What if I told you I ate a pork belly sandwich with a fried egg on a pretzel roll and it was awesome?  Would you want one too?  Well you can have one!  Brand BBQ on Armitage has a specialty sandwich  (the #1 on the lunch menu) I had to try when I heard about it.  It was worth it.  It being the trip, the calories, the fat (and oh yes it was fatty), the maple mayo, and the flavor.  My friend Tina had the Pulled Duck and it too was really good.  Go check it out.

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I am in the process of preparing my 2010 public class schedule and would love to get some ideas. 

Please let me know, through the reply area below or via Twitter (@learncookeatchi), what topic(s) you would like to see this year.  No obligation to attend, and no promises I’ll offer all suggested topics.  Just curious what you would be interested in learning.

If I choose your topic I will give you 20% off the class price!

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Those of you receive my newsletter know I love my friend Kristin’s biscotti.  I have decided to challenge myself this year and take her recipe and switch it up with new flavor combinations.  The one I have tried so far is pistachio and white chocolate which came out good but no where near as good as her Cranberry, Orange, and Almond creation which you can find on my recipes page.    My next attempt is to take the same pistachio, white chocolate idea but add some coffee liquor to it. 

I am interested in knowing any ideas you may have for a tasty combination.  Please comment on this post and give me some ideas. I will choose a few and let you know the results.

Oh, if you don’t get my newsletter and would like to see previous issues or sign up for my mailing list, click here.

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…….and it was top notch!  Radhika Desai, Top Chef Season 5, lives in Chicago and after fame on Top Chef is out and about being a private chef including the cooking and serving for dinner parties.  13 of us met Radhika at one of our homes and she made us an amazing meal.  In the planning process we opted to bring our own wine so she recommended wine varietals to pair with each course and they all turned out to pair beautifully.  Not only did she cook the food but had a server with her who took care of our every need to include pouring the wine at the right time which each course and cleaning up!

Here is a sampling of what we ate:

Scallop with Micro Greens

Ahi Tuna Tartare made with chili oil, ginger and a bunch of other ingredients making it awesome

Tomato Soup with Curried Carrot soup in the center (yummy)

10 Spice Crusted Sea Bass (I had her version previously with halibut and it was just as scrumptious)

Mini Burgers (We ordered these as an added mini course as Radhika makes the best non bar like burger I have ever tasted. High in Indian spices)

There was more but you need to contact her via her website  to get more info on what the food options are, etc.

The best thing about this event beyond the flavors, is that Radhika is a pleasure to plan a party with and does all the work. We were all able to sit back, relax, and enjoy a wonderful evening with great food, great wine, and good friends.

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I use canned diced tomatoes at least once a week.  Remembering which brand I prefer has always been a challenge especially since I buy them at whichever grocery store or market I happen to be shopping at the time.  I have tried numerous brands and I can’t tell you too many differences between the brands.  I say that mainly because I am not eating them plain but adding them to other ingredients including fresh herbs and garlic.  Since Cooks Illustrated just posted their ratings on canned diced tomatoes I thought I would share them with you.   I need to buy some this week so I guess I’ll go with their recommendation (which is a brand I regularly use).

Happy Cooking!

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We love making beer can chicken and roasted vegetables.  Oh, never heard of beer can chicken?  You take a beer can, take the entire lid off, fill it 1/2 full of your favorite beer. Rub the inside of a 4 1/2 - 5 lb roasting chicken with any kind of spice rub you like, and put the chicken over the beer can.  Put it on a hot grill, put the cover on and let it cook about 45 minutes.  Baste the chicken in your favorite BBQ sauce, last time we used a maple bourbon sauce from Williams Sonoma (seasonal item, no longer available) and it was awesome but any one will do when you can’t get my favorite!  Cook another 15 - 30 minutes until the chicken registers 160 on your meat thermometer.  Remove from the grill, cover with foil and let rest 10 minutes.  If you don’t have but want a meat thermometer, I recommend the one you will find on my “You Should Have These” page.

OK, now that you know how to make a beer can chicken lets talk about the vegetables which really is what this post is all about.  Eggplant sliced into 1/2″ rounds, red peppers cut into 2″ squares, white and yellow onions quartered (with the root intact to make them easy to turn), whole cremini mushrooms, whole small - medium sized carrots, whole baby zucchinis, and fingerling potatoes.  Drizzle all the veg with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Put the longer cooking veg (potatoes, carrots) in a BBQ pan first.  Cook them about 15 minutes then add the rest of the veg.  Cook until all are to your liking and remove to a serving bowl and cover til the chicken is ready.

Once you are done eating you might have a bunch of veggies left over.  Actually, cook enough so you will as there are so many things you can do with them.  The potatoes can be cut into cubes and sauteed with some of the onion and/or peppers for a great breakfast potato.  The onions, mushrooms and peppers make a great roasted veg omelet filling or bake them into a frittata to serve with the breakfast potatoes.  Add some thyme to anything with mushrooms in it and it takes on a completely different flavor.   Using a store bought pizza crust, tortilla or even pita bread, make pizzas with slices of the veggies over thinly sprea pizza sauce and topped lightly with cheese.  Anything else you have left can be pureed with some chicken broth into a rich, smooth and flavorful roasted vegetable soup.  If you have some other ideas, please enter comments so you can share with others.

When it is not BBQ season, you can roast the vegetables in your oven the same way.  Or, if you have a stove top grill pan use it.  The result is the same, tasty roasted vegetables that are good the first time and all the times after that!

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Foie gras is my favorite food.  No question about it.  I don’t eat it very often so when I do I want it to be perfect.  The last time I ate it, it was so perfect I have to say it was the best thing I have ever eaten.  Writing about it now is making me salivate.   My friend, Nim, took us to L2O for my birthday this year.  I am very fortunate to have such a generous friend who would treat us there.  The foie gras is worth the trip even if they are known for their seafood (which was all wonderful too).  White cotton candy with edible flowers and bee pollen granules on top with a soft, sweet, creamy mound of foie gras underneath it along with a sauce, some asparagus, and rhubarb.  Where the cotton candy touched the sauce the crystals had hardened into sweet chewy caramel.  Oh, how I want to go back for more.

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Last night, for my birthday celebration, my husband Ross and I went to the Publican for dinner.   For days I was looking forward to eating their pork belly as I heard it was amazing.  It did not disappoint!  Here are my thoughts on the food we ate in the order we ate them:

Frites with George’s organic eggs were yummy.  The frites were crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside.  The server said the egg was over easy, it came out sunny side up which was perfectly runny.  Great dish to start our adventure!

Sardines wrapped in grape leaves with artichoke, preserved lemon and yogurt I loved.  I so seldom find fresh sardines on a menu this was a pleasant surprise especially when I thought the meal was going to be all about pig.

Skirt Steak with eggplant, spring onion and feta which also had arugula leaves layered on top was excellent.  The green onion and red pepper flakes added some great flavor and a little bit of heat. I would definately go back for this.

Pork Belly with byrd mill grits, cauliflower, and pickled shallots is a dish I could make a meal out of…over and over and over again!

Braised Italian Greens with fried shallots were the only disapointment of the evening.  They were way too salty.  The shallots were crispy and tasty and the only part of the dish we finished.  This was not the only vegetable we ordered so we were not concerned….but the other one never showed up at our table or on our bill so in the end we ate little veg.

Potee which was pork 3 ways…sausage, tenderloin, and shoulder was interesting.  The sausage was nothing special, the tenderloin was about 5 degrees to uncooked and tasted that way, but the shoulder was excellent.  The flavor of the shoulder made the dish good, the other 2 items could have been left off.  I would order the shoulder again, if I could alone.

We were too full for dessert and had we ordered anything it would have been the Milk Chocolate Panna Cotta with raspberries, and fennel shortbread.  I would like to go back and try it.

Service was about 80% spot on.  Our server had a bit of an attitude or something we could not figure out.  She told us food comes out one dish at a time and at times there was a very long pause between the dishes.  Wine and beer took way too long to arrive from order time.  In fact, Ross ordered a beer she recommended to pair with the Potee and we were 2/3 of the way through the dish when she came and asked if he still wanted it.  Very strange.

Overall, we liked the experience and will go back.  It is communal seating unless you ask to sit alone when making your booking.  At first we were sitting next to a family of 5 (3 young ones) who we found a bit noisy and annoying.  We had the corner seats which made it easy for us to talk to each other which made being communal much more enjoyable.

I would recommend the Publican for a group get together.  Communal seating is much more fun with a group, than for a couple.  The next time we go alone we will book a table outdoors or a 2 top in the restaurant.  This is also a great spot for those a bit daring in what they will eat since many of the items are a bit off the beaten menu. 

Try it.  I think you’ll like it.

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Julia Child is one of the greatest chef’s of our time.   She helped Americans learn how to cook as the French do by writing Mastering the Art of French Cooking and then being on PBS in her TV show The French Chef.  There was also the Saturday Night Live sketch where Dan Ackroyd played a very funny Julia Child. 

I have read many books by and about her.  If you don’t have time to read the books, read this Vanity Fair article  which combines so many great moments of her life into a quick read.  My thanks to my friend Teresa for sending me the link.

The movie Julie & Julia opens next month and is based on the book of the same name…well half of the movie anyway.  The other half is about Julia’s life as written in all those books I have read.  The book was so much fun to read.  Hopefully the movie will be fun to watch.  I am going to see an advanced screening and can’t wait.

Enjoy and “Bon Appetit”!

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This past weekend, the Top Chef On Tour van stopped in Chicago for cooking demonstrations and Q&A sessions at the Green City Market.  Having gone to this last year (Dale from season 3 and season 4 Top Chef winner Stephanie) and loving it, I thought it was worth going again….and it was.

This year the chefs were Antonia (season 4) and Radhika (season 5).  Radhika cooked an Indian 10 spice rubbed halibut and served it on a bed of butter braised corn, and lentils cooked in bacon.  Everyone in the tent got the chance to taste it and it was flavorful, rich and melted in your mouth.  Radhika recently left her chef job at Between Boutique Cafe and Lounge on Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago to pursue other interests (does Top Chef ruin your chef career but make you rich and famous???) for a while.  Having been to Between a couple times during her time there I am a big fan of her cooking and the halibut lived up to my expectations.  I had hoped to provide you a link to the recipe which is to be posted on http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/the-tour-recipes but their site has been down for a few days and I did not want to delay this post this any longer.    I suspect Antonia cooked in the next session so there may be a recipe out there for what she made as well.  That one I will have to download and make myself to see if she really is a Top Chef.

Top Chef Masters starts on Bravo June 10th.  This will be an interesting competition since all the chefs are already famous.  The competition should be fun to watch.  There are chefs from all over to include Art Smith and Rick Bayless from Chicago.  I am looking forward to watching it.  Hope you get to see it too.

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