A couple of weeks ago I bought some frozen duck legs with the intention of making confit. I don’t use the traditional method of cooking them in duck fat, I cheat a bit by slowly cooking the legs in olive oil. It achieves basically the same result, some preserved duck legs you can pull out and use whenever you like, which made this little tart very easy to make.Continue reading “What’s for Sunday Dinner: Caramelized Onion and Duck Tart”
Grilling Season in Chicago Already? Add Some Acid: Chimichurri
Can’t believe it’s been so long since I posted! Very busy this past week, which has also seen some record-setting temperatures here in Chicago. 70s and 80s. In March. Now that’s my kind of Chicago winter. Of course we’ll probably get some snow at Easter now. Oh well, what can you do? It’s pretty awesome in Chicago when the weather starts to get warm, the whole city embraces it and finds reasons to go outside and enjoy the sunshine (St. Patrick’s Day was last weekend so they didn’t have to search much). Bars and restaurants have flung open their doors and windows and set up their outside seating areas, and the scent of grilling meat has been emanating from backyards and decks throughout the neighborhood. Continue reading “Grilling Season in Chicago Already? Add Some Acid: Chimichurri”
What’s for Sunday Dinner: Braised Pork Ribs with Apple-Curry Sauce
Yesterday was a beautiful day in Chicago. The sun was shining, temperature was in the mid-60s, and everyone was out soaking it all up. It reminded me of something I read once about Calvados, the French apple brandy, being like a glass of summer sunshine. That description has always stuck with me and I think it accurately describes good Calvados. Who wouldn’t want a little sunshine in glass? So for Sunday dinner I decided to make some pork ribs Normandy Style, where apples and a good amount of Calvados are used in the sauce/braising liquid. Pork and apples. Two great tastes that taste great together! The only other combination that may be better is chocolate and peanut butter. I knew there was a good recipe for this dish in my mother’s recipe books so I pulled it out. But wait, what’s this in the title about curry?Continue reading “What’s for Sunday Dinner: Braised Pork Ribs with Apple-Curry Sauce”
Fettucine with Bay Scallops in a Saffron Cream Sauce
Fridays in Lent can be tough for Roman Catholics, especially when you have some leftover meatloaf and osso bucco in the fridge. Bad for me, good for Cheryl who’s one of those rebellious Protestants. Well it’s not really that tough, but we like to try to convince everyone it’s difficult. It usually doesn’t work though as most everyone else thinks we’re nuts to begin with. Anyway, every year Lent rolls around and the no meat on Friday thing kicks in making pizza or the parish fish fry the normal Friday night dinners for a lot of Catholics. Now, I’m not the best practicing Catholic out there (not the worst either!) but I still give the old Vatican try when it comes to Lenten Fridays. I actually don’t mind because it gives me a chance to work with foods I don’t normally have in the rotation, like seafood. Continue reading “Fettucine with Bay Scallops in a Saffron Cream Sauce”
Lunching in the Loop: 3 Places You Should Try!
Cheryl works down inside the Loop, as do many Chicagoans. Occasionally I have to leave the friendly confines of Wrigleyville and travel there for meetings or showings. In a couple of weeks I have to venture south for some continuing education classes (ah real estate license requirements!) and I find myself looking forward to having lunch with Cheryl. The question, as always when lunching with her is: where to eat?Continue reading “Lunching in the Loop: 3 Places You Should Try!”
Roaming in New Orleans! Things to Do In the Crescent City Other Than Bartering Beads For Breasts
Hard to believe but I’d never been to New Orleans before last weekend. Always wanted to go but just never got around to it. Last month my father suggested meeting there in February and we jumped at it. Flights looked pretty open for flying stand-by so we decided to go the weekend after Mardi Gras figuring it’d be a little more manageable. However, we didn’t take into account the snow “storm” that swept through Chicago disrupting flights all day on Friday.Continue reading “Roaming in New Orleans! Things to Do In the Crescent City Other Than Bartering Beads For Breasts”
Top Chef – Finally! The Finale!
If you’ve been following my Top Chef posts you know I feel it’s been a long, uneventful, and trying season for the show and me. Our Facebook status would be “it’s complicated.” As the season progressed I was more and more disappointed in the challenges. Looking back I feel the show’s producers should bear much of the blame for this. Many of the challenges just didn’t seem geared to let the chefs’ do much creativity-wise. Which makes the finale all the more puzzling to me. It was awesome!Continue reading “Top Chef – Finally! The Finale!”
Pureed Potato and Leek Soup (and a Kitchen Essential!)
So after a weekend in New Orleans we needed something a little, um, well, less larger than life which could be heated up quickly for the many (many) gym nights we’re going to need this week. The cupboards were looking a little bare, not quite Old Mother Hubbardish, but I did have a big bag of potatoes and a couple large leeks. Soup time.Continue reading “Pureed Potato and Leek Soup (and a Kitchen Essential!)”
Béchamel Sauce – Creamy Truffled Cauliflower Gratin
In the Top Chef Texas season there was a challenge where the chefs had to rework Escoffier’s “mother” sauces, one of which is béchamel. This is an awesome, versatile, easy sauce for the home cook. Once you learn to make this preparation you can make all sorts of creamy, gooey, cheesy things. It’s perfect for making casseroles, gratins, or to flavor and use as a sauce or creamed soup. Very simple and easy to make. Use this the next time you make macaroni and cheese and you’ll never make the Kraft one again. It’ll wow everyone. Continue reading “Béchamel Sauce – Creamy Truffled Cauliflower Gratin”
Top Chef Episode 16 – Will This Season Ever End?
I’m beginning to think it won’t. Man, this season has really dragged on. Much like my time spent at O’Hare this morning while waiting for a flight to New Orleans. We had a snow storm move through Chicago last night and while it didn’t dump much snow it mucked up travel nonetheless. So, while waiting for my flight I figured I’d bang out this week’s recap. My morning here has reflected the past few weeks of the season, initial excitement at the start, then some delay, then into the just get it over with phase. This week’s episode was the just get it over with episode. The three remaining chefs came down off the mountain to Vancouver where, I am only guessing on this, the title will be decided.Continue reading “Top Chef Episode 16 – Will This Season Ever End?”
The Roaming GastroGnome 