Entries Tagged as 'chuck'

Everything Cast Iron

July 16th, 2009 · 2 Comments

cinnamon_andrew
Cinnamon and Andrew :: Rogers Park, Chicago

Cinnamon is writing a cookbook about cooking with cast-iron cookware called “Everything Cast Iron.” The book is to include 300 recipes and is on a tight deadline. What does this mean for all of Cinnamon’s friends? Lots of food to eat! Cinnamon made menus, posted them on a schedule, and all we had to do was sign up for a day to go over, share drinks with friends, and sample her experiments.

sweet_potato_sticks
Sweet Potato Sticks

jamaican_grilled_okra
Jamaican Grilled Okra

friends
Friends :: Rogers Park, Chicago

Last Sunday I headed over to Cinnamon and Andrew’s condo up in Rogers Park. Cinnamon was manning the kitchen and Andrew was manning a grill (with a cast iron grill plate). Since it was so beautiful outside and since the condo doesn’t have air conditioning, all of the friends gathered in their cute little lawn. We were not allowed to bring food, but were instructed to bring drinks of choice.

asian_potato_with_chile_and_shallots
Asian Potatoes with Chile and Shallots

spicy_west_african_yassa_chicken
Spicy West African Yassa Chicken

yassa_tibs_ethiopian_sauteed_fish
Yassa Tibs Ethiopian Sauteed Fish

chuck_rachelle_marcus
Chuck, Rachelle, Marcus :: Rogers Park, Chicago

I met a lot of new people and visited with other friends I hadn’t seen in a while. Marcus was all salty since I left Roscoe Village behind, a neighborhood we shared, and moved on to Logan Square. Chuck was our odd uncle trying not to fall asleep between courses while he sat drinking his beer in a comfortable chair. And of course the food! These are all photos of all the food we ate. Now, we didn’t eat full servings, but everyone got to at least try a taste of every dish that was made. Then we had a comment card to write what we thought about the dishes.

cornbread
Cornbread

james_rose
James and Rose

truly_blackened_catfish
Truly Blackened Catfish

cajun_shrimp_and_rice
Cajun Shrimp (with Rice, not shown)

I know we were helping Cinnamon out, but thanks so much to her and Andrew for having us all over and making this all a party at the same time! I had a fun, delicious time! It still boggles my mind a bit that Cinnamon and Andrew were able to turn out this much food in one evening. I can’t imagine how much they’re cooking to make a 300-recipe cookbook. And it’s exciting to be a part of the process. I can’t wait for “Everything Cast Iron” to come out. I’m for sure buying a copy… or two!

fried_ravioli
Fried Ravioli

anne_marcus
Anne and Marcus :: Rogers Park, Chicago

friends_baby
Cinnamon and Andrew’s friends’ baby was only 3 weeks old :: Rogers Park, Chicago

fig_balsamic_vinegar_dessert_sauce
My favorite of the night: Fig Balsamic Vinegar Dessert Sauce. Served with vanilla ice cream and freshly picked in Rogers Park June berries.

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Brunch @ The Publican

March 19th, 2009 · 4 Comments

The Publican
The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

Last weekend The Publican served brunch for the first time. Chuck, being the food editor of Chicagoist, had gotten notice of it and invited us to come with him to check it out. Dallas and I have been meaning to go to The Publican, so we were all for it.

The Publican: Bloody Mary
Bloody Mary :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

The Publican: Pork Rinds
Pork Rinds :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

The Publican is one of Paul Kahan’s restaurants. He also is the chef/owner at Avec and Blackbird, two spots I’ve been to and have really enjoyed. The brunch wasn’t publicized like crazy, but Chef Kahan was Twittering about it, as was his publicist. I got really excited for the brunch because all week long they were talking about the menu. The morning of brunch they were twittering and posting photos of preparing for the first brunch and what the people involved looked like and how to pull it off and what the menu items looked like prepared. I was SO psyched to go later that day.

The Publican: Bacon
Maple Syrup Braised Bacon :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

The Publican: Pork Confit, Shrimp, and Andouille Stew
Pork Confit, Shrimp & Andouille Stew with Scrambled Eggs :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

When we got to The Publican it wasn’t all that packed. We were also coming in later, though, so who knows how it was earlier. We stood at a highboy table while we waited to get seated and each ordered bloody marys and beer. The Publican Bloody Mary is made with homemade bitters, balsamic vinegar, chopped celery, Fresno chili, horseradish, regular tomato juice, and Titos vodka. It was delicious, although I thought it was a bit on the thick and chunky side. I needed a straw or something to drink it. A spoon! We had six people all together and when our party all arrived we were seated. Immediately we ordered pork rinds and bacon. Before trying them, I wasn’t sure about the pork rinds, but they were so light and crispy. The bacon was delicious. Maple braised. The salty and sweet combination was fabulous.

The Publican: Red Wine Poached Eggs
Red Wine Poached Eggs :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

The Publican: Weiswurst & Pretzel
Pretzel that accompanied the Weiswurst :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

For our meals, this is what we got:

  • Benton ham, red wine-poached egg, grilled bread and bĂ©arnaise ($12)
  • Weiswurst and pretzel ($10)
  • Wood-fired egg with harissa, Gouda and grilled bread ($8)
  • Pork confit, shrimp and andouille stew with scrambled eggs ($14)
  • Smoked ham chop with Bird Mill grits and poached egg ($12)

The Publican: Wood-Fired Egg
Wood-Fired Egg :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

The Publican: Ham Chop
Ham Chop :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

Everybody was really satisfied with their entrees. We were all so excited to be there and brunch at The Publican definitely did not let us down. I loved the ambiance inside. There’s a lot of light wood and it was bright and sunny when we went. The lights weren’t on, it was all ambient light and gorgeous. The service was spot on. My entree, the wood-fired eggs, was taking longer than everyone else’s to come out of the kitchen, so they gave me a tomato & ricotta crustada on the house. It was the only blip in service and they made up for it immediately. And the food… was delicious. I’d definitely like to come back to The Publican for brunch… but especially want to check it out for dinner now.

The Publican: Ricotta & Tomato Crustada
Ricotta & Tomato Crustada :: The Publican, Fulton Market, Chicago

The Publican is at 837 W. Fulton Market, Chicago, IL.

You can also view these photos in this Chicagoist post.

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Let That Global Warming Breeze In

January 6th, 2008 · No Comments

Back Door

Three days ago it was ZERO degrees outside at 7:30 in the morning. That night it was so cold in the apartment and I couldn’t get the chill out of my bones, so I layed in our bed on the heated mattress pad and watched TV all night.

Today at 4:45 pm it was up to 60 degrees. I had met up with Chuck, Margaret and Jim for breakfast at Vella Cafe (cute place, the chicken sausage was awesome and they serve Milk & Honey granola, which I love), took the bus back up Western, stopped at Jewel to get groceries. We had the back door open all day to let air in and it wasn’t even cold. Especially since I was using the Jewel groceries to cook some healthy vegetable soup, biscuits and an applesauce cake dessert.

Weather

Still, 3 days and 60 degrees warmer!

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Breakfast and Lunch

September 23rd, 2007 · 2 Comments

Yob Burger
Yob Burger (smoked Gouda, bacon, roasted red peppers and roasted garlic mayo) :: Kuma’s Corner, Avondale, Chicago

Today I accidentally double-booked myself for brunch. .. well, less like I accidentally double-booked myself and more like I planned to meet Margaret, Jim and Chuck for lunch at Kuma’s Corner at noon and then Dallas’ dad came into town last minute for the game tonight and we had breakfast at Wishbone at 10 a.m. So, I ate breakfast and met up at Kuma’s Corner, but didn’t have anything except a couple Two Brothers Brewery Dumaine DuPage beers. The menu said they were a good alternative to Fat Tire.. and they were. You should try this beer if you like Fat Tire.

Hate Beak Buffalo Chicken
Hate Beak Buffalo Chicken (spicy buffalo sauce, montery jack cheese, butter lettuce, tomato and red onion on a pretzel roll with a side of bleu cheese dressing) :: Kuma’s Corner, Avondale, Chicago

The photos here were taken at Kuma’s Corner. Jim had a plain burger (zzzz), Margaret had the Yob Burger (smoked Gouda, bacon, roasted red peppers and roasted garlic mayo) and Chuck had the Hate Beak Buffalo Chicken (spicy buffalo sauce, montery jack cheese, butter lettuce, tomato and red onion on a pretzel roll with a side of bleu cheese dressing). Actually, I think all of the burgers were on pretzel bread. Seemed like everyone liked their food.

Sadly, no one had The Goblin Cock, which looked to be a half pound burger topped with a quarter pound hot dog, pickles, sport peppers, cheddar cheese, bacon, pico de gallo, relish, onion, tomato, and celery salt mustard. And I guess you shouldn’t even think about asking for ketcup. Or ketchup either, perhaps. If anyone ever wants to try The Goblin Cock, let me know because I think a photo essay needs to be made of that experience!

The Goblin Cock
Chuck’s Fish Taco Bracelet :: Kuma’s Corner, Avondale, Chicago

And this is Chuck’s new bracelet, which he got with this promotion. It’s only cool because it’s actually retarded and Chuck is and ironic hipster. Kidding!

Fish Taco Bracelet
Chuck’s Fish Taco Bracelet :: Kuma’s Corner, Avondale, Chicago

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Whisky Dinner @ David Burke’s Primehouse

August 31st, 2007 · 3 Comments

Talisker

Singleton

Amuse Bouche

Last week Wednesday, before I went to California and before my family was visiting, Chuck and I met up with Alpana Singh and her husband Charles Blackstone at a wine tasting she was hosting at Osteria Via Stato. Afterwards she had made dinner arrangements for us at David Burke’s Primehouse and also invited Martin Duffy, a whisky expert.

Butter

Popover

Marty made special arrangements to bring his own high-end whiskys to dinner and spent a lot of time describing each one and educating us about whisky and scotch, how it’s made, how it tastes, the smell, where it comes from, it’s history, etc. I know some of the others at dinner knew more about whisky, but for me it was really a learning experience. I think whisky will have to be an acquired taste for me and I should probably keep at it, but I like trying new things and learning all about whisky that night was really fun for me.

Cold Seafood

Onion Ring Tower

I must also talk about David Burke’s Primehouse. It was divine. I don’t eat very much steak at all, but I thought it was fantastic. I loved the decor, the lighting, the tables, and of course the food. The service was pretty great, but because we had special arrangements, I can’t really speak for how it is on a regular night. I mean, David Burke himself came out to our table to say hello. Awesome.

Bone-In Filet

Caol Ila

Glenkinchie

One thing I really liked about Primehouse even before I set foot in the restaurant was the fact that the restaurant is named after a bull on a ranch in Kentucky that sires all of the cows who are then butchered to make the steaks used in David Burke’s restaurants. The bull’s name is Prime (and he has his own website here). It’s kind of morbid to think about, but I was really digging the fact that David Burke is so into his ingredients and that involved in knowing where they come from. Also, an interesting fact we learned that night: If Prime were to die today, there’s enough of him (his sperm?) in storage that they could continue making steaks with his lineage for about 50 years.

Lagavulin

Chocolate Mousse

Lollipop Tree

Here’s what it comes down to – David Burke’s Primehouse is pricey, but I thought it was really worth it. If you’re in Chicago and have a special occasion coming up and you love steak, why not try it out instead of the normal go-tos like Morton’s and Gibson’s?

Read Chuck’s post about our dinner on Chicagoist.

Cookies

Cake

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