If your back porch basil plant looks anything like mine then it means you have a bush instead of a plant. The plant seems to grow back two leaves for every one I use. What to do with all this basil? Make some pesto. Pesto is a delicious summer sauce and your basil plant won’tContinue reading “Pesto: An Easy Summer Sauce”
Tag Archives: garlic
Simple Homemade Dill Pickles Using Basic Brine
As you may have been reading, lately I’ve become a bit obsessed with curing food. I’ve made bacon (and successfully done it a second time) and duck prosciutto which both turned out well. From reading through Ruhlman’s Charcuterie I’ve found it amazing what salt can do. Behold the power of salt! Ok, next up inContinue reading “Simple Homemade Dill Pickles Using Basic Brine”
Ratatouille – Something French for Bastille Day
Ratatouille. A dish most everyone knows but one which has lots of different versions and techniques. One of the things I love about food (other than cooking and eating) is the debate which can surround it. There’s Chicago v NYC in hot dogs and pizza, NY v the rest of the world with bagels, milkContinue reading “Ratatouille – Something French for Bastille Day”
First Attempt at Making Bacon – Part 1
For the longest time I’ve been wanting to try my hand at curing meat and making sausages. I’ve been following a couple of charcuterie bloggers and have been fascinated by what they’re turning out. Since I spend less time in the kitchen during the summer I figured now would be a good time to crossContinue reading “First Attempt at Making Bacon – Part 1”
Sopa de Tomate! Tomato Soup Recipe Learned in Barcelona
A couple of weekends ago Cheryl and I traveled back to Washington DC to see some friends and ended up having Sunday Brunch at Taberna del Alabardero. Normally brunch is brunch but this particular Sunday they were hosting a Feria del Abril event. Dancers, food, drink. Lots and lots of them. One small bite offeredContinue reading “Sopa de Tomate! Tomato Soup Recipe Learned in Barcelona”
Braised Chicken Legs with Kalamata Olives
Way back in time when I became more serious about cooking for myself I used to read a lot of Food and Wine magazines. This is a variation of one of the first “step-up dinners” I made where I graduated from using one of those jar sauces to cook chicken in. Those, of course, wereContinue reading “Braised Chicken Legs with Kalamata Olives”
Grilled Skirt Steak with Garlic-Lime-Cilantro Marinade
Sorry for the rather light posting lately, real world has been pretty busy which is a good thing. Anyway, on my way back from the office the other day I stopped at Trader Joe’s to pick up a couple of items and saw a bag of limes. I was planning on grilling some skirt steakContinue reading “Grilled Skirt Steak with Garlic-Lime-Cilantro Marinade”
Garlic Herb Stuffed Leg of Lamb with an Orange Mint Sauce
So remember a few posts back how I said I always make a leg of lamb for Easter? (No? Well go back a few and get caught up!) Since we were traveling I didn’t get to cook Easter dinner. However, upon returning to Chicago I noticed ham and lamb were both on sale. Imagine that. Continue reading “Garlic Herb Stuffed Leg of Lamb with an Orange Mint Sauce”
Meat on a Stick: Lamb Kebabs with Mint Yogurt Sauce
It’s almost Opening Day here in Wrigleyville and the temperature has cooled off a bit from last week but that’s ok, it’s still grilling spring training weather. By the time summer does roll around I’ll be in mid-season form. These lamb kebabs are one of the first things I ever grilled for Cheryl, showing herContinue reading “Meat on a Stick: Lamb Kebabs with Mint Yogurt Sauce”
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 awesomeContinue reading “Grilling Season in Chicago Already? Add Some Acid: Chimichurri”
The Roaming GastroGnome 