely Swiss white wine, perfectly chilled.

 Super-fresh Pompano gently steamed in light soy sauce and herbs and spices, and crisp haricots verts with shrimp.

 Bangus (milkfish) Lumpia with a vinegar dip, and a refreshing Salad of pickled Paho (baby green mangoes, Singkamas (turnips), Grape Tomatoes, and Chives.

Nigna made her signature Pork Menudo (left), and Gracita got an all-natural ham from the weekend Salcedo Market in Makati. Nigna said we forgot to ask Gracita to pack some of the ham for us -- they would have been perfect with hot pan de sal for breakfast tomorrow!

 The table was laid out beautifully, with fresh Gumamela blossoms from Gracita's garden.

 It felt like being in a resort, as we lunched al fresco on the beautiful lanai surrounded on one side with the rolling gardens full of beautiful flowering plants and lots of trees, including more than 20 tall coconut trees. We were lucky with the weather, as there was a refreshing breeze fanning us while we ate. Ahh, this is the life!

This is my favorite Suman (rice cake) -- the Pinipig (rice oats) Suman, topped with Latik, the solids that result from simmering coconut cream for hours. I'm ashamed to admit how many of these I can gobble down in one sitting!

 We completely forgot to take Ada's potato salad (right) out from the fridge, so it ended up with the merienda items. It's never be too late for something yummy and home-made like this salad!

 Half of the cream puffs were sugar-free, but nobody wanted to touch them. Oh well, they could not compete with the yummy coconut macaroons.

Meng had brought a delicious sun-dried tomato pesto, with a big crusty baguette, but I forgot to take a photo of it (apologies to Meng)!

 Everyone's favorite!  The Brazo de Mercedes (courtesy of Nanette), which is a puffy egg-white roll stuffed with a sinfully scrumptious egg yolk cream. Heavenly.

 All in all, a productive but super-fun day for CHOP. Until our next meeting (or foodie trip soon), ladies, and let's keep on marching -- we have a lot of work ahead of us!