Category: Misc.

Girl and The Goat…A Dinner Invitation I Could Not Miss

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Some micro organism I consumed earlier this week has knocked me down for the count. This past weekend I had a jam packed food centric weekend lined up with with PR events, work with the caterer, and an epic dinner invitation from Lori Lynn at Taste With The Eyes for a special dinner for ten at Stephanie Izard’s Girl and The Goat arranged by her adoring brother, Don. I had to cancel my whole weekend , just to be be able to recover, and attend this dinner I wouldn’t have missed for the world. By midday Sunday, after plenty of sleep, bed rest, liquids, and other things I wont mention on a food blog, I was ready , to take Lori Lynn up on her gracious invitation. Mind you, I hadn’t really eaten in about a day and half. Marie from Proud Italian Cook ,kept checking in on me all weekend to see if I would make it. To say we were excited would be an understatement.

If you don’t know who Stephnaie Izard is, than you should. She is the only female winner of Top Chef ,and we in Chicago are damn proud of her. The past few months as I have been thinking about blogging, chefs, cuisine, and the food industry in general, I have been thinking of who’s the real deal and who’s just perpetrating . There is a lot I’m not overly impressed with when I analyze it all.Having been all over, and dined all over. I can say Stephanie is the Real Deal. I confess most of the times I go the hottest new restaurants, I’m left with a feeling of not being impressed and let down after spending my precious time and money. Many overly hyped places and people are really not that original or want to really stretch themselves or their diners. But after having dined at Girl and The Goat,I cant say I have ever dined like that in my life. Stephanie is a wizard in flavors and ingredients. Imagine a perfectly seared chicken with watermelon and olives. Crazy but does it work! Marie and I agreed no one coaxes and manipulates vegetable entrees like Stephanie. I could go vegetarian if I had her recipes. Besides the food, I was wowed by her rustic elegant interiors that made you feel comfortable and at ease. There was a casual laid back, yet clean and efficient ease with the staff. Her stacks of pottery and various jars as serving vessels inspired me to pull out my own for use.

What I admire most about Stephanie is her graciousness. Graciousness and modesty seems to be hard to find in this modern age. Lori Lynn’s brother had Stephanie cook for him at a private event in his house once before.Later that year, he had also bid and won on another local Top Chef contestant to cook for another private dinner at a charity event.That didn’t work out and Stephanie stepped in and offered him a gracious dinner at her new restaurant as compensation. She didn’t have to do it, but she did. I have worked in a few kitchens, and from what I saw Stephanie is a hard working , graceful chef with a pleasant attitude and no airs no matter how sticky things get. That’s a rarity in this business. And my hunch is people feel this and will gravitate to Girl and The Goat. For a Sunday evening all the tables were in use, and there was wait list for at 9pm.We reluctantly gave up our table after 3 hours for the next party. That’s not typical for Sunday nights in a recession.

Our gracious hosts ordered practically the whole menu for us to sample with accompanying wines. I barely made it through the appetizers, as I was still recovering. But we slowed the flow and I managed to sample most of the offerings.I had to go easy on some on the heavier meat dishes as I wasn’t quite up to that yet with my stomach. Here is what we dined on from the menu. I placed a star by my favorites although I found everything was exceptional.

Vegetables

warm marinated olives *

pan fried shishito peppers with parmesan , sesame, and miso *

sauteed green beans with fish sauce vinaigrette and cashews**

shaved kohlrabi with fennel, blueberries, evelon, and toasted almonds *

chickpea fritters with heirloom tomatoes and fresh mozzarella

Fish

grilled baby octopus with guanciale, lemon- pistachio vinaigrette *

seared scallops with braised veal, caponata, and marcona almond butter

steamed clams with pork sausage, fennel.green tomato, and linguine *

seared summer flounder with brandade, tart plums, and sweet onions *

Meat

pork liver mousseline with ham hock jus, apple mustarda, and crumpets *

ham frites with smoked tomato aioloi and smoked swiss

smoked goat pizza with honeycrisp soffrito , black kale, cipollini, and ricottta

skirt steak a la planch with chiogga beets, house pickles, wilted romaine, salted goat milk caramel

wood oven roasted pig face with sunny side egg, tamarind, cilantro, and potato stix

braised beef tongue with masa, beef vinaigrette, and salsa verde

pan roasted chicken with fermented black bean, nicoise olives, celery, watermelon, and mint *

goat belly with lentils

Desserts

sweet corn nougat with plum apricot and candied bacon *

fudgecicle with olive oil gelato and dragons milk *

fried potato dumplings with candied eggplant, figs, and honey yogurt

goat cheese bavaroise with blueberry and brown sugar cake *

Breads

Pretzle bread with apple mustard

courtesy of Proud Italian Cook

Kentucky Pulled Pork

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I like to call this Kentucky Pulled Pork. The recipe was given to me by a genuine Kentuckian, Mel Doerr. Now Mel is what I would like to call my spiritual adviser, who I have consulted with for years. His intuition and instinct are always been dead on, so naturally I trust his recipe. He gave me this recipe for a crock pot style slow cooked pulled pork ,handed down from his grandmother.What makes it true Kentucky Pulled Pork is that shot ( or two ) of Bourbon you are going to add.Yes sir, Bourbon! No need to slave over an open pit barbecue, turn on that crock pot this summer and save some electricity while staying cooler in the process. Mel also mentioned his coleslaw, but didn’t provide a formal recipe. The draw to his coleslaw was pineapple. Pineapple and Pork are always delicious. This recipe is really easy. Yes it takes approx two days with marination and cooking, but it’s worth it and wont cause you a lot anxiety in preparation. It practically cooks itself!

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Kentucky Pulled Pork

*time preparation approx 2 days. 10 hours slow cooking.

  1. Marinate all ingredients over night in a non reactive food grade container with lid.
  2. Place in Crock Pot with a little extra liquid (water) and set for 10 hours.I also added an optional few drops of liquid smoke toward the end of cooking.
  3. Serve with coleslaw.

Coleslaw With Pineapple

  • 1 head of cabbage shredded
  • 1/2-3/4 cup Mayonnaise
  • 1 small can of crushed pineapple with its syrup
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 carrot grated
  1. Mix all ingredients together. Start with the 1/2 cup of Mayonnaise and add more as needed. You don’t want your slaw too runny.
  2. Adjust to taste
  3. Chill and let set for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator

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Chicago Culinary Weekend Events…Sears Chef Challenge

If you’re in Chicago and looking for some culinary related activity check this out! Also , yours truly will be doing a live demo this Saturday at the 61st St Farmers Market at 10 am.

Here is the information for the Sears Event:

On Saturday, July 31 at 7 p.m. CT, you and your readers are invited to watch the four national semi-finalists in the Sears Chef Challenge compete head-to-head in a LIVE cooking competition at the Kenmore Live Studio to be crowned the king or queen of the kitchen. Free to the public, attendees at this event will enjoy delicious food, interactive activities and exciting recipe demonstrations from each of the competing chefs.

Following a nationwide search and online vote, America has chosen the Sears Chef Challenge semi-finalist chefs that will be competing to raise money for local charities in their hometowns, as well as earn a spot to move on to the Sears Chef Challenge Championship Final on November 6. The four chefs will represent their local cities as they compete live by completing a variety of special culinary challenges during the Semi-Final event. The semi-finalist chefs will then be scored by a panel of expert, culinary judges.

What: Sears Chef Challenge Semi-Final Event Cooking Competition

About The Sears Chef Challenge

The Sears Chef Challenge (www.searschefchallenge.com) is a nationwide contest that aims to find the nation’s next up and coming chef by inviting aspiring chefs to enter for a chance to win a newly-renovated kitchen from Sears and up to $20,000 donated in their name to a charity food bank in their hometown.

Semi-Finalist Chef Contestants:

Chef Mark Maassen — Representing Chicago

Chef Steph Krzywanski — Representing Washington D.C.

Chef Riq Glispy — Representing New York

Chef Palak Patel — Representing Los Angeles

Date: July 31, 2010 at 7 p.m. CST

Cost: Free – Open to Public

Location:

Kenmore Live Studio

678 N Wells St.

Chicago, Illinois

Drunken Goat Tacos, A Winner, and A Move for Coco

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The other day Certain Someone was quick to remind me that I haven’t posted in a while. With summer, the holiday and intense, heat, who can honestly think about cooking? I have been eating a lot of cold salads, sandwiches, and takeout. I meant to post last weekend, but I decided to take the opportunity to fully relax. Some big changes are afoot here at Coco Cooks. I will be moving in few weeks to my own domain. After four years of blogging , its about time.I hope you guys come to visit  and stay awhile. I promise the digs will be more snazzy.I confess I know nothing about tech issues, and am fully entrusting myself to VinoLuci, whom seems to be the master of moves and design.

Before we get started on the recipe for Drunken Goat Tacos, I picked a winner finally for the book Substituting Ingredients. The winner is Saretta! Enjoy!

A few months ago while preparing for my Farmers Market Demo, I purchased some ground goat meat from Mint Creek Farms.Normally I see goat sold in pieces with bones, and I was attracted the pureness of the ground goat,without the bones.I decided to make a taco.If you haven’t tried goat yet, I don’t know what  you are waiting for. Get over your aversion and dig in. I promise you will be pleasantly surprised . Tacos were an easy and quick meal  with my acquisition. This recipe was just thrown together, so follow your own instinct.I call it Drunken Goat Tacos, because I simmered the meat in red wine.

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Drunken Goat Tacos

  • 1 lb ground goat meat
  • 1 -2 ears fresh raw corn on cob, scraped off the cob
  • 1 knob onion chopped (green and white parts)
  • 2 dried Chipolte peppers soaked in hot water and seeded
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 cup  dry red wine
  • salt and pepper to taste

Accompaniments:

Corn Tortillas, sour cream, wedges of lime, green tomatillo salsa, and Cojita Cheese

  1. In a small bowl , soak the dried Chipoltes in boiling hot water for 15-20 minutes.

  2. In a heavy skillet, heat oil.
  3. Add corn kernels, chopped onion.
  4. Soften and brown on medium heat.
  5. Remove Chiplote’s from hot water, de seed, and chop.
  6. Save the reserved water.Add to the skillet.
  7. Add ground goat to skillet and brown on medium/high heat.Season with cumin, salt, pepper, garlic. Add a bit of the reserved water to aid the meat in cooking( a few tablespoons at a time). As liquid evaporates add more.
  8. Then add red wine and simmer until all liquid is absorbed/ The meat should be moist  but still crumbly.
  9. Serve with Corn Tortillas, sour cream, wedges of lime, green tomatillo salsa, and Cojita Cheese.

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Almond Rose Turkish Delight and A Giveaway for Substituting Ingredients

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A certain ennui is settling over my kitchen. It could be that I’m just plain exhausted with new part  time hours working as a line cook for a well known caterer in addition to my day job.The hours there can be feast or famine, and lately its a feast, which leaves me exhausted.Imagine 16 hour days with your day job and then working the kitchen  for the love of it and to gain  practical experience. I confess I’m learning and hedging my bets at the same time. In these financial times, with job uncertainty, it’s good to get any experience you can, as the more traditional jobs are scarce.Lately I have all these cooking plans for fun and by the time a quick dinner is made and Certain Someone and I are settled, I just drift away. Maybe it’s  the heat too. Who knows, but I need my drive and inspiration back,soon.It happens to all of us from time to time.

Before I get to this weeks fun recipe of Turkish Delight,I want to talk about a little book that was just published and should be in every ones kitchen.

Substituting Ingredients by Becky Sue Epstein is a indispensable guide for the kitchen. In these lean times, its nice to have a book on hand that resolves a ingredient dilemma , without having to run to the store and spend yet more money.Upon reading this book you will find out how to find replacements for herbs, spices, fruits,and other essential ingredients, Becky Sue also includes recipes for mixes like Hot Cocoa to a Garam Masala, and ketchup.My favorite part of the book is the chapter on Household formulas. Becky Sue shows how to replace costly toxic chemicals with formulas made from household ingredients.I found this book simple,and easy to use. It will be well thumbed as I go about  my cooking and baking endeavors. I have one copy of this book to give away. Leave a comment at this end of this post and I will chose a winner next week.Comments close for entry July 3.
I received my copy of Dessert Professional Magazine last month and saw a recipe I knew I had to attempt at home.Turkish Delight! The recipe was excerpted from Chocolates and Confections by Peter P. Greweling of the Culinary Institute of America.His Turkish Delight looked like  clear solid perfection . I substituted out pistachios for what was on hand, slivered almonds.The slivered almonds stuck out and didn’t  allow for a smooth cut. Buts that’s the beauty of Turkish Delight, its many variations.I confess mine looks rather crude compared to the photo in Dessert Professional, but it was tasty . My only complaint is that the humidity caused my pieces to sweat after dusting the next day. The heat and humidity is extreme here in Chicago currently, so I wouldn’t advise making this when humid. But I will be making it again.Here was an interesting thread on some other peoples experience making this particular recipe as well .
Turkish Delight or Lokum was created in response  by a crafty confectioner,Ali Muhiddin Hacı Bekir, for a sultan in the Ottoman Empire who tired of hard candy.Ali Muhiddins descendants still sell Rahat Lokums ( comfortable morsels) to this day in many variations . Turkish Delight become popular with the west through CS Lewis’ The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe.For those that are looking for a gummy type of confection , without the use of gelatin or animal products, this is the recipe for you. Turkish Delight gets its consistency from a mixture of cream of Tartar, corn starch,and sugar, The variations come with additions of nuts and flavors. Rose water is one of the most popular flavorings.For this recipe , which I adapted, I ramped up the almond and rose flavors.

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Almond Rose Turkish Delight

adapted from the Turkish Delight Recipe in Chocolates and Confections by Peter Greweling .*
Changes made where * appear.
Makes 9×13 inch slab

Sugar Syrup

  • (2lb)4 cups granulated sugar
  • (8oz)1 cup water
  • 1tsp cream of tarter
  • Starch Paste
  • (4oz)1 cup Cornstarch
  • 1 tsp Cream of Tarter
  • (24 oz)3 cups water

*Flavoring

  • 1 tsp rose water
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • a few drops of rose colored food coloring
  • 1 cup slivered almonds

Dusting /Coating

  • (2oz)1/2 cup Confectioners Sugar
  • (1oz)1/4 cup Cornstarch

Oil and line a 9×13 inch baking pan with plastic wrap.Use a neutral  non flavored vegetable oil.Lightly oil the top of the wrap as well.
In a 2 qt saucepan, combine sugar, water, and cream of tarter. Bring to a boil , cover and boil for 4 minutes without stirring.After 4 minutes, remove lid, and place a candy thermometer in. Continue cooking until the mixture reaches a temperature of 260F.Remove from heat and set aside.
In a 4 qt saucepan mix the ingredients for the starch paste (Cornstarch,Cream of tarter,and water).
Stir with a whisk over medium heat until the mixture starts to thicken and boil.The mixture will be thick and pasty,but continue to cook for 2-3 minutes.
Taking the sugar syrup from before, add it gradually in a stream to the starch paste while whisking on the heat.Bring the combined mixtures to a soft boil and continue to whisk on a lowered heat until the mixture is smooth and clear.Cook for 20-25 minutes.
Remove pot from the heat and stir in rose and almond flavors, coloring , and nuts.
Pour into the prepared pan and lay a piece of plastic wrap on top. Leave to cool overnight.
In a large bowl sift together the confectioners sugar and cornstarch to dust the candy pieces in in, Cut the candy and roll in mixture.
Store in airtight , dry temperature.

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