After a year of anticipation, I finally went to the Aviary this week (twice!). The best way I can describe it? A cocktail party at Alinea, complete with re-imagined drinks, more-than-meets-the-eye hors d’oeuvres, playful interactivity, and most importantly – fun. Clearly, a lot of ... continue reading...
Penne alla Vodka
I love pasta with a simple, homemade tomato sauce - but sometimes it's nice to have something a little different. Penne alla Vodka is a spicy, creamy alternative that has become one of my fallback weeknight dinners. This is a fairly ubiquitous dish (for good reason, if you ask me), ... continue reading...
Takashi Japan benefit dinner
Last night I was lucky enough to attend a unique dinner at Takashi restaurant, a benefit for Japan that featured more than a dozen well-known Chicago chefs. Since each of the seven courses was contributed by a different chef, we ended up with a wide-ranging tasting menu of dishes from great ... continue reading...
Dinner at Next: Paris 1906
Last night I had dinner at Next – I would say “finally”, except that it was only a week ago that I made the reservation. It seemed longer, though, since I was starting to feel like a child waiting for Christmas morning. By the time the big day rolled around, I’d started to worry that a letdown might ... continue reading...
Chocolate banana muffins
I've recently been on a bit of a cookbook binge, and got two books by Nigella Lawson. Her writing can be over-the-top at times, but that just makes the recipes more fun to read. What other cookbook can boast shellfish characterized by "bouncy sweetness", cheesecake that's an "overindulgent ... continue reading...
Dark chocolate brownies
It's pretty clear that I love chocolate - for example, a typical day at the office starts with a few squares of my favorite 65% Michel Cluizel single-origin chocolate. Given this, perhaps it's odd that I don't make many chocolate-based treats. Only rarely do I bake a chocolate cake, cookies, or ... continue reading...
Thinking of Japan
Japan has been heavily on my mind lately - such an amazing country, facing such terrible and unrelenting disaster. So I wanted to share some of my favorite memories of Japan, focusing on the food, since that's certainly one of the things that makes Japan so distinctive and ... continue reading...
Spinach pie (aka spanakopita)
My introduction to Greek food came when I was quite young, at Ikaros restaurant in Baltimore, and I found it wonderfully exciting. It was always a treat to go to Ikaros since it was so far afield from my usual haunts; Greektown is near the industrial part of the harbor, almost an hour drive ... continue reading...
Palo Alto Sol (mole, olé!)
If you spend enough time with me, you'll sooner or later come to realize that I have an obsession with mole sauce. Not just any mole, though - the mole poblano at Palo Alto Sol. For those who aren't familiar with it, mole is a sauce made of unsweetened chocolate, chilis, spices, tomato, and a ... continue reading...