pork ribs with Bob

Back to cooking at home for friends, and tonight we welcomed another librarian over. Bob is someone who lives here in Chicago and works in the area, but I only seem to see him at conferences in other cities, which I think is a little ridiculous. With that in mind, I asked him over for a casual Saturday night around the kitchen peninsula. The result, I think, was altogether pleasant.

Dietary restrictions for more than one person kept the carbs in the dinner to a minimum, which is a shame, because the pork ribs would have gone well with potatoes stewed in among them, or carrots, or a heaping mound of rice cooked with black bean liquor served up in a bowl with masa bisuits on the side. Oooooh, and some fregolata or a quick bread of some sort to go with the cheeses for dessert. Ah well. Bob, as you can see, was in awe of the trifle dish. He swears I hiked miles across the Canadian wilderness with this in my backpack, all in the intent of Canadianizing my little corner of the US, but I swear I bought the bowl at Sears down on State and Madison!

No matter, we had a lovely little dinner, but not before Conrad and I had scrambled to finally tidy up some of our mess around the house and make it presentable. My poor guy: he exhausts himself at work (and in Virginia) all week, then has to spend a somewhat sunny Saturday inside with a vacuum and dustrag. I'm glad he stole a few minutes of relaxation.

Dinner was family style. I made up a favourite standby: tomatillo-braised country-style pork ribs. It's such a winner of a recipe, I swear, and thank you Rick Bayless for that! And piping hot, as you can see! I put together a simple romaine salad and made a cilantro dressing to go with it. The other side was some pattypan squash cut up and seared with red pepper and white onion, seasoned a bit first with oregano, cumin, pepper, and salt. We enjoyed a Gruner Veltliner alongside, and stayed at the table through a cheese course, chatting amiably.

Clean up, I am happy to say, was minimal - the meal was a one pot thing essentially - and Conrad tackled much of it. 10:00 already? Time to grab a book or magazine and wind down before bed!

storm passes through

In the midst of cooking some tomatillo-braised country-style pork ribs for dinner tonight, I thought I heard wind kicking up and even a bit of thunder. Sure enough, a fine rain was driving against the buildings, and wind was whipping debris in the freight entrance to the nearby high-rise. Not long after that, it was all over, and a certain brightness was tussling with the dark clouds. Whenever this happens, we get such interesting light and shadow, the lake takes on a variety of hues, and in the direction on Michigan things look ominous....

with Chuck at Cafe Spiaggia

Last of the San Pellegrino dinners, and it was back to Cafe Spiaggia, this time with Chuck.

Yesterday was almost cold out. Certainly brisk. A bit of rain late on as well. Jackets and sweaters were not unwelcome, and during the drier parts of the day, the skies were dreary. The views from Conrad's office attest to that.


We met Chuck at six at the restaurant. Conrad and I got there a half hour earlier, in fact, having walked up Michigan Avenue and settled in at the bar for a drink (a Prosecco and pomegranate cocktail for me - not too sweet, deep pink and bubbly just to ensure that my reputation is intact). Chuck opted for the San Pellegrino menu, and I was tempted to have the gnochhi with wild boar ragu again. However, Conrad and I opted for ordering off the regular menu. A little more expense, but really super food.

So, starters: Chuck had the arugula salad with shaved trumpet mushrooms, Conrad had the tuna tartare (now THAT'S a surprise! not really.), and I went for the grilled green beans. They proved as delicious - slightly charred, smoky - as I had wanted.

Main courses, and Chuck - happily for him - opted for the gnocchi. Conrad and I both had trout. It's funny, I usually let Conrad order first so I can be one of those irritating people who will then order differently. I was in the mood for fish, though, and the waiter was recommending it highly. I like trout, though Conrad isn't an especial fan of it. Good choice, though. The skin was delightfully salted and crisp, the flesh was tender, and the potatoes, beans, and artichokes made it good and hearty.

We had dessert of course, and the fun is in selecting gelati and sorbetti. I decided to go with all sorbetti this time: basil, pear, and banana. In the end, I think I should have had something tart as a counterpoint as all three flavours were on the sweet side and thus came across as flat all together. Still, mixing the basil and the pear together was a decent combo. Alas, the photo of my sorbets did not turn out well, so Chuck and his gelati must take their place:

A cab home, and it was some reading before bed. Conrad, poor soul, was wiped out from his hectic week spent mostly in Virginia. He fell asleep next to me as I read, and at 9:55 I managed to sneak out of the bed to go read in another room for another hour or so.

two meals out

A third night without Conrad - he's still in Richmond, due back tomorrow morning. Ah well, it gives me a chance to laze about guiltfree. Funny how the baking instinct hasn't kicked into overdrive in the meantime!

I've recently been enjoying some meals out for a promotion through San Pellegrino whereby proceeds go to fight hunger. Yes, I know, just donate to a food bank. But then I don't get to go to restaurants. Selfish, but with a conscience, that's me, I guess.

Tuesday lunch was in Old Town at Bistro Margot.

Things I liked:

1. The curry carrot soup was rather tasty
2. The nut tart was decent - not overly sweet

Things I was not wowed by:

1. Where the heck was everyone? Why so empty? Makes me wonder.
2. The croque monsieur. Okay, it was on brioche, but it came across as sadly chasing a bigger is better ideal. Not really. Kind of a waste of food, all those fries. Not bad tasting, but I think the quiche may have been a more sensible choice.
3. The waitress. Sorry. I don't think it was schtick to get tips, I don't think her approach is anything but well-meaning and sincere. But I tell you, it was a little much: unctuously musical voice with constant comments. "Oooh, yummy!" and that sort of thing in response to everything we ordered. A little scary. Reminded us unpleasantly of a former colleague, but I shan't name names here.

Also, to be honest, it was kind of a slow lunch, too slow. I'm whining now. Sorry. I loved catching up with CG and Melissa, but between the length of the lunch and the commute there and back, it was basically three hours. A little much for such a mixed experience. I may go back, but I'm not sure.

Last night was far better.
Arek, Heather,CG, and I dined at Boka. I go by the place almost every day on the bus, so it was nice to go in.

Things I liked:

1. Good salmon. Well prepared, attractively plated, and I was sorry when I was done that I didn't have a bit more.
2. Good cookies. Nice choice to have with some decaf as my dessert.
3. Good bottle of Pinot Noir for $40. Not stellar, but very drinkable. The A-Z Pinot Noir, from Oregon.

Things I was not wowed by:

1. The waiter wasn't so sing-song, but he was a bit smarmy. Not badly so, but it brought out a bit of snark at the table from time to time.

Boka wasn't hugely busy last night either. Odd, I thought. Ah well.

Tomorrow night it's back to Cafe Spiaggia. I will be glad to have the gnocchi again, I do think....

Picadillo

No, it's not really authentic. I made it with ground chicken breast (rather than beef, as I'd first known it, or with turkey as the recipe suggests). I have no doubt that there are many other versions, and that the proper way to serve it is with plaintains or stuffed into chiles. Sorry. It's a reliable little recipe from the book Latin American Cooking across the USA.

But for a Monday night dinner when I have time enough to do my mise en place before swim practice and then cook afterwards, it was satisfying. I tinkered with it some, adding slivered almonds. I also might have added some allspice or something to bring out more sweetness without adding sugar. Just the same, though, it made for a good, light meal. Better still, I have leftovers for a few days of lunches!

Sunday afternoon afloat

You know, although I did a bunch of laundry yesterday, swam some, and tidied up my spice cupboard (yes, yes, yes - GAY!!), I feel like this has been a most relaxing weekend without the slightest thing accomplished. Unless you count bookmarking even more accommodations and activities for the NZ trip in the New Year.

Blame must be assigned, so let's blame Dan, my financial advisor (and at the risk of turning this blog into a commercial venture, I will say that I do very much enjoy working with the man. It helps that his partner is a close friend and colleague of Conrad's, but I really do like that he can patiently explain financial stuff to a dummy like me!). Dan hosted a number of clients and potential clients aboard a lake lunch cruise today, and it was delightful. Six years in Chicago now and I've never once been on a boat on the lake or on the river? Shameful. Thanks Dan for curing that.

Two hours on the lake, the grey cloudy weather clearing out well, a number of our friends also aboard. Ahhhhhh. Is it any wonder I'm so very lazy this evening? I could at least go put some clothes away.

So, from today, people:





Scenery:

Christopher cooks

Second night in a row that someone made us dinner. After the many fallow months without such invitations, we feel very kindly treated indeed!

Christopher had us over tonight. Yes, I've tried pimping him out to my single friends in the past, and I shan't give up. But let's focus on the food and company for a bit instead.

Much as when he and Daniel came for dinner, halibut was the main course. Christopher grilled it very nicely and passed a mango salsa to serve atop it. Also on the table - and not photographed, sorry - were the root vegetables with a thick sauce that I believe was a curry squash puree, asparagus, roasted onions, roasted mushrooms (no, I didn't eat them, sorry Chris!), and what am I forgetting? Ah well. Tasty stuff. Daniel had brought wine, as had we, so we sipped and chatted.

But I've jumped ahead of myself. Once Frank had arrived with the cheeses we all settled to snacking on them in the dining room while our host was busy in the kitchen. Some fine cheeses - I was very fond of the misshapen mound one, but I admit that the one with flower petals on it was quite appealingly pretty.

Some flat breads, some chips and salsa. Could have been a good dinner in itself.

Similarly, Christopher had provided some rich chocolate bundt cakes for dessert, and the three of us who eat chocolate cake did a good job getting through 1.5 of them. But the better dessert was the fruit salad: honey apples, white nectarines, blueberries, strawberries, a light bit of lime juice and sugar. We all attacked it with gusto despite the presence of the cakes.

After that it was coffee/tea, some photos from Christopher's past life (wherein he bore some resemblance to Chandler Bing) including his recent P-Town open water swim.

I am almost ashamed to admit that Conrad and I did little more than watch Frank and Daniel attack the dishes. Almost. For his part, Christopher was making himself pretty to hit the bars in the Gaybourhood with Daniel. Us? We're old marrieds. Bed time as soon as this is posted!

Oh, as for pimping out the single friends (Chris, Daniel, Frank), I can try, but let me divert your attention to this beautiful creature, Carla, instead:



In the end, another great dinner with friends from the team. Not a bad life to have even if we are clutching full bellies!