Yay, more fancy words to add to my vocabulary list - in particular, a potentially poseur way to say "soup"... Up next is the spiced pumpkin velouté, an appetiser on the menu of Saveur Art @ ION Orchard, Singapore. Originally, velouté referred to French soups thickened with egg yolks, butter and cream, although now it is often used for soups thickened with only butter or cream. (source) In this case, unfortunately, I was not able to tell if egg yolks were used... it's very possible though, given the colour and the similarity of the flavours.
At first, this dish was served without the velouté, but with just a very nicely presented dollop of chive cream topped with some kind of oil and that little golden brown mound of caramelised onions you can still see. The waiter promptly poured the velouté over as I watched. Slow as my reaction was, I wasn't able to take a shot before the amber lava started glamourously overrunning everything. *sniff* So well, what remains to be seen is just that almost-submerged berg of non-yellow stuff.
The soup was very rich and good in that sense, as would be expected given that it is after all a velouté with that extra dollop of chive cream to boot.
I love that there were so many other flavours augmenting the taste - chive, caramelised onions, and the distinct taste of curry powder, or that cumin-tumeric combination which I believe was the "spice" that the name referred to. (I'm not sure if there were other spices besides cumin and tumeric though... all I know is that it really tasted like the curry powder mixture.) I also thought there was some kind of parsley or coriander taste.
There was also a vague sweet and slightly sour taste... I'm wondering if it is the caramelised onions, which perhaps were actually pickled caramelised onions, such that the trace of vinegar in it provided that hint of sourness, and the extra sugar contributed to the sweetness.
So overall, all these flavours made for a nice party in each mouthful.
Homemade Spiced Butter Brioche
The velouté came with a homemade spiced butter brioche. It was relatively crispy on the outside, but fluffy, warm and buttery on the inside... a heavenly texture indeed!
I also loved the use of the ethnic-looking wooden bowl it was served in, which seemed to just enhance the overall warmth of the colours, the temperature and the fuzzy homemade feeling.
The brioche had a similar-tasting spice combination as that in the velouté, making it something like a curry brioche. In fact, you can see little patches of that spice mix as you work your way through the roll, like that small dark powdery patch in the image below. I liked that they made the brioche's flavour to match their soup!
Overall, the pumpkin, cream and curry powder combination was an excellent match. I personally prefer this combination of spices over the typical American pumpkin spice mix, because pumpkin is supposed to be smooth and buttery, which doesn't go well with the woodiness of cinnamon and nutmeg, in my opinion. Well, maybe you could argue that the American pumpkin spice mix is for sweet dishes. Still, you hardly find many popular dishes pairing something smooth and buttery with cinnamon or nutmeg, whereas the cream and curry powder combination has proven fabulously popular in the form of curry.
Anyway, with the spiced brioche, this spiced pumpkin velouté made for a splendid appetiser... although maybe it was a bit too rich. I was starting to feel full from this before the main course was served.
At first, this dish was served without the velouté, but with just a very nicely presented dollop of chive cream topped with some kind of oil and that little golden brown mound of caramelised onions you can still see. The waiter promptly poured the velouté over as I watched. Slow as my reaction was, I wasn't able to take a shot before the amber lava started glamourously overrunning everything. *sniff* So well, what remains to be seen is just that almost-submerged berg of non-yellow stuff.
I love that there were so many other flavours augmenting the taste - chive, caramelised onions, and the distinct taste of curry powder, or that cumin-tumeric combination which I believe was the "spice" that the name referred to. (I'm not sure if there were other spices besides cumin and tumeric though... all I know is that it really tasted like the curry powder mixture.) I also thought there was some kind of parsley or coriander taste.
There was also a vague sweet and slightly sour taste... I'm wondering if it is the caramelised onions, which perhaps were actually pickled caramelised onions, such that the trace of vinegar in it provided that hint of sourness, and the extra sugar contributed to the sweetness.
So overall, all these flavours made for a nice party in each mouthful.
Homemade Spiced Butter Brioche
I also loved the use of the ethnic-looking wooden bowl it was served in, which seemed to just enhance the overall warmth of the colours, the temperature and the fuzzy homemade feeling.
The brioche had a similar-tasting spice combination as that in the velouté, making it something like a curry brioche. In fact, you can see little patches of that spice mix as you work your way through the roll, like that small dark powdery patch in the image below. I liked that they made the brioche's flavour to match their soup!
Anyway, with the spiced brioche, this spiced pumpkin velouté made for a splendid appetiser... although maybe it was a bit too rich. I was starting to feel full from this before the main course was served.
~~~
And a song to set the mood for smooth creaminess like this...
I Feel Free
by Cream
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