Results tagged “food”

For the squash novice, we recommend trying the Acorn variety. They are firm, dark-green, and about the size of a cantaloupe. Here are two methods of preparing Acorn squash.

• Sky Full of Bacon's Mike Gebert offers up his Rules for Dining (inspired by/apologies to Michael Pollan) [SFoB]
• Chicago Eats TV launched this week, promising "hot and fresh videos about some of the most unique places around." So far their curioaity has taken them to Yak-Zies, Jake Melnick's, McGee's Tavern, Cans and Redhots and Fries. Way to take the road less traveled. [Chicagoeatstv.com]
• Bleeding Heart Bakery starts a bread co-op this Saturday with Polenta Asiago Roasted Garlic Bread. Orders must be received no later than 7 p.m. every Friday (order by calling 773-327-6934 or via e-mail) and will be ready for pickup 1 p.m. Sundays. And it's only $5 a loaf. [Inbox]

Chicago is overflowing with fantastic food, a majority of which is not conducive to maintaining a healthy weight or preventing cholesterol from clinging for dear life to the inside of our arteries. Contrary to the reputation of a dietitian, we cannot easily conjure the name of a single food that we would forbid from touching our lips. That said, eating a healthy diet is necessary to preventing disease, avoiding weight gain, and feeling happy and energetic. Here are a few strategies to help you navigate your way around Chicago’s equally glorious and treacherous culinary landscape.

The last time Sam's Wine and Spirits had a warehouse sale we made out like bandits, buying nearly $600 worth of wine for just over $100 after discounts. They're doing it again from October 14-25, slashing up to 75% off of their inventory. Some lucky shopper will also win a six liter bottle of Reignac Rouge Bordeaux 2003, which will be given away in a raffle

• Protestors from the company who helped build out Rick Bayless's XOCO set up shop outside the white-hot torta shop yesterday. [Grub Street Chi]
• Monica Eng reports that Sprout at 1417 W, Fullerton, is set to open October 3 as an all-organic restaurant. Get this: entrees are topping out at $120. Maybe owner Satko Ibrahimovic should check out Crust to get an idea of fair pricing for organic food. [The Stew]
• More non-Yelp reviews of Nana are coming in. This one is a positive review from David Hammond. [Reader]

Ever noticed that fast food never looks quite as... appetizing as it does in advertisements? We've all heard food stylist horror stories about shaving cream, glycerin, paints, oils and all the other fake things used to make food look just so for photo shoots. But this piece from The Guardian's food blog puts it all in perspective: side-by-side pictures of fast food advertisements vs. reality. Yuck. We're especially disturbed by number 4, the canned whole chicken. Though, we suppose anyone buying a canned whole chicken is getting what they deserve. If you're on a diet, bookmark this page - anytime you're tempted by fast food, just take a peek.

Brush up on your "elimination challenge" skills with a class in improvisational cooking at The Chopping Block's Merchandise Mart location this Friday. From 6-8:30pm. Chef Abraham Conlon will be bringing in a secret basket of goodies and will "walk you through the creative and technical process of cooking without recipes." How exciting is that? You never know when you'll need these skills to beat this guy. Call to reserve a spot.

         

Yesterday Kevin and I went to St. Anne, IL in Kankakee County (where AT&T's 3G service fears to tread, apparently) to attend the Local Beet's inaugural farm dinner at Genesis Growers. It was my third official farm dinner of the year and it was interesting to look back at how the growing season has progressed since that first City Provisions farm dinner at River Valley and the Outstanding in the Field dinner at Kinnikinnick Farm. Back in August it looked like Kinnikinnick's tomatoes would never ripen. Now we're trying to can as many tomatoes as possible and get ready for peppers, gourds and fall root vegetables.

  

Try to resist a good dessert. You can't. Last weekend we had two very good ones at two separate locations a block apart.

It's Labor Day weekend, but that doesn't mean all of us are grilling for possibly the final time this season. Here are some events, tastings, dinners and special offers to keep you busy this weekend and beyond:

Here's what we've been wasting our time reading this week. You should, too:

• Growing Home, Inc., which in our humble opinion does the Lord's Work with its organically certified urban farms in Englewood, is facing a $100,000 funding gap. If you've ever had their greens or other produce, please give what you can. [Inbox]
• The Green Chicago Restaurant Co-op launched a "Guaranteed Green" initiative that will help diners find and support the restaurants that "that take significant steps toward protecting the environment." on hand for the launch were Rick Bayless, Ina Pinkney, and Helen Cameron of Uncommon Ground, which also received the Co-op's first honors. [Inbox, again]
• "Are the Peaches Any Good?" Next time, ask a stupid question. [Fruit Slinger]

  

Chipotle Mexican Grill launched an iPhone application today that allows users to locate a location and place online orders. We've been putting it through its paces on our iPhone and like what we're getting out of it so far.

Just received word from the Bluebird's Jason Baldacci that the beer and wine dinner they were collaborating on with with mado and Webster's Wine Bar has been postponed. Baldacci e-mailed, "It's been a new challenge for all of us to put together an event between three different bars/restaurants, and we want to make sure that we're as prepared as possible, and that the dinner is going to be as good as we can all collectively make it." We'll let readers know when a new date is set.

So far this week we've already given you the heads-up on the mado/Webster's Wine Bar/Bluebird collaborative dinner and the Chicago Botanic Garden's Pepper Weekend. 'Course the big thing for us is the Publican/New Holland beer dinner Sunday. If those three don't tickle your fancy, try these events.

Here are some links to check out in between Madden '10 sessions:

• Sam's South Loop and Aigre Doux weren't the only notable closings this week. Joining them in the restaurant/retail graveyard are Mama Desta's Red Sea (the city's oldest Ethiopian restaurant) and Doggy's S.S. Soul Eatery. [Food Chain]
• Chicago Diner is guilty of making tired Sarah Palin jokes. Local blogger is guilty of overreacting to Chicago Diner's tired Sarah Palin jokes. [Grub Street Chi]
• I passed along some of the guanciale I made to Seth Zurer of Baconfest Chicago and Sky Full of Bacon's Mike Gebert. Here's Gebert's verdict. [Sky Full of Bacon]

                    

With a huge hand clutching a glass of Austrian sparkling wine, David Cleverdon slowly gestured across the seemingly endless verdancy surrounding us like a compass searching for True North and said, "You're catching us at the beginning of a transition. Tomorrow, trucks will be coming to the farm and tearing up the land as we start laying the ground work for the future of Kinnikinnick Farm."

Sky Full of Bacon 11: A Better Fish from Michael Gebert on Vimeo.
• Mike Gebert visits Carl Galvan and Supreme Lobster Company, one of the country's largest fish purveyors, about the volume of seafood they sell while maintaining sustainable pracitces. [Sky Full of Bacon]
• Phil Vettel and the Trib's resident "Mayor McCheese" Kevin Pang debate pizza pie slices versus the familiar square party cut. Sorry, Kevin: we're siding with Phil on this one. [Tribune]
• Jennifer Olvera gets canning tips from Paul Virant. [Sun-Times]

This in from Tribune Mayor McCheese, um, "Cheeseburger Bureau Chief" Kevin Pang: Graham Elliot Bowles, who's been known to play his own music in between spins of Huey Lewis and the Clash in his eponymous River North restaurant, will be cooking for Jane's Addiction when Lollapalooza hits town in a few short weeks. Bowles will be serving Perry and company what he described as a "heartland picnic."

As if Kuma's Corner couldn't get any more packed on the weekend, now the venerable burger/beer/metal/biker kitsch bar is throwing a block party to celebrate its fourth anniversary, which should just send fans of Kuma's monster burgers into DEFCON 1 mode.

Welcome back, food lovers. This week on Top Chef Masters, we have: Chef Douglas Rodriguez, Chef Mark Peel, Chef Anita Lo or Chef John Besh. We've got James Beard winners, a Michelin star recipient, and multiple Best New Chef namings. Another impressive bunch. Oh boy, we're impressed and bored already.

Koval Distillery in Andersonville has been making some noise of late, as the city's only distillery. They've also been making some amazing spirits and liqueurs, from what we tasted a couple weeks back at Uncommon Ground Devon's Friday Farmers Market.

Taste of Chicago starts tomorrow just a little bit smaller. Only 54 vendors will be serving the teeming masses descending on Grant Park for the next 10 days. That might actually turn into a postivie.

(Today we wrap up our week-long series following chef Paul Kahan as he brewed beer at New Holland Brewing and planned a menu for an August 23 beer dinner at the Publican. If you haven't already, you can go back and read part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4)

• Did you know you could eat slugs? Yes. They're excellent in tomato sauce.
• This is just for Spook: Check out those spicy Korean soups.
• If you're on Hell's Kitchen and you don't know how to make Beef Wellington, you're a donkey.

      

(This is Part 3 in our week-long series following the evolution of a beer dinner at the Publican, from conception to the actual dinner. IF you haven't already, read Part 1 and Part 2.)

              

(This is the second in a series following the evolution of a beer dinner at the Publican, from conception to reality. Read Part 1 here.)

      

“Cooking with beer is a little new for me.” To hear a chef say such a thing would be surprise enough. That the chef admitting this was Paul Kahan made me take even more notice.