After starting with a Crisp Goat Cheese and Cream of Corn Teaser with Basil Jello and Freeze Dried Crisp Kernels as the first course before diving into the second course of Sweet Sour and Salty Tuna & Smokey Brined Pork Tenderloin the third and final course would need to be rich, but small, to cleanse the Worcester Foodies’ palate.
To accomplish this at Ceres Bistro, Chef Bill Nemeroff, opted for another duet with Sour Cream Coffee Cake, often a suitable choice for breakfast, with a parsnip ice cream topped with a piece of candied bacon. Although the moist and spongy Sour Cream Coffee Cake seemed to be the center of the desert, it was merely there to accompany the parsnip ice cream. Parsnip flavored gel at, on it’s own, is a tough sell, but it’s refreshing flavor was subtle, cleansing and interacted perfectly with the cream and sugar of the gelato base. While one can do no wrong with bacon, the candied effect seemed to be a bit much for the ensemble. The crisp crusted candied brown sugar glaze was a bit too salty both the coffee cake, but would have fared perfectly with matched with the gelato alone.
To wash this course down, a brandy and port flip was created. Both port and brandy are recognized for being the perfect after-dinner drinks, but the craft elegance of this cocktail lay with the way that the raw egg yolk interacted with the body of the port and sublet flavor of the brandy. The perfect end to three diverse courses from Ceres Bistro.
