Entries from November 13th, 2011

September Walk on Milwaukee Avenue

November 17th, 2011 · 3 Comments

Some photos I took while walking up Milwaukee, between Damen and California, over the course of 2 days in September.


Love is a fragile word


Fuego Mexican closed. I went there twice in the whole time it was open. (1, 2)


Panda in a microwave?


Sort of sorry I missed this Weezer show at the Congress Theater!


Which album would you pick? I think I’d pick Pinkerton.


Mural on the side of the Congress Theater. This changes frequently.


Face? Traditional Mexican art?


Ciudado. Caution. Owl.


Matches the street writing in the first photo. Write your own story. Spin your own gold.

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Beans Beans Beans

November 16th, 2011 · No Comments

I used to despise slow cooker beans when my mom made them when I was a kid. I think it was the lima beans that put me off, even though they all pretty much taste the same when you cook them together for hours. These days Dallas teases me that beans are my favorite food. Even though they’re not. Sort of.

I emailled my mom recently for her Beans Beans Beans recipe so I could make them for a football party. They turned out great and couldn’t be easier to make! Just a warning though, this recipe makes A LOT. Only a few people ended up coming over to watch the game and we ate beans every day for about a week plus froze bowls of them!

Beans Beans Beans

Brown 1# lean hamburger

Add 1 cup chopped onion cook until onion is clear, drain.

In slow cooker add as many cans/kinds of beans as you want: There is no rule here!
- Black Beans
- Vegetarian Pork & Beans
- Lima Beans (drained)
- Red Beans (drained)
- Light Red Kidney Beans (drained)
- Great Northern Beans (drained)
- Butter Beans (drained) [we add 2 cans!]
- Navy Beans (drained)
- Cannellini Beans (drained)
- Dark Red Kidney Beans (drained)
- Vegetarian Baked Beans
- Pinto Beans (drained)

Stir in the following:
- Hamburger/Onion mixture
- 1/2 cup Hormel Real Bacon (or your own cooked and broken)
- 1 cup Ketchup (or more if needed)
- 1 cup brown sugar.

Cook overnight on Low heat. Stir occasionally.

Note: I didn’t add lima beans because Dallas has an aversion, although I think I’ve gotten over it. I also used more barbecue sauce than ketchup because Dallas also has an aversion to that. I didn’t cook the beans overnight but I did put them in the slow cooker around 10 a.m. and we ate around 4 or 5 p.m.

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Dave’s Surprise Birthday Dinner

November 15th, 2011 · No Comments


Dave & Brian


Bob, Cat, Dave


Brian, Dave, James

For Dave’s 40th birthday his wife, Cat, and his friends planned a surprise birthday dinner for him at Francesca’s Forno. Cat took the kids and went out to her sister’s house in the suburbs, making Dave think he had a free night to go out with the guys. Dallas and Andy and Brian hung out with him and played bags in the backyard – it was unseasonably warm for November. Then they convinced him to go to Flat Iron to play pool at about 7:00. Flat Iron is right across the street from Francesca’s, which maybe wasn’t the best idea, since everyone else had planned to meet at the restaurant at 7:00. Francesca’s is right across the street from the Damen Blue Line and as I crossed, I just about ran right into Dave and Dallas and the group. I swore that Dave looked right into my eyes, but I quick dashed out of the way and turned a corner. Whew!

So, the rest of us met inside Francesca’s. The guys left Flat Iron to go to get some wings at Northside. As they were passing by Francesca’s they said “oh, Brian texted me and is here for a drink, let’s stop in” and so they came into the restaurant.* The funny thing is that Brain was there… sitting at our table, a table with Dave’s wife and friends… and Dave saw him and the first thing he said was “wow, Brian is here with a big group!” And then it hit him. He was so surprised!

For dinner we had a ton of appetizers for the table – pizzas, charcuterie, cheese, meatball sliders. I was almost too full to order an entree. I got a grouper in browned butter with capers and crispy potatoes and really liked it. I love capers. And the potatoes were great. Dallas got the seasonal risotto and did not like it. He said it wasn’t cooked right and it was way under seasoned.


Other than the risotto, we liked of the food we had. I’d only been to Francesca’s Forno one time before and it was years ago. Since then they’ve done a whole remodel and overhaul of the restaurant. I liked it.

After dinner we went to the Northside, but most people only stayed for one or two drinks. It was packed in the bar and Dallas and the guys had been drinking beers since 3 p.m. We called it an early night and went home at about 11.

* I think this is what happened but I’m not 100% clear! The important part is that they got him over there and it was a surprise. Also, Dave does not remember looking right at me.

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Super H Mart

November 14th, 2011 · 1 Comment


Super H Mart :: Niles, IL


Come to H Mart and try some peaches. You will fall in love.


Durian


Jackfruit


Banana Flower, Aloe, Lemongrass, ToranDae


Wei-Chuan Preserved Duck Eggs


Just a few different kinds of kimchi to pick from.


Fish so fresh it’s alive!


Yes! I often feel this way about chips.


Marukome Miso – Chipotle flavor!


What we came for: Kalbi


Two whole aisles of nori


Bleh!! Beef bile & pork blood!


Sempio “salad sauce”


Many kinds of oil.


Fujiya candy at the checkout.


I got bibimbap at Durebak in the food court and it was not very good.


Not very tasty bibimbap.


Lots of toy vending machines at the exit.


Also, when we left we passed a Korean Best Buy inside the store.


Korea Times newspaper.

In preparation for my birthday barbecue back in September, Dallas and I went shopping out at the Super H-Mart in Niles. This Asian supermarket reminded me a lot of Mitsuwa, except that Mitsuwa is more Japanese and Super H-Mart is more Korean. (See my visit to Mitsuwa here.) But, it’s basically the same concept. Huge grocery area, a section of rice cookers and housewares, other stores around the edges, a liquor store, and a food court. Differences I noticed at H-Mart were that the produce section was really huge, in the other retail stores area there was a Best Buy with everything in Korean, and the seafood area had live fish.

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The Good Soldier Schweik’s Ottoman Adventure

November 13th, 2011 · No Comments

When we left one of the Association House benefits, they gave us a goodie bag and inside that bag was a sample of Metropolis Coffee’s The Good Soldier Schweik’s Ottoman Adventure coffee. It was whole bean, but that’s fine because my coffee maker has the ability to grind and then brew all in one swoop. This coffee sat in my cupboard for a while, but when I finally tried it, I loved it. And I started drinking it almost black.. shocking for me! A while later I saw it at Whole Foods and could not resist buying a whole bag of the beans. Highly recommended!

* The Good Soldier Schweik is an unfinished novel by Czechoslovakian Jaroslav Hasek.

** Metropolis Coffee Company roasts beans and sells coffee in Chicago. They have their own cafe, supply other cafes and restaurants, and sell their beans online and at Whole Foods.

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