Last Post...But Not Really!

Hello all my wonderful readers! I have some great news but also some sad news. As you all know ChicagoNow is now hosting my blog on their website so I have a cool new address, but the same blog. You can also become a follower of it on the site, so please do!!

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/stephanie-eats-chicago/

Artistic Attempt

Earlier today I tried my hand at painting. I recently acquired a new artist set from Michael's and so I picked up a small canvas as well. I figured, how hard could it really be? I'm a decent sketcher, so why wouldn't I be a decent painter? I was far from correct. I created the most hideous painting you have ever seen in your life! I would post a picture of it here, but I fear many of you would lose much respect if you saw the behemoth. Feeling discouraged at my artistic ability I decided to fall back on something I knew I could do, cook (aka the culinary arts)!

Today's project...Hollandaise Sauce! I've read about a million different ways to make hollandaise, but I decided to try to make some using my immersion blender. Most recipes either call for the traditional double broiler or a standard blender. But why would I do either of those ways if I could make it much simpler? Some of you may criticize me for not following the "traditional" recipe, but as this is not a very traditional blog I decided to do it my way.



The traditional recipe calls for:
3 egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon of salt
dash of pepper (I used cayenne)
1 stick of butter of half a cup
1 tablespoon of lemon juice (I always would use fresh if I had it on hand, but I made mine with bottled and it tasted just fine)

First combine eggs, salt, pepper and lemon juice and set aside.
Melt butter on medium-high heat until completely liquid and then turn off the burner
Beat egg mixture for 2 full minutes (don't skimp on this part)
Then slowly (very slowly) add/drizzle the butter into the egg mixture
It should turn out pretty thick and fluffy

I was extremely proud of my sauce, as a couple of months ago I attempted to make bachamel and did not go nearly as well. I'll have to attempt that again in the near future. Hollandaise is traditionally served with asparagus, eggs or Filet Mignon. I decided to try mine on some salmon with dill. It was out of this world!! You can put whatever amount you want on it, I prefer a lot!! Which probably isn't the best, because the recipe is pure fat and cholesterol but oh so good. And hollandaise is not a typical daily indulgence.



I have two taste testers constantly in my kitchen. One whom is quite picky, and prefers mostly fatty greasy delights. I allow him this in his old age...Max


The other is younger and definitely a little over-exuberant when it comes to my dishes. He is a true sous-chef.

Great News!

I have great news for everyone! ChicagoNow, a subsidairy of the Tribune Company has offered to host my food blog about Chicago on their website! One of my friends who works at Triblocal, the local section of the Tribune I've been writing for since the summer suggested I pitch my food blog to ChicagoNow. I didn't even know about them but I figured why not and if they reject me I can continue to write my other one. Well a few days later I get an email from a community manager at ChicagoNow who wanted to speak with me about my blog. They loved the idea and wanted to pick it up! I was sooooooo excited :-) I'll continue to keep everyone updated about when it launches, etc.

Taste Book

For all you food lovers out there I recently stumbled upon...literally (stumbleupon.com) a website that is just wonderful. It's called tastebook.com and it's an easy way to create a personalized cook book either for yourself or as a gift for a friend. You have the option of pulling recipes from sites allover the web and adding your own family recipes.

Check it out!
www.tastebook.com

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Butternut Squash Soup

I have been waiting forever to make this recipe and I was finally able to with my new gift from Santa an immersion blender!!! For those of you who aren't so excited about this nifty little toy, let me explain. Imagine trying to make a delicious recipe like squash soup with the whole process of transferring batch by batch into your blender to get the desired consistency. Imagine slopping squash all over your kitchen and dirtying tons of dishes for the sake of soup. Now imagine one dutch oven, no blender, no extra dishes, and that's what the immersion blender does. Everything stays in the pot and the blender comes to you. Here a picture of my new toy!


This is the same set I got for Christmas!! I haven't been this excited about a toy since I got pooch the good puppy when I was eight.

This recipe was originally inspired by my love for The Atwood Cafe's winter butternut squash soup. My family tries to go there every winter when the windows are up across the street at Macy's. I adapted this recipe from something I found on Food Gawker, it lead me to: Take It and Like It Food blog.

I ended up doubling the recipe so my whole family could enjoy. I also used quite a bit more coconut milk and a touch bit more curry powder. Soups are great because they're pretty easy to experiment with. Feel free to add extra flavors or substitute milk/cream for your liking.

Court's Curry Squash Soup: Remember I doubled this for 4 people
half a squash (used butternut)
olive oil
half an onion
one clove garlic
2 cups/500ml chicken or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 cup/62ml coconut milk or cream
salt and pepper to taste



Scoop the seeds out of the squash and fill the whole with about 2 tablespoons of butter. Brush the squash with olive oil, and roast it at 350F/180C for 30-40 minutes (until tender and cooked through). I ended up roasting mine for 45.

While the squash is roasting, saute the onions and garlic until soft.

Pour half a cup of the stock in with the squash squash, onions and garlic into your dutch oven and use the immersion blender to puree until smooth.

Add the remaining stock and coconut milk and mix until consistent. Add the spices as indicated, or to taste. Top with a garnish of sour cream and enjoy!

Stephanie Deen

As a child I adored making home videos. I'd have my parents tape me singing, putting on plays, making our dog do tricks, etc. But I probably havn't made one since the age of 12, until Monday night.

I have an extreme love of the Food Network and particularly Paula Deen. I adore her cute little accent and her deep fried foods. I also love that she is so close to her family and always has a good story to tell. So I decided to do my own taping of my favorite Food Network show, a la Stephanie. My dad broke out the old video camera, not even digital, and my brother got ready for his stand-up as a commerical and we got to work. I've learned as I've watch the food network almost all of the shows are ad-libbed or improvised for the most part. Especially Paula's, when she drops something or can't find something, she usually keeps chugging along. So without a script and just an idea of what I was going to make we got to work.

I transformed myself into the estranged daughter of Paula Deen and made my famous Matzo Toffee.

The first step was taking 1 cup of brown sugar and combining it with half a cup of butter (or one stick).



After this began to bubble you pour it over the flat matzo (I used around 5 pieces).



And then you pop that in a 350 degree oven for 4-5 minutes or until it begins to bubble again. Then the next choice is yours. Many people add chocolate to the top, but I prefer marshmellows! After your matzo begins to bubble again, take it out of the oven and immediatly pop them into the freezer for at least 3 hours. Then feel free to break the pieces apart and put them in plastic baggies for easy access.

Your finished product should look similar to this!



As our video camera is not digital it may take me a couple of days to get it up on here.

Recipe:
1 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of butter
5 pieces of Matzo

Directions:
Melt butter in a small pot on medium heat for 3 minutes
Add brown sugar and turn up heat to medium-high until the mixture begins to boil
Spread the mixture over 5 pieces of matzo (more or less depending on how thick you want it, note it will spread out even more once put in the oven)
Pop the matzo into a 350 degree oven for 4-5 minutes of until it bubbles
Take out matzo and put in the freezer for at least 3 hours, then break apart and enjoy!

Slow Cooking

Unfortunately this post isn't about a great slow cooking recipe, it's more about the fact that I'm sorry I haven't had time to post any tasty delights yet, particularly my version of the Chicago style hot dog. Please stick around because it is coming, but just slowly. This entry is mostly about the fact that lately I've been so busy the only thing I've been really making is bagged lunches. But let me tell you I am THE connoisseur of the bagged lunch. My specialty you ask, wraps!

I know a cook isn't supposed to divulge their true pickiness, but I'm going to be honest, I do NOT like sliced sandwich bread. I blame it on the fact that as a child growing up I attended the only school district in the north shore of Chicago that did not have a cafeteria until high school. For some, this is unimaginable, I've heard of kids being fed mac 'n cheese and French fries since kindergarten, but not I. Our school district opted to spend their government tax money on fancy Mac computers and highclass dodge balls instead. So I grew up eating in the school gym, or in junior high an area they called "the commons". Back to my fear of sliced bread...everyday I was packed an almost identical school lunch: a honey ham sandwich on Mother's sliced bread with mustard (no cheese), a plastic bag full of cheetos, a juicebox, and either an applesauce or a Twinkie. When the lunch was packed the bread was normally at room temperature, the ham was usually cold from being in the fridge. By lunch time, the ham had transferred its moisture to the bread turning it to a slightly gluey consistency. But I still ate it, day after day after day. But as a grown-up I have the choice to not eat slightly moist, gluey bread, and so I chose not to.



Today's Simple Wrap-Up:

A small sized round tortilla (any brand will do)
3 slices of thin-cut honey turkey (Sara- Lee is my favorite)
A sprinkling of parmesan cheese (about 2 tablespoons)
Lingonberry preserves (about a teaspoon)

I prefer to package my wraps in tinfoil and chose not to refrigerate them (I figured this was safe due to the fact that every sack lunch I had in elementary school was not refrigerated and I didn't die from food poisoning)

If you work in an office, I'm sure you've been blessed my some sort of functioning microwave, I recommend heating your wrap before consuming, it tastes even better when the cheese melts and combines with the Lingonberry preserves. I enjoy consuming my turkey wrap with a juicy juice grape juice box, a snack bag of sunchips and some sort of fruit. Viola the perfect bagged lunch!