For all the cooking we do, we decided it was time we finally got a proper cutting board. We’ve been using these really small, warped plastic cheapo boards for years and they just weren’t cutting it any more. We got this Boos Block at The Chopping Block in Lincoln Square.
Fun fact: I just was reading the “About” section on the John Boos site and found out they’re manufactured in Illinois.
Tags:boos·Chicago·chopping block·cooking and baking·lincoln square·logan square
We love char siu and are always looking for new slow cooker recipes so this was kind of a no-brainer. Very tasty. The photo above is peeking into the slow cooker. Below is the meal we made, roast with stir fried vegetables and a scoop of rice. I think we may have subbed out the ketchup for tonkatsu sauce because Dallas has a major aversion to ketchup.
Slow Cooker Char Siu Pork Roast
Char siu is a Chinese version of barbecue. Serve with sticky or long-grain white rice and a steamed or stir-fried medley of bell peppers, carrots, snow peas, sliced baby corn, and water chestnuts.
Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 3 ounces pork and 1/4 cup sauce)
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
3 tablespoons ketchup
3 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder
2 pounds boneless Boston butt pork roast, trimmed
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
Combine first 8 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Place in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add pork to bag; seal. Marinate in refrigerator at least 2 hours, turning occasionally.
Place pork and marinade in an electric slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
Remove pork from slow cooker using a slotted spoon; place on a cutting board or work surface. Cover with aluminum foil; keep warm.
Add broth to sauce in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 30 minutes or until sauce thickens. Shred pork with 2 forks; serve with sauce.
Tags:char siu·Chicago·cooking and baking·cooking light·logan square·pork·slow cooker
**Note: This is a super old post I found saved and never published. Still thought it was interesting.
Coinstar, Jewel, Roscoe Village
I have a glass Oberwies milk jar that I’ve used for years to collect spare change. When we were moving from Roscoe Village to Logan Square I cashed it in and it had $90.42 inside. There were almost no quarters because we had to pay for our laundry at our apartment in Roscoe Village.
Out of curiosity I looked up another time I cashed it out. In 2005 I wrote that the bottom half of the change didn’t have quarters in it because I had to pay for laundry when I lived in New York. Still, with quarters on the top only, I cashed in the change for $165.48. Quite a difference. Of course now we have in-unit, free laundry so the quarters are going back into the jar.
Tags:change jar·Chicago·coinstar
Keefer’s Kaffe, River North, Chicago
Keefer’s is located at 20 W. Kinzie St. I worked in that building for a year and I never noticed that there’s also a seperate restaurant, Keefer’s Kaffe, in that building. It’s more casual and lunch-y, than Keefer’s. A few weeks ago Aimee, Anjum and I went and got lunch at Keefer’s Kaffe. Good lunch option. Better than lunch at Keefer’s, which can be kind of formal and pricey. I had this chopped Greek salad (romaine, cucumber, grape tomatoes, pepperoncini, picked red onion, bell pepper, olives, feta, oregano vinaigrette) and it was awesome.
What do we have here? Look at these sweet little girls.. but one has a mischievous look in her eye!
Hmmm.. what is going on here?
Make a silly face?
Tessa is happy to comply!
Jess is not to be outdone!
Don’t make faces, it will stay that way!
Ok, just one more!
I just happened to be taking a video when this all started up. Steph was actually the one egging them on with the camera.