A mild-mannered chicken curry takes the chill out of a rainy autumn night

Ginger, garlic and cilantro team up with a number of spices in this simple, fragrant Chicken Curry. Recipe below.

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One of the perils of living in a city like Chicago, with its rich cultural diversity and well-deserved reputation for authentic food of all ethnic stripes, is that your taste buds get spoiled.

When recent chilly, drizzly weather put me in the mood for attempting a curry dish, my spoiled taste buds were envisioning the robust flavors and aromas of Devon Avenue. The practical side of me, however, was looking for something simple, something doable on a weeknight.

I looked around at numerous recipes. Some sounded deliciously authentic, but more complicated than I felt like tackling at the moment. Others sounded a little too basic, a little to aimed at the American palate. Finally, I settled on one that had “good bone structure”—a satisfying number and variety of fresh ingredients and spices— Continue reading “A mild-mannered chicken curry takes the chill out of a rainy autumn night” →

A quick taste of Toronto

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I don’t know if Toronto has an official tourism tagline, but maybe they should consider stealing IHOP’s: “Come hungry. Leave happy.”

On a recent visit, Marion and I did just that. I’ll get to the food in a moment, but first here’s how Canada’s largest city fed our urban souls. When we’re traveling, some of the things we look for in cities we visit are great museums [art and otherwise], active gallery and music scenes, cool shops, a diverse, lively street culture, walkability and, if possible, decent public transportation.

Toronto delivered on all counts. We parked our car at our downtown hotel and didn’t touch it again until we were headed back to Chicago days later. Much of what we wanted to do and see was walking distance, down streets that invited and encouraged walking. Continue reading “A quick taste of Toronto” →

Grilled cheese with an autumnal touch, lentil soup with cilantro and cumin

Two recipes create a satisfying vegetarian dinner this week: Quickly sautéed apple slices and arugula liven up a classic grilled cheese sandwich, and cumin and fresh cilantro do the same for lentil soup.

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The Russet apples Marion had picked up at the farmers market had sat in a bowl on the kitchen counter for days now, their rough skin inviting an occasional touch and the promise of delicious tartness encouraging ideas for their use. Continue reading “Grilled cheese with an autumnal touch, lentil soup with cilantro and cumin” →

“86 Hunger” with top Chicago chefs, winery turns garbage into great taste

Six Chicago chefs—including Rick Bayless—are teaming with with the Greater Chicago Food Depository to take hunger off the menu. You can join them. San Francisco’s tough composting laws are actually helping restaurants and winemakers.

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The restaurant business is full of colorful terms. You only have to watch Hell’s Kitchen to hear some of the more colorful ones. Well, or hang around in my kitchen when things start to go wrong. But to “86” something lets the entire kitchen and restaurant staff know that a menu item is no longer available.

86-hunger-sm The Greater Chicago Food Depository wants to 86 Hunger: Take Hunger Off the Menu. To do it, they’re teaming up with six Chicago restaurants for a series of dinners in intimate settings, now through November 18. The series of dinners is being launched in a year when 35 percent more Chicagoans are turning to the Food Depository and its network of pantries, soup kitchens and shelters. Funds raised will benefit the Food Depository, which serves 500,000 men, women and children in Cook County every year.

Chef Rick Bayless kicks things off with a VIP event at his Frontera Grill on Wednesday, October 21. Dinner includes a visit to his home garden and a live cooking demonstration in the restaurant’s test kitchen. Continue reading ““86 Hunger” with top Chicago chefs, winery turns garbage into great taste” →

Casserole of Roasted Mushrooms: Perfect with wild or not-so-wild mushrooms

An assortment of roasted mushrooms, onions, garlic, spinach, ricotta cheese, spinach and pasta make for a robust, deeply satisfying vegetarian casserole that’s perfect for chilly autumn. Recipe below.

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Recently we received a review copy of Edible Wild Mushrooms of Illinois and Surrounding States: A Field-to-Kitchen Guide by Joe McFarland and Gregory M. Mueller, published by University of Illinois Press. Since Marion is by far the bigger authority on mushrooms in our kitchen, I’ve turned the book—and the kitchen—over to her this week.

One of the things that surprised us when Terry started this blog three years back was the unexpected cool opportunities and, well, freebies like this, wafting down into our kitchen. This book is one of the most terrific of all these gifts. I. love. this. book. It is both attractive and useful. For those who live in the Midwest and who love mushrooms, but who don’t know much about finding them in the wild, this book is brilliant—direct, charming and, best of all, smart. Its hallmarks are clarity, safety and deliciousness. When you open it up, one of the first things you see is a yellow warning triangle with a skull and crossbones and the words DO NOT IGNORE THIS WARNING—MUSHROOM POISONING CAN BE FATAL.

Yes, it can. Deadly poisonous mushrooms are common throughout the Midwest and, indeed, throughout the world. Even in winter. As the authors note, “Finding wild mushrooms in Illinois is incredibly easy. They’re everywhere. But that’s the problem.”

And it is a problem the authors show you how to address. First, be safe. Continue reading “Casserole of Roasted Mushrooms: Perfect with wild or not-so-wild mushrooms” →

Blog Action Day 2009: Global warming and the meat of the matter

Nearly 10,000 bloggers around the world are taking part in Blog Action Day 2009, discussing this year’s topic, Global Warming, from the perspectives of their individual blogs. Here are my thoughts on meat’s giant carbon footprint.

Mae West once famously said, “Too much of a good thing can be wonderful!” Unfortunately, just about everywhere you look these days, the opposite is proving to be true. Take meat, for instance. America’s growing love affair with meat [and more recently, the developing world’s increasing infatuation with it] is having dire consequences for our health and the health of the planet.

How big is the world’s love of meat? In his 2008 article “Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler,” New York Times food writer Mark Bittman said, “The world’s total meat supply was 71 million tons in 1961. In 2007, it was estimated to be 284 million tons. Per capita consumption has more than doubled over that period. [In the developing world, it rose twice as fast, doubling in the last 20 years.] World meat consumption is expected to double again by 2050.”

What makes these numbers so scary? Consider this. According to Livestock’s Long Shadow, Continue reading “Blog Action Day 2009: Global warming and the meat of the matter” →

Lamb chops, couscous with raisins and the singular pleasures of cooking for one

Cooking for one can be a chore for some. For me, it’s a chance to indulge in old favorites and experiment a little: Pan-grilled Lamb Chops for the former, Moroccan-style Couscous with Raisins and Onions for the latter. Recipes below.

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Shortly after I’d moved to Chicago the first time, I bought a half ham. Trying to figure out what to do with it, I consulted Joy of Cooking, where I was greeted by these cheery words: “Someone defined eternity as a ham and two people.” Standing there alone in the galley kitchen of my tiny studio apartment, I did the math—my half ham and I were in for a long haul. Continue reading “Lamb chops, couscous with raisins and the singular pleasures of cooking for one” →

Goodbye to an old friend: Gourmet folds

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By now, probably everyone has heard that Gourmet magazine has published its last issue. Certainly, there has been plenty of coverage of the announcement in every medium out there. I don’t know that I have anything significant to add to the noise, but not saying anything at all just wouldn’t be right. Think of this post not so much as a full-fledged tribute, but more as a scribbled note, a bunch of flowers or perhaps a votive candle in a jam jar left at a makeshift memorial somewhere.

Gourmet was something I grew into gradually. As a fledgling semi-serious home cook, I found its—I don’t know, seriousness, I guess—more than a little daunting at first. But Marion loved it for that very reason. Her cooking chops were well established, and she appreciated that Gourmet’s recipes felt like real cooking. So it was that, for a time, we had his and hers subscriptions to both Bon Appétit and Gourmet. I pored over the former and merely glanced at the latter; Marion took exactly the opposite approach.

But as the months and the magazines piled up, I found myself lingering longer over Gourmet’s sumptuous photographs, studying recipes and finding them less daunting, more doable. And more interesting than a number of things I was cooking. Slowly but surely, I had become a fan. Continue reading “Goodbye to an old friend: Gourmet folds” →