Braised beef shanks, polenta, and carmelized parsnips w/ pancetta
My favorite Italian restaurant dinner is osso buco. The big falling-off-the-bone piece of veal, the marrow, the pairing of risotto Milanese, it’s a big, heavy dish best saved for special occasions when dining out. Because of the heartiness of it you don’t normally find it on menus in the summertime. Like most braised meat dishes it’s a dinner for fall and winter. I love making this at home. It has an excellent wow factor and is pretty simple to make, like last week’s Sunday dinner. Veal shanks can be pretty expensive but you can use this technique to turn any shanks into an “osso buco” dinner.Continue reading “What’s for Sunday Dinner – Beef Shanks Osso Buco Style”
A long time ago I bought something from Williams-Sonoma which of course put me on their email list. One day I received an email from them about a big sale on a Breville panini press. It was pretty heavily discounted so I bought it. One of my most favorite purchases. Plug it in and while it’s heating up make your sandwich. Mortadella was on sale this week so I picked some up with a little block of fontina for the sole purpose of making paninis with my freshly baked bread. A little dijon mustard on the mortadella half, some olive oil drizzled on the outside of the sandwich and into the heated grill. It’s hard not to keep checking but I’ve learned not to disturb it until I hear the sizzling noise melting cheese makes when it oozes out and hits the hot press. One of these and some soup is the perfect casual lunch for a crisp fall Saturday afternoon!
Well at least that’s over with. I think the third group got shafted a bit. Each of the other groups basically had an ingredient challenge while these chefs had a time element added. Instead of having the same time as everyone else, some had more, some had less. This little twist really looked like it threw a lot of them off their game. Based on their performances they looked like the weakest group. Who knows how they would have done if given the same time as the others? It’s Top Chef and part of the attraction is how they throw curve balls at you but if you’re having to cook your way on you’d probably like to compete on level field with everyone else. Anyway… Continue reading “Top Chef – prelims pt. 2”
Didn’t get a chance to review Top Chef last night due to the fact Tivo’s recording time was scheduled for later (yeah yeah operator error). Needed Tivo’s help since we were attending a fundraiser my brokerage (Baird & Warner City North Office cross promotion here) had for Neumann Family Services of Chicago. It was held at Dank Haus in Lincoln Square and we raised over $5,000 for Neumann, raffled off a few prizes, and held a silent auction.
Side roam re: Dank Haus. About a month ago Cheryl and I went to a strudel making demo there. I have yet to attempt making some but that time is coming. I saw a rumor of snow flurries here in Chicago today so holiday baking season is upon us!
Besides my failure to watch Top Chef, the food related blog hook here (I know, hurry up and get to it) is the catering for the event was provided by Hot Doug’s and Half Acre Beer Company. Chicagoan’s know a thing or two about hot dogs and about Hot Doug’s (and the line) too. You may be familiar with it from No Reservations, but if not just know he makes pretty awesome sausages. Last night the featured sausages at the event were (if I can remember the descriptions): a Veal, Pork, and Chive Bockwurst, Smoked Shrimp and Pork Sausage with Cajun Remoulade and Goat Cheese, Jalapeño Chicken Sausage, and the famous Sauterne Duck Sausage with Foie Gras (pictured).
Duck sausage topped w/ foieThey didn't last long
Sooooooo good. And no waiting in line! Everything was washed down with Half Acre beer, either their Daisy Cutter Pale Ale or Gossamer Golden Ale. I stuck with the Gossamer since I’m not a huge fan of hoppy pale ales. Anyway, it was a great event for a good cause with some really good food and drink! Top Chef post after I watch it later.
The Michelin Guide released it’s 2012 Chicago Bib Gourmand restaurant list today. A restaurant on the Bib Gourmand list means it is a favorite of the inspectors and has high quality food where the price of an appetizer, entrée, and glass of wine is below $40. Restaurants included in the 2012 Michelin Guide Chicago will be officially released on November 15. Unless the guides get accidentally sent out and delivered too early and someone leaks the list on Yelp like last year.
One of the many things I love about Chicago are the butcher shops. Being a realtor is great for roaming around to different neighborhood butchers and figuring which ones have your favorite bacon, lamb, steaks, and prices. I always pick up a smoked pork hock (or two) for soups and stews, especially when winter sets in. My go-to soup when it’s cold and rainy (like today) is a bean and pork one. It’s hearty and perfect for a cold damp day (we never have those in Chicago). I’ll make a couple different variations of this throughout the winter using different beans, different vegetables, pasta, etc. It’s a very versatile recipe. For example, throw some stale bread and kale in and turn it into a ribolitta. Continue reading “Black Bean and Smoked Pork Soup”
As the colder weather starts setting in here in Wrigleyville my thoughts and ideas on dinner turn towards braised dishes, roasts, soups, and stews. I enjoy grilling in the summertime but fall and winter are great times to cook. The kitchen is always warm and cozy, the house is filled with delicious aromas, and you get great leftovers that sometimes taste even better the next day. This is one of those dinners.
Please please please let there be leftovers.
It’s simple, has just a few ingredients, and is easy to add your own touches to. I rely on Anthony Bourdain and his Les Halles Cookbook for the recipe on this one. I own a bunch of cookbooks but there are certain ones I definitely use more than others and Bourdain’s falls into the “heavier use” pile. The recipes aren’t overly intricate or too heavy on technique and you’ll find yourself easily incorporating them into your repertoire.Continue reading “What’s for Sunday Dinner – Bourdain’s Boeuf Bourguignon”
Every home cook and professional chef has their own favorite ingredient, spice, seasoning, etc. For me the one must have ingredient I always make sure is in the cupboard is truffle salt. It’s great with anything on eggs, meats, in sauces, on popcorn, with potatoes, risotto, macaroni and cheese, and pasta. You’d be hard pressed to find something it would add some depth to. I find it adds an extra layer of flavor that mingles in with the salt. Two seasonings in one! Forget garlic mashed potatoes. Season your potatoes with some truffle salt and you’ll never go back. Scrambled eggs and omelets never tasted better. Mix it in some butter and put some on your steak while it’s resting. Throw it on some chicken or in the sauce/gravy you’re making from the pan drippings (you do that with your chicken right? make a quick gravy while it’s resting? who am I kidding, of course you do).
I’m a huge fan of Top Chef and am always excited for the start of new seasons. It’s come a long way since the beginning and the quality of contestants has just gotten better and better. Personally I think the Vegas one had the toughest cast of chefs. I’m not including the All-Star one since all of those chefs had been on before and pretty much knew what to expect. It’s a great competition which for the most part is all about the food. Cook poorly one time and you can go home. Cheryl’s become a fan of it too which is good and bad. Good that she wants to watch it but bad because now I get “can you make that for me?” Spoilers ahead.Continue reading “Top Chef is Back!”
A couple of weeks ago Cheryl (a.k.a. Mrs. G-Gnome, her scientific code name) mentioned one of her co-workers came up with an idea of using the Chicago Eater’s “Eater 38” list of restaurants to explore some new places. Sounded like a good idea, restaurants are added and dropped when the list is updated every few months so you can never really finish it. First stop for the “Eater 38 Club” was Anteprima in Andersonville. Delicious Italian food, cozy space, and the prix fixe menu (available from Sunday through Thursday) is great deal. For $30 you get to choose three items from the menu such as starter, entrée, dessert; or starter, pasta, entrée. And you weren’t limited to the main menu. All of the nightly specials were options as well. I like this a lot. You can get an appetizer AND your pasta course!Continue reading “The Eater 38 Club”
The Roaming GastroGnome 