At Our Table

Sara Moulton Visits Pastoral

2005-12-08T13:09:00.002-06:00

I adore Sara Moulton. I think she's smart, skilled, personable and fun. As Executive Chef of Gourmet Magazine and host of "Sara's Secrets" on the Food Network, she's a culinary talent worth meeting. And now Chicago residents have the chance if they drop by Pastoral tomorrow night for an evening with Sara Moulton.

Sara will be at Pastoral signing her new book "Sara's Secrets for Weeknight Meals" from 5pm to 7pm on Friday, December 9, 2005. The event is free and open to the public. Additionally, a few sample recipes from her book and Pastoral's assortment of artisan cheeses and charcuterie will be available for tasting.

Pastoral is a lovely shop and this evening should be fun. Details below and enjoy if you go!

"An Evening with Sara Moulton"
December 9, 2005 from5pm to 7pm

Pastoral
2945 North Broadway
Chicago, IL 60657
USA
Telephone: 773-472-4781
Web Site: http://pastoralartisan.com

Next Time At Our Table: We found a little giant on a trip to New York and we can't stop talking about it.

Antoine's: Then and Now

2005-10-18T21:20:00.002-05:00

One year ago this month, Win and I celebrated our anniversary with a trip to New Orleans. Our very first meal in that special city was at Antoine's. This weekend, The Chicago Tribune ran an article on how Antoine's is faring after Hurricane Katrina.

The article is both heartbreaking and inspiring. Heartbreaking for the obvious reasons; inspiring due to the commitment of Antoine's staff to try and get the place back up and running.

I thought it appropriate to revisit my lunch at Antoine's to show what it was like just a year ago. Click here to read about Antoine's of 2004, as contrasted with the Antoine's of Fall 2005 highlighted in the Tribune article. I'm hopeful that the Antoine's team can rebuild their restaurant and continue to serve New Orleans. When it does, we will be back to support them.

IMBB 18: "Summer's Flying, Let's Get Frying" Round-Up, Part 4

2005-09-06T19:39:00.003-05:00

Here is the fourth and final installment of the “Summer’s Flying, Let’s Get Frying” Round-Up. Today’s entry includes a review of our final 22 IMBB participants and some statistics to tie this whole thing together. Without further ado…
Lisa, a Malaysian living in Holland, shares a recipe for Sesamee with Kung Pao Chicken on her blog Lekker Leffer Lekkerste. Lisa calls her noodles with stir fried chicken “the sexiest way to eat noodles.” Well who wouldn’t want to check that out?
Alberto of Il Forno, the creator of the IMBB concept, prepared some gorgeous Southern-Style Fried Chicken for us. Golden and crisp, this looks like a very successful preparation style. Delicious!
Coming to us from Seattle, WA is the satisfying crunch of Homemade Potato Chips. Shauna of Gluten-Free Girl put her mandolin to great use and created some spectacular golden fried chips. She says she and her friend ate them all in about 5 minutes; I absolutely believe it based on how good these look.
Following Shauna is another Seattle-based blogger: It’s Viv, the Seattle Bon Vivant herself. For this IMBB, Viv decided to treat herself to a fried lunch out on the town. She ordered Pescado Frito at La Casa del Mojito. Tender, moist and delicious, this fish and its accompanying dishes sound like an excellent lunch.
Next up is the lovely Pim of Chez Pim. Pim made Khao-pad Panang Goong for her entry. This is Stir-Fry Rice with Prawns in Panang Curry Paste. Gorgeous and sounds perfect with the seafood.
Tanvi of From The Pantry and I are sisters bound by the Mock Deep-Fried Chick Pea. Neither of us selected our fried chick peas for our IMBB submission though. Instead, Tanvi prepared Tofu Pad Thai. Something tasty for the non-meat-eaters out there.
Brett of In Praise of Sardines comes to us from San Francisco, CA with a recipe for Pan-Fried Petrale Sole with Succotash of Summer Squash and Corn. Brett’s fish was shallow-fried and the succotash was stir-fried. Looks perfectly cooked and delicious!
Next we head back overseas to Singapore where June of Nibble and Scribble cooked Deep-Fried Prawns with Tom Yum Dipping Sauce. I love June’s special method for deep-frying (any method that includes running away from the scorching hot oil gets my vote for good safety) and her end result looks very tasty.
And now to France where Hindy and Lydia write In My Kitchen…Baking Cookies. This is their first time participating in an IMBB event, so welcome to the group! And what a grand entrance they make with their Almond Paste Briouates…Chocolate Surprise! Absolutely lovely dessert!
Nicky and Oliver of Delicious Days filled their Munich, Germany kitchen with several fried treats. First they experimented with Pasteles Fritos, but those weren’t as inspired as originally planned. So they did what any good chef would do in this case…fry, fry again. (Oh, come on…how could I resist?) Much more successful were their Apple Crullers and Fried Cheese Tidbits. Something sweet and something savory here…a perfect combination!
Clare Eats of Eatstuff in Sydney, Australia sends in her recipe for Chapati with Dudhi Channige. Clare has her own Chapati press and did a beautiful job making this meal.
A fellow Australian, Chris of ChubbyCatCooks prepared several dishes for this month’s IMBB and submitted the two favorites: Gyoza and Agedashi Tofu. These look like stellar selections.
Indira of Mahanandi shares a very interesting look at Jangri, a Traditional Indian Sweet. It truly does take the work of a master to create such perfectly artistic sweets.
Ellen of Chronicles of a Curious Cook shares her recipe for Chicken Fried Steak with us. Like Ellen’s daughter, this dish always confused me when I was young too…is it chicken or is it steak? As an adult though, I recognize it for the fried goodness it is and Ellen’s recipe sounds terrific.
Fried Beehoon comes in from Julia of AromaCookery. Fried Beehoon is a “fond local Chinese favorite noodle dish” for Julia, basically a fried rice vermicelli. Oh, this looks so, so good.
Rachael of Fresh Approach Cooking sends us Fried Okra and Green Tomatoes with Tomato-Mint and Almond Salad. Rachael calls this “one of the yummiest things she’s had in weeks” and provides an easy-to-follow recipe so that you can try “its salty, crunchy, spicy, minty deliciousness out for yourself.”
The folks at Foodgoat submit Stuffed Mushrooms for your dining pleasure. Ladygoat says that she once spent an entire party hovering over the stuffed mushroom plate. This is a woman who knows and loves her mushrooms. Check them out here.
Like me, Gemma of Part-Time Pro Bono Baker resides in Chicago, IL. Her garden recently produced a gorgeous eggplant that became Fried Eggplant just in time for IMBB. Every detail of this dish, right down to the tomato sauce on top, looks garden fresh and delicious.
We’re back to Singapore and Skrat of My Indulgence. Skrat prepared Mee Siam (Chinese Style) which was originally a Thai dish of noodles, served in a “light and piquant gravy made from tamarind juice (assam) and dried shrimps, and served with toppings such as fresh lime, tiny cubes of dried beancurd, chives and slices of boiled egg.” Looks really good!
Sarah lives The Delicious Life in Los Angeles, CA. This month Garlic French Fries with Spicy Marinara were on the menu for her, and she provides us with a fun potato history lesson and some good tips for frying them. Thanks, Sarah!
Lady Amalthea of Noshes, Thoughts & Reves sent in a late entry because she was in the process of moving during our IMBB. So she prepared her Fried Eggplant in Avgolemono Sauce in San Francisco and then moved near Los Angeles shortly afterwards. “Creamy, refreshing and delicious” is how she describes the sauce on her eggplant. Perfect fuel for a move to Southern California.
And finally, what did I cook for this IMBB? I made my Chicken Francese. This is one of our favorite dishes and it’s a great reason to do a little pan frying. I’m going to take the efficient route here and just link you to my original post on this chicken rather than reinvent the wheel with a whole new write-up. The sauce that accompanies this chicken is light, lemony and so fresh; it’s always been a hit at our table and it was this month too.
So this concludes our IMBB “Summer’s Flying, Let’s Get Frying” Round-Up. Thank you all very much for participating. Your dishes are both inspiring and inspired. Here are a few statistics that pull my four part Round-Up together a bit.

Total number of participants: 57
Total number of dishes consumed: 67 (some people had several entries)
Number of participants who chose to eat a fried restaurant meal instead of cooking at home: 2
Number of dishes that are savory: 53
Number of dishes that are sweet: 14
Most popular dish submitted: Some variation on a noodle stir fry (we received all sorts)
Most popular vegetable entry submitted: Fried Green Tomatoes (4 variations)

IMBB 18: "Summer's Flying, Let's Get Frying" Round-Up Part 3

2005-09-01T22:06:00.002-05:00

The cable guy came this afternoon, we did a quick fix, and the web is up and running again. So on with Part 3 of our IMBB Round-Up!

We begin this installment of the Round-Up with a submission from one of my neighbors to the North, Ruth of Once Upon A Feast. Ruth loves to fry in her Toronto kitchen and she submitted two ideas for our IMBB. The first is French Toast, Fried Salami and Eggs and the second is Spicy Creole Shrimp and Chorizo Sausages. Hearty and delicious, a great way to kick off this installment of our IMBB round-up.

Jason of Jason Truesdell: Pursuing My Passions sends in Paneer Two Ways. The first is Fried Paneer with Peach Chutney. That looks really delicious. The second dish, Paneer in a Spicy Tomato Cream Sauce, isn’t really intended for the IMBB event according to Jason, but I’m happy he shared it with us anyway.

Carolyn of 18^thC Cuisine used this IMBB as an opportunity to perfect her Beignets. Click here to see what her secret is and gaze longingly at their picture perfect fried glory.

Amy of Cooking with Amy says she doesn’t usually fry in her San Francisco kitchen with the exception of one dish. Amy’s Chinese Style Green Beans look really fresh and delicious, don’t they?

Boo_Licious of masak-masak in Malaysia decided to cook an entire meal based on different types of frying methods. First up is Pie Tee with Seafood Filling, then Barely Cooked Salmon with Tobika Caviar Crust, followed by Stir-Fried Fruits with Ginger Ice Cream and Jasmine Tea Caramel. I am so impressed.

I’m loving the uniqueness of this next entry. Stephen of Stephen Cooks made Zucchini/Rutabaga Pancakes with Tomato/Corn Marmalade. This strikes me like one of those flavor combinations you might see on a restaurant menu that makes you say “Hmmm, intriguing. I would have never thought to combine zucchini and rutabaga. I must try it.”

ChichaJo of 80 Breakfasts had “an unrequited craving” for a certain fried snack for over a year and used this IMBB as a chance to roll up her sleeves and make it herself. Her Oliebollen look fabulous!

Coming to us from the Philippines is Karen of The Pilgrim’s Pots and Pans. Karen fried up Cheese-Garlic Sticks. These look great and I bet they have wonderful flavor.

This next entry made me long for another trip to Paris. It doesn’t take much to get me to long for a trip to Paris, honestly, but seeing a blog from someone with the good fortune to live there will definitely do it. Melissa of Banlieue Blog made Spicy Pineapple Fritters. Very interesting blend of flavors and I bet they tasted great, even if Melissa didn’t add as much red pepper this time around as she’d have liked.

Sam’s English, Fred’s French, Let’s Party! Coming to us from San Francisco, California is the team at Becks & Posh. For this IMBB, Fred had a craving for Kartoffenpfannkuchen and Sam whipped up Antipasto Speciali. Check our their recipes and photos here. Tasty!

One of my fellow Chicagoans, Barrett of Too Many Chefs, sends in an excellent recipe for Phyllo Spring Rolls. These are fried vegetarian spring rolls using apples, fennel, cabbage, and carrots. Nice work!

Caryn of Delicious! Delicious! treats us to another version of Fried Green Tomatoes. As Caryn notes, we have seen a couple of these already in the Round-Up, but I say there is always room for another fine take on a classic. These look outstanding!

Martin of Confessions of a Serial Griller made Chicken Pancakes. These look delicious and I like how Martin walks us through his whole thought process on what dish to choose for this event. Happy Birthday, Martin and thanks for your entry!

Oh, Mia from Nosh, you slay me. Writing in from Munich, Germany with one of my all-time favorites, Fiori di Zucca Fritti. I adore fried zucchini blossoms and will order them every chance I get (and these chances are unfortunately too rare). Thanks for showing us how to prepare them at home.

We’ll close out this edition of the Round-Up with one more take on Spring Rolls. The very talented Zarah Maria of Food & Thoughts sends in her recipe using minced pork, chili, garlic, onion, soy sauce, fish sauce and a bit of sugar. She keeps them small in size; perfect for parties or snacking. Thanks, Zarah!

OK, I’m going to take another break in the Round-Up here and I’ll post again with the intention of covering all the remaining entries very soon. Looks like about 20 more to go. In addition I'll provide some statistics on the entries that will help pull this four part wonder together for those interested in that kind of thing.

IMBB 18: "Summer's Flying, Let's Get Frying" Round-Up, Part 2

2005-08-31T07:07:00.002-05:00

OK, we’re back with Part Two of this month’s IMBB Round-Up. Kicking off today’s festivities is J of Kuidaore. Based in Singapore, J treated us to not one but several amazingly good-looking fried desserts. Click here to see the Cappuccino Semifreddo with Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts, the Chocolate Truffle Ravioli and Confiture de Lait, Jelly Beignets and Deep Chocolate Cream with Raspberry Coulis, and Churros con Chocolate. No, I’m not making that up. All those decadent treats were submitted by one person. Wow, J!

Our next entry was a departure from the sweet side taking us back to something more savory. Chefdoc of A Perfect Pear prepared Pan-Fried Diver Scallops with Lettuce Sauce and Fennel Pickels. Doesn’t that sound delicious? My husband loves scallops and I am always looking for new scallop recipes. This one is definitely a keeper.

Jennifer of Taste Everything Once wasn’t able to fry up any food herself this time around as her kitchen is all packed up and ready for a move, but she was able to indulge in some Corn Dogs and French Fries from her local burger joint. As Jennifer says, “food just tastes better when eaten off a stick.” Now those are some fast food words of wisdom.

Next in is Grommie from The Power of Cheese with Puffy Apple Fritters with Refreshing Lemon Sauce. Yum. I think that lemon sauce would complement with apple fritters really well.

Rosie of Bitchin’ in the Kitchen with Rosie filled her Columbus, Ohio kitchen with Fried Green
Tomatoes Rosie Style. These sound like they would be great accompanied by Rosie’s barbeque
pork.

June of June’s Blog submits a Fried Hamburger Stuffed with Onion, Seasonings and Mashed
Potatoes. This must be a very familiar recipe for June since she knows it by heart and doesn’t
require exact measurements to make it. Thanks for sending us this idea from Jakarta, June!

I always love reading what Anne of Anne’s Food has come up with in ker kitchen and this time
is no different. For this month’s IMBB, Anne made Pyttipanna, a Swedish favorite. This dish is
all about using leftovers and Anne combined meat, potatoes, onions, and chanterelles into
something that looks very satisfying.

Nupur of One Hot Stove says that she does not suffer from sizzleophobia, or the fear
of immersing edible objects into heated oils. I’m glad she doesn’t because otherwise
we wouldn’t get her terrific recipe for Vada Pav. Don’t those look perfectly crisp and delicious?

Celia of English Patis checks in from London with a recipe for Spicy Stir-Fried Prawns. Celia
provides some good advice on the type of prawns to use and notes that this sauce isn’t too spicy
hot, but a pleasant mix of garlics, green onions, ginger, bean sauce and ketchup for a “sweet-sour
tang.” Looks really good!

Every time I read Grab Your Fork, I can’t help but smile at seeing that it’s written by Augustus
Gloop. Augustus made Vietnamese Banh Xeo Crispy Pancakes. Dubbed “the perfect
compromise for the fried food fanatic on a health kick,” these caught my attention immediately.
It’s a crispy fried crepe, embedded with prawns, pork and sprouts and then covered with greens
and nuoc cham sauce. My mouth is watering over these.

I’ve been having Internet problems since Monday and haven’t had web access for much of
every day. Coupled with Blogger formatting problems, it's been a tough few days to get the
Round-up completed. Thanks for your patience though; more of this Round-Up will be
coming as fast as my technology troubles allow.

IMBB 18: "Summer's Flying, Let's Get Frying" Round-Up, Part I

2005-08-28T13:34:00.001-05:00

Well, frying certainly seems to agree with people! As I type this it’s only noon on IMBB day and I have already received more entries than I know what to do with. It’s fun to see people from all over the world frying all types of food in many, many different styles. Since the entries seem to be pouring in pretty fast and furious, I think the best way to do the round-up this time is to share them as they come. So here is the first post of our IMBB 18 Round-Up. Stay tuned for more in the days ahead.

The very first submission I received was from Fast Recipes. Kevin prepared some seriously good-looking Potato Skins. Yum, yum. A delicious and decadent way to start us off.

Next I received an entry from Soycap of WOG: Without Garnish. A lover of fried foods, Soycap decided to fill her Pasadena, California kitchen with not one but several fried snacks. Click here to see her absolutely lovely array of fried treats, including Deep-Fried Rice Balls, Tempura’d Baby Brussel Sprouts, Nori “Scotch” Eggs with Elephant Heart Plum Chutney, Mini Funnel Cake with Concord Grape Reduction, Creamy Caramel and Candied Flowers and finally Deep-Fried Banana Chocolate Truffle.

Lynn of To Short Term Memories then sent in her entry from Tokyo, Japan.  Earlier this year
Lynndecided to enhance her knowledge of Chinese cooking, noting that frying is a staple in
Chinese food preparation.  Lynn made
General Tsao’s Chicken, Sea Bream and Fried Tofu in Lemongrass Sauce.  Great job, Lynn!

Checking in from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is Babe_KL of Babe in the City.  Like Lynn before
her, Babe mentions how frying is used very frequently in Asian cuisine and she brings her
Pan Fried Patties to the table.  Don’t they look great?

Right on the heels of Babe’s entry comes another submission from Kuala Lumpur.  This time
Alex of notions of aC checks in with Homestyle Char Koay Teow.  Alex said he wanted to
taste some of this dish right out of the frying pan, before even getting it to the plate.  I can see
why; it looks terrific.

When I decided on frying as a theme for this month’s IMBB, I thought it might give people the
chance to indulge in the guilty pleasure of fried foods.  Mika of The Green Jackfruit
fell right into that category, saying that this IMBB gave her the chance to make some things she
often craves but resists making because they are deep fried and therefore not necessarily the
healthiest.  Glad this gave you an excuse to prepare your Punjabi Samosas, Mika.
They look tasty!

Cathy of A Blithe Palate  shares thoughts on the “religion” of frying in the Deep South and
prepares a delicious–looking plate of Fried Soy-Sake Shrimp Wontons with Ginger Aioli.  I like
her nod to Southern frying, while selecting a dish that’s a unique departure from the traditional
cooking of that region of the US.

Nic from BakingSheet filled her Los Angeles, California kitchen with
Not-So-Fried Green Tomatoes.  Inspired by the fried green tomatoes she had at B. Smith’s in
New York City, Nic prepared these delicious oven-fried beauties.

Any entry that includes the phrase “heart attack on a plate” gets my attention.  
Niki of Esurientes-TheComfort Zone went retro with a
Whole Breadcrumbed Deep-Fried Camembert.  Looks absolutely decadent and how lucky is
Niki to have a German deep fryer built into her kitchen bench?

I’ll conclude this first edition of the IMBB 18 round-up with two entries from Farid of Algerian
Cuisine and Ya Rayi Our Rai.  Farid made Brik bil Tunn, a very interesting and apparently
addictive Savory Tuna Pastry.  He also prepared Fried Potatoes Algerian Style.  I love how
these potatoes puff up when cooked to produce a thin, crispy top.

I’ll take a pause in the IMBB 18 Round-Up here but more entries will be posted in the days
ahead.  There’s such an interesting variety of fried goodness coming in from around the world
I hope you’ll check back in to see what’s up next.  Thanks to all for participating!

Cooking with Lima Bean

2005-08-16T20:53:00.000-05:00

Today our Lima Bean, now 2, looked at me and very seriously said “Mommy, I need that bowl. I am going to make my recipe.” Not knowing what her recipe could possibly be, I grabbed the blue plastic bowl she was gesturing toward and handed it over.

Now that she had her bowl, she informed me of what ingredients she needed. She asked me to get some ice out of the freezer, some flowers from our deck, the handle to her sippy cup, and a wooden spoon. Ok, not traditional but I’ll play along. So I gathered up her ingredients and she very happily stirred them together in her big blue bowl.

When I commented on how delicious her “recipe” looked, she said “I can’t talk now, Mommy. I need to focus on my cooking.” And she continued stirring her masterpiece. Then she went to my desk and found 2 colored paperclips, one green and one pink, to add to her mixture. She seemed very, very pleased to have found that last magical ingredient.

Maybe this sudden cooking enthusiasm was sparked by her recent reading of A Chef by Douglas Florian. This book is really interesting and fun and it’s one of the few children’s books I’ve seen that discusses the real work of a chef. The book explains how chefs and kitchen staff come in to work early to place orders, accept deliveries and prep food for that evening. Florian explains the different people who work in the kitchen and shows how a pastry chef brings a dessert to fruition. If you have a budding young chef in the house, this book is worth a look. It provides a really nice look at kitchen and restaurant life, in a way that’s appealing to the very young.

IMBB 18: Summer's Flying, Let's Get Frying!

2005-08-09T21:03:00.000-05:00

I’m pleased to be hosting the 18^th edition of “Is My Blog Burning?” This month’s theme is Summer’s Flying, Let’s Get Frying! (Apologies to people in parts of the world where it’s not currently Summer. Let’s call your IMBB Winter’s Flying, Let’s Get Frying!)

The goal this month is to use any style of frying to prepare a dish. Pan fry, stir fry, deep fry…you name it. It can be any type of food, from appetizer to main course to dessert. Break out your fanciest frying skills or indulge us with one of your tried and true simple family favorites.

The event will take place Sunday, August 28, 2005. Please e-mail your submission to atourtable@hotmail.com sometime on the 28^th. Please be sure to include your name, your blog’s name, your city, and the link to your post.

I’m looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with. And remember, if at first you don’t succeed, fry, fry again!

French Bistro Fare at Mon Ami Gabi

2005-08-03T21:53:00.000-05:00

Win’s sister recently gave him a gift card for Mon Ami Gabi. She lives in Maryland and has dined at the Bethesda location a few times, always enjoying it. As such, she thought it might be a good place for us to try.

Mon Ami Gabi is part of the Lettuce Entertain You restaurant group. This group includes establishments such as Ambria, Maggiano’s, Tru, Brasserie Jo, Café Ba-Ba-Reeba, Vong’s Thai Kitchen, Wildfire and Everest. While I’ve mentioned before that I usually prefer smaller, independently operated restaurants to those owned by large corporations or management groups, I must acknowledge that Lettuce Entertain You does an excellent job with their restaurants and Mon Ami Gabi was no exception.

Mon Ami Gabi feels like a bustling French bistro. Its lovely interior is full of leather banquettes and cozy tables covered in crisp white tablecloths. The walls are lined with signs written in French and other art to try and convey a French feeling.

Mon Ami Gabi served warm baguette with an interesting sliced carrot “tapenade.” I don’t really know what to call the sliced, seasoned carrots accompanying the bread, so I’ll use tapenade as the closest thing I can think of to describe it.

For an appetizer, I ordered Steamed Mussels Mariniere. They were delicious. Fresh seafood served in a flavorful broth.

Win selected Onion Soup au Gratin for his appetizer. It was a large portion of really outstanding, cheese-laden onion soup.

Filet Mignon with Mushrooms in a Red Wine Sauce was my entrée. It was a nice cut of meat with a pleasant sauce. The red wine and mushrooms created a very effective flavor combination.

Win’s entrée was Pork Tenderloin Wrapped in Bacon and Served with Gratin Dauphinois, Dates, Raisins and Cider. He really enjoyed this dish.

Despite being quite full, we couldn’t pass up dessert. Win selected Mon Ami Gabi’s Profiteroles and I opted for a special dessert that evening, their White Chocolate Rice Pudding. The profiteroles were really good, as would be expected of such a classic dessert for this kind of restaurant. The white chocolate rice pudding was rich, creamy and really good, but I couldn’t detect as much chocolate favor as I would have liked. It was very good, but it kind of left me wondering how many additional calories this white chocolate was adding to my meal without really contributing that much to my tastebuds.

We enjoyed our night out at Mon Ami Gabi. The food was good, the service pleasant and helpful and the atmosphere comfortable and charming. Their menu features mostly French bistro classics, so if you are in the mood for that type of food you will not be disappointed. If you are looking for something French with offerings beyond the more traditional chicken, fish, and red meat types, I’d also suggest checking out Café Matou.

Mon Ami Gabi
2300 N. Lincoln Park West
Chicago, IL 60614
USA
Telephone: 773-348-8886
Web Site: http://www.monamigabi.com

IMBB 17: tasteTea

2005-07-31T15:51:00.000-05:00

It’s time for another installment of Is My Blog Burning? and this month’s event is being hosted by A La Cuisine! TasteTea is the theme, celebrating dishes made with tea.

When I saw this theme, I was happy to have another opportunity to bake one of my favorite desserts, Earl Grey Tea Cookies. Regular readers of At Our Table might remember that I posted about these cookies several months ago. Since then, they have become one of my favorites because they are delicious, easy to make, able to be frozen for later use, and appropriate for either a casual snack or a more formal gathering with friends.

Earl Grey Tea Cookies
Recipe as seen in Real Simple magazine, May 2005
Total Prep Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes (includes chilling time)
Makes 6 dozen cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons Earl Grey tea leaves, from approximately 6 tea bags ( I used Trader Joe’s Organic Earl Grey tea)
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon water
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1. Heat your oven to 375 degrees.
2. Pulse together all the dry ingredients in a food processor until the tea leaves are pulverized.
3. Add the vanilla, water, and the butter. Pulse together until a dough forms.
4. Divide the dough in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a 12-inch log, about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

5. When ready to bake, slice each log into disks, about 1/3 inch thick. Place on parchment or foil-lined baking sheets, roughly 2 inches apart.
6. Bake until the edges are just brown, about 12 minutes. Be careful not to overbake. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.

As I mentioned earlier, these cookies are quite easy to make and they are delicious in a very simple way. There’s a subtle elegance about the Earl Grey flavor they possess. It’s a certain je ne sais quois that makes them special and unique without being overpowering.

If you would like to have these at the ready for future use, I’d recommend making the dough then storing the dough logs in the freezer until you are ready to bake them. Just wrap them very well in plastic wrap and they should hold up fine until you are ready to take them out, slice them up, and bake.

Frozen Lime Pie

2005-07-27T20:47:00.001-05:00

Here is another easy and delicious summer treat: Frozen Lime Pie. This recipe comes from Domino, a new home and lifestyle magazine, and it’s apparently inspired by the Key Lime Pie at Joe’s Stone Crab in Miami Beach, Florida. I haven’t had key lime pie at Joe’s so I can’t say whether or not it’s on the mark, but I do know it’s a delicious pie.

Frozen Lime Pie
Recipe based on one found in Domino Magazine, Spring/Summer 2005 issue
Page 120

1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 ounces)
zest of 1.5 limes
½ cup fresh lime juice (about 3 limes)
¼ teaspoon salt
1.5 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
lime wheels for decoration

1. In an oiled 9 inch pie plate, combine graham cracker crumbs and butter until the mixture holds together. Press evenly into bottom and sides of pie plate to form crust.

2. In a separate bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk, lime zest, lime juice and salt. Stir for 2 minutes, until thickened. Pour into crust.

3. Place heavy cream in a mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to blend on high speed until stiff peaks form. Add sugar and blend another 10 seconds.

4. Spread whipped cream on top of lime mixture and place in freezer for 4 hours. Just before serving decorate with lime wedges.

This pie is really tangy and refreshing. It’s a nice combination of sweet and tart and there’s a good textural mix between the crunchy graham crackers, the soft, velvety lime pie, and the frothy, decadent whipped cream. A few additional notes:

1. I’m just throwing this out there for any new bakers in the ranks. You can buy graham cracker crumbs in the baking aisle of your supermarket. The first time I made a recipe calling for graham cracker crumbs I didn’t know they came pre-crushed and I didn’t own a food processor at the time. So I stood at my counter smashing regular graham cracker cookies with a rolling pin to try and achieve the right level of smushed-ness. Needless to say, it didn’t happen. So I just have to throw this note in there to any newer cooks who might be in danger of making my old mistake. Save yourself some time and frustration and grab the graham cracker crumbs at the store.

2. This pie is really good as is, but I’d recommend altering the recipe a tad to allot for more crust and less whipped cream. To me, the crust would be even better if it was a smidge thicker all around. And the whipped cream layer is pretty significant here. If you are counting calories or health conscious and want to reduce your fat intake some, definitely feel free to make less whipped cream and your pie will still be excellent. So again, recipe is great as is, but it might be even better with slight modifications as listed above.

It's a no-bake dessert so it's perfect for a hot summer night. Enjoy!

More pie recipes

Two Chilled Summer Soups...and a Popsicle

2005-07-25T21:21:00.002-05:00

I love summer soups and I recently whipped up two that are easy and delicious. The first is a lovely Gazpacho and the second is Cantaloupe Soup.

Gazpacho
Based on the recipe found in “Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen” by Kevin Mills and Nancy Mills
Makes 4 generous portions

5-6 large tomatoes
1 large cucumber
1 small onion (I am not a huge onion fan, so I use about ½ onion instead)
6 tablespoons olive oil
6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
24 splashes hot pepper sauce (I like it hot, so this is the general amount I use. The actual recipe calls for 3-6 drops of hot sauce. So make it as hot or mild as you like.)
2-3 dashes black pepper (to your taste)

1. Remove the tomato skins by dropping the tomatoes into a large pot of boiling water. Let them soak for about 30 seconds or until the skins start to pucker. Remove the tomatoes from the boiling water and core them. Remove their skin. The skin should peel away very easily using just your hands or a small knife. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and set aside.
2. Slice cucumber in half and remove the seeds. Chop up your onion.

3. You can use either a blender or a food processor for the final step. Put all ingredients into the blender or food processor and blend at high speed for about 20 seconds or until the mixture is just slightly crunchy. If the mixture is having any trouble blending, add 1/4 cup water and blend again. Also, if your blender or food processor is too small to hold it all at once, just divide the ingredients up into 2 batches.
4. Pour the mixture into a large bowl, cover and refrigerate at least a couple hours before serving. I like to let it sit in the fridge about 24 hours to let the flavors merge a bit more before serving.

Most people who enjoy gazpacho probably have their own favorite gazpacho recipe. The reason I like this one is that it’s easy, flavorful, and vibrant, one of the classic Mexican recipes.

My second summer soup is Cantaloupe Soup. Jason from Adventures of a Foodie was kind enough to share his recipe for cantaloupe soup and I was eager to give that one a try.

Cantaloupe Soup
Recipe provided by Jason of Adventures of a Foodie

1/2 cup orange juice
1 medium cantaloupe, cut into 1" pieces
1 cup plain non-fat yogurt
2 tablespoons sugar (optional if cantaloupe isn't sweet)
Mint for garnish

1. Puree orange juice and cantaloupe until smooth, about 20-25 seconds.
2. Add yogurt and sugar and puree until smooth, about 15 seconds.
3. Served chilled.

Easy as can be and this makes an interesting and light chilled soup. I liked it, but I am going to guess that chilled cantaloupe soup might not be a hit with everyone. As an extension of the recipe, I poured the soup into popsicle molds and have been making Cantaloupe Popsicles for Lima. She loves them and thinks they are a huge treat, even though they are really composed of the extremely healthy ingredients of cantaloupe, yogurt and orange juice. So in our house, this recipe was actually a bigger hit as a popsicle than a soup. Many thanks to Jason for sharing this recipe.

For a Great Date, Call Jane

2005-07-12T21:28:00.000-05:00

Jane’s was recommended to us as a great date place with good food, so we recently checked it out. It’s nestled on a cute street in Bucktown and it has charming outdoor seating to complement its warm, dimly lit dining room.

We decided to take advantage of the outdoor seating and dine al fresco the night we went. A rum and Coke for Win, a gin and tonic for me. One of my favorite pleasures is sipping a cold gin and tonic outdoors on a gorgeous summer evening.

Well, my great pleasure had to be taken indoors when a sudden downpour hit. A major rainstorm came out of nowhere and all of the diners outside had to seek a new table indoors. Although Jane’s interior was already bustling with diners, the very savvy hostess was keeping an eye on the clouds and she had saved a few tables for us just in case it happened to rain. This scored major points with me, as it enabled all of the people from the outside tables to be easily and seamlessly transitioned to tables inside. Within seconds of the downpour starting, we were happily settled inside.

Jane’s menu is basically American, enhanced with flavors from around the world. It’s simple but the flavor combinations are interesting and there were many tempting dishes from which to choose. While we’re normally up for major culinary adventure, we both opted for pretty simple dishes that evening.

For appetizers, Win selected scallops and I had a salad with blue cheese, toasted pecans and pears. This delicious salad has become a staple on many menus so I often hesitate to order it and instead have something more unusual. I was glad I got it at Jane’s though. Very fresh, nicely dressed, and delicious. Win really enjoyed his scallops, pictured below.

For my entree, I selected a Vegetarian Burrito with Avocado Cream Sauce. This was top notch and the avocado cream sauce complemented the burrito beautifully. Stuffed with goat cheese, tofu, corn, black beans, tomatoes, and other seasonal veggies, this burrito was outstanding.

Win chose a bacon cheeseburger for his entrée. See, I wasn’t kidding when I say we went basic here. Sometimes basic feels good though and this cheeseburger didn’t disappoint. Juicy, flavorful and cooked perfectly.

Jane’s dining room is on the small side, creating an intimate atmosphere. Tables are close together and the best seats in the house are the raised tables in the two front windows. If you want a really private table with a bird’s eye view of everything, call ahead and see if you can reserve one of these window tables. The walls are lined with interesting art and word has definitely gotten out that it’s a great place to go on a date. We counted no fewer than five tables on either side of us clearly in date mode. What makes Jane’s a nice spot for a date or a cozy night out is that the menu is accessible but innovative and the food is reasonably priced. It’s a notch cooler than your standard American restaurant, without being too pricey for most people.

Jane’s menu offers a wide variety of meat, fish, pasta, salads, sandwiches and burgers. Unique flavors, pretty presentation, good atmosphere and friendly, down-to-Earth servers made me really pleased we tried it. We’re looking forward to going back and trying more from their menu next time.

Jane’s
1655 West Cortland Street
Chicago, IL 60622
USA
Telephone: 773-862-5263

New Favorite Finds

2005-06-23T19:23:00.000-05:00

We are going to have a steady stream of guests in town for the next few weeks, so At Our Table will be on a little hiatus. I’ll be spending time entertaining our visiting friends and family and time at the computer to post entries will be limited. I’ll be back with a few new recipes and I have restaurant reviews of Mon Ami Gabi, Jane’s, Hillary’s Urban Eatery, and other Chicago spots to share. If you’d like to be alerted when the next post is added to At Our Table, look to the left-hand side of the screen to the Notify List box and join my e-mail updates list.

And now for something completely different...

Here are a couple of my new favorite finds. The first is York Dark Chocolate Dipped Cookies with Peppermint Crème. I bumped into these at the grocery store recently and they are amazing. They are so minty and fresh. Just like a York Peppermint Patty but with the crispy crunch of a cookie. So, so good that we plowed through one box dangerously quickly.

My other obsession of the week is Trader Zen Grapefruit Chamomile Sea Salt Scrub from Trader Joe’s. I rarely look at the beauty products at Trader Joe’s but recently I stopped to peruse them. I love this grapefruit scrub. It smells wonderful and leaves your skin exfoliated, soft and smooth thanks to its blend of sea salt and oils. My aesthetician friend recently saw my elbows and pronounced them “in excellent condition.” I had used the scrub that morning and I’m sure my gleaming elbows where the result of the scrub. While my elbows aren’t exactly high on my body priority list, I’m not going to turn down the chance to have excellent ones. The bright grapefruit scent leaves you and your bathroom smelling great. This scrub is reasonably priced, so effective and a real treat for the senses.

So those are two fun things to check out next time you hit the grocery store. Back in a couple weeks with more food news, recipes, and restaurant reviews. Until then, happy summer!

Food and Fun in Chinatown: Dinner at Phoenix

2005-06-16T21:44:00.000-05:00

We recently realized that we hadn’t had Chinese food in a while and the time seemed right for a trip to Chicago’s Chinatown. Win, my outstanding restaurant researcher, had a few potential places in mind for us that night and we decided that we’d check them all out and decide which to choose when we got there and saw more.

Phoenix ended up the winner. Phoenix is known for its dim sum and its lobby is covered in awards and accolades for its food and its dim sum specifically. It is housed in an unassuming storefront with a basic sign, but when you climb the stairs to the restaurant you see it’s actually quite large, elegantly appointed with white tablecloths and depending on where you sit you might get a magnificent view of downtown Chicago and the Sears Tower. The night we went it was bustling with activity; tourists and locals, young and old, big groups and quiet tables for two, all enjoying the excellent food.

Phoenix’s menu is extensive and since Chinese food makes such great leftovers we decided we’d order more than we could probably eat at the time and then just take the rest home. Our goal was to try and experience several dishes, since so many looked great.

For an appetizer, Win selected Barbeque Pork. It was really tender, flavorful and delicious.

I chose one of Phoenix’s appetizer specials for the evening, Fried Soft Shell Crab served with salt and pepper. As promised by our waiter, this soft shell crab was out of this world. Perfectly fried, fresh as can be, and just so good. I am a sucker for soft shell crab and often order it when it’s in season. I’m so glad I tried this one at Phoenix.

Next we each had a bowl of Hot and Sour Soup. This soup was good, but not transcendent. Nothing wrong with it, but I have preferred the flavor of the hot and sour at other places.

For my entrée, I ordered Salt-Crusted Shrimp. I have been obsessed with the concept of Salt-Crusted Shrimp since I read Cooking for Mr. Latte by Amanda Hesser. In that book (one of my favorites that I just love to pick up and skim here and there for a recipe or a good story), Hesser talks about the heavenly experience of dining on Salt-Crusted Shrimp at Pearl Oyster Bar in New York City. You know how sometimes you read a recipe and it just sounds so good that the idea of it sticks with you? Well this is how I was with this shrimp. So when I saw Salt-Crusted Shrimp on the menu at Phoenix, I knew I had to try it…even though it was going to be a completely different interpretation from what Hesser describes in her book. Well the dish might have been different, but it was outstanding. Large, fresh shrimp coated in a thick, salty crust. Really great and worthy of a second Tsingtao.

Win enjoyed Orange Chicken and thought it was everything that dish should be. Right flavors, great taste. Phoenix offers two cooking styles for the chicken, crispy or not crispy (meaning not fried). As you can tell from the photo above, Win opted for the non-crispy variety this time.

We also ordered some Pan-Fried Noodles to accompany the meal. I ordered them plain, but they mysteriously showed up with beef on them. That was ok by Win though, who happily enjoyed the meat. These weren’t exactly what I was expecting (I’m used to Pan-Fried Noodles being crispier and less Lo Mein-like) but they were terrific.

Service at Phoenix was very efficient, almost brisk at times, and friendly. The food was excellent and the large menu will allow you to sample a wide variety of dishes. It’s a good spot to stop for a meal in Chinatown.

Phoenix
2131 S. Archer Avenue
Suite 2
Chicago, IL 60616-1809
USA
Telephone: 312-328-0848

Potato Chip Crusted Salmon with Dill and Lime

2005-06-14T21:45:00.000-05:00

Here’s a delicious and easy salmon recipe that I know I’ll be making often. The recipe for Potato Chip Crusted Salmon with Dill and Lime comes from Dave Lieberman, star of the new Food Network show Good Deal with Dave Lieberman, and was featured in the June 2005 issue of Glamour magazine.

This salmon has a nice twist to it, as the fish itself stays moist, tender and flaky while the potato chip crust is crunchy and a bit salty. The dill and lime zest add great flavor. Dill is always so nice with salmon.

In addition to being mouthwatering, the recipe is quick and easy with minimal kitchen clean-up required. Give this one a try next time you are in the mood for salmon.

Potato Chip Crusted Salmon with Dill and Lime
Based on the recipe featured in the June 2005 issue of Glamour, page 252

1 side of salmon (about 3 pounds)
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 5.5 ounce bag of kettle-cooked potato chips (this type is crunchiest)
zest of half a lime
1/3 cup chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Lay the side of salmon, skin side down, in the center of the baking sheet. Season lightly with salt and pepper. NOTE: My salmon did stick a bit to the aluminum foil, so you may want to use a dash of oil or non-stick spray on the aluminum before putting fish down.
3. Crush potato chips, lime zest and dill in a bowl until the chips resemble coarse crumbs. Mix in olive oil.
4. Coat the salmon with a thin, even layer of potato chip crumbs and pat gently to help them stay in place. Here is how my salmon looked at this stage:

5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the chip coating is nicely browned.
6. When cooked, use two spatulas to transfer salmon onto a platter. Serve.

Here is how my salmon looked when it was cooked. Notice how the potato chip crust is lightly browned.

Lieberman notes that this recipe will feed 8-12 people. If you’re not someone who buys fresh fish frequently be warned that three pounds of salmon is quite a lot. If you’re feeding a smaller group definitely downsize this recipe before going to the fish market. The photos here show about 1.75 pounds of salmon and this probably would serve four very generously.

Easy, fresh, fragrant and tasty...just what I like for a warm weather dinner after a busy day.

A Slight Misunderstanding

2005-06-05T13:05:00.000-05:00

A few days ago, the Lima Bean was helping me bake brownies. She just turned 2 and this was the first time she really was able to be of actual assistance (as opposed to destruction) in the process. She cracked eggs, poured oil and did some good stirring for me.

Lima enjoyed this process very much and I told her that as a special treat she could lick out the bowl after I was done with it. You know every kid loves doing that. Despite the massive quantities of brownies I have been known to consume (and then try and pin the blame for the missing brownies on the cats, to no avail), Lima had never had brownies before. So this would not only be her first brownie baking event, but her first brownie eating event. She was very excited about my offer to let her lick out the bowl when I was done with it. She stood there patiently waiting while I spooned the thick, rich brownie batter into the pan. After most of it was in the pan, I did a final scrape of the mixing bowl and then said, “OK, we’re all set. You can scrape out the bowl now.”

Lima looked really upset and disillusioned and said “No. No! This bowl, this bowl! I lick this bowl please Mommy.” As she said this, she pointed to the pan full of brownie batter that was about to go into the oven. She assumed that the pan of brownie batter was for her, of course, because who would make such a big deal out of licking out a dirty old mixing bowl? Makes sense, actually.

So we had some explaining to do and after just a minute of convincing (and a lick off the spatula), she was hooked and happily sat on the floor with her nearly empty mixing bowl. I put the pan of brownies in the oven and 50 minutes later we had delicious, rich, chocolate magic. Now that Lima’s had a taste of brownies, I think she’ll be more than happy to help me whip up a batch any time.

May St. Cafe: Eclectic Latino Food at its Best

2005-06-01T19:45:00.000-05:00

Every so often, I ask you to just trust me on something. Remember the Mock Deep-Fried Chickpeas and the Bacon Sandwich I recommended so highly? They sounded weird at first, but they are in fact fabulous and many of you wrote in to tell me you tried them and agreed. This time I’m asking you to trust me on a restaurant. Why do you need to trust me? Well, this restaurant is totally off the beaten path in a neighborhood that’s known to be somewhat dicey. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but the dishes being prepared inside its walls are pure heaven. So trust me on this one…you will want to pay a visit to the May St. Café. It is one of my new favorites.

May St. Café specializes in what they call “gourmet eclectic Latino food.” It’s food from Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico and other Latin lands, with some eclectic American thrown in.

May St. Café is bright on the outside and boasts a sophisticated, yet minimalist, feel on the inside. Tables are adorned with wooden bead placemats and simple votives. A flower arrangement in the corner consists of a few dried stems in a clear glass vase. The real focal point in the dining room is the open kitchen where you can see Executive Chef Mario Santiago and his small staff whip up all their dazzling creations.

There were so many great dishes on the menu that choosing was a challenge. For my first course, I selected one of the daily specials, Crème de Chayote y Maiz with Grilled Shrimp. This was a somewhat creamy soup made from a sweet, fruit-like potato native to Mexico. This soup was outrageous. Creamy, yet not too rich. Sweet, but subtle. Full of flavor and completely unique.

Win chose a mango salad for his first course. This salad had an interesting sweet dressing, goat cheese, and delicious dried mango. It was really fresh with flavors that popped. Win loved every bite.

Next we decided to share the Double Cream Brie and Pear Quesadillas. These were so delicious. As you can see from the photo above, they were served with sour cream and what I believe was adobo sauce. The Brie and pears were perfect together and the quesadilla was outstanding on its own. Dip it in the spicy sauce and the dish went to another whole level though. Great flavor complements and contrasts.

For my main course, I selected another daily special. The Corbia with a White Wine and Fig Shallot Sauce was excellent. According to our server, corbia is a white fish similar to sea bass. The presentation of this dish was gorgeous and the fish moist, flavorful and accompanied by so many tasty side dishes, including beans, rice, grilled pineapple, tomatoes and other assorted vegetables.

For his entrée, Win selected Pork with Spices from Puerto Rico. He also ordered a side of Chipotle Potatoes, pictured above with the pork. The pork won him over immediately with its unique flavor and he loved the spice of the potatoes.

May St. Café is BYOB and there is a $3.00 corkage fee. We enjoyed our dinner with one of our favorite reds, a 1998 Borgo Scopeto Chianti. Two waitresses managed the small dining room themselves the entire night, tag teaming quite well. Service was efficient, friendly and down to Earth.

Too full for dessert, we walked around the neighborhood after dinner. Everything you read about Pilsen, the neighborhood May St. is in, makes it sound somewhat dangerous at night. We found the neighborhood to be fine when we were there. Lots of friendly families were out socializing on their front steps and the few stores that were open late seemed to be doing a good business. There isn’t much to see around May St., but the food alone is worth a visit to this true gem off the beaten path.

May St. Café
1146 W. Cermak
Chicago, IL 60608
USA
Telephone: 312-421-4442
Web Site: http://www.maystcafe.com

Next time At Our Table: A small misunderstanding about some brownies

Purple Asparagus for the Children

2005-05-29T20:50:00.000-05:00

Purple Asparagus is a new educational organization here in Chicago and if you have children it's worth checking out. The group says it's "dedicated to bringing families back to the table" and they plan and promote activities that teach children about local and global food culture and the importance of healthy eating.

Purple Asparagus will host family-focused events around Chicago; click here to see their list of upcoming activities. If you have children in the Chicagoland area and have an interest in sharing good food and healthy food tradition with them, serve up some Purple Asparagus.

Next time At Our Table: An unbelievable find in an unexpected place

Delicious Dinner and Downtown Decadence

2005-05-26T19:49:00.000-05:00

This year, Win outdid himself and got me an amazing Mother’s Day gift. As you may remember, we recently had several weeks of sleepless nights transitioning our Lima Bean into her new “big girl bed.” Lima wasn’t sleeping well and I wasn’t sleeping well and this made for some very cranky, sleep-deprived people in our house. Win recognized my intense need for a break from the bedtime craziness and gave me the perfect Mother’s Day gift…a night away at a hotel!

So one day, a bit after Mother’s Day, I headed to downtown Chicago for a decadent day of shopping and relaxing while Win watched Lima. It was incredibly fun to stroll in and out of the stores on Michigan Avenue without a toddler in tow and to get to linger wherever I wanted.

When evening arrived, I went back to my hotel. Win had booked a room at The Drake, a fabulous Chicago landmark. On top of the serenity of the room, the hotel also offered a cocktail hour in its beautiful tenth floor lounge. It’s been a long, long time since I enjoyed a late afternoon cocktail so I was all for stopping in.

The Drake serves cocktails and hors d' oeuvres in their lovely lounge overlooking Lake Michigan. Pictured above are my view of the lake, my gin and tonic and my full plate of cheeses, fruits, veggies, dips and other snacks. The silver bowl was full of a nice assortment of nuts until I got there and ate half the bowl. All by myself. As I popped the 12^th cashew into my mouth, I questioned the wisdom of eating this much but then I thought “Hey, this is my special day out on the town and I can eat all the nuts I want!” I reveled in that thought, polished off the gin and tonic and then went downstairs to dress for dinner.

While much of my day was spent enjoying Chicago solo, Win was meeting me for dinner. We knew we wanted to go to a steakhouse that night, but we hadn’t completely decided which one. So I consulted The Drake’s concierge and she reviewed the options. She said Gibson’s was the most famous steakhouse and it’s received the most critical acclaim. Rosebud was also excellent, and a bit less crowded. Her personal favorite, The Saloon, was much more low key but she found the steaks to be outstanding and she highly recommended it. We had been to Gibson’s and Rosebud before and loved them, but we were eager to try The Saloon this time around.

I’m really pleased that we did. The Saloon is in The Seneca Hotel and it’s a dark, masculine-feeling, clubby steakhouse. While it is perhaps the most low key of the three steakhouses our concierge mentioned, it was bustling the night we went.

I ordered Shrimp Cocktail for an appetizer and it was potentially the best shrimp I have ever had. Fresh, fresh, fresh and plump and delicious. There wasn’t much the chef did to make the shrimp cocktail so outstanding, but the quality of the shrimp was remarkable.

Win started with French Onion Soup and he loved that as well. It had pieces of prime rib in it for an extra unique, rich flavor.

The Saloon presents a selection of meats to you when you arrive so that you can see the quality of meat and evaluate different cuts before making your selection. Our server was helpful in discussing why she likes certain cuts over others and what makes some more or less flavorful. Win, a meat-eater from birth, went with the Bone-In Rib Eye. Rare, of course. He enjoyed this delicious meat with Pepper Jack Potatoes Au Gratin.

I chose one of The Saloon’s daily specials, a Stuffed Filet Mignon with Grilled Artichokes, Parmesan and Garlic, served over a bed of Creamed Spinach. This was awesome. The filet was cooked perfectly and the artichoke, Parmesan and garlic stuffing was flavorful and dynamic. The creamed spinach was exceptional and it was just the right amount. I always love creamed spinach at steakhouses but find that the side dish portions are always just gigantic for two people. This method of incorporating it into the dish was excellent. I really enjoyed this filet mignon.

We were too full for dessert, so we walked back to The Drake and enjoyed a glass of wine in their lounge. After appreciating Lake Michigan at night and savoring a nice Cabernet, I got to enjoy a night of peaceful sleep at the hotel.

Great day of shopping, an early evening cocktail, a delicious dinner and a peaceful night’s sleep…ah, the decadence!

The Drake Hotel
140 East Walton Place
Chicago, IL 60611
USA
Telephone: 800-55-DRAKE
Web Site: http://www.thedrakehotel.com

The Saloon Steakhouse
200 East Chestnut Street
Chicago, IL 60611
USA
Telephone: 312-280-5454
Web Site: http://www.saloonsteakhouse.com/index_n.html

Oxford American's Southern Food Issue

2005-05-19T19:35:00.000-05:00

Always on the lookout for new and interesting food reads, I was pleased to receive a copy of Oxford American’s First-Ever Southern Food Issue. This magazine is full of charming essays and anecdotes about the foods, cooking, restaurants, and culinary whimsies of the South. The writing is outstanding and every piece I’ve read makes me pause and think “Hmmm…wouldn’t it be nice to live in the South for just a bit to experience all this firsthand?” Vacations there are one thing, but I think you need an extended stretch of time to really let the unique food culture envelope you. So if you enjoy Southern food and good writing, this magazine might be of interest to you.

On a completely unrelated and random note, I can't stop laughing at these photos of Todd English. Yes, he's handsome, but these photos go a little too far in the sexy drama department. Click here to go to Todd's site and then click the Photo Gallery to see the photos. Oh, the unintentional comedy of it all...

A Visit to America's "Little Switzerland"

2005-05-16T19:40:00.000-05:00

A couple weeks ago, we took a short trip up to Wisconsin for an overnight getaway. Much of our drive was spent on back roads, enjoying the beautiful country scenery and stopping in small towns to experience life there. One of the places we stopped along the way was New Glarus.

New Glarus calls itself “America’s Little Switzerland.” The town is located in south central Wisconsin and it’s apparently surrounded by farms and woods like those found in Glarus, Switzerland, the homeland of New Glarus’ founders. The town features Swiss chalet-style architecture on almost every building in the downtown and many of the restaurants and businesses are dedicated to serving or selling Swiss-themed fare.

We strolled around the town and stopped at The New Glarus Primrose Winery to sample some local wines. We tried several reds, whites and most uniquely a rhubarb wine. The rhubarb wine was perfectly clear and had a truly unique, refreshing taste. We ended up purchasing two other unique bottles: One a Primrose Red made tasty by the inclusion of Concord grapes and the other a Summer Wine that featured a distinct cherry flavor. Not a dessert wine, but definitely a wine on the sweeter side, to be served chilled. At the suggestion of the winery shopkeeper, we then moved on to lunch at The New Glarus Hotel.

The New Glarus Hotel is designed in the Swiss style and its staff is attired in traditional Swiss garb. This struck me as a bit hokey, but charming nonetheless. We were seated on the hotel’s second floor porch where we could enjoy a lovely view of the downtown.

Our waitress welcomed us to New Glarus and suggested we start the meal with some cheese curds. How could we come to Wisconsin and not succumb to the temptation of cheese curds? So of course we said yes. The cheese curds were delicious, especially when dipped in the hotel’s own spicey honey mustard sauce. We drank local beers with our appetizer, a Spotted Cow for me and an Edel-Pils for Win. Both of these were from the New Glarus Brewing Company, recognized as Best Small Brewery in America in 2003.

We both decided to try the restaurant’s roesti dishes. I ordered the Vegetarian Roesti, which was grilled vegetables served atop roesti potatoes and melted cheese. You can see this dish above. Win tried the Raclette Roesti, which was roesti potatoes served with a generous amount of melted Raclette cheese. Win’s is pictured below. Both were excellent…warm and satisfying.

We admired the silver tray of decadent desserts presented to us, but we had to decline as we were too full. Wisconsin cheeses will fill you up. After lunch we walked around the small town a bit more and then were off to see new things. One of the most notable sightings on our weekend drive was a cow and a horse sitting down next to each other in a field. They were so cute sitting there alone in the vast green field, hanging out. I’m not a farm girl so maybe this brand of farm animal fraternization happens all the time, but I’ve never seen it before and I loved it. Buddies.

New Glarus is a charming town and it’s worth a stop if you’re in that part of Wisconsin. There are several interesting restaurants, a delicious looking bakery, and a few unique stores. It’s a tiny town so perhaps one of the best times to come would be during one of New Glarus’ special Swiss festivals when there is more action.

The New Glarus Hotel Restaurant
100 6^th Avenue
New Glarus, Wisconsin 53574
USA
Telephone: 800-727-9477
Web Site: http://www.newglarushotel.com

The New Glarus Primrose Winery
226 Second Street
New Glarus, Wisconsin 53574
USA
Telephone: 608-527-5053

The New Glarus Brewing Company
County Road W and Highway 69
New Glarus, WI 53574
Telephone: 608-527-5850
Web Site: http://www.newglarusbrewing.com

Bruna's: A Heart of Italy Gem

2005-05-14T20:42:00.000-05:00

Regular readers of At Our Table have probably noticed by now that I am always up for a delicious Italian meal. That’s why I was so excited when Win recently suggested we have dinner in the Chicago’s Heart of Italy neighborhood. He had a couple places in mind for us that night and decided we’d make the final selection after walking around the tiny neighborhood, peeking in windows, and reading menus. After a fun walk around, we chose Bruna’s.

Bruna’s opened in 1933 and is apparently one of the most popular restaurants in the neighborhood. Its dining room is warm and cozy and the walls are full of murals of Tuscany, pictures of Sienna, and other charming decorations.

The menu is full of classic Italian dishes, mostly home style favorites with some more unique and exotic choices also available. We wanted to try a number of Bruna’s offerings, so we decided that we’d have three courses that evening.

For our first course, Win selected the Bruschetta and I opted for a dish called Tomatoes Alla Smith. As you can see from the photos, the portions at Bruna’s are ample. Win’s bruschetta was delicious; fresh and flavorful. My Tomatoes Alla Smith (pictured below) was really interesting. It was almost like bruschetta, but served warm with melted cheese on top of roasted tomatoes, seasonings, a good amount of basil and olive oil. The warmth of this dish made it feel quite hearty and it was delicious.

We then embarked on another appetizer course. Win selected Prosciutto con Melone and I went for Mussels in Marinara Sauce. The prosciutto was outstanding. The mussels were out of this world. Fresh and perfect, in an outstanding marinara. The bowl of mussels was gigantic, but they were just so, so good that I ate every one. Spectacular accompanied by our bold Chianti and bites of just-baked bread from Bruna’s large and lovely breadbasket.

Already quite full from our first two courses, we still looked forward to our entrée course with anticipation. Everything had been excellent so far and we were eager to taste our main dishes. Win ordered Ravioli alla Bolognese, the traditional ravioli with a rich meat sauce. It was flavorful and very tasty. I chose one of Bruna’s special pastas for that evening, a Ravioli with Spinach and Cheese. Based on our waiter’s description of the pasta, I was really looking forward to trying it.

When mine came, I was surprised to see it in a cream sauce. I was anticipating a marinara. I took a bite of the ravioli and was even more surprised to taste tuna. Our server had accidentally brought me the Ravioli al Tonnno instead of the ravioli I requested. I tasted a couple more bites and decided that I really liked the tuna ravioli. It’s something I probably wouldn’t have ordered on my own, but when it appeared accidentally I found it to be quite good. So I decided to keep it and enjoy. The ravioli was full of fresh tuna and coated in a rich cream sauce sprinkled with freshly ground pepper. The pepper really enhanced the flavor of the dish and helped break some of the heaviness of the cream sauce.

Quite full from all our courses, we ended up taking much of the pasta home and savoring it again over lunch the next day. I actually found the tuna ravioli to be even better on day two with an even more pronounced, bold flavor.

The staff at Bruna’s was friendly and they made our evening there very pleasant, despite the ravioli mix-up. Everything we tasted was outstanding and if you’re in the mood to check out the Heart of Italy neighborhood in Chicago, give Bruna’s a try.

Bruna's Ristorante
2424 S. Oakley Avenue
Chicago, Illinois
USA
Telephone: 773-254-5550

A note to those wondering about our Lima Bean’s new sleep schedule: All our guests left earlier this week, so we were able to transition Lima into a real bed and start that process. We’ve had ups and downs and I must say there have been more downs than ups in the past few days. She absolutely adores her new “big girl bed” and tells everyone on the street all about it. But she’s still reluctant to get to sleep on her own in it and it’s taking us a while to get her to settle at bedtime. Plus she’s waking up a couple times in the middle of every night, something she hasn’t done since she was a baby. Things are improving gradually and with any luck it’ll take just a few more days to complete her transition to the new bed and get her back to being an easy and independent sleeper for us. I was able to write this entry tonight because Win’s been a huge help this weekend, giving me back some spare time.

Next time At Our Table: A Visit to Wisconsin's Little Switzerland

How a Crib Escapee Has Stolen All My Blog Time

2005-05-03T21:32:00.000-05:00

As you might have noticed, I’ve been away from the blog for an uncharacteristically long time lately. Things have been crazy around here, leaving little time to blog. Here’s a quick update:

First, about 10 days ago our Lima Bean figured out how to climb out of her crib. This was completely unexpected as she had never shown any sign of even thinking about climbing out of the crib before. She’s usually a great sleeper, but one night when she had a cold, she woke up in the middle of the night. I comforted her the best I could, but after a while I explained to her that she had to just try and go back to sleep. Well that was all the motivation she needed to figure out how to escape fast. “What?!? Mom won’t let me stay up with her at 2am?? Then I’m outta here!”

I must say it was extremely odd to see her little not-quite-2-year-old-self open the door of her room and just come walking down the hall. Completely freaked out by the unexpected escape, I put her back in there and hoped it wouldn’t happen again. No such luck. Lima was out in a flash and the days of crib sleeping were officially over, since I didn’t want to risk her falling and hurting herself now that she has figured out how to hoist herself over the crib’s side.

So, where to put Lima now? The crib is out and the playpen didn’t work either. I think one of those crib tents would freak her out and therefore not work. Normal people would just rush out and buy a toddler bed or a twin-size bed and have the child make the transition. This all happened at a very bad time for us though, with guests coming into town and little time for bed buying excursions. As such, Lima’s been sleeping on a makeshift bed (basically on the floor) until we can figure out what’s the safest, most practical next step for her. Some say it’s a toddler bed, some say it’s a twin bed…some say use guard rails on the bed, some say they are dangerous. Although I absolutely hate shopping for baby gear (researching strollers, high chairs, and the like gives me a huge headache), I’ve been diligently looking into all our options and vow that I will have something more official for her in place in the next few days. The trick will be getting her to STAY in the bed on her own, something she hasn’t been inclined to do for the past week.

So what does this have to do with my blog, you might ask? Well, here’s the catch to this whole bed thing. When Lima was in a crib, she was a perfectly independent sleeper. Put her in the crib, sing a couple short songs, say goodnight and she was fine to go to sleep on her own. No problem. With this horribly haphazard bed transition, Lima now requires much more effort to get to sleep and won’t fall asleep unless we’re in there. I know this is horrible and I need to break this cycle as soon as possible. But given all the craziness around the house the past week or so (she was sick, guests were in town, it was her birthday and she was excited about that), it’s been hard to achieve this goal. As such, the time I’d spend blogging each night is now being devoted to getting Lima to sleep. When I finally emerge from her room after getting her to succumb to sleep, it’s way later than I’d like and the rest of life’s work beckons; blogging has had to take a backseat for the past week.

We have more guests in town this week, so the craziness will continue for at least a few more days. As I mentioned though, my hope is to get tough on this whole thing by early next week and start us back on the right track with her sleeping.

So between Lima’s crazy sleep issues (hopefully extremely temporary), guests coming in and out, Lima’s birthday party, and other things, there has been little time to blog. Thanks to all who sent e-mails and left comments wondering where I was.

Some food notes: We went to Buona Terra again and I must continue to recommend it highly. This time we had 6 people at our table, plus Lima, so we were able to sample a wide variety of their offerings including fish, veal, chicken, pork chops, and pasta. Everyone raved about the appetizers and entrees and said they looked forward to a return visit. Service was excellent and very friendly…something that’s often tough to achieve with seven people at a table. So if you’re in Chicago and looking for delicious Italian, check out Buona Terra.

Buona Terra
2535 North California
Chicago, IL 60647
USA
Telephone: 773-289-3800

Lima’s birthday party was terrific and I’m now basking in the glow of party leftovers. Don’t you just love having leftover birthday cake, veggies, dips, fruits and pastries around? All the tastiness of the party, but you can eat these in your pajamas at 11pm if hunger strikes. All the food fun with no formality. As an aside, I served my peach marmalade with bagels at the party (it was a brunch) and people seemed to enjoy it. Glad it got such good feedback.

That’s it for now. Once our next round of visitors leaves and I get Lima’s sleep patterns back on track, I will be blogging more. I have several new restaurants I want to tell you about…

Thanks for reading and think good thoughts about Lima getting used to her new bed quickly and easily. Even though she’s still a really sweet, smart, basically obedient girl, she’s been uncharacteristically tough to transition thus far so I think I’m going to need all the help I can get.

Next time At Our Table: More food and restaurant talk---promise!

IMBB 14: Orange you hungry?

2005-04-24T09:35:00.000-05:00

The team at Foodgoat is kindly hosting this month’s edition of Is My Blog Burning and they have selected foods with the color orange as the theme. I love how open-ended this theme is and I’m looking forward to seeing what everyone else dreams up.

Peach Marmalade is my contribution to this event. I was looking through cookbooks for recipe ideas when this one from Amanda Hesser’s The Cook and The Gardener hit me. Hesser proclaimed the marmalade to be “tangy but sweet” and to have “the velvety feel of a puree.” Sounded compelling, so despite the difficulty in finding fresh peaches in Chicago at this time of year, I knew I wanted to try it.

Peach Marmalade
Original recipe from Catherine Plagemann’s Fine Preserving
Recipe here adapted from Amanda Hesser’s The Cook and The Gardener

6 ripe yellow peaches, peeled and pitted
2 navel oranges, quartered (not peeled)
½ lemon, cut in half (not peeled) and seeded

1. If your peaches are not very ripe, they may not peel easily. Slice an X in the end of each peach then drop them in boiling water for a few seconds to loosen the clingy peels. Note: I looked everywhere for fresh peaches, but alas none were to be found at this time of year. Eager to try this recipe, I substituted frozen peaches and it turned out beautifully.

2. Combine the peaches and the citrus fruit in a fruit processor and pulse until the citrus is chopped into fine pieces. You may want to do this in two batches to avoid straining your food processor.

3. Measure the pulp and combine it with an equal amount of sugar in a pot twice the size. Let macerate overnight at room temperature. Here is what mine looked like in the morning:

4. The next morning, bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Test for doneness by spooning a little onto a chilled plate; if it firms up when it cools, the marmalade is done. Mine took about 30 minutes to hit the done mark.

5. Pour into clean pint or half-pint jars. Process the jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. You can store the properly jarred marmalade in a cool, dark place for up to one year.

This peach marmalade is delicious and the flavor is getting better each day. At first, it was much more citrusy and the peach flavor didn’t come through as much as I would have hoped. With each day that passes though, the peach tones come out more and while the peach is certainly subtle compared to the citrus flavor, it is pleasantly there. So with any luck the jars you save in your pantry will have a really nice flavor balance when it is time to use them. The vibrant orange color and perfect marmalade texture of this sweet make it really hard to pass up when breakfast rolls around. I’ve been enjoying it on honey wheat sour bread from a local bakery.

It’s important to note that this recipe makes a ton of marmalade. See the photo at the top of this entry to understand just how much it makes. I had never made marmalade or any type of jelly before, so I didn’t really know what quantity to expect as I was preparing the ingredients. Hesser’s recipe didn’t indicate how much marmalade would be produced. This is a wonderful peach marmalade and it will be delightful to have around; just be warned that you will need several jelly jars ready to go to properly seal and store this tasty treat.

Thanks to the Foodgoat team for hosting IMBB 14 and presenting us with such a fun theme. Now I'm off to talk to the Guinness World Records people about my win for the largest jelly jar ever...

Next time At Our Table: I ordered spinach, they brought me tuna...but I love them anyway.

Earl Grey Tea Cookies

2005-04-18T19:54:00.000-05:00

Last week I made some delicious cookies that encompassed several of the things I look for in a favorite cookie recipe. The cookies were delicious, easy to make, able to be frozen for later use, and appropriate for either a casual snack or a more festive, formal get-together with friends. These little wonders are Earl Grey Tea Cookies.

Earl Grey Tea Cookies
Recipe as seen in Real Simple magazine, May 2005
Total Prep Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes (includes chilling time)
Makes 6 dozen cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons Earl Grey tea leaves, from approximately 6 tea bags ( I used Trader Joe’s Organic Earl Grey tea)
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon water
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1. Heat your oven to 375 degrees.
2. Pulse together all the dry ingredients in a food processor until the tea leaves are pulverized.
3. Add the vanilla, water, and the butter. Pulse together until a dough forms.
4. Divide the dough in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a 12-inch log, about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes. (Note: I chilled mine for several hours just because I got busy and had to wait until much later in the day to bake the cookies and that worked out fine.)

5. When ready to bake, slice each log into disks, about 1/3 inch thick. Place on parchment or foil-lined baking sheets, roughly 2 inches apart.
6. Bake until the edges are just brown, about 12 minutes. Be careful not to overbake. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.

As I mentioned earlier, these cookies are quite easy to make and they are absolutely delicious in a simple way. I haven’t had this type of tea cookie before and there’s a subtle elegance about the Earl Grey flavor they possess. It’s a certain je ne sais quois that makes them special and unique.

If you would like to have these at the ready for future use, I’d recommend making the dough then storing the dough logs in the freezer until you are ready to bake them. Just wrap them very well in plastic wrap and they should hold up fine until you are ready to take them out, slice them up, and bake.

If you like this recipe, I bet you’ll also like the recipe for Lime Shortbread Cookies from the At Our Table archives.

Have you had Doughnut Soup?: 18 Unique Courses at Moto

2005-04-14T20:50:00.000-05:00

Win recently had a birthday and I wanted to take him somewhere really unique and special to celebrate. I’ve had my eye on Moto for a while and Win’s birthday seemed like the perfect time to make a reservation. Moto features truly amazing and innovative food; read on even if you’re not from Chicago because the dishes prepared at Moto are one-of-a-kind. Part chemistry, part technology, and seemingly part magic, I can see why Moto has received so many accolades from the national press.

Every step of our interaction with Moto’s staff was seamless. Moto’s web site enables you to make reservations online, a feature I loved as I sat at the computer late one night reserving our table. Someone from Moto called the next day to confirm the reservation and we were all set. When I booked the reservation, I typed in that I was looking forward to trying Moto and celebrating my husband’s birthday there.

Moto scores major points for attention to detail. Although I simply mentioned the birthday in my reservation form and never spoke of it again to anyone at Moto, they noted it. When we were seated in the warm, minimalist dining room, we were immediately greeted by a waiter bearing complimentary champagne and Win was wished a happy birthday. We also received a special menu that had been decorated with fresh leaves, inscribed with “Happy Birthday” and laminated as a keepsake. This was a really high-touch way to begin our meal and it set things off to a great start.

Moto’s food is Asian-influenced and avant-garde to say the least. Chef Homaro Cantu has been compared to Willy Wonka for his culinary innovation and ability to delight and surprise the senses. Moto offers diners a choice of 3 progression menus: a five course, a 10 course, or the Grand Tour Moto which features 18 courses and the most complete view of the range of Cantu’s cooking styles. Any guesses which one we had?

Well, if you’ve been reading this blog for any time at all you probably could guess that we went with the Grand Tour Moto. We also opted to get the accompanying wine progression. Moto has received so many accolades and the menu was so intriguing that we decided we wanted to experience as much of it as we could. So without further ado, a recap of our meal:

The first dish we received was the amuse bouche. It was merely a spoon’s worth of food and our server told us it was Moto’s take on the Caesar Salad. The spoon included a parmesan flavored crouton and some romaine ice cream. I know it’s hard to believe but when you tasted the contents of that spoon, it tasted just like eating a (very cold) Caesar salad. And besides being totally unique, it was delicious.

The next course was called Maki in the 4th Dimension. One of the things Chef Cantu is known for is using edible ink and edible paper in his dishes. The New York Times, commenting on Cantu’s technological innovation with edible inks and papers, has said that Moto is “where the sous-chef is an inkjet.” This course was a very high quality sushi roll, wrapped in edible paper that was printed with pictures of sushi rolls. The top, bottom and sides of the roll were wrapped with this amazing, edible paper and it made for a beautiful dish. The roll was outstanding.

Another signature technique of Chef Cantu is using carbonation in unexpected ways. Take our next course, called simply Champagne and King Crab, for example. This beautifully presented dish was a simple glass filled with carbonated grapes, crab, caviar, and a somewhat rich sauce. The carbonated grapes had been filled with air and as such they now had a fizzy quality to them which struck such a great tone with the other flavors in the glass. Delicious and intriguing. Even more interesting was the déjà vu moment provided along with this dish. In addition to the main dish, each diner also received a colored piece of paper that he was to place on his tongue after eating the contents of the glass. You can see the paper in the photo above; it’s bluish purple and sticking out of the glass. The paper was supposed to embody all the flavors of what was in the glass and create sort of a déjà vu culinary moment, reflecting back on what you just ate. As skeptical as I was that this would work, I must say the edible paper tasted just like the dish before it, although it lacked the joy provided by the carbonated grapes.

The next course was referred to as Onion…Crouton…Nitrogenation on the menu. It was a delicious bowl of onion soup, served with a flavorful crouton and liquid nitrogen. The liquid nitrogen created a smoky effect, making something hot appear cold…almost as if it was sitting in dry ice. The soup was exceptional and the smoke pouring off everyone’s bowls was sort of how I’d envision dinner at The Munsters’ looking.

The next course was probably my favorite of the evening. The menu simply calls it Lobster and Orange. It was buttered lobster served with a carbonated orange. As done earlier with the grapes, this orange had been pumped full of air. The carbonation inside the fresh orange gave it a fresh orange soda-like quality. The chef suggested that it be squeezed over the lobster. This was unbelievably good. The lobster was so buttery and fresh and the tangy, bubbly orange juice atop it was pure magic. If you go to Moto and are selecting between progression menus, I highly recommend picking a menu that includes this lobster and orange combination.

I must tell you that at this point, I was actually getting quite full. All of the courses were so delicious and even though some were small, the sheer number of courses was starting to add up. But we had 14 more to look forward to, so we plunged onward.

The servers at Moto created some suspense around the next course. Early in the meal, they brought us each a frozen ball in a dish and told us to just let it sit there and melt. This nameless ice ball would be used later in the meal. So, intrigued, we followed orders. As the meal went on, our ice ball melted and at course five we saw its purpose. This dish was Foie Gras with Vouvray, Pink Peppercorn and Apricot. The ice ball melted into a sort of soup, dotted with pink peppercorns and apricots. Foie Gras was served on top. Very, very good accompanied by the sweet and spicy combination of apricot and peppercorns.

Next up was a bit of an intermezzo. Called Artichoke and Macadamia, it was a spoonful of artichoke ice cream and a toasted macadamia nut with 100 year old balsamic. I love artichokes and macadamia nuts, but oddly enough I didn’t care for this. The balsamic was really powerful and I didn’t think the flavor combination “sang” here.

The next dish was billed on the menu as Sweet Potato Pie with Savoy Cabbage and Squab. The links you see in the back of the photo are a handcut sweet potato chain. Also featured on the plate is Moto’s Escher box of sweet potato. These were delicious and so carefully crafted you just had to marvel at them. The squab had beautiful flavor, as did the cabbage.

If you refer back to the photo of the Artichoke and Macadamia dish, you’ll notice a brown box in the background. That box contained bass and it had been placed on our table to cook the dish called Bass Prepared Tableside with Wakame. The bass was slow cooked while we enjoyed the preceding courses. When it was ready to be served, it was accompanied by a lovely sauce that complemented it well. Outstanding.

Pork Belly with a Red Wine and Beet Puree Applied Your Way was next. This dish came with a syringe-like applicator full of the puree. Our server instructed us to squeeze it over the pork belly for best results. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the pork belly because I’m simply not the world’s biggest pork fan in general. Win loved it though. Looking at the photo above, you’ll also notice some beige dots on the left-hand side of the plate. This was Kentucky Fried Ice Cream, small balls of ice cream flavored exactly like Kentucky Fried Chicken. The accuracy of the taste of this ice cream was amazing, as it did taste just like it was supposed to. That said, it was rather bizarre and not a real palate pleaser. So the ice cream got points for originality, accuracy and technique, but it was definitely something for which you needed to acquire a taste.

Next was another intermezzo. This time it was dubbed Margarita with Chips and Salsa. We were served two spoons. One had tequila flavored ice cream and the other had a cube of jelly and some puree, the combination of which mimicked the flavors of chips and salsa. It was a fun and original pairing. I liked it; Win didn’t like it as much.

Up next was Lamb Loin with Braised Pizza, Garlic and Braised Kobe Beef. This dish was served with spiral handled utensils studded with garlic at the ends. According to our server, these utensils are Chef Cantu’s own design and they allow the scent of garlic to waft up from the bottom of the utensil as you eat, enhancing the experience of the dish. As silly as this sounds, you really could smell the garlic as you ate and it probably did add something to the experience.

For the next course, Chef Cantu showed off his use of edible inks and papers once again. It was a cheese course dubbed Edible Literature of Explorateur with 100-Year Old Balsamico. As you can see from the photo, we were served two kinds of cheeses, each topped with a piece of paper telling about the cheese. Very interesting and informative presentation. While I have never met a piece of cheese I didn’t like, I must say that I didn’t care for these cheeses. Paired with the stewed cherries they came with, they were pretty good, but I didn’t care for them alone. Win didn’t really like them either. Very strong, almost bitter and just not pleasant to us. I know there are people out there who would love that cheese, but we are not those people. So I’d say that this course had great presentation and technological innovation, but these particular cheeses just missed the mark for me.

Next up was a dish called Green Curry, Hearts of Palm and Salted Sugar. When presented, the dish featured candied hearts of palm and curry-flavored ice cream balls made using liquid nitrogen. Neither Win nor I liked this dish. The hearts of palm were odd and the green curry ice cream was off-putting. We just didn’t find the flavors pleasant and didn’t eat more than a bite of this one. We joked with one of our servers about this dish not being our favorite and she was surprised that we didn’t like the “sweet taste of the curry.” We actually didn’t find it sweet at all, so there was obviously a disconnect for us with this dish.

But things were soon on the upswing again with the advent of Oatmeal Stout with Venezuelan Chocolate. This will sound disgusting, but you’ll have to trust me that it was actually quite good. This dish, officially heralding the start of the dessert portion of our meal, was like sweet oatmeal cooked in beer and with chocolate. I really don’t know how else to describe it beyond saying that it was very unique, with complex flavors, and a full, stout beer taste.

Squash Ice Cream Pellets was our next course. The chef once again used the liquid nitrogen technique to create these. They had a pleasant squash flavor and that was interesting to taste in an ice cold format. Win didn’t love these but I thought they were good.

Now, for the most delicious dessert you might ever have. We were presented with a cup of Doughnut Soup. Oh my goodness, doughnut soup. All night we had been seeing people receive these little white cups, take a sip, and immediately smile and start gushing over how good it was. So needless to say, we were very excited to get our own to try. Moto’s Doughnut Soup is amazing. It is a warm, rich drink that tastes exactly like a doughnut…probably most like a Krispy Kreme if I had to label it. It’s made using pastry cream and other ingredients that mimic a doughnut’s taste. This dessert was so unique, so decadent and so satisfying, we could have ended the whole meal right there.

But this is Moto and we ordered the Grand Tour Moto so we still had several dishes to come. French Toast with Hot Blueberry Syrup was next. This was a nice one. When it arrived at the table, there were a few pieces of a French Toast-like bread/cake surrounding a dark blue bubble of some sort. When you popped the bubble with your fork, a delicious warm blueberry sauce spilled out. Delicious and interesting way of serving the sauce.

Our final “official” course was referred to on the menu as Chocolate Cake with Hot Ice Cream. It was an interesting sampler of desserts that might seem a bit more conventional by Moto’s standards. Very tasty all around, but by this time I was extremely full.

Although our meal was officially done with the Chocolate Cake, our server brought an additional course to conclude the meal. This one was great in both creativity, technique and taste. It was popcorn-flavored “Styrofoam” with a caramel dipping sauce. The food was meant to look just like Styrofoam packing material but it tasted exactly like rich, buttered popcorn. Unique texture and excellent taste. While the caramel sauce was quite good, I actually liked the popcorn Styrofoam even better on its own because its flavor was so unusual and outstanding.

As I mentioned earlier in this entry, our meal was accompanied by the Wine Progression for the Grand Tour Moto menu. Matthew Gundlach, Moto’s wine director and sommelier, has put together an interesting, challenging and delicious wine progression here and he very helpfully described each wine for us throughout the meal. He was a pleasure to have visit our table, as he knows his stuff and is very down-to-Earth and witty.

Here are the wines we enjoyed throughout the evening:
1999 Henri Mandois “Premier Cru,” Blanc de Blancs, Champagne, France
2004 Pheasant Grove, Riesling, Canterbury, New Zealand
1999 Jacques Puffeney “Cuvee Sacha” Arbois, Jura, France
2004 Echeverria “Unwooded,” Chardonnay, Molina, Maule, Chile
2002 Yves Breussin, Vouvray Reserve, Loire Valley, France
2001 Nittnaus, Sauvignon Blanc Beerenauslese, Neusiedlersee, Burdenland, Austria
2003 Valckenberg, Gewurtztraminer, Pfalz, Germany
2003 J. Palacios, Petalos del Bierzo, Galecia, Spain
2002 Torii Mor, “Deuxs Verres,” Pinot Noir, Wilamette Valley, Oregon, USA
2000 Midnight “Starlight Reba” Sangiovese, Dry Creek Valley, California, USA
2004 Bruno Verdi, Sangue di Giuda “Paradiso,” Lombardy, Italy
2004 Elio Perrone “Sourgal,” Moscato d’Asti. Piedmont, Italy
2002 Jackson-Triggs, Riesling Icewine, Niagara, Ontario, Canada

As you can see, this list is quite varied in the types of wine served and the geographies from which the wines hail. Several years ago, we spent some time in Ontario wine country, so it was fun to see a Riesling Icewine from that region on the menu. The wine that I found the most unique was the Sangue di Giuda, or Blood of Judas. This was a strong, bubbly red. I’ve never had an effervescent red before so that was a very interesting glass to try.

In case you’re wondering, Moto was very generous with their pours. At the start of the meal, we were told each wine would be poured to about ¼ of a glass. In reality, I think Moto was more generous than that and we probably had about 1/3 of a glass of wine with each step in the progression.

So taking a tally, that would mean that the Grand Tour Moto resulted in 20 food courses, a 13-step wine progression, and of course that complimentary glass of champagne to wish Win a happy birthday. This meal took close to five hours and we were the last customers to leave at 1:00am. Moto graciously arranges for cabs to be waiting for those customers who need them, so despite the late hour an easy exit was available.

We loved Moto and left full and thrilled with the whole experience. My one small concern when I chose it for Win’s birthday was that perhaps it would be too gimmicky and focus more on the special effects stuff and less on creating delicious, substantive dishes. Fortunately, that little concern was proven totally wrong. Moto’s cuisine is such a unique combination of culinary expertise, artistic ability, chemistry, and technological innovation. The food is delicious, visually appealing, and every course challenges your senses and gives you something new to think about and experience. As I mentioned, there were some courses we adored and some we didn’t care for, but every one was new, interesting and worth trying. Moto’s staff is polished, informed and helpful. What I liked best about them though was how friendly and casual they could also be. Perfect, gracious service without any phony airs.

Moto is pricey, but it is absolutely worth experiencing. The whole dining experience is completely unique and the food is exceptional.

Moto
945 W. Fulton Market
Chicago, IL 60607
Telephone: 312-491-0058
Web Site: http://www.motorestaurant.com
Note: Moto’s online reservation system is excellent and convenient

Next time At Our Table: Easy and Delicious Tea Cookies

Note: The first photo in this post, showing the interior of Moto, comes from the Moto web site and is property of Moto. All other photos in this post were taken by us.

Great Barbeque in the Burbs: Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe

2005-04-05T21:22:00.000-05:00

I know what you're thinking. You took one look at the photo above and you can't imagine how a place with a goofy sign like that could be good. That's kind of what Win and I thought when we walked into Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe last week, but we were thrilled to find out how tasty the food really is.

Chuck's was recommended to Win by a colleague who felt strongly enough about the place that he felt it worth us using one of our precious and few childless nights out to experience it. So we hopped into the car and headed to Burbank, IL to check it out.

Chuck's exterior is nothing fancy and the neon beer signs hanging in the window give it a really casual feel. The inside is very clean, but modest, and decorated with both Mardi Gras and Southwestern themes to capture the two kinds of cuisine in which they specialize. Booths line the walls and tables fill the center of the room. Now I'll have to explain right upfront why I don't have any photos of Chuck's excellent food. This is a very down-to-Earth, casual place that seemed to have an equally casual and down-to-Earth clientele. When Win and I arrived, all the booths were taken and the only tables up for grabs were right in the center of the room. For much of our meal, we were the only ones sitting in the center of the room so whipping out a camera to take photos of every course would have inevitably drawn some stares from the others in the dining room just trying to enjoy their meals. I've whipped out a camera in a lot of dining rooms, but I just felt it would have been too much of a spectacle at Chuck's this time around. Hard to ignore the lone crazy woman in the middle of the room with her flash going off every few minutes.

Our server greeted us warmly and showed us their wine, beer and drinks list. I tried their Dogfish Head Chicory Stout. This was a unique and delicious beer made with a touch of chicory and Mexican coffee. I really could taste those flavors in the beer, in a pleasant, balanced way.

Chuck's menu changes frequently and they have several daily specials. As I mentioned, their menu is a compilation of Mexican and Southwestern fare, Southern barbeque and Southern-style food, and classics like burgers, sandwiches, and pastas. I was in the mood for Mexican that night, so I opted to start my meal with a cup of Chuck's Red, an amazing Mexican chili with meat and beans, topped with sour cream and tortilla strips. This chili was outstanding...full of flavor, perfectly spiced and so hearty and satisfying. Great way to start my meal. Win opted for one of Chuck's daily specials, the Chorizo Surtidas. This was a sampler of three homemade sausages, including:

1. Chorizo, flavored with ancho and pasilla chiles
2. Chorizo Verde, a garlicky sausage with jalapeno, parsley and cilantro, and
3. Longaniza, a Yucatecan style smoked sausage flavored with achiote and sweet spices.

These sausages were terrific. Absolutely beautiful and homemade with high quality meat. The trio of sauces that accompanied them was delightful and one was extremely spicy. Win loved this delicious and beautifully presented appetizer.

For our main course choices, I went with Barbeque Nachos. This was a large nacho platter with melted cheese, guacamole, sour cream, peppers, tomatoes, and pulled pork and pulled chicken. The pulled meats worked really well with the Mexican flavors and it was a nice dish.

Win stayed true to his Southern roots and selected the Super Sampler of barbeque specialties. For his sampler, he selected 3 ribs, a quarter barbequed chicken, and pulled pork. He also got to choose two side dishes and he went with Brunswick stew and mashed potatoes and gravy. This was some meal. Chuck's portions are generous and each component in the sampler was well-prepared, flavorful and delicious. Win commented that the pulled pork was nicely dressed in barbeque sauce and that he didn't even need to add additional sauce from the bottle on the table, which is rare.

Chuck's portions are very generous, so we ended up taking a lot of food home and not having room for dessert. Their desserts looked amazing though and I would have ordered the peach cobbler in a minute if I had any stomach space left.

If you have occasion to be in Burbank, IL you should check out Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe. It's an unassuming place---nothing fancy---but the food is the real deal. Delicious, authentic food that's well-prepared. I can see why Chuck's has received accolades from Chicago Magazine and Chicago's ABC 7 News. Servers are friendly and efficient and the vast menu provides something for everyone in your party.

Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe
5557 W. 79th Street
Burbank, IL 60459
Telephone: 708-229-8700
Web Site: http://www.chuckscafe.com

Next time At Our Table: A birthday celebration with one of Chicago's culinary innovators

Will Linda Blog Again?...and other odds 'n ends

2005-04-04T21:12:00.000-05:00

You know you've been away from your blog for too long when it's a struggle to remember some of the html code you need and a few of your passwords have become hazy. Thanks for sticking with me while I took an uncharacteristically long time away from the blog in the past couple weeks. I had a cold and chose rest over blogging for a few days, then I had a nice trip to visit with my family and put blogging aside to spend time with them. But now I'm back and with any luck we'll get back to a more regular posting schedule.

Thanks to everyone who sent e-mails in the past couple weeks. It's always great to hear from readers and I appreciate your notes.

So here's a quick Easter recap: We had a great time with my parents and I just love my Mom for making us the Easter Bunny Cake pictured above. She made this because she thought our Lima Bean would get a kick out of it, and she certainly did. My Mom made this cake once before, probably in the late 70s or early 80s, for my brother Mike and me when we were little kids. The minute Mike and I saw the cake, we got totally nostalgic and happy Easter memories of egg hunts and Easter bunnies came rushing back to us. It's a simple cake and can be done with any flavor combinations you'd like. This time, my Mom made a cinnamon swirl cake and topped with vanilla icing. Decorate with candy and colored, shredded coconut and you're ready to go. Ahhh, the Easter Bunny Cake continues to bring joy to the next generation.

Lima is big on "helping" now so I'm always giving her little jobs to do around the house. Often, her "help" causes me more work and clean-up, but she's cute and very well-meaning. During our Easter visit, Lima wanted to help set the table. Here's how she set the table, with no guidance from anyone:

So we added some forks and knives and off we went. Easter wouldn't be Easter without some egg painting, and we did that too. Lima loved hunting for the eggs on Easter morning. She'd find an egg, put it in her basket and yell "There one is!" Then she'd rehide that same egg herself and look for it again, greatly extending the Easter egg hunt's length.

Besides an Easter wrap-up, I wanted to let people know that Juliette Rossant of Super Chef Blog is running a poll for White House Woman Chef. A couple months ago, Juliette ran a fun poll soliciting ideas for White House Guest Chefs. This time around, she's looking for your input on females to serve as White House Executive Chef. Click here to see Juliette's poll and offer your vote.

Next time At Our Table: Great Barbeque in the Burbs

Box Top Rice Pudding

2005-03-20T12:39:00.000-06:00

Whenever my mother-in-law has leftover white rice from a dinner she’s cooked, she quickly turns it into delicious rice pudding using an old recipe she found on the Uncle Ben’s rice box years ago. I love her rice pudding; it’s simple but satisfying. Last time we visited Win’s family, his 92-year-old grandmother even said this is the recipe she relied on when she used to cook more. With all the varieties of rice pudding out there, this old standard is worth mentioning. It’s a handy staple to have up your sleeve.

Box Top Rice Pudding
Serves 5-6 (or pretty much just me, hunched over the bowl, going to town on its tasty goodness)

1 and 3/4 cups water
½ cup rice
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
nutmeg or cinnamon

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Bring water to a boil. Stir in rice and salt. Cover and simmer until all water is absorbed, about 30 minutes.
3. Add milk and boil gently, stirring occasionally, until mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.
4. Combine eggs, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Gradually stir into rice mixture; mix well.
5. Pour into a greased 1.5 quart casserole in a pan containing about 1-inch hot water. Bake, uncovered, in 350 degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. It’s important to note that mine took about 100 minutes to get to the “clean knife” stage. I don’t know why it took so long; my suspicion is that I filled the water bath too high and maybe slowed down the cooking, but I don’t know for sure. Anyway, don’t worry if yours takes longer. After literally an hour and a half of cooking, mine came out great.
6. Serve warm or chilled. Sprinkle nutmeg and/or cinnamon on top, if desired.

This rice pudding is very easy and basic, and I like how versatile it is. With the delicious custard layer on top, it’s exciting enough to be a light dessert. But it’s not so rich and creamy that it can’t also be served for breakfast or as a mid-afternoon snack.

I’m a huge rice pudding fan and love to try new variations on it. When you’re looking for a decadent, rich, creamy sweet rice pudding, go for my Mom’s Old Fashioned Creamy Rice Pudding. When you want something lighter but still satisfying thanks to the layer of custard, use this old classic.

Shamrock Shakes for St. Patrick's Day

2005-03-17T06:15:00.000-06:00

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! If you’re looking for an easy and delicious green treat today, try a Shamrock Shake.

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a big fan of the Top Secret Recipes web site and I subscribe to their free weekly newsletter. Each week, a new recipe cloning a restaurant recipe comes into my inbox. In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this week’s featured recipe is for McDonald’s Shamrock Shakes. I’ve never had a Shamrock Shake at McDonald’s so I can’t say whether or not this clone recipe gets it right on the mark, but I can attest to how delicious these minty shakes are.

To make a Shamrock Shake, you just need to mix vanilla ice cream, low fat milk, a bit of mint extract and a few drops of green food coloring in a blender. Top Secret Recipes is very clear about not allowing their recipes to be shared so I’ll just direct you to their site for the specifics of this very easy recipe. Click here to check it out, but hurry because it will only be available on the site for the next few days.

We thought these were really good and a fun St. Patrick’s Day treat. Hope you enjoy them too!

Drinks at The Copa; Dinner at Vinci

2005-03-15T07:19:00.000-06:00

Last weekend on an evening out, we tried a couple places we hadn’t been to before. We started off with cocktails at The Copa Cocktail Lounge. I’ve driven past The Copa many times before as it’s right behind one of Lima’s favorite stores, The Land of Nod. Lima adores the toy monkeys they sell there, so we’re frequent patrons. And every time we drive past The Copa, I think “That place looks cute. We should try it.”

Well we finally did. Cute little bar with a very hip feeling. Intimate size, nice bar stools and eclectic mix of boldly patterned wallpaper on one wall, retro wood paneling behind the bar, and funky lights above the tables that change color and cast red, blue and green glows on the table. This décor sounds crazy, but it works and comes together for a trendy, but comfortable, feeling. We had the pleasure of meeting a very friendly and competent bartender there and he mixed a terrific Copa Flirtini and a solid rum and Coke. The Copa’s a cute place to meet for cocktails.

After our drinks, we walked a few blocks to Vinci. Vinci offers reasonably priced Italian food that’s quite good. I selected Grilled Calamari for my appetizer. This was marinated grilled calamari steak with farro, arugula, toasted pine nuts, and basil oil. The marinade on the calamari was excellent and the grilled flavor came through nicely. Serving it on farro was a pleasant touch too, as I haven’t had farro in a while.

Win selected Carpaccio for his appetizer. This was seared carpaccio with mustard sauce, capers, oven-dried tomatoes, arugula, and pecorino. It was really excellent and the flavor combinations on this plate were terrific.

Happy with our appetizers, we then moved on to our entrees. I ordered one of the day’s specials: ravioli with porcini and many other kinds of mushrooms in a dark sauce with truffle oil. See photo above. This was very good, but it almost was too mushroomy. I think I would have liked it more if it was a little less dense with mushroom flavor and perhaps a bit more balanced between strong mushroom flavor and some ricotta or other cheese in the ravioli. It’s not that the dish wasn’t good---it was very good---but it was just slightly less than ideal.

Win loved his entrée. He ordered Vinci’s Hen, which was marinated hen grilled under a hot brick and served with roasted potatoes, garlic, rosemary and natural juices. This tender, juicy hen was outstanding and full of herb and lemon flavor.

For dessert, we ordered Vinci’s special dessert of the evening which was a lemon tart with a grappa caramel sauce. It was served with fresh berries and was really delicious. Great combination of sweet/tart and rich/light.

We liked Vinci a lot. I wasn’t blown away by the food, but it was quite good. The servers were friendly and helpful and the atmosphere was relaxing. I think what maybe makes me like Vinci a little less than some other Italians I have had recently is that it’s a more “corporate” restaurant and is owned by the Davinci Group which also owns the popular Adobo Grill. When push comes to shove, I’m more of a fan of the tiny, independent, neighborhood places over restaurants owned by a larger corporation. But Vinci was worth trying and made for a fun night out.

The Copa
1637 N. Clybourn
Chicago, IL
USA
Telephone: 312-642-3449

Vinci
1732 N. Halstead Street
Chicago, IL
USA
Telephone: 312-266-1199
Web Site: http://www.vincichicago.com

Top 20 Age-Defying Foods

2005-03-13T12:21:00.000-06:00

The March 2005 issue of Shape magazine has a great list of the Top 20 Age-Defying Foods. According to a study recently released by the US Department of Agriculture and published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the following foods are superstars in their ability to help fight disease and potentially slow down the aging process:

1. Small red beans
2. Wild blueberries
3. Red kidney beans
4. Pinto beans
5. Commercial blueberries
6. Cranberries
7. Artichokes
8. Blackberries
9. Dried plums
10. Raspberries
11. Strawberries
12. Red Delicious apples
13. Granny Smith apples
14. Pecans
15. Sweet cherries
16. Black plums
17. Russet potatoes
18. Black beans
19. Plums (Note: This is how the list reads. Dried plums are #9. Black plums are #16. I suppose the "plums" ranked #19 refer to all other kinds of plums but that is just my best guess.)
20. Gala apples

I’m all for natural ways to keep healthy and look young. Since reading this article, I’ve been trying to incorporate these specific foods and more antioxidants into my diet. See the photo above for some potato (#17) and black bean (#18) action. So far, so good. But somehow I don’t think the pecans (#14) that were sprinkled on top of my salad at dinner tonight would counteract the damage done by the artery-clogging (but very tasty) honey-dijon dressing served with it. Oh well, I’m a culinary work in progress…

Chef's 7-Course Tasting Menu at Vermilion

2005-03-10T08:23:00.000-06:00

It’s a rare thing when two completely unrelated people recommend the same restaurant to us in the same week. It’s even more unique when both people ask if you like a certain kind of cuisine and then say it’s ok if you don’t, you have to try this restaurant. This is what happened with Vermilion.

Last week, I was out with the Lima Bean and someone mentioned that they had an amazing dinner out recently. My ears immediately perked up and the person started by saying, “Do you like Indian food?” Indian isn't my thing and I told her that. She said “Well, you still should try Vermilion. It’s like Indian, Asian, South American fusion and the flavors are unbelievable. Even if you don’t like Indian, you will love this place.” She had strong confidence in her recommendation so I was intrigued.

A few days later a colleague of Win’s recommended Vermilion out of the blue. Said he loved it and asked if we liked Indian food. Win said he did and I didn’t, but the colleague was still sure we’d love the place. Another very strong recommendation, despite my less than enthusiastic feelings for a lot of Indian cuisine.

So with two hearty recommendations in hand, we had to try Vermilion. I am so thrilled that we did. Vermilion’s fusion cuisine brings together flavors that are delicious, absolutely unique, and often unexpected. And as our friends mentioned, you don’t have to love Indian food to love Vermilion, although much of the menu is heavily Indian influenced.

Vermilion is modern, with a trendy yet comfortable aesthetic. The walls are lined with interesting art. Our server conveyed huge pride in the place and raved to us about the chef’s abilities from the minute we sat down. You could tell from minute one that he fully expected us to love what we had for dinner and that he had supreme confidence in the chef’s ability to please. Nice feeling to convey.

As we perused the menu and sipped drinks (a Vermilion Sol cocktail for me and a Kingfisher beer for Win), we thought it would be fun to start with an order of naan. As you can see from the photo above, the naan came with four dipping sauces. One was a cucumber sauce, another a sweet chutney, the third a spicy and chunky vegetable salsa, and finally a milder yogurt sauce. All of them were excellent, but our two favorites were the cucumber sauce and the sweet chutney. You’ll also notice the amuse bouche on a small plate behind the naan. The amuse was a cucumber with an amazing swirl of what I think was minted cream on top. Hard to describe, but absolutely delicious.

After spending a great deal of time thinking about our dinner options, Win went out on a limb and suggested that we order the Chef’s Seven Course Tasting Menu. At Vermilion, the tasting menu includes an array of dishes customized by the chef and is only made available if all parties at the table will be ordering it. I was game, so we placed the order and waited to see what would turn up.

Our first course was a collection of four tapas which included steamed mussels simmered in a coconut-cilantro broth, bajian acaraje which was a traditional Brazilian bean croquette studded with a stuffed Spanish olive, a mysore lamb chop served over a minty red onion salad, and five spice scallops served in a spicy, fruit salsa. I couldn’t believe the luck on this selection, as the mussels and the bean croquettes were things I was seriously considering off the a la carte menu. Win is a huge lamb chop fan, so that made his day. All four of these tapas were outstanding. Fresh, bold flavors all cooked perfectly.

After that very successful first course, a bowl of red pepper soup was served to each of us, accompanied by some naan. This soup was rich, creamy and seasoned somehow differently than one would expect. Different in a very good way.

Next came a salad. This was a salad of spring greens with some stuffed grapes as accents. There was very little dressing on the salad and our waiter mentioned to us that he thought the dressing had some sort of onion paste in it. This was the only portion of our meal that disappointed us. The salad was rather flat and whatever dressing it had just didn’t hit us right. The flavor was perhaps too oniony or just not seasoned in a way that worked for us. So the salad course didn’t impress us, but more good things were to come.

After the salad, we were presented with Plantain Crusted Fish with Aloo Gobi. This was tilapia crusted with plantain, served on a bed of spicy potato and cauliflower and accompanied by a curry sauce. Even I, the non-fan of most Indian food, loved this curry sauce dish. The fish was moist and tender and the plantain coating gave it a nice crunch. The curry sauce was outstanding and it took the fish to a new level.

At this point, we were so happy and full we couldn’t believe that we had more courses to go. So we were pleased to see the waiter bring us a champagne sorbet for our next course. This sorbet was amazing. Packed with champagne flavor, it soothed our very active taste buds and prepared our mouths for the next course.

Tandoori skirt steak was our next dish. This steak was served in a classic Indian marinade over sautéed garlic spinach. It was surrounded by plantain chips. This steak was mouthwatering. Win loves red meat, but he often shies away from skirt steak because so many restaurants overcook it. This steak was perfectly cooked, and as our waiter said, it was so tender that we didn’t need steak knives. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the classic Indian flavoring of this steak was what made it so unique and delicious. The spinach was outstanding too and a nice accompaniment to the meat. We loved the plantain chips, but they were spiced with red pepper or something incredibly hot so we had to eat them more cautiously.

So to review, we have had naan, a huge appetizer sampler, soup, salad, fish, sorbet, and steak. We’re so full and satisfied but we know there is one more course on the way. Can we manage to eat it? Of course we can, when it’s desserts as decadent as these. We were served two dessert plates. One included some molten chocolate cake creation that was warm, rich and so, so chocolaty. On that same plate, opposite the chocolate wonder, was a heaping pile of fresh berries topped with the most potent berry sorbet I have ever had. This sorbet absolutely popped in your mouth with the essence of fresh, ripe berries. The second dessert was a coconut rice pudding topped with dried fruits. As luck would have it, these two desserts suited Win and me perfectly. Win’s a chocolate guy and probably would have ordered that chocolate cake off the menu, had he been given the choice. I’m a die hard rice pudding fan and when given the chance to experience a new, unique pudding I am all for that. So needless to say we were thrilled with these high-quality, well-prepared desserts.

It’s important to note the portions of these dishes. Look how generous Vermilion is with their tasting menu portions. As you can see from the photos, we had a sizable appetizer, a regular size bowl of soup, a large piece of fish, a whole portion of steak, and ample desserts. We’ve all been to places where the tasting menu includes seven tiny, tiny, tiny things and you leave with a stomach as empty as your wallet. Vermilion’s tasting menu portions were almost too large and we had to pace ourselves to make sure that we didn’t overeat on any one course and risk filling up before getting to sample the full spectrum. The tasting menu costs $65.00 per person, and given all the outstanding food you receive we left feeling like this was an incredible value.

Dinner at Vermilion was magnificent. The flavors that come out of that kitchen are a true fusion of Indian and Latin tastes and they are often completely unexpected but so pleasing to the palate. With the exception of the salad that we didn’t like, every dish that came out was unique and delicious. And as our friends both said, you don’t have to love Indian to love Vermilion.

Vermilion
10 W. Hubbard Street
Chicago, IL 60610
USA
Telephone: 312-527-4060

What's Up With Lima?

2005-03-08T07:05:00.000-06:00

It’s been a while since I gave an update on our Lima Bean so I thought it was about time. Lima is 22 months old now and she’s still my constant companion, in the kitchen and pretty much everywhere else. In the past few months she has become amazingly verbal and can say almost anything and carry on very good mini-conversations. It’s been very, very fun to learn what goes on inside her head.

Lima’s also become more and more active. Some of her new tricks include summersaults, crawling like an inchworm, doing a monkey walk, and walking around on her hands while someone holds her feet in the classic wheelbarrow pose. She just learned the wheelbarrow thing today and she’s very pleased with it. She loves drawing and painting and anything having to do with glue…the messier the better.

Lima’s musical taste has evolved in the past few months too. While at home, she likes to hear the theme song from Sesame Street as much as she can. I actually have the Sesame Street CD set on permanent repeat for that song, a sure sign that I will be going insane any day now. She also can be found glued to the tv mesmerized by The Wiggles at least once a day. When we’re in the car, these are the songs Lima wants to listen to:

-Sir Duke by Stevie Wonder
-Mickey by Toni Basil
-Rock Lobster by the B-52s
-Whip It by Devo
-Oh Yoko by John Lennon

Quite a collection, huh? Don’t dare try and slip in a new song because she will not have it. It’s one of these 5 or nothing.

On the food front, Lima still loves going to restaurants. At one of our neighborhood favorites, Lima is a total regular. She walks in like she owns the place, says hi to the people behind the bar and then walks to our usual table. She often brings the waitstaff little things to show them. Recent Lima “gifts” include a large piece of bark, a really big stick, and her Boohbah. At the end of the meal, the waitress always hands Lima the check. We wish she’d start paying, but instead she looks to us for the money and then happily delivers it to the waitress and says “Money! Money!” or “Card! Card!”, depending on whether we paid with cash or credit card.

She’s a big fan of “helping” me any way she can, so if I have my apron on you can be pretty sure Lima has her little pink one on too. She gets a huge thrill from doing anything in what she perceives to be “grown-up” style.

So that’s the latest in Lima’s world. She’ll be 2 in a couple months and I’m starting to think about birthday party ideas. Nothing crazy and over the top, but I’d like to do something special to mark the day. I’ll let you know what we end up doing…

Next time At Our Table: No, this isn’t a total mom blog…I’ll be back with more food talk next time. Whether you like Indian food or you don't, I have an interesting place to tell you about.

The Sandwich You Must Try

2005-03-05T20:41:00.000-06:00

OK, I have a sandwich here that is so good and so unique that you must try it. I am not kidding. Unless you are adamantly opposed to a key ingredient, wildly allergic or incredibly health conscious, you need to give this one a try. It’s a Bacon and Gruyere Panini with Green Apple, Sauerkraut and Grainy Mustard.

We got the idea for this sandwich from our latest shipment from the Bacon of the Month Club. This month’s featured bacon is Father’s Hickory Smoked Cinnamon-Sugar Country Bacon. This delicious bacon comes from Gatton Farms in Bremen, Kentucky. According to the literature that came with the bacon, the meat is dry-cured with sugar, then it hangs in refrigerators for 10 weeks at various temperatures, then it is aged. Along the way, the bacon is hand-rubbed with a mixture of double-strength cinnamon and sugar. This bacon is delicious and you can really taste the cinnamon and sugar flavor. It’s subtle, but it is definitely there and it makes for a very special bite of bacon.

As always, our bacon of the month came with a recipe. When we saw the recipe for Bacon and Gruyere Panini, we knew we had to try it.

Bacon and Gruyere Panini with Green Apple, Sauerkraut, and Grainy Mustard
Adapted from a recipe provided by The Grateful Palate
Serves 2

4 slices bacon, halved crosswise
4 slices pumpernickel bread
butter
grainy mustard
2 ounces sliced Gruyere cheese
¼ cup drained sauerkraut
¼ Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced

1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. This should take about 8 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and drain off all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon grease in the pan.
2. Next, assemble the sandwiches. Lightly butter the inside of the bread and then spread mustard on one side of each sandwich. For each sandwich, layer ¼ of the cheese slices on top of the slice with mustard, then pile on half of the bacon, then add half the apple slices, then add half the sauerkraut, then the remaining ¼ of the cheese. (This sounds way more complicated than it is…basically, just divide up the ingredients fairly between the two sandwiches and stack them on.) Press the top piece of bread firmly onto each sandwich. This is how ours looked at this stage:

3. Cook the sandwiches in the bacon pan over medium-low heat until melted inside and toasted outside. Press down on them firmly with a spatula to compact them as they cook. This should take about 4 minutes per side.

Seriously, these sandwiches are amazing. The flavor and texture combination here is unbelievable. You have rich, savory pumpernickel bread providing the backdrop for crisp, full-flavored bacon and luscious melted Gruyere. Those ingredients alone would make for a standout sandwich. But then you add the Granny Smith apples and the sauerkraut and the whole thing just explodes. These ingredients provide the added interplay of sweet/tart and hard/soft contrasts.

While this sandwich may not be heart healthy or low calorie, it is absolutely worth the caloric splurge to try it. It’s one of the most unique flavor and texture combinations I’ve had in a sandwich and it’s absolutely delicious. If you try it, I hope you agree.

Next time At Our Table: What’s up with Lima?

When in Chapel Hill, Scoot Over to Vespa

2005-03-02T20:50:00.000-06:00

Another night during our trip to North Carolina, Win and I tried Vespa. Win’s parents have been to Vespa several times and they really enjoy it, so we were eager to try it too.

Vespa’s dining room is attractively painted in warm tones with interesting art and decorations on the walls. The dining room is comfortable and if you sit up front by the windows facing Franklin Street like we did you can do some good people watching.

We really loved the food at Vespa. To start, I ordered Crostini di Polenta, which was cornmeal topped with warm gorgonzola cheese. Now, I enjoy polenta. It’s not something on my “must have” list when I go to an Italian restaurant, but I do like it. This polenta made me a believer though. It was hands down the best I have ever tasted, thanks to the warm, rich gorgonzola covering it. This appetizer was a perfect way to start the night.

Win opted to start with Scottata, which is warm homemade mozzarella wrapped around prosciutto with roasted peppers. Win loved his and the flavor combination was really excellent.

For my entrée, I chose one of Vespa’s daily specials. It was Ravioli with Spinach and Ricotta in a Light Pink Sauce. The ravioli’s stuffing had just the right balance of ricotta and spinach and the sauce was creamy and flavorful without being too heavy.

Orecchiette Porcelle, or orecchiette with sweet sausage in a spicy tomato sauce, was Win’s entrée. He loved it and although he’s usually too full to finish a large plate of pasta in one sitting, he easily downed this delicious dish.

Our waiter was very friendly, he knew just when to refill our glasses of Chianti, and he kept our meal moving at a pleasant pace.

Vespa was really, really good and reasonably priced. It’s located on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, which makes for a nice walk before or after dinner. There are several cute shops to peruse nearby as well as the beautiful UNC campus. Win and I agreed that we’ll definitely go back to Vespa on future trips to see his family.

Next time At Our Table: Amazing, amazing sandwich. Seriously, you must try this one.

Vespa Cibobuono
306D West Franklin Street
Chapel Hill, NC
USA
Telephone: 919-969-6600

Southern Delights

2005-03-01T20:20:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned last time, we recently got back from a visit to Win's parents' house in North Carolina. His parents are excellent cooks and bakers and they always feed us well. While visiting, also usually try and get out to a couple restaurants and shops to sample the local fare.

In my mind, no visit to their part of North Carolina is complete without a trip to A Southern Season. A Southern Season is one of the largest and most interesting cooking and food-related shops I have ever seen. Check out these photos to see for yourself. The massive, well-decorated and welcoming store boasts a large section devoted to coffee and tea, an enormous wine section, and then cases and cases of imported meats, gourmet cheeses, fresh salads, and other tempting dishes. The store sells all sorts of cookware, bakeware, and gadgets and I could stand in the aisles for hours just perusing all the interesting merchandise. They sell china, flatware, linens, and all sorts of table and dining room decorations. The racks of A Southern Season are chock full of unique condiments, sauces, spices, cookies, crackers, and other treats. They also have many regional specialties on hand, showcasing some of the best flavors of North Carolina cuisine.

Every time I go to A Southern Season, I want to buy practically everything I see. Fortunately for my bank account, I am always traveling by plane back home and I convince myself that buying all these things would be impractical and impossible to carry. I have ordered from their web site before, however, with excellent results. So if you have occasion to visit the Research Triangle area of North Carolina, definitely pay A Southern Season a visit. If you enjoy food, cooking and entertaining, you'll enjoy getting lost amidst all their treasures.

Besides our visit to A Southern Season, we ate some tasty Southern food too. One night I went out with a friend to Mama Dip's. It was a Mom's Night Out and I was off duty as a blogger, so sorry but no photos of this one. Mama Dip's has been serving up very traditional Southern food in Chapel Hill, North Carolina for 25 years. While the décor in Mama Dip's is basic, the menu is full of pitch perfect Southern standards. My friend Debra and I tried the corn bread, the Brunswick Stew, the Catfish Gumbo, an order of fried green tomatoes, and an order of fried zucchini & broccoli with cheese. All of the food was very good. It should be noted that Deb and I aren't native Southerners (she's a Midwesterner now living in North Carolina and I'm an East Coast girl now living in Chicago). As such, our non-Southern palates encouraged us to select dishes that were delicious and traditional, but not the epitome of Southern cooking. For those who like the real deal, Mama Dip's also features chitlins, chicken and dumplings, black eye peas, collards, country ham, sweet potato biscuits and all sorts of barbeque.

Later in our visit, Win's parents took us to Allen & Sons for lunch. Again, I was off-duty for this one so I don't have any photos to share. Allen & Sons has amazing barbeque, slow-cooked on a wood fire that gives the meat an absolutely delicious taste. We started our lunch with sweet tea and an order of hush puppies. For me, that combo right there is heaven. Then we dove into their barbeque. Their barbeque (pulled pork) sandwich is so, so good. The meat is tender, smoky, and perfectly flavored. Despite being happily full with the barbeque sandwich, we all ordered one of their homemade desserts because they sounded too good to pass up. With that, coconut chess pie, cherry cobbler, blueberry pie and Klondike pie were delivered to our table. All of them were outstanding in their own, unique way. Our Lima Bean, who has never seen so much dessert all in one place in her life, was thrilled to have bites of everyone's pie. She proclaimed loudly that "Daddy's is best." So Lima's vote went with the Klondike; I'm going to have to say the coconut chess pie stood out for me as the most unique and intriguing. Allen & Sons has friendly servers and a charming, casual dining room. We were lucky to get there early because at peak lunch time they were packed. Their food is so good, I can absolutely see why.

Late one night, Win and I took a drive around Chapel Hill while my in-laws kindly babysat Lima for us. Knowing I am a complete sucker for sweet tea, Win lured me to one of his old favorites from his college days: Time Out. Time Out is a tiny takeout joint on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, right next to the University of North Carolina campus. It's open 24 hours a day, 365 days per year and it specializes in Southern food and traditional takeout staples. Nothing fancy, but it's somewhat of an institution among the college set.

For years Win has raved about the chicken biscuit at Time Out. This sandwich is a fried chicken breast served on a warm biscuit. When you order the chicken biscuit, the person behind the counter grabs a piece of chicken, fried and on the bone, and uses tongs to rip the breast portion off. He or she then slaps the chicken breast on a biscuit and off you go. Win is in love with this chicken biscuit and it's been years since he's had one, so he loved trying it again. I thought the sandwich was good, but to be honest I was just happy sitting there slurping down my giant sweet tea. Ahhh, sweet tea...

So that sums up the Southern food portion of our trip to North Carolina. We had another excellent, non-Southern meal out, but I'll save that for next time.

Next time At Our Table: The polenta that blew my mind

A Southern Season
Highway 15-501 at Estes Drive
University Mall
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
USA
Telephone: 800-253-3663
Web Site: http://www.southernseason.com

Mama Dip's Kitchen
408 W. Rosemary Street
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
USA
Telephone: 919-942-5837
Web Site: http://www.mamadips.com

Allen & Sons barbecue
6203 Millhouse Road
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
USA
Telephone: 919-942-7576

Time Out
133 W Franklin Street
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
USA
Telephone: 919-929-2425

**People of Southern Season: I love you and yes, I do accept gifts.

Chinalite: Great Neighborhood Chinese

2005-02-27T21:28:00.000-06:00

We just got back from a few days away in North Carolina visiting Win’s family. It was a fun visit, and as always, we had the chance to sample some really delicious food in our travels. I’ll save the reviews of some Carolina cuisine for the next couple days though. Tonight I want to talk about a great place for Chinese food in Chicago.

Chinalite is an excellent Chinese restaurant. It’s gotten terrific reviews from WGN, the Chicago Sun-Times, and the Chicago Reader and I can absolutely see why. The food is consistently high quality, delicious, nicely presented and reasonably priced.

We’ve ordered takeout from Chinalite on numerous occasions and have always found their delivery service to be friendly, efficient, and accurate. Tonight, back from a trip and with nothing too exciting in the refrigerator, we decided to dine in at Chinalite and check out the in-person dining experience.

Our waiter was terrific and he made sure we always had everything we needed. Chinalite seems to do a bustling takeout business, so I always pictured their interior as a very basic Chinese place…perhaps more of a storefront to service their takeout customers than a beautiful dining room. Chinalite’s dining room is quite spacious, attractive, and welcoming, however, and we enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere.

We ordered Hot and Sour Soup to start. The hot and sour is so delicious at Chinalite. Warm, spicy and full of all the unique ingredients that make hot and sour such a treasure. I love their hot and sour soup.

After our soup, we selected Shrimp with Lobster Sauce, which is shrimp stir fried in a black bean sauce with egg. This was served with broccoli. We also chose Governor’s Chicken, also known as General Tso’s Chicken. A fairly common dish, this is slices of chicken breast glazed in a ginger and garlic tomato sauce with baby corn, carrots, and green peppers.

Both dishes were outstanding. Fresh tastes, bold flavors, and generous portions.

While Chinalite is basically just a neighborhood Chinese restaurant, it’s worth a visit for its delicious, high-quality food, efficient and friendly service and good value. It's also worth noting that you can download coupons from their web site and place takeout orders online...a helpful convenience.

Chinalite
3457 N. Southport
Chicago, IL
USA
Telephone: 773-244-0300
Web Site: http://www.chinalite2go.com

OK, so I guess it’s time to make the shopping list to get the refrigerator restocked for the week. Back to cooking tomorrow…

Next time At Our Table: Sumptuous Southern Treats

Amazing Mexican at Rick Bayless' Topolobampo

2005-02-23T05:26:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, we had the pleasure of dining at Topolobampo. Topolobampo, or Topolo, as regulars call it, is one of Rick Bayless’ award-winning Mexican restaurants. Bayless has received ample praise for the fresh, authentic Mexican food served at Topolobampo so we were excited to try it. Each course showed us why Topolo has received its accolades, delighting us with every bite.

Topolobampo and its sister restaurant Frontera Grill share a front door and a bar. Click here to see some photos of the two restaurants. Each has a distinct feel and flavor, with Topolo being the more upscale and quiet of the two.

After being seated at our table by a charming and completely thorough maitre d', we were served fresh guacamole with slices of cucumber and jicama. This was our first clue that the presentation at Topolo would be fabulous. Served in a silver bowl atop a shock of colored paper, the guacamole was both visually pleasing and delicious. With every bite you could tell how fresh it was and how carefully prepared.

As we pondered the menu, we sipped perfect margaritas. A Gold Margarita for Win and a Margarita Primarosa for me which included fresh raspberries. As you might guess, the drinks were outstanding and got us off to a great start for the evening.

For a first course, Win ordered a special scallop ceviche that was part of the Chef’s Tasting Dinner Menu that evening. Each night at Topolo, you have the option of ordering a la carte from the menu or ordering the Chef’s Tasting Dinner Menu, which is a pre-set five-course meal. Win and I opted to order a la carte that night, but the scallop ceviche off the Tasting Menu sounded amazing. Win was really pleased when our server said it would be no problem to order that one item a la carte. Our server and Topolo won points with me right there. I absolutely hate it when restaurants are inflexible about breaking up their tasting menus and I was really pleased that Topolobampo had no problem accommodating Win’s request. The scallop ceviche was delicious, with a unique combination of fresh and spicy flavors. As you can see from the photo above, it was also beautiful.

For my first course, I ordered Crepa de Huitlacoche. This was a green-chile crepe folded around Three Sisters Garden inky corn mushrooms, roasted local winter vegetables, and melted Jack cheese. It was served with avocado-tomatillo salsa and pea tendril salad. This crepe was really delicious, with just the right balance between the cheese and the vegetables allowing you to taste everything. The pea tendril salad was outstanding as well and actually added a lot to the dish.

After our appetizers, we shared Sopa Azteca, which is Topolobampo’s version of tortilla soup. According to our server, Sopa Azteca is one of their signature dishes. It consists of a dark broth flavored with pasilla chile and then garnished with grilled chicken, avocado, Meadow Valley Farm homemade Jack cheese, thick cream and tortilla strips. This soup is definitely one of the best soups I have ever had. If you go to Topolobampo, you or someone at your table really should have this soup. It is rich, bold, flavorful and absolutely satisfying.

For my entrée, I selected the Pescado en Mole Verde Queretano. This is garlic-marinated fish with Queretaro-style green mole of sesame seeds, almonds, peanuts, poblanos, plantains, and spices. The fish was served with ricotta-filled plaintain tortitas and braised Snug Haven organic spinach. The fish was amazing and flavored in a way I can barely describe. The spinach was also quite good and complemented the fish well. I had really high hopes for the ricotta tortitas (like little puffs) but they didn’t live up to my expectations. They were good, but not as decadent and amazing as I thought a little ricotta tortita might be. Still though, this dish was excellent.

Win selected the Pato al Pasilla Dulce for his main course. This was roasted, chile-glazed Gunthorp duck breast in dark, fruity pasilla chile sauce. It was served with a pyramid of grilled scallion white rice, crispy duck chicharron, watercress salad, and jicama-fig salsa. The duck was succulent and the sauce prefect for it. Win really enjoyed this dish.

Before the duck arrived, Win decided that he’d like a glass of wine with his entrée. Earlier in the evening, Topolobampo’s wonderful sommelier Jill Gubesch had stopped by our table to introduce herself and offer her services. Opting for margaritas to start, we declined her services earlier in the evening but now Win was curious about her recommendations for a wine to go with the duck. Win mentioned this to the waiter and he very competently offered his thoughts on what wines would be best with the duck (a Zinfandel or a Syrah). He then consulted with Jill and she had a clear preference in the Zinfandel. She told our waiter that people can really “wrap their minds around” the flavors of the duck and the Zinfandel together. This woman clearly has a passion for wine and knows her stuff. We heard her talk to a few tables about their wine choices and she was knowledgeable, warm and friendly. Her recommendation worked for Win too; he loved the Zinfandel with the duck.

Our dessert was another highlight of the evening. Unfortunately, I don’t have the formal name for this dessert written down and can only scratch the surface of what delicious ingredients it contained. The dessert was shaped like little chocolate cigarettes and had cigarettes in its official name. We can’t remember what the cigarettes were filled with, but it was outrageously good. A special chocolate sauce sprinkled with pomegranate seeds surrounded the cigarettes. In my mind, the absolutely best part of this dessert was the scoop of banana sour cream ice cream atop it. This ice cream was amazing and definitely in the top five of ice creams I have ever experienced. It was so full of sweet, pure banana flavor and so rich without being overly sweet or fatty. Absolutely decadent and such a great way to end our meal.

We loved Topolobampo. The staff there deserves high praise for striking exactly the right balance of formality, professionalism, and knowledge mingled with a passion for food, friendly service, and a down-to-Earth sensibility. Any question that we asked of our waiter was answered really competently and it was clear that he understood the menu inside and out and was able to make recommendations tailored to what we liked. The restaurant’s atmosphere is beautiful and the food presentation delightful. Each dish we sampled was a treat and I’d highly recommend Topolobampo for a fresh, unique Mexican experience.

Topolobampo
445 North Clark
Chicago, Illinois
USA
Telephone: 312-661-1434
Web Site: http://www.fronterakitchens.com

Chicken Soup with Jasmine Rice and Ginger

2005-02-22T13:10:00.000-06:00

Last week, I dove headfirst into the March 2005 edition of Food & Wine and cooked three dishes from the pages of that issue. First there was the Citrus Risotto with Seared Garlic-Chile Shrimp, then there was the Clay Pot Ginger Chicken. The third recipe I tried is Chicken Soup with Jasmine Rice and Ginger. Similar ingredients and flavors to the Clay Pot Ginger Chicken, but this time the flavors take hold in a mellower soup.

I love this soup, It’s incredibly easy to make and the end result is a fragrant and flavorful broth, with just the right amount of chicken and rice.

Chicken Soup with Jasmine Rice and Ginger
Adapted from the March 2005 issue of Food & Wine
Serves 4

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon jasmine rice, rinsed
4 cups water
1 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
3 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
½ cup shredded cooked chicken
2 scallions, thinly sliced crosswise (note: I omitted these)
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro

1. In a large saucepan, cover rice with the water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the rice is tender, about 25 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cut the piece of ginger into slivers.
3. Add the chicken stock, fish sauce, salt and sugar to the rice. Bring to a simmer and continue cooking over low heat for 10 minutes. Stir in the ginger and let simmer for 10 minutes longer.
4. Ladle the soup into shallow bowls, garnish with shredded chicken, sliced scallions (unless you are me and hate scallions), chopped cilantro and serve.

This soup is very healthy and low calorie. One serving has just 128 calories and 3 grams of fat. It’s soothing, simple and delicious.

Next time At Our Table: Topolobampo!

Fun with Fondue: Dinner at the Melting Pot

2005-02-21T13:13:00.000-06:00

A couple weeks ago, Win and I went to The Melting Pot for dinner. As I’ve mentioned before, I love The Melting Pot. It’s a terrific place to have a long, leisurely fondue experience.

Since I’ve written about The Melting Pot before, I’ll keep the descriptions of the dining experience there somewhat brief this time around.

We started with the Traditional Swiss Cheese Fondue, which is Gruyere and Emmenthaler Swiss chesses blended with white wine, garlic, fresh lemon, nutmeg and Kirschwasser. The cheese fondue is accompanied by an assortment of breads, vegetables and green apples to dip into the warm cheese. This is always my favorite course; I love their cheese fondue. It's heaven.

Next we had a California Salad. No photos of the salad because as tasty as it was, it was just a salad. Let’s move on to more fondue!

Next was the main event. We ordered the “Big Night Out.” This included lobster tails, filet mignon, pork tenderloin, salmon, shrimp and vegetables. We selected the Coq au Vin cooking style and dipped all this delicious meat and seafood into a broth of Burgundy wine, garlic, mushrooms, and other herbs and spices. This course was also accompanied by an array of dipping sauces to enhance the flavor of each bite.

Despite being pretty full, we did sample Melting Pot’s dessert fondue as well. We tried their Cookies ‘N Cream Marshmallow Dream, which was dark chocolate topped with marshmallow and then flambéed to toast the marshmallow. After the flambee step, the chocolate and marshmallow are swirled together and topped with crushed Oreo cookies. This decadent dessert fondue was served with all sorts of fresh fruit, cheesecake, brownies, and marshmallows. Yum---so, so good!

The Melting Pot is terrific and serves high quality food in a warm and relaxed atmosphere. My only issue with the Chicago location is that its servers still sound very scripted when presenting the menu options and explaining how the fondue process works. The staff comes off very professional and they clearly have memorized their lines, but if I had one piece of advice to share with them it would be to just loosen up a little and make the script you have memorized your own. Don't get me wrong---I'm absolutely in favor of being professional, polished, and able to recite everything on the menu and they do an excellent job with that. I'd just like to see some of the servers there be a bit less "robotic" when presenting the food. This restaurant has only been open for a few months though and I expect the waitstaff to loosen up a little, if Melting Pot corporate policy allows, with time and experience.

The Melting Pot is a wonderful place to go when you’re looking for a more “participative” dining experience. Delicious, delicious fondue from start to finish.

The Melting Pot
609 N. Dearborn
Chicago, IL 60610
USA
Telephone: (312) 573-0011

Clay Pot Ginger Chicken (Minus the Clay Pot)

2005-02-17T13:18:00.000-06:00

The March 2005 issue of Food & Wine struck a chord with me and I’ve found myself trying a lot of their featured recipes this week. Here is one for Clay Pot Ginger Chicken. According to the Food & Wine article, fragile clay pots cook food slowly over low heat, helping to bring out flavor without the addition of a lot of extra fat. As such, clay pots are helpful tools for creating delicious and healthy meals.

Well, I don’t have a clay pot and I really wanted to try this dish. Fortunately, the recipe made it clear that you could also cook this ginger chicken in a heavy saucepan or casserole.

Clay Pot Ginger Chicken
Adapted from Food & Wine, March 2005
Serves 4
Total Prep Time: 35-40 minutes

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons sugar
1/3 plus ¼ cup hot water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 4-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into slivers
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 3-by-1-inch pieces
1.5 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
¼ teaspoon salt
1 small onion, cut into thin wedges
2 scallions, cut into 2-inch lengths
6 cilantro sprigs, cut into 1-inch lengths

1. In a small saucepan, cook 2 tablespoons of the sugar over moderate heat until bubbling, about 4 minutes. Gradually stir in 1/3 cup of the hot water and simmer for 3 minutes to dissolve the caramel. Remove from the heat.
2. Heat the oil in a medium Chinese clay pot or in a casserole. Add the chiles, garlic and ginger and stir-fry over moderate heat about 20 seconds. Add the chicken, fish sauce, salt, and the remaining 2 teaspoons of sugar and stir until the chicken turns white, 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add the onion wedges, the remaining ¼ cup of hot water, and the caramel sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce thickens a bit, roughly 8 minutes. Add the scallions and cook for 3 minutes longer.

4. Remove pot from heat, add cilantro to garnish and serve.

I served the ginger chicken over jasmine rice and was pleased with how they complemented each other.

I loved the flavors of this dish. The ginger is so fragrant and fresh and the whole meal feels healthy but satisfying. My one issue with this meal (and I knew this going in) is that I prefer white chicken meat. For me, thighs are ok, but upon tasting this dish I just knew I would have loved it even more if I had used chicken breasts instead of the thighs.

Win, on the other hand, loves dark meat and he raved about the dish. He agreed that the flavors in the sauce were outstanding and he thought the chicken thighs were excellent. So this ginger chicken really is delicious and got rave reviews; my personal preferences would just have me use breasts next time.

This would be a nice meal to make when you’re feeling tired, worn out or in need of some detoxification. It’s easy to prepare and the end result is really tasty, healthy, and almost has a "cleansing" quality to it.

Citrus Risotto with Seared Garlic-Chile Shrimp

2005-02-15T13:49:00.000-06:00

I made an amazing new dish yesterday: Citrus Risotto with Seared Garlic-Chile Shrimp. This delicious creation was featured in the March 2005 issue of Food & Wine and the minute I saw it I knew I had to try it.

This is an outrageously good dish as long as you like spicy food. If you can’t handle or just don’t like spicy food, then definitely reduce the amount of chiles used or perhaps tweak the dish and see how you like it with other herbs or something more mild.

Citrus Risotto with Seared Garlic-Chile Shrimp
Adapted from Food & Wine, March 2005
Recipe from Chef Bill Granger of Australia
Serves 4
Total Time: 1 hour

2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 small red Thai chiles, chopped (use a milder chile like jalapeno or serrano if you prefer)
6 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, minced
1.5 cups Arborio rice
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1.5 teaspoons grated lemon zest
salt and freshly ground pepper
½ pound medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
¼ cup chopped flat leaf parsley
lemon wedges, for serving

1. In a mortar, pound the garlic and chiles to make a paste. Cover and set aside.

2. In a large saucepan, bring the stock to a boil. Cover and keep hot.

3. In a different large saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the arborio rice and cook, stirring, for one minute. Gradually add the stock, one cup at a time, stirring constantly and making sure all the stock has been absorbed before adding more.

The original recipe says this will take 25 minutes, but my rice took 40 minutes to completely soak up the stock. The risotto is done when the grains are tender and the sauce is creamy. Remove risotto from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and zest and the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Season with salt and pepper and cover. Here’s how mine looked at this stage:

4. In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the shrimp, season with salt and pepper and cook over high heat until the shrimp are almost pink throughout, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic-chile paste and cook, stirring, for one minute. Stir in the parsley.

5. Spoon the risotto into bowls and top with the shrimp. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

Honestly, you must try this dish if these kinds of flavors appeal to you. It is so, so good. The citrus risotto is creamy and rich, but the lemon juice and zest also provide it with a clean, fresh edge that prevents it from being too heavy. The shrimp practically burst with flavor in your mouth. While not for the spice-shy, the garlic-chile paste on the shrimp is wonderful. The combination of mellow, rich risotto and spicy shrimp works so well together. I love this recipe!

If you’re a regular reader, you know that I often try and share recipes that can be done quickly and easily. While this dish is easy to make, it should be noted that 40 minutes of constant risotto stirring is something that needs to be planned in to your schedule. (I did it while our Lima Bean was napping.) The effort is absolutely worth it though.

Next time At Our Table: I'm in the mood for ginger

Chicken Salad with Green Grapes and Toasted Almonds

2005-02-13T20:21:00.000-06:00

Here's a terrific chicken salad recipe that's been a hit with my guests each time I have served it. The original recipe comes from allrecipes.com and was submitted by a woman named Becky Riley. I like Becky's fresh take on chicken salad and have just modified her recipe a tiny bit to meet my own preferences.

Chicken Salad with Green Grapes and Toasted Almonds
Adapted from Becky's Chicken Salad recipe on allrecipes.com
Serves 10
Total Time to Prepare: 30 minutes at most

2.5 cups of cooked chicken meat, chopped and chilled
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup green seedless grapes, sliced
1/2 cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted
4 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mayonnaise (if you generally prefer to go lighter on mayo, just use 3/4 cup and it'll be fine)
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1. In a medium bowl, whip cream until it forms soft peaks.

2. Combine chicken, celery, grapes, almonds, parsley, salt, and mayonnaise with whipped cream. Mix thoroughly and chill.

I like to serve this chicken salad on a hearty wheat or whole grain bread, often toasted. It's a great dish to serve for a casual lunch because it is quick and easy to prepare and can be made well in advance of your guests' arrival. My friends and family have all found the chicken salad to be really tasty and they like how the subtle sweetness of the grapes, the crunch of the celery and the warm smokiness of the toasted almond slices works with the chicken. It's a nice twist on a classic.

Ingredient Improvisation Gone Totally Wrong

2005-02-10T20:20:00.000-06:00

I love sharing recipes, restaurant reviews and ideas about food with you. When I make a dish and it comes out great, I'm hopeful that a few of you will try it and enjoy it as much as I did. When I try a new restaurant and write about the excellent food, I hope that perhaps a few of my readers might venture out to give that restaurant a go too. So with most of my posts I'm excited about sharing a delicious experience with you.

Not this time. Whatever you do, do not recreate this dish at home. This meal was very, very bad. Here's what happened:

We didn't have big plans for Super Bowl Sunday. After the Lima Bean was tucked in bed, Win sat down with a big bowl of popcorn and was planning on making that his game-watching dinner. (We had eaten kind of a large lunch that day) While I didn't need anything huge, I did feel like more of a "real" dinner, so I headed to the fridge to see what I might find.

I love it when I improvise and come up with something really delicious, just by throwing some different ingredients together. This is not an innate skill for me; I've traditionally been a recipe follower and I trust the expert chefs to decide what ingredients taste best with what others. Over time and with experience, however, I've gotten better and bolder with kitchen improvisation.

So emboldened by some recent successes, I peered into the fridge and decided to make a quesadilla from:

-2 flour tortillas
-shredded Asiago cheese
-1 stick of string cheese that was mozzarella and cheddar swirled together
-1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
-parsley

OK, looking back on this ingredients list now, it's obvious that this is going to be nasty. But at the time, I was full of hope and optimism and thought that maybe I was about to create something magical while also using up odds and ends from my refrigerator.

The quesadilla was disgusting. Asiago cheese really doesn't work in a quesadilla and the fake, rubbery string cheese did nothing to help the situation. You may remember that I used chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for my Queso Fundido recipe a couple weeks back. The peppers were outstanding in that dish, so I figured they'd be great with the quesadilla. Earth to Linda...think about the pepper to cheese ratio when using exceptionally hot peppers! The queso fundido mixed 2 chipotle peppers with 8 ounces of cheese and loads of other ingredients to cool the heat a bit. I mixed one chipotle pepper with barely an ounce of cheese. Mouth on fire!

So we have mismatched, rubbery cheese and flaming hot peppers. For the final touch I threw in some parsley because hey, it adds some nice touches of color throughout and maybe it would add a little freshness. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The parsley just sat there mocking me "I really should be cilantro, but no, I'm parsley."

I'm not one to waste food but this quesadilla had to be dealt with forcefully. Thus, after a few horrible bites, it was sent to its final resting place.

Remember, you have a warning. This dish was very, very bad so never try this at home.

Next time on At Our Table: A unique twist on an old favorite (and I promise it'll be good this time!)

Who Do You Think Should Cook for George and Laura?

2005-02-09T20:10:00.000-06:00

Have you heard that the White House is looking for a new Executive Chef? Current executive chef Walter Scheib is leaving after nearly 11 years of service and the search is on for his replacement. You can read more about the history of the White House chef position here.

Juliette Rossant of superchefblog has an interesting idea. Why not have top American chefs co-cook for state dinners---one guest chef per dinner? I think it's a really unique and fun concept and Juliette set up a way for you to Vote for White House Guest Chefs on her blog.

So, foodies, just click the link and cast your vote.

Next time on At Our Table: This dish was bad. Very, very bad.

*Flag photo courtesy of Free Photos and Clipart.

Now My Neighbor Can Stop Yelling at Me: Dinner at Roseangelis

2005-02-08T06:51:00.000-06:00

When we moved to Chicago a couple years ago, one of our neighbors took an immediate interest in telling us about the city and recommending places to eat and shop. Her favorite Italian restaurant in the city is Roseangelis and from very early on in our relationship she was encouraging us to go there.

Well, people get busy, other restaurants come up, and a year passed without us trying Roseangelis. Our neighbor scolded us for missing out on such great Italian food. Win and I really did want to try it, but we heard that they can have very long waits and our Lima Bean isn't usually able to cope with long, drawn-out waits for her dinner. So more months passed and our neighbor continued to chide us whenever the subject came up.

Finally, after close to two years of living in Chicago, we made it to Roseangelis and I'm glad we did. Roseangelis is an unassuming Italian restaurant, tucked away on a quiet residential street. Hidden behind its low-key facade, however, is some really quality food.

For my appetizer, I ordered the Pizza del Giorno pictured above. That day's creation was a delicious pie topped with artichokes, mushrooms, olives, shredded cheese, fresh tomato and loads of other delicious vegetables. While it was billed as an appetizer, it was quite large and we ended up taking a lot of it home with us. The flavors were great and the thin crust was delicious.

As his appetizer, Win ordered the Panzarotti con Pesto e Gorgonzola which is sauteed cheese ravioli served with a pesto gorgonzola dipping sauce. Perhaps you can see a bit of it behind the pizza in the photo above. While the pizza was excellent, this panzarotti was amazing. The pesto gorgonzola dipping sauce was really rich and flavorful. I think we'd both highly recommend this appetizer.

For my main course, I ordered Raviolini alla Maria, which was salmon-filled raviolini in a basil pesto cream sauce with chopped kalamata olives. Check out the photo below. Yes, this dish is as rich and creamy as it looks in the photo. The salmon flavor came through nicely and wasn't overwhelmed by the pesto. The raviolini had a terrific blend of textures and flavors and was so, so rich that I ended up taking most of that home too.

Win ordered the Pollo al Vesuvio for his entree. This dish is roast chicken, cooked with wine, lemon, herbs and other seasonings to make it tender and flavorful. Oddly enough, it was the only dish on the menu that required any special length of time to prepare. Boring old roast chicken? Needing extra time? Pollo al Vesuvio required 45 minutes because they slow roast the chicken and use the time to allow the flavors to seep in thoroughly. Remember how I mentioned that our Lima Bean can't tolerate long waits for dinner? Well, she wasn't with us this time around (thanks to my parents being in town and babysitting for us) so Win decided to live it up and order the Vesuvio.

This chicken was really special. Moist, tender, and perfectly roasted with wonderful flavor. It was worth the wait.

Roseangelis' portions are large, so as I mentioned above, we did end up taking quite a bit of food home with us. As such, we passed on dessert. Their dessert menu looked good, but we were simply too full.

Roseangelis is known for excellent food and long waits during peak hours. They apparently don't take reservations. The night we went we were seated immediately and didn't have any wait, but most of the tables in the restaurant were constantly full and the restaurant was doing a booming business that evening.

I'm happy we finally listened to our neighbor and checked out Roseangelis. It's a charming neighborhood Italian place with helpful, friendly service and delicious food. Don't wait as long as we did to try it.

Roseangelis
1314 W. Wrightwood
Chicago, IL
USA
Telephone: 773-296-0081
Web Site: http://www.roseangelis.com

1000 Recipes Hits Chicago

2005-02-06T06:42:00.000-06:00

I'm pleased to report that I'm the proud holder of Book 11 in the 1000 Recipes series! It landed At Our Table a few days ago and I'm busily at work adding my contribution to this project.

1000 Recipes is the brainstorm of Santos, who also writes The Scent of Green Bananas and other blogs. Click here to read more about her inspiration for this project and to find out how to participate. It's a lovely idea; people from around the world sharing recipes in these journals and passing them on.

I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with! I'll soon send the book off to Coco in San Francisco and then it's on to Alice of Temple City, CA, Hana from the kitchen crusader in Greenboro AL, Barbara from San Venanza, Italy, Melanie of Forest Hills, NY, Patrick from pdbd.com in Oakland, CA, Joanne of Wellington NZ, Laura from Malden, MA, Valerie from Flying Fur in Middletown, NJ, Pat from Quakertown, NJ and finally Keiko in Suffolk, England.

#11 coming to San Francisco soon, Coco!

Next time in At Our Table: Now my neighbor can stop yelling at me

Provencal Chicken, Artichoke and Olive Pasta

2005-02-04T06:32:00.000-06:00

About 4 years ago, Win and I took a trip to Nova Scotia, a beautiful and charming destination I highly recommend. While on the trip, I picked up a copy of a Canadian magazine called Chatelaine. It was a great issue and inside I found one of my all-time favorite pasta recipes: Provencal Chicken, Artichoke and Olive Pasta. This dish is easy, versatile, and it has been a big hit every time I’ve served it.

Provencal Chicken, Artichoke and Olive Pasta
Adapted from recipe found in Chatelaine magazine, September 2001
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Serves 6
411 calories per serving

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 small onion
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 large fresh tomatoes or 1 28-oz can drained plum tomatoes (either fresh or canned work fine)
1 teaspoon dried basil
6-oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, well-drained
½ cup pitted kalamata olives
1 pound short pasta, such as penne or rotini (I always use penne)
½ cup chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

1. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Finely chop onion. Heat oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat. Add chicken, onion and garlic. Stir occasionally until chicken is golden. This should take about 4 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, core and coarsely chop fresh tomatoes and add to chicken along with any juice. Or stir in drained canned tomatoes, breaking them up with a spoon. (Note: It’s fine to use either; canned works just as well)
3. Add basil, artichokes and olives then bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened a bit. This should take about 10 minutes.
4. While you are prepping the sauce and vegetables, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook, uncovered, according to package directions. Drain well. If the pan containing your sauce is large enough, add drained pasta directly to sauce with parsley, salt and pepper. Stir to coat all pasta with sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan.

This pasta is really delicious. If you have some gorgeous fresh tomatoes in peak season, then use them. If you don’t have access to excellent fresh tomatoes at the time, then use canned without any hesitation. I have made this pasta both ways and they both work fine.

This won’t be pasta dripping in sauce. Rather, it’s lightly coated with the tomato sauce and accented by the bold flavors of artichoke, olive, onion and garlic. The amount of chicken doesn’t seem like much, but it’s actually just right with this dish.

I’ve served this dish to parents, in-laws, friends, and co-workers and they all have loved it. It’s easily transported to parties and reheats well, if needed (just remember to add the fresh parsley after reheating if that is your intention). While I usually serve it as an entrée, it also works well as a hearty side dish.

So delicious and easy, it’s a winner every time. I hope you think so too.

Next time: 1000 Recipes comes to Chicago

The Chocolate Buffet at The Peninsula Hotel

2005-02-02T21:30:00.001-06:00

My parents celebrated their 35th anniversary when they were in town last week. I figured that 35 years warranted a special celebration and hoped to plan something a little bit unique for them. I chose the Chocolate Buffet at the Peninsula Hotel for an evening out.

In my mind, The Peninsula is one of Chicago’s most beautiful hotels. It’s stately and ornate without being gaudy and the staff makes you feel special and well-cared-for from the minute you walk in. Each week, the Peninsula hosts a chocolate buffet in their lobby lounge. The lounge is beautiful, with lovely décor and large windows providing a sweeping view of Chicago’s skyline. The tables are decorated with fresh orchids and beautiful candles. Completing the glamorous setting are a terrific singer and jazz trio that do several sets of classic ballads and jazz tunes throughout the evening.

Now that you have a sense for the setting, we can get serious and talk about the chocolate. As you can see from the photos here, the Peninsula puts out an elaborate buffet of chocolate desserts on a beautiful candle and flower adorned table. Each of the desserts is petite, which is helpful because you’ll want to sample them all. The desserts range from the richest chocolate concoctions you’d ever think of to more simple treats like biscotti with a subtle hint of chocolate. As such, there’s really something for everyone here.

Our group enjoyed chocolate crème brulee, chocolate mousse, chocolate covered espresso beans, rich brownies, delicious white and dark chocolate cookies, petit fours, chocolate-covered strawberries, chocolate chip muffins, and many other bite-sized chocolate baked goods. In addition to the desserts, there are two urns of hot chocolate. One is a milk chocolate that is so thick and rich it is almost like pouring pure melted chocolate into your cup. It is amazing and unlike anything I have ever had. A small cup will do though because it is truly one of the richest drinks you will ever taste. The second kind of hot chocolate was a white hot chocolate that had a more fruity taste. It was much less rich than the milk chocolate one and it had a totally unique fruit/floral flavor.

My favorite things on the chocolate buffet were the hot chocolates. So unique and so delicious, I couldn’t stop with just one cup of each. I had to go on to a third cup to get another taste of the white chocolate drink. The only item I found disappointing on the buffet were the chocolate chip muffins. They were fine, but that’s all. Nothing too unique or special about them. So I recommended that my table skip the muffins and focus their eating elsewhere, saving the calories for the truly delectable goodies.

My parents loved the whole experience. My Dad, a huge jazz fan, especially enjoyed the music, and that added an additional layer of special entertainment to the evening. I was really pleased with our night out too. While the Peninsula itself can be pricey, their Chocolate Buffet is actually relatively reasonably priced given the wide array of delicious treats you can choose from, the beautiful setting in which to enjoy them, and the live music. The Chocolate Buffet is a very unique way to spend an evening and the Peninsula Hotel provides an elegant backdrop.

The Chocolate Buffet at The Peninsula Hotel
108 East Superior Street
Chicago, IL 60611
USA
Telephone: 312-337-2888
Web Site: http://chicago.peninsula.com/index.shtml

*Reservations recommended; call in advance to find out what days the Chocolate Buffet is available.

Next time: One of my favorite pasta dishes---Easy but delicious, it's always a winner.

Feeling inspired? Check out these chocolate recipes.

Big Burgers, Small Snowmen, and The Dish

2005-02-01T20:51:00.000-06:00

A few days have gone by between posts because my parents were in town for a visit. It was wonderful to see them and they of course love to see the Lima Bean. In addition to being fun to have around, they always thrill us by offering Win and I the chance to go out and take advantage of their free babysitting services when they are in town.

So on an afternoon outing, sans Lima, Win ordered the hamburger above at The Cheesecake Factory. It's two patties topped with bacon, cheese, barbeque sauce and onion rings. When the burger arrived, the people next to us actually asked if ordering this monster was part of a bet or something. It wasn't; I think it was just a sign of Win being happy to have a free afternoon on the town. Since the burger is bigger than our first apartment was, Win made a small, but reasonable dent in it and the rest remains in our fridge awaiting round two.

While we were out, my parents made a tiny snowman with Lima. I guess they decided that it should be scaled down to match her 21-month old frame or something. Check out the diminutive little fellow below. It cracked me up to find this waiting on our sidewalk.

Due to being a bit off schedule with my parents' visit, I've been terribly remiss in welcoming some new readers from Chicago Magazine's Dish column. At Our Table was mentioned in the January 20 edition of Dish and since then I've gotten lots of new readers checking out the site. Welcome to any new readers and please feel free to sign up for e-mail alerts on new posts by joining my update list. Simply provide your e-mail in the Notify List box on the lefthand side of the page and I'll send you an alert every time At Our Table is updated.

Thanks to Chicago Magazine's Dish for the mention. Dish is a fun, interesting and informative guide to goings on in Chicago's food scene. It's a free weekly e-newsletter that's worth checking out if you are not already subscribed. For this week's column, click here and see subscription information at the bottom.

So now I'm back and will have some more posts soon. Stay tuned for a great pasta recipe with a French flair, a review of another wonderful neighborhood Italian restaurant, and a recap of my night at a chocolate buffet. All coming soon!

Apple, Pear and Cranberry Crisp

2005-01-29T05:50:00.000-06:00

This feels like the right kind of weather to make a warm apple crisp. I wanted to try a new recipe for this old favorite, so I looked around the web for some ideas. I was pleased to find a recipe for Apple, Pear and Cranberry Crisp on allrecipes.com. This crisp came out very well...so well that by the end of the day there was barely any left in the pan!

Apple, Pear and Cranberry Crisp
Adapted from recipe seen on allrecipes.com
Serves 6-8
Total time needed: One hour

2 apples - peeled, cored, and cubed
2 pears - peeled, cored, and cubed
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup butter

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease an 8 inch baking dish.
Mix the apples, pears, cranberries, 1 tablespoon flour, honey, and lemon juice in the prepared dish.

2. In a bowl, mix 1/2 cup flour, brown sugar, oats, walnuts, and butter to the consistency of coarse crumbs. Sprinkle loosely over the fruit mixture. Here's how mine looked at this stage:

3. Bake 45 minutes or until brown and crisp on top. This is what mine looked like emerging from the oven:

This apple, pear and cranberry crisp is absolutely delicious and I love the combination of the three fruits. It's a nice twist on the traditional apple crisp. This is also extremely easy to make. In fact, I made it with our Lima Bean "helping me"and even her little 21-month-old self could patiently hang in there during the prep work and clean up. I think she could tell the tasty end result would be worth her efforts.

A Snowy Night's Journey to Cafe Matou

2005-01-26T21:29:00.000-06:00

Chicago got a lot of snow last weekend, as you can see from this photo of my porch. We had made plans to try Cafe Matou and were looking forward to going, so no amount of snow and slush could keep us away. On went the coats, hats and boots, and off we went for French food.

Cafe Matou is a cozy neighborhood restaurant. When you open the door, you are welcomed into a lovely bar area and then for dinner you are ushered into a second room, painted in warm colors with lovely lighting and artwork. The menu is French, but with a twist...several dishes had flavors or cooking styles that I wouldn't have expected at a strictly French place. As Bon Appetit, The Chicago Tribune, Chicago Magazine and others have noted, this works at Cafe Matou.

For our appetizers, Win ordered the escargot served with a garlic and herb-basted bread . I had a pasta with roast goose, Jerusalem artichokes, and kalamata jus. The escargot was excellent. My pasta was really delicious, but I personally found the goose to be...well...a bit too goosey for me. This is no reflection on Cafe Matou's goose, rather an indication that I am just not that big of a goose fan. I hadn't had goose before so I wanted to give it a try and now I know it's not for me. Win, on the other hand, adored the goose in the pasta so we traded appetizers mid-course. Both the escargot and the pasta were winners (once we found the right home for the pasta).

For my entree, I ordered a dish of peppered bluefin tuna and grilled shrimp, served in a citrus butter sauce with sesame seeds. I think I have mentioned before that I am always a little nervous to order tuna at restaurants because I just don't care for ultra-rare tuna and I know that is often how chefs like to prepare it. Cafe Matou cooked this one beautifully; it was cooked just enough around the edges and then nicely pink and more rare in the center. The citrus butter sauce was outstanding.

You'll also notice in the photo above that we had a bottle of hard cider with our dinner, served in charming cider cups. It was quite dry and the right kind of spirit for a cold and snowy night.

Win ordered the Poulet rôti en crapaudine for his entree, which was chicken stuffed under the skin with a panade of butter, tarragon, garlic, onion, and cognac. Normally Win would never order chicken out at a restaurant. It's something we cook at home all the time and it just doesn't seem that unique. But he had heard and read excellent things about this specific chicken and he was interested in trying it. He loved it; it was delicious and the herbs flavored the chicken beautifully.

For dessert, I selected the chocolate and banana bread pudding and Win chose the profiteroles. Win really enjoyed the profiteroles, but I must say my bread pudding was even better. It completely exceeded my expectations when I took the first bite by being intensely banana flavored and just the right consistency. This ended up being an even better dessert than I had thought it would be.

When we had finished our meal, we walked to the front bar and asked the manager if he could call us a taxi. The snow was deep and it was freezing, so a quick taxi home sounded much better than a long and snowy slog on foot. The manager said he'd try, but that Cafe Matou had been having a hard time getting the cab companies on the phone and that cabs often don't service their neighborhood (which seems quite odd, because it's a fine part of town). A nice man at the bar overheard our conversation and offered to drive us home. We were surprised by his kind offer and declined, thinking that we'd definitely be able to round up a taxi. After a few minutes of trying, things didn't look good and the man at the bar repeated his offer. Turns out, he's the boyfriend of a Cafe Matou waitress and he was sitting there waiting for his girlfriend's shift to end. He offers patrons rides home all the time when they find themselves in a similar cab bind. As we stood there pondering whether or not to take a ride from a total stranger, the manager and the bartender both said "He does this all the time for people; we don't know why, but he does." So with that endorsement, we hopped into his car.

The kind man's name is Jeremiah and he gave us a ride all the way home and wouldn't accept any money. We had a great chat on our drive and couldn't thank him enough for his kindness. When we repeatedly offered to pay him something for his trouble, he said "Just come back to Cafe Matou again sometime."

We will. Cafe Matou is an intimate place with an interesting menu of well-prepared French dishes. It made for a special night out.

Cafe Matou
1846 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
USA
Telephone: 773-384-8911
Web Site: http://www.cafematou.com

Lima Cheers!

2005-01-25T06:09:00.000-06:00

Our Lima Bean just turned 21 months old. It’s been a few weeks since I did a Lima update, so I wanted to share a quick story about one of her latest developments.

Several months ago, we taught Lima how to clink glasses and say “cheers” when we were out at restaurants. She caught on to it immediately and loved to see our happy reaction every time she extended her sippy cup towards us. So toasting became a very common occurrence at our meals out, with Lima “cheersing” every glass of water, Coke, tea, wine or beer that happened by.

Lately, Lima has taken her cheers routine one step further. She’s now adapted the cheers concept to the world beyond beverages. Whenever she and someone else are wearing the same thing or behaving in the same or similar way, she now feels the need to declare a cheers. So for example, when I put on my apron to cook, she runs into her room, grabs her apron and has me put it on her. Once it’s on her, she says “Apron Cheers!” and then she bangs her little apron-clad tummy against mine. If I get out a broom to sweep the kitchen floor, she grabs her mini-Swiffer duster and yells “Duster Cheers!”. Then she taps her duster against my broom and gets to work “dusting.” When she puts on her undershirt in the morning, she takes great pride in declaring “Undershirt Cheers!” and hunting down Win so that the two of them can bang stomachs, like a clinking of the glasses in a traditional toast. If she catches you in the bathroom brushing your teeth, she’ll want to whip out her tiny toothbrush and brush too, but only after issuing a “Toothbrush Cheers!” and clinking brushes with you, of course.

So pretty much anytime you are doing or wearing something similar to Lima, you get a cheers. It’s really quite festive and I must say that I like the happy little ritual she’s developed for us. It makes all of the everyday chores and obligations much sweeter.

Next time: We met an angel at Cafe Matou

IMBB 11: White Bean Risotto

2005-01-23T12:21:00.000-06:00

It's time for this month's edition of "Is My Blog Burning?," kindly hosted by Cathy of My Little Kitchen. For this eleventh installment of IMBB, Cathy selected beans as her theme. When thinking about what I could make with beans, I remembered that I had some arborio rice in my pantry that was just begging to be used. So I decided to make a White Bean Risotto. This dish is quite simple and relatively fast to prepare, yet the end result tastes rich and sophisticated.

White Bean Risotto
Adapted from white bean risotto recipe seen on Cooking Couple.com
Serves 4-6

1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large tomato, chopped
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
28 ounces chicken broth
1 (16-ounce) can white beans (I used Great Northern but other kinds would work well too)
1/3 cup freshly grated Asiago cheese (Parmesan would also work well here)
Fresh or dried mixed herbs to taste (I used a bit of dried oregano, dried basil, and fresh thyme)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Coat a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Saute onion until translucent. This should take about 5 minutes at most. Add garlic and tomato and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

2. Stir in arborio rice and cook for another minute. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat to simmer and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until broth is absorbed and rice is tender. This will take between 25 and 35 minutes. Stir in white beans, cheese, herbs, salt and pepper. Cook until all ingredients are hot, probably an extra one or two minutes.

4. Taste the risotto. How's the flavor? I haven't given exact herb measurements here because I think it's very important for you to add whatever herbs you would like and in whatever amounts you find pleasing. Start with small quantities and add more as needed and you'll be fine.

I have only made risotto a few times and this was my first try with a white bean risotto. It came out quite well and is rich with flavor. If you haven't made risotto before, give a risotto recipe a try. It's actually quite a bit easier than you'd think and the end result is a delicious, flavorful, and comforting meal for a winter night.

Thanks to Cathy at My Little Kitchen for hosting this month's IMBB event and choosing a theme that let me explore something new.

Related Entry on Beans: If you like beans, check out the recipe I made a few weeks ago for Mock Deep-Fried Chick Peas. This recipe, from Shape magazine, makes a relatively healthy, nutritious and definitely delicious snack. Feedback on this dish has been great, so I wanted to be sure to highlight it in my archives for bean lovers or anyone looking for a new, healthy snack.

Queso Fundido with Bacon and Chipotles

2005-01-21T20:43:00.000-06:00

Last week we received our second shipment from the Grateful Palate Bacon of the Month Club. This month's bacon is New Braunfels Pepper Bacon. According to the Grateful Palate literature, New Braunfels Smokehouse is a family-owned company which opened for business in 1943. The town of New Braunfels is located between Austin and San Antonio in Texas and it has a long history of German residents with expertise in curing meats. The expertise comes through with this particular bacon...it's really lean and the pepper on it gives it amazing flavor.

With this bacon shipment, we also received a recipe for Queso Fundido with Bacon and Chipotles. We love queso fundido but hadn't made it at home before, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity.

Queso Fundido with Bacon and Chipotles
Recipe based on the one provided by the Grateful Palate
Serves 4 appetizer-sized portions or 2 entree-sized portions

4 ounces sliced bacon
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 to 2 chipotle chilies in adobo sauce, chopped (see note below)
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, grated
4 corn tortillas
1 teaspoon dried oregano

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a pan over medium heat, fry the bacon until crisp. Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and drain the grease from the pan.

2. Add the olive oil to the pan. Then add the onion and cook, stirring it until browned. This will take about 5 minutes. Add the chipotle chilies and stir to combine.

3. Place the cheese in a gratin dish and crumble in the bacon. Stir in the onion and chipotle mixture.

4. Lightly brush the tortillas with water, wrap them in foil, and place them in the oven to warm. At the same time, place the gratin dish in the oven and heat until the cheese is melted, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven and garnish with oregano. Serve immediately with the warmed tortillas.

This is a delicious dish for those who love spicy flavor and don't mind an occassional meal with a high fat content. The cheese provided a smooth, creamy backdrop for the spicy chipotle chilies and the sharp pepper bacon. In addition to a nice mix of flavors, this dish also has pleasant textural contrasts...soft cheese, tender onions and chilies, and crispy bacon.

As an aside, this recipe introduced me to chipotle chilies in adobo sauce. I have eaten chipotle peppers before, and I had heard of adobo sauce, but I never knew a product existed that was specifically Chipotle Chilies in Adobo Sauce. You can find these in the Mexican or Ethnic Foods section at your grocery store. My store did have them, but I had to look long and hard on the shelves to finally track them down. Here's a photo of the ones I found to assist you with your search, if these happen to be new to you as well.

So this Queso Fundido was great as a meal and would probably be even better as a prelude to some other terrific Mexican dishes. Best with margaritas or a Corona.

Next time: It's time for this month's "Is My Blog Burning?" event. Beans is the theme and I have an easy yet sophisticated recipe in mind.

Who Knew Duck Corn Dogs Could Be So Good?: Dinner at Viand

2005-01-19T22:07:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, Win and I had dinner at Viand Bar & Kitchen, a terrific place in downtown Chicago. Win has walked past Viand a number of times and been curious about it, but for one reason or another we hadn't tried it yet. I loved our dinner there and I am thrilled that we finally stopped in and tried it.

Viand's interior has a clean, sleek, Art Deco feel. The photo above is of the front of their kitchen and it just gives a hint of Viand's style. The setting is comfortable, relaxed and warm while also quite stylish.

Upon arriving at Viand, we were greeted by some of the most friendly and competent staff I've met lately. The hostess was very sweet and our waiter, Dennis, was superb. Dennis was that excellent combination of friendly, knowledgeable, and efficient without ever making us feel rushed. He knew the menu inside and out and was able to make terrific recommendations on some dishes and share candid thoughts about why he didn't personally care for one or two others. I'm delighted that I listened to one of his suggestions because it was absolutely delicious.

As Dennis mentioned when we were seated, Viand is a Latin word meaning "a morsel of food" or "a delicious dish." In keeping with this "morsel" theme, Viand serves small plates of food with their cocktails. Viand has an interesting menu of sweet martinis and savory martinis. Each martini is accompanied by a small dish of something that will complement it. I ordered the Bubbly Martini with kirsch strawberries. Win had the Raspberry Lemonade Martini with fresh raspberries and blackberries in a liquor on the side.

Viand's dinner menu is organized around small plates (appetizers), nibbles (salads), vital victuals (soups and side dishes), and large plates (entrees). Guests can select any combination from the various menu categories and Viand will accommodate that. So one doesn't have to follow the traditional appetizer, entree, dessert path. Instead, you could put together a selection of small plates or a small plate and a large plate, etc. It's somewhat similar to tapas in the freedom of choice it affords. Win and I were interested in so many things on the menu that we told Dennis we'd be ordering in stages, a little bit at a time, and then we'd see what struck our fancy for the next course as we went.

We started off with She Crab Soup and Tenderloin Skewers with Onion Marmalade, Chili and Truffle Oil. The She Crab Soup was outstanding; full-flavored and creamy. The Tenderloin Skewers were really unique; cooked perfectly and accented extremely well by the onion marmalade, chili and truffle oil.

Next we decided to try the Crab Cakes in Dijon Cream Sauce and the Coffee Seared Skirt Steak with a Chocolate Chili Sauce, Fennel and Endive. Dennis had recommended the skirt steak as one of his absolute favorites, citing the unique combination of coffee, chocolate and chili that make it exceptional. He was definitely right. While I have seen steak with coffee or espresso sauces before, I haven't yet seen a coffee/chocolate/chili combination. The taste was amazing and I'm so happy I took his recommendation. I will say that the coffee/chili taste was a bit overpowering on the fennel and endive for me, but it wowed me on the steak. The Crab Cakes were delicious as well.

Now here's where we diverge from normal people. Even though Viand considers those plates to be small plates, you can see from the photos that the portions are actually quite sizable. Normal people would probably have stopped at those two courses and headed out. We're definitely not normal when it comes to trying new dishes though, so we went on for a third round. This time we ordered the Duck Corn Dogs served with Plum Ketchup, Caraway Mustard, and Orange Marmalade and the Lamb Lollipops with Mint Sauce over a Vegetable Mash. The lamb was wonderful and the sauce and vegetable mash worked really well with it. The Duck Corn Dogs were amazing. As you can see from the photo above, these look just like the corn dogs you might have at a fair or an amusement park. Inside a delicious corn dog breading, however, is moist, tasty duck...almost like a duck sausage. These were so, so good and each of the sauces was delicious with the corn dogs in different ways.

Everything on Viand's dessert menu sounded very good, but we decided that before having any dessert we should definitely get outside and walk off some of the dinner. We took a walk down Michigan Avenue to The Cheesecake Factory in the lower level of The John Hancock Center. Here's what we ordered for dessert:

I mentioned we weren't normal, right? In the back is a huge brownie sundae and in the front is a piece of Snickers Bar Cheesecake. Now even we have our limits, so much of this went uneaten, but it was still fun and decadent to try.

I loved, loved, loved Viand. Excellent service, interesting menu, pleasant atmosphere, and most importantly delicious food. It's not the kind of food you'd want all the time (duck corn dogs and lamb lollipops need to be served sparingly), but when you are in the mood for something unique it's absolutely worth a try.

Viand
155 East Ontario Street
Chicago, IL 60611
USA
Telephone: 312-255-8505
Web Site: http://www.viandchicago.com

A Fancy Pot for a Sicky Meal

2005-01-19T06:22:00.000-06:00

Wondering where I've been for the past few days? I wish I could say I took an exotic vacation somewhere and that's why I haven't been posting. But unfortunately my blog absence stems from much more boring reasons. Our family got hit HARD by a stomach virus this weekend. Our Lima Bean got sick late Saturday night and spent all of Saturday night and much of Sunday not feeling well. Win and I thought we had escaped it until it hit us both on Monday night. Horrible, nasty stomach bug. Now, we've been sick before but what made this time especially bad was that it was our first "whole family" sickness. In the past, maybe one or two of us caught a cold and had to deal with that for a few days---not really a big deal. But this time, it was a really awful virus and it got us all. Not fun trying to take care of a toddler when you feel that sick. Oh well, with kids being such experts at germ acquisition, I'd imagine this isn't the last time stuff like this will happen. I'll hope days like these are few and far between; for now, we're just happy to be feeling better again.

On Tuesday night, when I finally thought I could eat something, I broke out the Ramen noodles. Seemed to be about the only thing I could handle at the time. My in-laws gave us this dandy blue Le Creuset pot for Christmas and the Ramen was the first thing we made in it.

Sorry my fair little Le Creuset, you deserved something so much fancier for your maiden voyage. But thanks for serving us well with the Ramen.

OK, so now you know I'm still here and I will post more substantive entries in the next few days. This sickness disappointed me on the blog front too because we just ate at a great place in downtown Chicago that I want to tell you about and we're cooking some neat new things here at home. All that to come in the days ahead when I have more time and can do those entries justice. It's no fun to write about food when the thought of it makes you sick!

Oh, it's an after midnight club...my bad

2005-01-13T06:20:00.000-06:00

Before we had dinner at Buona Terra the other night, we popped into a place called Misala for a drink. Misala is just a few blocks away from Buona Terra and we thought it would be a fun place to check out before settling in to our dinner locale. Misala, which is Spanish for living room ("mi sala"), is a Caribbean-inspired bar and lounge with hip decor and an interesting menu.

Everything about the place aims to be stylish and trendy. The menu of island fare such as fried plantains, jerk chicken, and pollo en fricassee looked great. But check out the photo above. It was 8:00pm and there wasn't a soul in the place. Even the waitress had called in and said she was still blowdrying her hair and was going to be late. (This is a true story, as told by the bartender.)

Clearly Misala was expecting a crowd. Check out the velvet ropes all stacked up and waiting to be used on the left side of my photo. And oddly enough many of the dishes on the menu were followed by an asterisk that meant they were available only after 10pm. After 10pm? I'm quite familiar with dishes not being available after certain times in the evening, but found it very unique that they didn't even start serving some of their best ones until after 10pm.

The mystery deepened as we talked more to the "bartender." He was a friendly and down-to-Earth guy, and he freely shared his disgust that the waitress was late. We ordered drinks off their special cocktail list (a California Margarita for me and a Misala Signature for Win) and he was off to make them. The drinks took a while to make and when he returned with them, he wanted us to taste them to make sure they were good. The "bartender" said he was "a Hennessey man" and that "when he drinks he drinks to get drunk." He's not really one for mixed drinks, preferring his liquor straight up and potent. We took a sip and actually both drinks were excellent. So he got them right and was pleased with that. But let's take a step back here and review what just happened: The "bartender" told us he wasn't really sure how to make these kinds of mixed drinks. Is this nice man even the real bartender? Or was he just some guy holding down the fort until the waitress (whose hair is apparently terribly long and wet because she still hasn't shown up 30 minutes later) and the real bartender came for the evening?

And I repeat...where are all the customers? I feel like the guy in those old British Airways ads who finds himself in the middle of a deserted city and yells "Where is everybody?" at the top of his lungs.

We knew we were going to Buona Terra for dinner, so we didn't want to eat too much at Misala but we did want to try something with a Caribbean flavor from their menu. Everything I really wanted wasn't available until 10pm, so I held back and just savored my drink. Win got the Caribbean Jerk Chicken Skewers, served with Yellow Rice and Pigeon Peas. The chicken was excellent and better than what's served at one of Win's other favorite Caribbean restaurants in Atlanta. The bowl of rice and pigeon peas was huge and I ate a healthy amount of it too; it was really delicious.

After we finished our drinks, we said goodbye to the kind "bartender" and went on our way, still wondering where the real staff was and where the customers were. It was only after we got home and did some research on the place that we found out it was known as an "after-midnight spot" with various DJs at the ready. Since we have the Lima Bean, I doubt we'll be hitting the after midnight scene at Misala anytime soon. But if any of you Chicagoans do, let me know what you think. What we could gather from our brief, and apparently ill-timed, exposure to the place was that it would probably be fun.

Misala's decor is trendy, the lounge atmosphere comfortable, and their Caribbean menu is unique. The two things we tried off their menu were delicious, but we can't really say we experienced what Misala is really like. Clearly this place doesn't get going until really late in the evening but if you are up for that, check it out.

Misala
2556 W. Fullerton
Chicago, IL
USA
Telephone: 773-276-5843

Discovery of a New Italian Favorite: Buona Terra

2005-01-12T07:45:00.000-06:00

This weekend, Win and I went out to dinner near Logan Square, a cute, developing neighborhood here in Chicago. Win has a great time picking restaurants for us to try and he's got excellent instincts about what will please us and what won't. When he found a place called Buona Terra in Zagat, he thought its score of 22 for food, 21 for décor, 22 for service and average cost of $24 for dinner seemed like a great combination. (For those unfamiliar with the Zagat Guide’s rating system, 30 is the highest score and the Buona Terra scores rank in the “very good to excellent” level.) As usual, his judgment was spot on with this weekend's pick.

Buona Terra is a charming, intimate Italian restaurant with delicious food. When we arrived, the place was packed so we decided to sit at the bar and have a drink while waiting for a table. While perusing the wine list, we were thrilled to see Borgo Scopeto Chianti Classico on the list. We got engaged in Venice almost 6 years ago at a restaurant called Il Vecchio Fritolin. The wine we were drinking that night was a Borgo Scopeto Chianti Classico Reserva 1994. Before even knowing I was going to get proposed to, I thought the wine was really good and I actually wrote down what it was so that we could remember it for the future and perhaps enjoy it again. It’s been nearly impossible for me to track down this wine in the US so it was a real treat to see a Borgo Scopeto on Buona Terra’s wine list. We like the wine independent of its involvement in our special evening, but we do always remember it as our engagement wine.

Anyway, we ordered a bottle of the Borgo Scopeto and enjoyed a glass at the Buona Terra bar. We mentioned our happiness in seeing this bottle of wine to the bartender, a friendly, engaging woman who turns out to be the co-owner of the restaurant. Her husband is the chef and she filled us in on his background. Turns out he's from Mexico and was raised on a dairy farm there. He trained in a number of Chicago restaurants over the years, mostly in the classic French style. When he decided to open his own place, he chose Italian cuisine because it's what he loves, but he still employs a lot of his French training in his dishes.

When our table was ready, we moved on and poured over the menu. Practically every dish looked good, so choosing was hard. I had been dreaming of good pasta all week, so I knew I was doing pasta as my main course. I'm a huge sucker for Caprese, so despite numerous interesting appetizer selections I went with the Caprese (sliced tomato with fresh mozzarella and basil). Win chose the Proscuitto e Mozzarella all Ferri (mozzarella wrapped with proscuitto and grilled; served over mixed greens and balsamic vinegar). Here's a look at our appetizers. Win's Proscuitto e Mozzarella all Ferri is on the left; my Caprese is on the right.

The appetizers were really good. My Caprese was delicious but Win’s Proscuitto e Mozzarella was amazing. The cheese and the proscuitto had a delicious grilled taste that really enhanced their flavors and the meat and cheese paired very well with the greens and balsamic.

For my entrée, I chose the Rigatoni Buona Terra and Win selected the Ravioli con Vittello. Rigatoni Buona Terra is rigatoni pasta tossed in a sun-dried tomato cream and topped with roasted walnuts and goat cheese. Ravioli con Vittelo is ravioli pasta stuffed with veal in a brandy cream sauce and topped with fresh mozzarella. Here is a photo of our entrees, again with Win’s on the left and mine on the right:

Both were very rich and delicious. Win’s ravioli was filled with tender veal and the brandy cream sauce was heavenly. Overall a really gorgeous combination of flavors. My rigatoni was in a more powerful, yet very creamy and rich, tomato sauce that was superb.

I was too full for dessert but Win ordered a vanilla gelato with chocolate sauce. The chocolate sauce had a really unique malted milk quality to it that gave the already delicious sauce an even more special edge. How do I know this if I was too full for dessert, you ask? The very kind (and perceptive) waiter brought two spoons and who can say no to gelato when an extra spoon is right there?

Normally one or both of us would have sampled something from the Secondi Piatti section of their menu but we will have to save that for next time. Besides pasta, Buona Terra offers a number of interesting red meat, pork, fish and chicken dishes.

Buona Terra has a comfortable atmosphere, a friendly and helpful staff, and hardworking owners. The food is excellent and the prices reasonable. With just one visit, it easily became one of our new favorites.

Buona Terra
2535 North California
Chicago, IL 60647
USA
Telephone: 773-289-3800

Next time: It's 8:30pm...where is everybody?

Straight from Spain: Toasted Bread and Bittersweet Chocolate

2005-01-10T06:34:00.000-06:00

The February 2005 issue of Food & Wine is devoted to the food of Spain. I love the section on tapas and their coverage of what some prominent Spanish chefs are doing to invigorate traditional dishes with new twists. A recipe for a unique little treat caught my eye as I flipped through this issue and I just had to try it. It's Toasted Bread and Bittersweet Chocolate.

One look at the ingredients list and Americans might think it's too bizarre to taste good, but you'll have to trust me that it's outstanding. It's also quick and easy to prepare with a decadent outcome.

Toasted Bread and Bittersweet Chocolate
As seen in Food & Wine, February 2005
Serves 4
Total Time Needed: 10 Minutes

16 thin baguette slices
1 4-ounce bar of bittersweet chocolate, cut into 16 pieces (I used Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Premium Baking Bar)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
coarse sea salt

Preheat the broiler and position a rack 8 inches from the heat. Spread the baguette slices on a baking sheet and broil until toasted, about 30 seconds. Turn the slices over and set a square of chocolate on each one. Broil just until the bread is golden and the chocolate is beginning to melt (about 30 seconds). Transfer the chocolate toasts to plates and drizzle with the olive oil. Lightly sprinkle sea salt on the chocolate and serve right away.

See how easy? It's toasted baguette, warm, delicious chocolate, flavorful olive oil and sea salt. That's it. But this is an absolutely marvelous snack or dessert. The chocolate, olive oil and salt enhance each other beautifully and the flavors work really well together. Win and I have enjoyed making these treats for the past couple nights and they barely get out of the oven before we greedily snatch them up.

Although the Food & Wine article said that chocolate on bread was a common after-school snack for children in Spain, this combination isn't typical in most of the US. Here's hoping it catches on; it's too delicious to miss!

Next time: We Found a New Italian Favorite

A Sweet Breakfast for My Little Sweetie

2005-01-06T06:10:00.000-06:00

At Christmas, a friend of mine gave our Lima Bean a book called If You Give A Pig A Pancake by Laura Numeroff. This book is so charming and the illustrations by Felicia Bond are absolutely adorable. We've been reading it at least once a day and it's the rare children's book that I still find quite endearing, even though I'm probably approaching my 100th reading of it.

This book also got me to thinking that I had never made Lima pancakes before. She's usually a fruit and cereal, oatmeal or toast gal in the mornings. So this week I whipped up a batch of pancakes and cut them into heart shapes for my little sweetie.

When I told Lima we were having pancakes for breakfast, she seemed interested enough. Then I showed her how I cut them into little hearts and she held one so carefully in her two hands and said "Oooooh" very approvingly. I actually didn't expect the heart shape to impress her since she hadn't had pancakes before and therefore they could be any shape for all she knew. But she somehow understood that little hearts made them a hint more special and she was visibly excited about them. It was really cute.

She dug in and loved them. Since she was new to pancakes, she was also new to syrup. Needless to say, she's a big syrup fan now. While she ate, she happily pointed to the pig in the book and was very pleased that she and the pig both had syrup for their pancakes. When I asked if she liked them, she exclaimed "Like!", which is a big shout of approval from Lima.

If You Give A Pig A Pancake, the end result is a wonderful children's book. If you give a Lima a pancake, the end result is a very happy (and syrup covered) little girl.

Veal Chops and Herbed Potatoes from the French Countryside

2005-01-05T06:44:00.000-06:00

Win's sister and her family gave me a wonderful book for Christmas called The Cook and The Gardener by Amanda Hesser. The book is subtitled "A Year of Recipes and Writings from the French Countryside" and it is just that. Hesser tells the story of the year she spent as the cook in a 17th century chateau in Burgundy, focusing much of it on her efforts to build a relationship with and learn from the chateau's crusty old gardener. The book discusses the seasonality of food, fruits and vegetables in particular, and shares how the chateau's menus revolved around what food was fresh and best in any given season. The book is part memoir, part travel log, and part cookbook. I love Hesser's writing and am eagerly devouring each page.

While I haven't had a chance to read the entire book yet, I couldn't wait any longer to try some recipes from it. The book's stories and recipes are categorized by season and then by specific month within each season, highlighting the dishes that take best advantage of the garden's offerings that month. For obvious reasons, I decided to start with two hearty winter recipes from January. We made Veal Chops with Sage Cream Sauce and Warm Potatoes with Red Wine Vinegar. Both dishes are outstanding and they really did remind us of the types of meals we had on a trip to France a few years ago.

Veal Chops with Sage Cream Sauce
Based on the recipe found in The Cook and The Gardener by Amanda Hesser
Serves 4

4 veal loin chops, about 3/4 inch thick
coarse salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup of Hesser's winter stock or water (Note: the Winter Stock recipe is in the book or you can use 1/4 cup low sodium beef stock and 1/4 cup water)
1 tablespoon thinly sliced sage leaves (about 3 sprigs)
3 tablespoons heavy cream

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Season veal chops on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil and butter over medium-high heat in large saute pan.
3. When the butter is foaming, add the veal chops and saute 3 to 4 minutes per side, until they turn a deep brown.

4. Transfer the well-browned chops into a roasting pan and finish cooking in the oven, about 5 minutes.
5. While the chops are in the oven, deglaze the pan. Over medium-high heat, add stock to the pan, sprinkle in 2/3 of the sage and scrape the meat juices stuck to the bottom of the pan. Bring the stock to a boil and reduce to 1/4 cup. Add the cream and stir. As soon as the sauce comes to a boil, remove from heat. Taste for seasoning; the sauce should be full flavored.
6. Once veal chops are cooked completely, transfer them to a serving plate. Spoon the sauce over the veal and sprinkle on the remaining sage. Serve.

Warm Potatoes with Red Wine Vinegar
Based on the recipe found in The Cook and The Gardener by Amanda Hesser
Serves 4

8-12 small round red or white potatoes, washed (about 2 pounds)
Sea salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot lobe, minced
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped thyme leaves (about 8 sprigs)
freshly ground black pepper
coarse salt

1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan, season with sea salt, and cover with cold water. Bring the water to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the potatoes are cooked through and soft in the center (about 15 to 20 minutes). Drain and cut potatoes in thirds.
2. In the same pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the shallot and soften for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the potatoes and the vinegar. Toss them well to coat. Add the thyme and season with pepper. Add salt if you find it necessary. Toss once more and serve.

Here are our potatoes, tossed but still in the pot.

And here is the final, plated presentation:

We paired this meal with a 2002 LillyPilly Red Velvet. This was one of the wines that we received in our Wine Grab Bag a couple months ago. The wine was good, but much sweeter than we were expecting. It worked with the meal though and was actually kind of a pleasant change from the richer reds we usually drink. What surprised us when we went to uncork the wine was that there was no cork---it had a screwtop! I know some wineries are moving to screwtops, but we did find it funny to unscrew the top. Check out the photo of the bottle below, screwcap prominently displayed in front.

This was a really delicious dinner and it was quite straightforward to prepare. Win was in charge of cooking the veal and thanks to his skilled preparation, the veal came out of the oven tender and delicious. The sauce for the veal was flavorful without being overpowering and it had a nice balance between creamy (thanks to the heavy cream) and fresh (thanks to the fresh sage). The potatoes were equally good, with a stronger herb taste. The thyme and red wine vinegar made for an interesting combination that worked well on the warm potatoes.

I'm looking forward to reading more of The Cook and The Gardener and will definitely be cooking more dishes from it. It's a lovely read with the power to transport you to the French countryside, one meal at a time.

Next time: A sweet breakfast for my little sweetie

"At Our Table" in the new year

2005-01-03T06:50:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year! Being a list-maker, a planner and a lover of all things organized, I thought I'd start off the new year with a quick review of what "At Our Table" is all about and a look forward to what's coming up in 2005.

What is the focus of "At Our Table?"
"At Our Table" follows the culinary adventures, large and small, of a family in Chicago. This blog features recipes, restaurant reviews, cooking and baking tips, travel stories, cookbook and foodie book reviews, kitchen gadget recommendations, and anything else that strikes my fancy.

And just who are the members of this Chicago family?
Linda, Win and the Lima Bean. I'm Linda and I write this blog and do most of the cooking and baking in our house. As you can tell from my entries, sometimes I make really special, interesting meals and other times I keep it simple. I love cooking and am building my cooking repertoire one meal at a time. I also love to go out in Chicago and eat out around the country. I make no claims to be an expert chef, but I'm getting better with practice and experience and having fun along the way.

My husband, Win, also enjoys cooking and is especially talented with grilling, frying, and all things meat. He makes a great scalloped potato dish too (which, oddly enough, I don't think we've shared here yet...that will come soon!)

The Lima Bean is our 20-month-old daughter. Despite her young age, she's already in to cooking too and spends a lot of her time pretending to cook with play food. She's my trusty sidekick for all grocery shopping runs, trips to the Farmer's Market, kitchen disasters, and most of the cooking I do. She's a great eater with a penchant for sauteed mushrooms, rice from Dona Torta, and applesauce. At least those are her favorites this week. You'll see stories about her peppered throughout "At Our Table."

What's ahead for "At Our Table?"
Looking forward for 2005, I have a few blog resolutions. First, I'd like to experiment even more in the kitchen and am going to try and pull out new recipes from my cookbooks and magazines every week. I love my old faithfuls, but I'm going to try new recipes more vigorously this year and of course share them with you. Second, I'd love to bake more in 2005. Since we have a small family, desserts take a while to eat in our house. I often forgo baking because I don't want the temptation of a whole cake or tart sitting in front of me all day. In 2005, I'm going to bake more and worry about that less. I've found too many good dessert recipes lately that need to be tasted. Finally, I'd like to spend some more time checking out what my fellow bloggers are cooking and trying their recipes myself. They are always fun to read about; in 2005, I'd like to put even more of them into practice.

If you are new to "At Our Table," welcome and I hope you enjoy this blog. If you would like to be notified of new posts to the site, see the sidebar to the left and sign up to be updated when new entries are posted. For seasoned readers, thanks for following along on my journeys with food and I'll look forward to having you along in 2005.

Next time: Veal and Roasted Potatoes from the French countryside

Photo Credit: The photo above is from the Webshots Photo Gallery and belongs to them.

New Snack Sensation: Mock Deep-Fried Chick Peas

2004-12-31T07:11:00.000-06:00

I have discovered an amazing new snack. The January 2005 issue of Shape magazine includes a recipe for what they call Mock Deep-Fried Chick Peas. According to the team at Shape, this snack "provides all the crunchy satisfaction of chips, but offers protein, calcium and fiber too." I love chick peas and have never baked them like this, so I was all for trying this one out.

The people at Shape weren't lying. This is an awesome and relatively healthy recipe. All the nutrition information is provided below the recipe.

Mock Deep-Fried Chick Peas (or Baked Chick Peas with Herbs, which I think would be a nicer name and so that's what I will call them)
Recipe as seen in the January 2005 issue of Shape magazine
Serves 4
Total Prep and Cook Time: 40 Minutes

1 19-ounce can chick peas, well-drained, rinsed and patted dry
olive oil spray
coarse salt to taste
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder, or more to taste
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, or more to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place chick peas on a rimmed cookie sheet. Here are my chick peas before baking. (Note that I doubled the recipe, so I have a lot more chick peas than 19 ounces)

Bake, shaking tray every now and then, until golden brown and crunchy, about 35 minutes. Here are my chick peas emerging from the oven:

Pour into a large bowl. Lightly coat with olive oil spray; I used my trusty Misto for this. Add salt, cayenne, garlic powder, and oregano. Toss to coat evenly.

That's it. It's as simple as that. Each serving (with a serving being about 1/4 of the batch) is 136 calories, 8% fat, 75% carbs, and 17% protein. Chick peas are a very healthy food due to their high protein, low fat ratio and they are really flavorful and delicious.

I love this snack and am going to be trying all sorts of variations of it. For my first try, I seasoned it as the Shape recipe suggested but in the future I am going to play with the seasonings and change up the spices and herbs to see what else strikes my fancy. This dish was so easy to make yet so different and so good. I highly recommend trying it and I hope you like it as much as I did.

Help for Stuffed Post-Holiday Stomachs: Hot and Sour Soup

2004-12-29T05:20:00.000-06:00

We spent the Christmas holiday with Win's family in North Carolina and were treated to more delicious meals and special desserts than I can possibly count. As I've mentioned before, Win's parents are excellent cooks and bakers. They focus on using quality ingredients and striking a perfect balance between healthy eating and decadent taste. Over the course of the past few days we were treated to Win's mom's classic fried chicken, their delicious roast turkey, a really nice ham, and their wonderful prime rib. Win's dad baked loaves of bread and bran muffins for the carb cravers in the house. He made a sumptuous citrus tart based on a recipe by Karen Barker of The Magnolia Grill. And if that wasn't enough, there was pecan pie, berry cobbler, homemade fudge, and several kinds of Christmas cookies to tame even the strongest sweet tooth.

So in addition to enjoying the company of family, we certainly ate well this Christmas. Given all the delicious, larger meals we've been having, I thought now was the perfect time to whip up some hot and sour soup. This version of Hot and Sour Soup is light, basically healthy, and extremely easy to prepare. A winning combination for full post-holiday stomachs and tired Christmas cooks.

Hot and Sour Soup
Recipe based on one found in "Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen"
Total Prep and Cook Time: About 30-40 minutes
Serves 4 to 6

8 fresh medium mushrooms
2 10.5-ounce cans condensed chicken broth and 2 cans water
1 8-ounce can bamboo shoots, drained
1 14-ounce package of tofu, drained
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch or 1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cold water
2 eggs
4 scallions, sliced (optional)

1. Wash the mushrooms. Slice them into thin slices and set aside.
2. Heat the chicken broth and water in a large pot over high heat. When it comes to a boil, add the mushrooms and bamboo shoots. Turn down the heat and cook, uncovered, for about 5 minutes.
3. While the soup is cooking, cut the tofu into 1/2-inch cubes. Add the tofu, vinegar, and soy sauce to the soup. Stir and cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Mix the cornstarch or flour (either works fine) with the cold water in a small bowl until it becomes a thick paste. Add it to the soup and stir until the mixture boils and thickens a bit.
5. Beat the eggs in a small bowl. Pour the beaten eggs slowly through the tines of a fork into the soup. The tines will help separate the eggs so that they cook in thin strands (rather than big lumps) in the soup.
6. If you would like to garnish with scallions, do so now and serve.

If you do a search of the web for hot and sour soup recipes, you'll find hundreds from which to choose. Is this version the most authentic? Probably not. Does it use the most complex and native Asian ingredients? No. But here's why I like it:

1. It's quick and easy.
2. All of the ingredients can be found easily at your local grocery store.
3. It is reasonably healthy.
4. And above all, it tastes great and is pretty close to some hot and sour soups I've had at restaurants. Again, it's not perfect but it's a terrific home approximation.

As you can tell from the photo at the top, I didn't garnish mine with scallions this time. I'm not a scallion fan, so unless I am making this for company I omit them. The bright green color adds a pretty jolt to each bowl of soup, so if you like scallions definitely go for it.

On a separate note, I highly recommend "Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen" for any recent graduates, newlyweds, young singles or people new to cooking. We received this cookbook years ago as a wedding gift and it is full of fun recipes that are delicious, easy to make and don't require a huge kitchen or tons of fancy kitchen gadgets. Even now with a bigger kitchen and a somewhat bigger cooking repertoire, I still refer to it for some of my old favorite recipes.

Recipe for a Happy Lima Bean

2004-12-22T06:37:00.000-06:00

Want to make a little girl very happy? Well, if the little girl is our Lima Bean, then just give her this picnic and play food set as an early Christmas gift:

I cannot even begin to count how many pretend hot dogs I've assembled, imaginary bowls of yogurt I have made, and play eggs I have scrambled since Lima became fascinated with cooking and pretend food. I now spend a good portion of my waking hours making imaginary food with very small whisks and spatulas. And she knows the right way and the wrong way to do each dish; don't even think about making pretend applesauce without squishing the apples first. She'll call you on it every time.

When Lima's not making pretend food, she's enjoying the real kind. Her love of mushrooms continues and I've made sauteed mushrooms three times this week alone. She loves them and honestly I can't keep them in the house more than a day before she cleans me out again.

Lima Bean's Favorite Sauteed Mushrooms
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 package of fresh button mushrooms ( 6 or 8 ounces)
1-2 cloves of garlic, sliced
1/4 to 1/2 cup chicken broth
a few sprigs chopped parsley

Thoroughly wash mushrooms and slice them into whatever shape and size pleases you. Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is heated, add mushrooms. Let them cook at the medium-high heat for 5 to 8 minutes without stirring them. When they seem like they have cooked down some and are getting tender, add the sliced garlic. Stir mushrooms and garlic around and cook for 1 to 2 more minutes. Next add the chicken broth, stir, and let cook for another 5-8 minutes. Once mushrooms are tender, which they should easily be at this point, feel free to mix in some finely chopped parsley for color.

A few notes: I just slice, instead of chop, my garlic because I like to remove it at the end. I like Lima to get the garlic flavor but I don't know if her toddler body is up for ingesting whole slices of garlic yet. Also, I didn't add parsley to the mushrooms in the photo above; Lima doesn't require it. Finally, I use a minimal amount of oil to keep it healthier. If you are watching that, one tablespoon should be fine.

Happy Holidays to all!

Next time: Stuffed from holiday sweets? I have a hot and sour soup that's easy, light and just the right thing for weary post-holiday stomachs.

A Crazy Night Out at Tony N' Tina's Wedding

2004-12-21T06:19:00.000-06:00

Last week, Win and I went to see (or rather, be a part of) "Tony N' Tina's Wedding." For those unfamiliar with this show, I'll give a quick explanation of how it works. This show is unlike most plays out there. The premise is that Tony and Tina, a hugely stereotypical Italian-American couple, are getting married and you're invited to their wedding and reception. So unlike your typical theatrical performance where you go and sit in a theater and watch actors perform on a stage, "Tony N' Tina's Wedding" encourages you to mingle and interact with the performers and other ticketholders as if you are guests at a real wedding. This was a totally unique and fun way to spend a night out.

The evening started with a pre-wedding cocktail in the cocktail lounge next to the church. Amaretto sours sounded good to us that night, so we happily sipped those as some of the actors started to work their way into the crowd. They would exchange hellos with you as if you were really a guest at the upcoming wedding. The man playing the videographer for the wedding brushed against my purse when he walked by and when I looked up, he was snarling at me as if I had done something really wrong. Turns out, this totally fit with the videographer's personality and as the show progressed, I understood what the crazy man in the cocktail lounge was doing.

Then it was time for the ceremony. We all crammed in to church pews to see the comical exchange of vows, various Biblical readings and blessings performed. This play pokes fun at Italian-American stereotypes and all sorts of wedding traditions.

After the ceremony, we passed through a receiving line where I got to meet the mother of the bride, the bride's brother and the groom. Win met the father of the groom and some others on his way through. The actors were totally genuine in thanking you for coming and making you feel like you were a guest at the wedding. Next, it was on to the reception where a glass of champagne was waiting.

The reception was where the real fun happened and the actors mingled with guests more freely. We chatted with the groom and he told us how he never thought this day would come. We talked with some bridesmaids, ogled the bride's gigantic diamond, and posed for pictures with members of the wedding party. One of the groomsmen tried to set the young, single woman sitting next to me up with the wedding photographer.

As for food, there was a buffet of sausage and peppers, rigatoni in a marinara sauce, another kind of pasta salad, Italian bread and a salad of fresh greens. Vanilla wedding cake with vanilla icing was also served. Despite the extreme vanilaness, it was pretty good. Cash bar at this wedding and Win got us a couple glasses of red wine with our dinner. The food isn't the real reason to go to this show, but it was actually pretty good and also very well-managed for a large-scale buffet to feed such a big number of guests.

As the reception progressed, the priest who presided over the wedding pretended to really loosen up and he came over to me and said some very funny, but very dirty comments. I'll leave the specifics out from here, but let's just say I was embarrassed to tell my Mom what he said when I was telling her about the show. It was hilarious though and another way the performers interact with the guests. There was singing, dancing, toasting and fighting; all the elements for a crazy, entertaining wedding.

"Tony N' Tina's Wedding" is a really different way to spend a night out. It's part theater, part circus, and part "Sopranos" episode. While some parts of it were a bit cheesy, overall we loved it and we'd recommend it for people who are up for a fun, interactive theater experience. I think the show is best enjoyed by people who are willing to really get into it and play along; if you act like a guest and talk to the actors, they will suck you right in. If you're shy and prefer to just be left alone at a show, you might get less out of the whole experience.

Tony N' Tina's Wedding
Pipers Alley
230 West North Avenue
Chicago, IL 60610
USA
Telephone: 312-664-8844

**Please note the two photos in this post come from the Tony N' Tina's Wedding web site. We took our own photos at the reception, but the lighting wasn't the best for photography and they came out a bit too dark.

Next time: One Happy Lima Bean

We Love it When Pigs Fly: The Bacon of the Month Club is Here!

2004-12-15T12:22:00.000-06:00

Win is a huge bacon lover. OK, maybe not as huge as this person, but still he's right up there. So it seemed only fitting that at some point he be enrolled in the Grateful Palate Bacon of the Month Club. You might remember that we recently purchased a Wine Grab Bag from them and were pleased with the results. We're just starting our Bacon of the Month Club subscription and so far, so tasty.

When Win's membership began, he received a club membership certificate, a bacon t-shirt, a cute little toy pig, and a Bacon of the Month club pen that glows a bright pink when you press down to write. Now honestly all this is very cute, but Win really just is interested in the artisanal bacon being delivered to our door each month. As such, I have commandeered the little pig toy and cool pig pen to carry in my diaper bag and whip out when Lima needs a quick diversion. Oddly enough, a glowing pig pen can really perk up the spirits of a fussy toddler.

Recently, our first month's supply of bacon came. It's Swiss Meat's Hickory Smoked Honey Cured Bacon. Swiss Meat and Sausage Company is a family-run business located in Swiss, Missouri. The Grateful Palate literature that accompanied this bacon promised a "wonderfully sweet bacon with an almost soft, creamy texture." I'm not enough of a bacon connoisseur to be able to detect a "soft, creamy texture" to bacon but I was able to tell it was very high quality and delicious. Win, much more of a bacon connoisseur than I, agreed and loved it.

If the bacon in the photo above seems a bit overcooked to you, don't fret. I like my bacon on the more well-done side and Win kindly obliged by cooking mine this way. He'll eat the rest of this month's supply a little less done and more to his taste.

So far, the quality of our Grateful Palate products has been outstanding. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that I did have a problem with how I was billed for shipping charges though. When I placed my order, I received an online invoice quoting a certain shipping charge. It seemed low to me, so (expecting to pay more) I inquired about it but didn't hear back from the company. As such, I assumed that this lower rate was the amount I would be billed. When my credit card bill came, the shipping charges were much higher than originally stated. I checked with the company and these charges were in fact correct, since bacon needs to be sent via 2-day UPS and those rates are higher. The problem was twofold: The Grateful Palate web site wasn't clear in how shipping charges were tabulated when you ordered multiple products (in our case the wine and bacon) and they never got back to me on my initial shipping charges inquiry leaving me to assume the initial price quote was correct. I was prepared to pay the full amount for shipping, and when I never heard from them my larger than expected credit card bill was a shock. In any event, the company assures me they have changed their web site and problems such as this one will be avoided in the future. We've been quite happy with their products so far; I just mention this so that anyone else who orders from them knows to check out the shipping charges carefully.

I was pleased that his first month's supply was a hit and we're looking forward to seeing what comes in the mail next month.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders

2004-12-14T06:25:00.000-06:00

Last night we made one of our favorite dishes: Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders. As I was planning this post, I struggled with what to call the dish, since so many of the things that make it tasty don't make for great recipe titles. Namely, this dish gets a lot of its spark from Panko flakes (Japanese style bread crumbs), Lawry's Seasoned Salt, and of course any special sauces you might use for dipping.

I know chicken tenders are not fancy, but these have an excellent flavor and I think they're a notch above the usual. Here's how you make them:

Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders
Serves 4

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 cup buttermilk
1-2 cups Panko flakes (Japanese style bread crumbs)
1/8 to 1/4 cup Lawry's Seasoned Salt (or use whatever amount seems right to you)
black pepper, to taste
6-8 cups vegetable oil

1. Slice the chicken into long thin strips about the size of your finger or perhaps a bit wider. The size isn't crucial; cut them however you'd like.
2. Place chicken and buttermilk in a plastic bag. Add a generous sprinkling of Lawry's to the bag. We probably add about 1/16 or 1/8 of a cup at this point. Close the plastic bag, massage the chicken mixture so that all the pieces are fully coated with the buttermilk and Lawry's and let marinate in the refrigerator for 2-12 hours. I usually just have mine marinate for about 2-4 hours and that always works fine.

3. Place the vegetable oil in a large, deep frying pan or cast iron pot. Use enough oil to completely cover the chicken. Heat the oil until it's 350 or 375 degrees.

4. While your oil is heating, prep your chicken for frying. Put your Panko flakes into a large, shallow bowl and add about 1/8 to 1/4 cup of Lawry's and some fresh ground pepper to taste. (We like a lot of Lawry's in ours; you might want to be more sparing.) Remove the chicken tenders from the bag one at a time and shake off excess buttermilk. Take each and coat on both sides with the Panko flake mixture. Place the coated chicken on a plate and now you're ready to fry them up.

5. Gently place your chicken tenders into the hot oil. Fry until the chicken is golden brown, about 12 minutes. Cooking times will depend on how thick your chicken is and the temperature of your oil, so just check the chicken to ensure that it is done before serving.

6. When chicken is done, remove from the pan and set pieces on a plate lined with paper towels. The towels will help catch some of the excess oil. When this process is done, place your chicken on a serving plate and enjoy!

As I mentioned above, Panko flakes and Lawry's are what makes these chicken tenders so distinctive. Panko flakes give the dish a delicious crunch and nice texture. The Lawry's provides just the right amount of "oomph" that makes these a winner.

As you can tell from the photo at the top, we like to serve ours with a wide array of dipping sauces. Last night's sauces included:

*Sumpao Boat Sweetened Chili Sauce for Spring Rolls from Thailand
*Terrapin Ridge Wasabi Mustard
*Pepper Creek Farms Red Bell Pepper Jelly
*American Spoon's BBQ Mustard
*Hoisin Sauce
*Laurent du Clos Dijon Mustard
*Frank's Red Hot Sauce
*Woeber's Horseradish Sauce
*Mrs. Dog's Disappearing Mustard

We just try a dab of this and a dab of that to see what tastes good. My absolute favorite is the Thai chili sauce. I also like the Mrs. Dog's mustard a lot. It's sweet, hot and spicy all at once. As an aside, several of our mustards came from the Mount Horeb Mustard Museum in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin. Win brought them home after a trip through Wisconsin and if you're a big mustard fan you might want to check out their offerings.

As I mentioned at the start, there's nothing fancy or complicated about chicken tenders but this recipe has such a great lift from the buttermilk, the Panko and the Lawry's that I felt it worth sharing. It's easy, relatively fast and great as party snacks, an appetizer, or a main course. It's also very kid friendly.

Next time: We Love it When Pigs Fly

1st Annual Food Blog Awards

2004-12-12T21:50:00.000-06:00

Kate at Accidental Hedonist has announced nominations for the 1st Annual Food Blog Awards. Nominations are being accepted now through December 19 in the following categories:
Best Overall Food Blog
Best New Blog
Best Group Blog
Best Post
Best Non-Blogging Food Site
Best Site Design
Best Food Blog - Writing
Best Food Blog - Recipes
Best Food Blog - Humor
Best Food Blog - Wine
Best Food Site - Chef
Best Food Blog - City
Best Food Blog - Theme
Best Food Blog - Food Industry
Best Food Blog - Restaurant Reviews

Being a relatively new kid on the block, "At Our Table" is only eligible for the best new blog category. Too bad there's no category for "Best Blog by a Woman Who Has to Use Her Food Processor in the Upstairs Bathroom to Avoid Waking Her Baby Daughter." I'd be sure to sweep that one.

There are some great sites out there, so check out this post on Accidental Hedonist to nominate your favorite foodies.

Delicious Mediterranean Cuisine at Andies Restaurant

2004-12-08T13:06:00.000-06:00

Last Sunday morning, we ventured off to Andersonville to show my in-laws that unique part of the city. Andersonville is a neighborhood in Chicago with a very interesting ethnic mix; there's a large Swedish presence there as well as a thriving Middle Eastern community. So on the main street through Andersonville, you'll see the Swedish Bakery, the Swedish American Museum and Erickson's Delicatessen alongside Persian restaurants, Middle Eastern bakeries, and places like Turkish Cuisine and Bakery. We were in search of breakfast but didn't have a specific place in mind. How lucky we were to bump into Andies Restaurant!

Andies Restaurant refers to itself as a Mediterranean, Lebanese, and Greek place. Its large dining room is bright and sunny and its staff is welcoming and warm. On Sundays Andies offers an amazing brunch buffet alongside its standard menu. While we were tempted by the buffet option, Win's parents and I decided to order off the menu and let Win sample all the buffet had to offer. Win's Dad went with the Lebanese Omelet, Win's Mom chose the Greek Vegetarian Omelet, and I had the Spinach Crepes. All of these dishes were absolutely delicious and presented beautifully.

At the buffet, Win found lamb, dill rice, more hot and cold salads than I can even begin to describe, blueberry crepes, a vegetarian lasagne, various kinds of eggs and breakfast meats, loads of fresh fruit, and an impressive array of desserts. It is a very large buffet with a really nice assortment of offerings. Not your standard American breakfast buffet fare; everything is prepared in a Mediterranean or Lebanese or Greek style. Win loved everything he sampled and he would have tried even more of the offerings if he hadn't gotten too full.

At the end of our meal, our waitress came over and handed Lima a little toy beauty kit as a gift. It included a tiny hairdryer, comb, brush, toy lipstick, a compact, a mirror, rollers and a bottle of pretend perfume. This was such a sweet gesture and totally unexpected. I put some curlers in Lima's hair and she was very thrilled to look in her new mirror and check this all out (while applying her new lipstick, of course). I don't know if Andies regularly gives little toys to children or if perhaps this was a holiday thing, but it was extremely sweet and it made Lima's morning.

To be honest, I probably never would have chosen Andies if restaurants with more traditional breakfasts had been open. While I like it, this type of cuisine isn't usually on the top of my "must try" list. Andies won our business because it was open when we needed it and boy am I glad they were. Their food is delicious and we will definitely be back. They won us over instantly and if you're in Andersonville check them out.

Andies Restaurant
5253 N. Clark Street
Chicago, IL 60640
USA
Telephone: 773 784-8616
Web: http://www.andiesres.com/

* The first photo in this post comes from the Andies Restaurant web site. I was disappointed that I didn't have my camera with me for this breakfast, hence no decor or food photos of my own this time.

Steak Au Poivre and Garlic Mashed Potatoes

2004-12-07T05:45:00.000-06:00

My in-laws left yesterday after a very nice visit. As I mentioned in my last post, I cooked steak au poivre with garlic mashed potatoes the first night of their stay. Dinner came out really well but unfortunately I don't have any photos of it to share. Our current place doesn't have a dining room, just a very large eat-in kitchen that people like to congregate in while I cook. I love my kitchen and I love that there's space for guests to mill around and hang out while I get meals together. One of the downsides to that though is that I always hesitate to take any photos of the food I cook for guests if they are standing right there. It just seems wrong to document the whole cooking and plating process, as if this is some science experiment, when I have guests eagerly awaiting their dinner. So you'll just have to trust me that the meal was appealing to both the eye and the palate.

While we're on the subject of my kitchen and how inviting it is to people, I'll mention one other downside to my current floorplan: my guests also see all the spastic things I do while cooking. This dinner came out extremely well, but I did have one judgment error when planning for the meal. My recipe for the mashed potatoes called for Yukon golds. At the store, the only gold potatoes were these tiny little potatoes probably meant for roasting (not mashing) because they were so cute and would make a charming presentation with a pot roast or something like that. In a fit of crazy judgment, I decided that these petite gold potatoes would probably be more tender and therefore better than larger potatoes and that they would make an even better mashed potato than regular sized ones. Ok, not only is that reasoning flawed but I also completely forgot how long it would take me to peel 3 pounds of really small potatoes that were just going to get mashed up anyway. Let's just say it was tedious but I got it done reasonably quickly. All while my in-laws watched (and kindly offered to help). So that was my bizarro display for this meal---poor judgment with my potato selection leading to excessive peeling time. If only I had known more information like this before shopping.

Here are the recipes for the steak au poivre and garlic mashed potatoes. They come courtesy of The Chopping Block, a cooking school and retail store here in Chicago. As mentioned before, I love their classes and their recipes are delicious without being too hard for any cook.

Steak Au Poivre
Recipe courtesy of The Chopping Block
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 15-20 Minutes
Serves 4

4 steaks (filet mignon, sirloin, or New York strip steaks are good choices)
¼ cup black peppercorns, whole
sea salt, to taste
4-5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 shallot, cut into slices
¼ cup cognac (red wine works too)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/3 cup chicken stock
½ cup heavy whipping cream

Let the steaks sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Crack the peppercorns using the bottom of a heavy pan or place in a plastic bag and use a meat mallet to crack them. Generously press the cracked peppercorns into the steak.

Heat a large skillet over a medium high flame until hot and add 2-3 tablespoons butter until melted. Add steaks and cook on first side until dark brown sear is created, about 3-5 minutes. Flip steak over, add remaining butter and cook to desired degree of doneness.

Remove steaks from pan and let rest, covered, while making pan sauce.

To make the pan sauce, reduce flame to medium, add shallot and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Deglaze pan by adding cognac and scraping off browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add mustard, chicken stock and cream. Turn heat to high and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Serve pan sauce over steaks.

I always use red wine in place of cognac in this dish. Why? I always have a red wine in the house but I rarely have cognac. The red wine works very well. We usually use filet mignon for the meat, since it's one of my favorite cuts. As usual, Win was my grill guy, and I must compliment him for his masterful meat preparation. He had 4 steaks to cook for 4 people who liked them at varying levels of doneness and he got them all just right.

I cannot emphasize enough how good this pan sauce is. It's absolutely delicious and you will love it. We love it on the steak and usually drizzle some over the mashed potatoes too; it's that good.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Recipe Courtesy of The Chopping Block
Prep Time: 10 Minutes (unless you are me and you bought really tiny potatoes that take forever to peel)
Cook Time: 30-40 Minutes
Makes 4-6 generous servings

3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled or scrubbed, cut in half
6 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup whole milk (or heavy cream...c'mon, you have it for the steak anyway...go crazy and use it) sea salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste

1. Place potatoes and garlic cloves in large pot with 1 tablespoon sea salt.
2. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife.
4. When potatoes are tender, drain and return to the pot. Add butter and mash partially with a potato masher. Add milk ¼ cup at a time and continue mashing until desired consistency is reached.
5. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

These potatoes are easy to make and they have just the right amount of garlic flavor. Rich, creamy and a wonderful complement to the steak au poivre.

We also served a mesclun salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette with the meal. For our wine, we poured the 2000 Summerfield Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon that we got in our Wine Grab Bag. This was a full, strong red that really benefited from decanting. It tasted very good on its own before dinner and excellent with the meal. So the first wine we sampled from the grab bag was a winner.

Thanks to my mother-in-law's help, we had the kitchen cleaned up in no time...and that always helps make a happy ending to any meal.

Next time: Discovering Mediterranean Cuisine in Andersonville

*The photo above comes from the Specialty Produce web site. You can find them here.

In a Week with Minimal Cooking, Trader Joe's Parthenon Pizza to the Rescue

2004-12-03T06:03:00.000-06:00

Right now I’m in an odd culinary abyss between last week’s Thanksgiving holiday and a visit from my in-laws this weekend. Last week we celebrated Thanksgiving with my side of the family. We had a great time on our visit and my Mom cooked all her Thanksgiving classics. Lima loved everything, especially my Mom’s sautéed mushrooms. Every time I ask her what she wants for dinner now, she says “mush-rooooms!” She’ll even ask for mushrooms at breakfast. So it’s a weird thing, but since they’re healthy it’s a good thing she’s developed this new fondness for them. Anyway, that was last week: eating lots of yummy food and enjoying the company of family.

This weekend my in-laws are coming for a visit and we’ll probably do our fair share of eating out. We like to take them to lots of different kinds of restaurants here in Chicago so they get a good mix of cuisines. I’ll do some cooking too and I’m finalizing my menu ideas this morning. I know steak au poivre and garlic mashed potatoes is the plan for one evening, but I’m still thinking about the others.

Anyway, this week I languished in a cooking void, as you can probably tell from the lack of cooking posts in the past few days. Ate a lot last week and have entertaining coming up this weekend. So not much big time cooking going on at my house until my in-laws arrive. As such, I broke out the Trader Joe’s Parthenon Pizza last night. This is a pizza topped with Sicilian tomatoes, fresh spinach and feta cheese. It was delicious! As I’ve written before, I’m a Trader Joe’s fan and this pizza is another high quality product from them. The flavors are great, the crust is crisp, and it’s quick and easy to bake. I was impressed with how well the fresh spinach and tomatoes survived the freezing process too. It was just a frozen pizza, but it tasted much better than the average one in the grocery store freezer case. Check it out at Trader Joe’s for a quick meal.

Now I’m off to finalize my cooking plans and hit the grocery store. As always, my trusty sidekick Lima will be at my side. She loves the grocery store now for two reasons: 1) the people behind the deli counter always give her a slice of cheese when we go and 2) our grocery store now carries some really cute horse stuffed animals in the toy aisle (known as "neigh neighs" to Lima). Neighs neighs and cheese---what's not to love? Happy weekend!

Robey's Pizza: Come for the pizza, stay for the blog

2004-12-02T05:52:00.000-06:00

I can't even begin to tell you how many people find my site by searching the web for "Robey's Pizza." Robey's is an excellent pizza place in the Roscoe Village neighborhood of Chicago and I highly recommend it. The pizza above is my own creation of goat cheese, black olives and artichokes.

Robey's doesn't seem to have its own web site so search engines have been directing people to my site because I mentioned Robey's in the past. Here's a favor to all of you searching for Robey's info. All of their contact information follows. Enjoy your pizza!

Robey's Pizza
1954 W. Roscoe Street
Chicago, IL
USA
Telephone: 773-248-7800

To my knowledge they are open for lunch and dinner. They offer indoor and outdoor seating (when weather permits). Street parking is available. You can eat in or takeout; I'm not sure of their delivery policies.

So you came here for the pizza; hope you stay for the blog!

Thoughts on Rocco DiSpirito's book "Flavor"

2004-12-01T11:16:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the lag in posts recently. Blogger has been giving me problems for the past few days and hasn't let me post new entries until now. So I've been here...just temporarily cut off from posting. Hopefully whatever the issue was is resolved now. On to some thoughts for today...

I recently spotted a copy of Flavor by Rocco DiSpirito with Kris Sherer at our library. This is one of those cookbooks that I'd been curious about, but it hadn't quite made it to the top of my "must buy" list. So I was thrilled to bump into it at the library to get a chance to check it out for free.

Flavor is a gorgeous book. The photographs by Henry Leutwyler are beautiful and they make each dish jump off the page. Even when I wasn't interested in a particular recipe, I'd rest a moment on that page to soak in the art of the book. Really well done photography.

After seeing DiSpirito's crazy trainwreck of a show "The Restaurant," I wasn't sure that he'd be the type to pull together a cogent, well-organized cookbook. I was actually pleasantly surprised by how user-friendly the book is and by how much general cooking knowledge DiSpirito shares upfront. He spends many pages reviewing his thoughts on seasonality of foods, quality of ingredients, cooking styles and techniques and most importantly flavor combinations. The writing is clear and interesting and I learned a few things from the first chapter about "Finding Flavor."

The recipes in the book take much more of an Asian slant than his cooking at Rocco's in New York City would lead you to believe. There's some discussion of his style being sort of a "Global Fusion" and you can see that coming through in the recipes. My favorites from his Appetizers section include the Heirloom Tomatoes with Orange Zest, the Sweet and Sour Tamarind Shrimp on Rosemary Skewers, and the Jumbo Asparagus with Oyster Mushrooms and Fresh Pecorino Cheese. In the Entrees section, I'm most drawn to his Pomegranate and Cinnamon Lacquered Duck and Szechuan Peppercorn-Rubbed Fillet of Beef. DiSpirito's Lavender Creme Brulee really intrigues me for dessert. These are just a few of the recipes that popped out for me; obviously the book features many, many more.

The dishes don't seem terribly easy to prepare, but the book is honest about cooking and prep times and the recipes appear clear.

So will I be cooking from it? To be honest, not any time soon. For a busy mom, the dishes are just a bit too tough to gather (sometimes exotic) ingredients for and prepare on a tight dinner schedule. But when I have more time to experiment and cook a bit more leisurely, I'd welcome the chance to try something from this book.

While probably not the cookbook you'll rely on every day, it's a fun read. Obviously this isn't an official cookbook review since I haven't cooked anything from the book yet, but consider it a preliminary thumbs up for Flavor.

Surprise! It's a Wine Grab Bag!

2004-11-23T05:33:00.000-06:00

Guess what's in this big box? Do you give up? OK, I'll tell you...It's wine!

Last week Win and I thought it would be fun to order something called The Wine Grab Bag from Grateful Palate. It's an easy concept: For $29.95 you get 6 bottles of wine, selected by the staff at Grateful Palate. On their web site, they tempted us with the promise that "some shockingly amazingly high quality wines seem to find their way into our Grab Bags." We love wine, we like surprises, and for about $5 per bottle we figured it was definitely worth a shot.

As promised, Grateful Palate sent us 6 bottles. We were surprised, but not disappointed, to see that all six were Australian. Despite all sharing the same country of origin, they were pretty varied. The box included:

1. A 1999 Summerfield Cabernet Sauvignon
2. A Size 1 Trevor Jones Barossa Valley Red Cebo (rose wine)
3. A 2002 LillyPilly Red Velvet (red table wine)
4. A 1999 Summerfield Shiraz
5. A 2000 Summerfield Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
6. A 2003 LillyPilly Tramillon (a medium dry white wine that won an award at the Sydney International Wine Competition)

We haven't had the chance to try any of the bottles yet, but we can't wait to and I'll be sure to share the results of our tastings. Some preliminary investigation shows great reviews for all three winemakers and some interesting accolades for a few of the bottles we received. Cheers!

IMBB 10: A Cookie Swap with Lime Shortbread Cookies

2004-11-21T17:16:00.000-06:00

I'm so excited to participate in this month's edition of Is My Blog Burning?, hosted by Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess. Jennifer's theme, Cookie Swap, is perfect for this time of year and I'm already looking forward to seeing what other cookie creations people bring to the table.

While I have a number of traditional holiday cookie favorites, I decided to share a recent addition to my cookie repetoire for IMBB. I made Lime Shortbread Cookies from a recipe I learned at The Chopping Block here in Chicago.

These cookies are delicious. Like any good shortbread they are rich, buttery and they melt in your mouth. The addition of lime zest and lime juice gives them a really interesting sweet/tart component which makes them so different from standard shortbread. I love these cookies because:

1. As I just mentioned, they are delicious.
2. They are easy to make, yet people who eat them usually think they required tons of time and energy to prepare. They seem fancier than they are.
3. The dough freezes very well if you want to save some to have on hand at a future time.
4. There is a delightfully unexpected quality to these cookies. Everybody expects some form of shortbread cookie on the holiday table, but do they expect to taste lime when they bite into it? I love that this cookie is traditional without being conventional.

Lime Shortbread Cookies
Recipe courtesy of The Chopping Block
Makes 3 to 4 dozen cookies

For cookies:
16 ounces (4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup powdered sugar
4 to 6 limes, zested (I always use 6)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour

For glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup lime juice, freshly squeezed

1. Cream butter, powdered sugar and zest in a stand mixer with paddle until well combined.
2. Add vanilla and mix until incorporated.
3. Add flour and mix until well combined.

4. Now you have your basic dough. Roll the dough, using 2 pieces of parchment paper, into two equal logs of about 2 inches in diameter and 11 inches long. Chill until hardened, about one hour. Notice that I'm not fanatical about making perfectly round logs. You can be, but it's not necessary; the cookies still come out looking fine.

5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
6. Cut cookies from log about 1/4 to 1/3 of an inch thick.
7. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. (I use a nonstick baking sheet and that's fine too)
8. Bake until cookies are lightly browned on the edges, about 25-35 minutes. An important note: I have always baked my cookies about 20-25 minutes and they come out just right. The chef who shared this recipe with me feels that 10-15 minutes often is enough to do the trick. The official Chopping Block recipe calls for 25-35 minutes. I recommend you take a peek at your cookies at the 10-15 minute mark and see how much longer they need. You don't want to overbake.
9. Remove cookies from baking sheet and set on rack to cool.

10. Make the glaze for the tops of the cookies. Place powdered sugar in a mixing bowl and add the lime juice. Blend to make the icing. If your icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it's too thick, add more lime juice.
11. Bruch glaze on top of cooled cookie. Let harden and serve.

I've made these cookies for guests on several occassions and they've gotten good reviews. Win feels that they are best dipped completely into the glaze as opposed to just being topped with the glaze. I think that's sweetness overkill, but if you like really sweet, tangy desserts then try dipping a cookie or two all the way.

I hope you enjoy these Lime Shortbread Cookies as much as we do.

Update on the Lima Bean

2004-11-18T06:39:00.000-06:00

I haven't written much about our little Lima Bean in a while, so I thought I'd fill you in on her latest developments. She'll be 19 months old at the end of this month and it's just amazing how much she knows now and how fast she is learning. Kids' capacity to learn and absorb everything around them is unbelievable.

Since this is a food blog, I'll share some Lima stories that relate to the world of food. My brother Mike sent Lima this excellent Swedish Chef doll a while back and she suddenly is really into him. For a while, her feelings towards him were hit or miss, but now she appreciates him very much. She loves that he wears shoes and that he stands relatively tall for a doll. She must also think he tires easily because she likes to start her mornings by laying him down in her crib and covering him with blankets so he can rest. Here he is with another Lima favorite, Elmo:

While these two were laying in the crib, Lima made snoring noises and said "night night."

Another recent Lima obsession is applesauce. Lima suddenly wants to eat applesauce with every meal. And she has a very specific way she wants to eat it. She wants to sit on a ledge I have in my kitchen (it's low to the ground and she can walk over to it), with only her diaper on, and eat it with her hands. The dish it is served in must come with a spoon, but she's still working on total spoon coordination, so when all else fails I see her dig her little hands right into the bowl. She tells me this whole request like this:

"Apple"
"Sit" (Taps ledge to indicate where she wants to sit)
"Spoon"
"Nudie" (Tugs at clothes to indicate she needs to undress)

OK, the whole undressing thing is my fault. One day she had on a really nice outfit and I told her that since I didn't want her to mess up the outfit I wanted her to take it off just during lunch and then we'd put it back on afterwards. (Even with a bib on, this outfit wouldn't have had a chance.) She apparently took that very seriously and now she associates applesauce at lunch with the need to be "nudie" as she says.

Obviously I have her wear clothes for 99% of applesauce feedings, but I do think it's very funny that she continues to mention the applesauce-related disrobing.

Finally, Lima's developed quite an understanding of how restaurants work. When servers are ready to collect menus, Lima is eager to pass them in. When she's really hungry and ready for the food to come, she says "Cook, food, eat, soon." She'll happily and proudly hand her little plate to a busboy when she is through with it, but she hangs on to it carefully if she's not quite done with her little tidbits of whatever we have given her. She's learned the names of all our local favorite places and even knows the names of a few waiters and waitresses we see all the time. I guess this is what happens when you are a city baby and you have so many restaurants right on your block.

So that's the latest Lima food news. It seems like she'll understand Christmas much more this year and we're already looking forward to the excitement that might bring.

Eliconi with Chicken and Peppers in a Garlic Basil Marinara

2004-11-17T06:23:00.000-06:00

As I've mentioned before, I get monthly shipments from the Flying Noodle pasta club. I love receiving my box of sauces and pastas each month and can't wait to sample what we get. Recently, I used some of the goodies from my pasta shipment to make Eliconi with Chicken and Peppers in a Roasted Garlic and Sweet Basil Marinara. This dish is very easy yet really delicious. If you're not going to make your own marinara, the key will be using a very flavorful, high quality sauce like the one sent to me by Flying Noodle.

I used eliconi for this dish, but obviously you can use any type of pasta you like. Eliconi are a large swirly pasta that hold on to sauce very well.

Eliconi with Chicken and Peppers in a Roasted Garlic and Sweet Basil Marinara
Serves 6

1 pound of eliconi or your favorite pasta
1 jar Dave's Roasted Garlic and Sweet Basil Marinara or your favorite, high-quality marinara
2 chicken breasts, grilled then sliced into long thin strips
1 green and 1 red pepper, grilled then sliced into long thin strips
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
fresh cheese of your choice, grated to sprinkle on top of pasta

1. Slice peppers into long, thin strips and grill them.

2. Grill chicken breasts and then slice into long, thin strips. If the peppers and chicken are done before the pasta, just keep warm and set aside.
3. While you are grilling the peppers and chicken, get your pasta going. Fill a large pot with water and salt as you'd like. Add pasta and cook until al dente.
4. While your pasta is cooking, heat your sauce in a separate pot over low to medium heat. Slowly add the mozzarella cheese to the sauce, stirring it so it melts and doesn't stick together.
5. When the pasta is cooked, drain it.
6. Return the pasta to the pot and mix it with the sauce, grilled chicken and grilled peppers.
7. Serve the pasta in pre-heated bowls and sprinkle top with a little Parmesan or Asiago cheese. I happened to have fresh Asiago in the house, so we used that.

Check out the photo at the top to see how the pasta came out. This dish is so good and flavorful; we really loved it. Dave's marinara is delicious and it helps make this dish very quick and easy since making homemade pasta sauce isn't required. Another successful pasta dinner using my treats from the Flying Noodle!

Food & Wine's List of Best New Chicago Restaurants

2004-11-16T06:38:00.000-06:00

People of Chicago, I have not forsaken you. I know I have been writing about New Orleans food for over a week but I've finished posting about all our delicious New Orleans meals and now we can get back to our regularly scheduled programming.

So in a show of hometown spirit, this one's specifically for my Chicago friends. Food & Wine's November 2004 issue includes a listing of their picks for Chicago's Best New Restaurants. They include Avec, Le Lan, Merlo on Maple, Moto, Acqualina, and Pluton. Pluton is one we've been talking about for a while; it's probably next on our list to try.

See the full article here.

Anniversary Dinner at Brigtsen's

2004-11-15T06:07:00.000-06:00

For our final dinner in New Orleans, Win wanted to go somewhere fabulous and special but non-touristy. He did some reading and decided that he had a good feeling about Brigtsen's. He thought it was the kind of place that real New Orleans residents would go for a special and delicious meal. I've got to hand it to him...he does have good restaurant instincts and Brigtsen's was a perfect way to celebrate our final night in New Orleans.

Brigtsen's is owned by Frank and Marna Brigtsen. Frank is the chef and Marna the maitre'd. Frank cooked at Commander's Palace under Paul Prudhomme and then went on to work at K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen. Frank opened Brigtsen's in 1986 and he and his restaurant have been winning awards, including the James Beard Best Chef Southeast Award, ever since.

Brigtsen's is an intimate place, with several small and welcoming dining rooms. The servers are extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and fun to talk to. When our server Sally heard we were in New Orleans to celebrate our anniversary, she seemed genuinely happy for us and sprinkled some confetti hearts on our table to celebrate. I made them into a little message for Win. I know, I know...depending on your temperament you'll either find this sweet and endearing or vomit-worthy and sappy. It's your call.

Now back to Brigtsen's and the food. Their menu is divine and selecting just a few dishes to try was tough. For an appetizer, I had the butternut shrimp bisque. This soup was pure heaven. Creamy, smooth and just the right combination of squash and shrimp flavors. Brigtsen's kindly features the recipe for this soup on their web site. I haven't tried to make it at home yet (and don't know if my version could ever compare to theirs) but I highly recommend this soup. It was so good and definitely worth a try at home if you can't get to New Orleans to experience theirs.

For his appetizer, Win chose pan-fried catfish with jalapeno cheese grits. He loved it.

For my entree, I was intrigued by the blackened tuna with smoked corn sauce, red bean salsa, and avocado sour cream. This combination of flavors with blackened fish sounded outstanding to me. The only problem was that I know tuna is considered best when served rare or medium rare and I just don't like rare tuna. I've had it at some of the best restaurants in the US, and each time I find it ok, but not great in its rare form. Sally, our server, was very helpful in this regard assuring me that they would cook the tuna however I liked or perhaps substitute another fish for me. She checked with the chef and they did the dish with blackened drum instead. It was delicious and had a really unique Southwestern slant to it.

For his entree, Win selected the grilled beef tournedos with tasso marchand du vin sauce and bleu cheese. These tournedos were so, so good and the sauce and bleu cheese with them just made them sing. Really, really outstanding (I took a bite too).

For dessert, we took Sally's recommendation and had the fresh berries in champagne vanilla sabayon. Normally I don't think a "fresh berry" dessert choice is terribly exciting, but this one was. The dessert began with a delicious crust on the bottom of the dish that was then filled with fresh strawberries and blueberries. On top of the berries was a champagne vanilla sabayon that had been lightly toasted. They served it to us with a celebratory candle. Wow. The sabayon was wonderful.

Brigtsen's was outstanding from the first moment we got there through to our last bite. Our meal lasted almost three hours and I had absolutely no idea we'd been there that long until we left. They let diners take their time, relax and enjoy the food. The food is delicious and creative, the service friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere warm and inviting. The restaurant was full of locals, not a tourist in sight (besides us). So Win's instincts were right again...this was a fabulous way to cap off our visit to New Orleans.

Brigtsen's
723 Dante Street
New Orleans, LA
USA
Telephone: 504-861-7610

Next time: Back to life in Chicago!

PS: No food photos on this one because I felt very conspicuous taking pictures of our food in their intimate little dining room. Any photos I took here were when no one was looking!

This Is How to Start a Day: Jazz Brunch at The Court of The Two Sisters

2004-11-11T06:12:00.000-06:00

You would think that after all the delicious meals we'd been having in New Orleans I couldn't possibly eat any more. But then you'd be wrong. After a good night's sleep, we awoke to a beautiful Southern morning with breakfast on our minds. Win chatted with the concierge to get his best ideas for where to go and the concierge's strong recommendation for the Jazz Brunch at The Court of The Two Sisters won us over.

The Court of The Two Sisters is an old New Orleans favorite with a gorgeous courtyard. Given the beauty of the courtyard and the nice weather, we obviously opted to sit outside. A jazz trio played softly off to the side, iced teas were delivered and we sat back in our chairs savoring this little piece of heaven.

But we didn't sit for long. The buffet awaited us inside! The Court of The Two Sisters puts out a vast array of breakfast and lunch foods. There was an omelet station for those who were interested in creating their own omelet, aided by a chef. Turtle soup, grits, biscuits, cornbread, and various breakfast meats were available. One large table was full of fresh fruit, all sorts of salads, pastas (hot and cold), and loads of different cheeses. In short, there was a very nice balance of hot and cold dishes, breakfast and lunch offerings, and fare for both those looking for hearty and lighter meals.

My favorite part of the brunch was the dessert table. Normally I wouldn't say that, but in this case it was true. You may have noticed in my postings about our other meals in New Orleans that I frequently mention that we were too full for dessert. So for a couple days I had been eyeing all the New Orleans classics---Bananas Foster, pecan pie, praline desserts, etc---but was too full to actually try them. In this brunch buffet setting, I was so excited to be able to try a tiny piece or small portion of every New Orleans classic that I had missed so far. The Bananas Foster was outrageous and such a treat, since that's not something you see on menus everywhere. The pecan pie was good, but to be honest I have had better elsewhere. So just a tiny bite of that one sufficed. They had some traditional King Cake out and it was delicious, so I indulged in that as well. Having the opportunity to sample all these treats was a lot of fun but the Bananas Foster was the clear winner of the group. Makes me want to caramelize bananas every day at home!

So our experience at The Court of The Two Sisters Jazz Brunch was a really lovely one. Good food, beautiful atmosphere and helpful, efficient service. Was it the best brunch I've ever been to? No. Others around the country certainly are more elaborate and have more exotic offerings. But it was quite good and I'm really pleased we experienced this New Orleans classic.

The Court of the Two Sisters
613 Royal Street
New Orleans, LA
USA
Telephone: 504-522-7261

Next time: Going where the locals go for our final dinner in New Orleans

Stylish Dining in the French Quarter

2004-11-09T06:08:00.000-06:00

After our long day of Louisiana country adventures, Win and I went back to New Orleans and got cleaned up for a more stylish night on the town. Our first stop was The Pelican Club. The Pelican Club has a gorgeous atmosphere and a pianist was playing in the bar. Those two elements combined made it a wonderful place to stop for a cocktail. We decided to sit at the bar and enjoy the piano music (the pianist totally wins points from me for playing "Gotta Lotta Living to Do" from the musical "Bye Bye Birdie"---that song always makes me happy in a Broadway showtune kind of peppy way).

A cosmopolitan for me, a rum and Coke for Win. The bartender mixed delicious drinks and when he heard us talking about our anniversary he insisted we take him up on his offer of some complimentary champagne. This was such a kind gesture and it made us enjoy The Pelican Club even more.

Their menu is spectacular, but alas we wanted to try a couple places that evening so we opted to share just an appetizer. We selected the Pelican Club Baked Oysters. These were oysters served on the half shell with smoked bacon, roasted red peppers, Parmesan cheese and garlic herb butter. These were hands-down the best oysters I ever had. Win isn't a huge oyster fan, but he wanted to try them and even he was thrilled with this plate. If you go to The Pelican Club, give them a try. So good.

The Pelican Club is beautiful, sleek and romantic all at the same time. And the oyster presentation was gorgeous. The place totally warranted photos, but I felt too odd snapping photos of my food in their intimate little piano bar. Yes, even I have limits to my food-driven nerdiness. So no photos of this one, but check out this section of their web site if you're interested in how the place looked.

After the lovely cocktails and champagne, we were off for another stroll through the French Quarter in search of dinner. We happened upon Louisiana Bistro. This place had all the hallmarks of what we usually like; it was small, personal, had a delicious and interesting menu, and didn't seem touristy.

After enjoying their freshly baked bread, we ordered our appetizers. I had the Fried Green Tomatoes with Spicy Shrimp and Win went with Grillades and Grits. Here's how mine looked:

Absolutely wonderful! We loved these starters so that gave us very high hopes for the entrees as well. Win ordered duck and I had the Creole Surf and Turf which was filet mignon served with a shrimp scampi and garlic mashed potatoes. Here are photos of Louisiana Bistro's very pretty presentation:

Both dishes were outstanding. Great flavor combinations, excellent preparation, and really delicious overall. Sadly, these wonderful meals left us too full to sample any dessert but that was probably best anyway. A few days in New Orleans can do some serious damage to the waistline.

The Pelican Club
312 Exchange Place
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
USA
Telephone: 504-523-1504

Louisiana Bistro
337 Dauphine Street
New Orleans, LA 70112
USA
Telephone: 504-525-3335

Next time: A Jazz Brunch and Exploring The Garden District

A Swamp Boat Tour and Two Tasty Casual Meals

2004-11-08T06:17:00.000-06:00

When Win planned our New Orleans trip, he booked a swamp boat tour as a surprise for me. He thought that these kinds of tours sounded fun and that it would help us to explore parts of Louisiana outside of New Orleans proper. He was absolutely right on both fronts.

Our two-hour swamp boat tour was scheduled for noon, so we decided to have an early lunch before setting off. We were in Manchac, LA and there really aren't too many places to eat in Manchac, especially when you're looking for lunch on the early side. We were really pleasantly surprised to find Middendorf's Seafood Restaurant. Even at 11am, Middendorf's was bustling with an early lunch crowd. We found out later that they are known for their catfish, so it was a happy coincidence that Win ordered a catfish po' boy. Check out the photo below; this sandwich was a little bundle of fried goodness.

You'll also notice some hush puppies in the photo. I love hush puppies and since I so rarely see them on menus in Chicago I order them every chance I get in the South. These were nicely seasoned and delicious. I ordered shrimp gumbo that was outstanding too. We opted not to photograph it because while it was heavenly, a big brown bowl of gumbo wasn't terribly photogenic.

Middendorf's was a big hit and the customers kept coming, right through the lunch rush. Satisfied and happy, we headed off for our swamp boat tour. When Win planned the tour, he wanted to go out with a company that seemed as non-touristy and non-gimmicky as possible. He selected Airboat Adventures for our tourguides and they fit the bill perfectly.

We drove up to the bayou and our airboat (also called a fanboat) was waiting for us. No corporate office, no gift shop, no signs even...just a guy and his boat waiting to take us on the tour. Chris was our captain and he did an excellent job steering us through the bayou, answering questions, and telling us about the bayou and neighboring swamplands. It's almost impossible to describe how gorgeous the scenery was. As we'd weave our way through the bayou and the swamp, we'd see different kinds of trees and plants and we even encountered several interesting swamp birds, owls, and alligators.

At times, the airboat took us for a wild ride through the swamp grasses that was exhilirating and unlike any other experience we ever had and then at other times Chris would pilot the boat slowly so that we could learn about the swamp and look closely at specific sights. To help entice an alligator over to us, Chris fed it a chicken neck.

Both Win and Chris reached out and stroked the alligator's head. I had seen the alligator snap up that chicken and was way too scared to put my hand near those jaws. (I'm not an animal petter, you see. Even petting zoos with tame little goats make me nervous, so you can imagine my reserve with an alligator.)

Our tour lasted a bit over two hours and we were thrilled with how it went. It was fun, educational, and totally unique. If you are looking to experience some of Louisiana's natural beauty, I'd highly recommend a swamp tour.

After the tour, we decided to stop and visit a plantation. While there were several Win had highlighted as possibilities, it was getting late in the day and for the sake of time we decided just to go to the closest one. It was the San Francisco Plantation. This plantation is very brightly painted on the outside and ornately decorated on the inside and somewhat different in style than the traditional Southern plantation look. We had a really lovely tour there. Great, informed tour guide and it was especially interesting to visit the slave quarters and see the disparity in living conditions between the master and servant.

After the plantation tour, we were hungry again so we decided to stop for a lighter meal on the way back to New Orleans. We happened upon a sweet little roadside stand called Connie's. It's a cute place that serves a large menu of lunch and snack foods and ice cream. Win had a meatball po' boy and I got a grilled cheese. Not Louisiana specialties, we know, but we were saving our stomachs for New Orleans' best later that night.

Something interesting happened when we ordered our drinks. Win ordered a Coke and the girl behind the counter said "What kind of Coke? I have Pepsi and root beer." Win's from the South and on more than one occassion he's told me that in parts of the South people refer to all soft drinks as "Cokes," the way some people call all tissues "Kleenex." I hadn't really encountered this before but this exchange leads me to believe what Win's been saying.

We got our food and ate at a picnic table next to the takeput window. Then something funny happened: a cat invasion! All of these cats came over and hung out while we ate:

Win's the cat fan in our duo, so the cats kindly stayed on his side of the table and enjoyed tidbits of his meatball sandwich. Happy day for the cats too.

Middendorf's Seafood Restaurant
Highway 51 North (exit 15 off of I-55 North)
Manchac, LA
USA
Telephone: 985-386-6666

Airboat Adventures
http://www.airboatadventures.com

Connie's Grill
1462 Highway 44
Reserve, LA 70084
USA
Telephone: 985-536-3027

Next time: We're back in New Orleans, dining in style

Dinner at a Hidden Gem and Dessert at a New Orleans Classic

2004-11-04T06:19:00.000-06:00

For dinner on our first night in New Orleans, Win was looking for a place that served delicious food, was casual, and was as non-touristy as is possible in the French Quarter. While I napped in the afternoon (let me say it again, ahhh...the decadence), Win read up on some potential dinner choices. He decided on a place called Rita's Olde French Quarter Restaurant and I'm glad he did.

Rita's is unpretentious, cozy, and it serves generous portions of delicious Cajun and Creole food. The dining room was quite busy the night we went, filled mostly with locals and the occassional table of tourists. To our surprise, one waiter was staffing the whole dining room. This man was beyond busy taking orders, delivering food, clearing tables, refilling water glasses, preparing desserts tableside, and so on. When we saw this, we thought we'd probably have either a long wait for our food or just potentially terrible service. We had just the opposite; this one-man-wonder somehow managed to serve the needs of the entire restaurant quickly, effectively and with a smile (albeit a quick one; he had to stay on the move!).

Rita's menu is full of delicious choices. Before going to New Orleans, I decided that I had to be sure to try some catfish when I was there. Rita's Stuffed Catfish leapt out at me as a great choice. It was catfish filled with a Cajun seasoned stuffing, topped with crawfish and covered with a spicy cream sauce. The night we were there they were out of crawfish (which is surprising given the abundance in the region), so mine was topped with shrimp instead. As our waiter promised, this dish was marvelous, shrimp and all.

Win, a major ribs fan, was compelled by their ribs offering. The meat was so tender, it literally fell off the bone as he ate them. He loved them.

As you can see from the photos above, Rita's isn't about fancy presentation or elaborate side dishes. We found it cute and funny that my vegetable side dish looked like frozen vegetable medley right out of the freezer. What Rita's is about though is excellent food, served in a traditional, home-cooked style, in a warm and inviting atmosphere. A photo of Rita herself smiles down from the wall, helping to create this comfortable feeling.

We loved our dinner and afterwards we were off for more walking around. After a bit of time had passed, we went to the world famous Cafe Du Monde in the French Market.

We of course had to try the beignets. Since I'd heard so much about their chicory coffee, I ordered a cafe au lait and Win had a hot chocolate.

Yum, yum, yum. The beignets were delicious and I loved seeing the trail of powered sugar left around everyone's table. It was so much fun to sit outside and enjoy these traditional New Orleans treats.

Rita's Olde French Quarter Restaurant
945 Chartres Street
New Orleans, LA 70116-3208
USA
Telephone: 504-523-7543

Cafe Du Monde
800 Decatur Street
New Orleans, LA 70116
Telephone: 504-525-4544

Next time: A Swamp Tour Adventure

Our Introduction to New Orleans: Lunch at Antoine's

2004-11-03T05:56:00.000-06:00

When we arrived in New Orleans, we drove to the hotel, quickly changed out of our much-too-hot-for-Southern-weather clothes, and decided to explore the French Quarter in search of a good lunch. We loved our stroll down Royal Street and had fun popping in and out of galleries and shops as we went. We passed several restaurants as we walked and they all looked good, but Antoine's was the one that captivated us for our first lunch in New Orleans.

Antoine's is the oldest family-run restaurant in the United States and I believe it's also the oldest restaurant in New Orleans. Antoine's has been serving delicious food in New Orleans since 1840 and five generations of the same family have run the restaurant. We had the pleasure of speaking with one of the family members during our lunch and he mentioned that he's hoping a sixth generation will step up and take the reigns when the time comes.

Antoine's has several large and grandly decorated dining rooms. We were seated in the front dining room where most of the lunch patrons had gathered. As you can see from the photo above, the room is spare but elegant, illuminated by vintage chandeliers and tiny lights lining the ceiling. This was such a great atmosphere to introduce us to New Orleans because this dining room felt so Old World, charming, and French-influenced.

Antoine's menu is extensive and making a decision was difficult becauce everything looked appealing. Before coming to New Orleans, I had made a mental checklist of all the traditional foods that I had to have on this trip. Turtle soup made the list. Instead of turtle soup, Antoine's serves alligator soup, which is very similar to turtle soup but with alligator instead. Intrigued, Win and I both ordered the alligator soup as an appetizer.

The soup was delicious. If you haven't had alligator or turtle soup before, I'd recommend it. It's hard to describe but to me it tastes somewhat like a really flavorful chili with a vegetable soup air about it and plenty of sherry. Yeah, I know that description makes no sense and is virtually impossible to imagine, but it's really what I think it tastes like. Just take the leap and be sure to try the alligator soup if you ever have the chance.

For my entree, I ordered soft shell crab. I am such a fan of soft shell crabs and usually can't resist them when I spot them on a menu. Antoine's did a lovely job with this one...simple, pan-fried and delicious served with little roasted potatoes.

Win opted for the Chicken Rochambeau. This was broiled chicken served with two delicious sauces, a sweet brown rochambeau and a tangy béarnaise. The chicken sat atop a slice of baked ham. He loved it and was impressed with how well the sauces complemented the dish.

After lunch, we took a walk through Antoine's many dining rooms to look at their vast collections and mementos. A sweet busboy noticed us checking out the celebrity photos on the walls and pointed us to photos of two of Antoine's most prominent guests, Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Pope. I wonder if the Pope had the alligator soup too...hmmm.

We worked our way into the Rex Room which possessed a stunning display of Mardi Gras finery.

The Rex Room was created in recognition of "The Crewe Of Rex" whose King reigns over the Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans. Its walls are adorned with photos of Mardi Gras royalty and memorabilia, such as crowns, scepters and gowns. We weren't able to capture the full splendor of the room with our little camera, so if you're interested in seeing a more detailed view of the Rex Room and Antoine's other dining rooms, click here.

Lunch at Antoine's was a really special way to kick off our stay in New Orleans. We enjoyed soaking in the history, the decor, the sense of New Orleans tradition and of course the delicious food.

Upon exiting Antoine's I was amused to see that Gennifer Flowers has a cabaret show across the street from the restaurant. Yes, that Gennifer Flowers...the one who said she had an affair with Bill Clinton. I hadn't thought about her in years and found it kind of funny that she's a singer now with her own club.

After lunch, we decided to walk around the French Quarter some more and we stopped at a bar for a hurricane or two. Then it was off for an afternoon nap...ah, the decadence!

Antoine's Restaurant
713 Rue Saint Louis
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
USA
Telephone: (504) 581-4422
Fax: (504) 581-3003
Email: info@antoines.com

Next time: A delicious dinner at one of the French Quarter's best kept secrets

I'm Back...Happy, Rested and Stuffed

2004-11-01T19:08:00.000-06:00

I'm back from my break. As I mentioned before taking a little blogging hiatus, my parents came in to town last week and it was great to spend some time hanging out with them and seeing how much they love playing with Lima. Our little Lima Bean is 18 months old now and becoming more and more of a character every day. She loved seeing her Grandma and Grandpa and she learned so many new words, games and tricks from them in the past few days.

In addition to being pleasant and fun company, my parents also did us a big favor through their visit. They watched Lima for a few days while Win and I went off to New Orleans to celebrate our 5th anniversary. New Orleans is one of the few cities that both Win and I had wanted to visit, yet neither one of us had been to yet. So it seemed like a perfect place to go to celebrate our special occassion.

In a nutshell: We loved our trip. The city is gorgeous and lively and the food is amazing. We ate our way all over town and I'll be posting the details on all those meals in the days ahead. Thanks for sticking with me through my hiatus; I'm looking forward to telling you about the outstanding food we ate and beautiful sights we saw in New Orleans!

On A Break

2004-10-22T06:27:00.000-05:00

I've got a lot coming up in the next week, so I've decided to take a short break from blogging. I will be back in about 10 days with lots more recipes, restaurant reviews and other stories. We have family coming in to town today and I realized that I could either go all Bree Van De Kamp and frantically try and cook, clean, entertain and blog with guests in town or I could relax and actually enjoy the time we have with our family, unchained from the computer. As much as I like blogging and hearing from all of you, I decided that family time wins out.

I'm disappointed to have to skip the next "Is My Blog Burning?" event, but I'm looking forward to seeing what people come up with on the theme of terrines. I'll jump back in for the next IMBB.

Win and I have our 5th anniversary coming up and we've got something fun in store. Come back in about 10 days and I'll give you all the details.