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Wednesday, February 28, 2007A Journey of a Sort: Two Months DownMan gets on scale. Man is momentarily horrified and angry, then philosophical. He asks, “Self, what did you expect? It’s been almost four weeks since used your workout journal and you were on the road for a good piece of February, and you consumed one plate of fries for every flight you took. And you packed your running shoes but never used them. And nothing says ‘I value me’ like eating out at least once a week in the cold and dead of winter.” Man remembers his goal: three pounds a month for the next 12 months. Man remembers that he lost more than he planned in January 2007. Man feels grateful that he didn’t GAIN any weight in the last four weeks. Man reaches for his heartrate monitor and baseball hat--time to go to the gym. Where the !@#$ is that workout journal? Sunday, February 25, 2007Pancit Canton Recipe
My mother is a wonderful cook. In fact, I learned the basics from her, and she taught me how to enjoy entertaining. My honey P. often jokes that anything that comes out of our kitchen is enough to fill 12. What can I say? Nothing says love like excess. I haven’t spent much time cooking the traditional Filipino dishes that my mom makes, but lately I’ve missed them. Last week at a Chinese New Year’s Eve party thrown by our friends, I was asked about pancit, a noodle dish that my mother makes for special occasions. I emailed my mom for the recipe and I made it last night. The first bite brought back so many memories of childhood and sitting at my mother’s table that I’ve decided to recreate my mom’s best dishes, one by one. I may even be able to get her into my kitchen to help with some, so stay tuned. The recipe below contains some of my own changes (and measurements--mom doesn’t cook with measuring cups):
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1. In a wok or large, nonstick pan, heat 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat until the oil shimmers.
TOTAL PREP TIME: 1 hour
See some step-by-step recipe images in my Flickr gallery
Thursday, February 22, 2007Travelogue: Dish, Lynchburg VA
If you Google “fine dining Lynchburg” or any somesuch permutation, you’re bound to get a listing of some of the best surf-and-turf restaurants in the city. But you wouldn’t get Dish, and that’s a crying shame. We spotted the restaurant by happy accident this morning as we drove toward coffee and our client, and a call later, we were set for the night. Opened in October 2006, Dish is cozy place with eight tables (each seats four) and a long bar that spans almost two-thirds of the narrow room. The premise of the restaurant is tapas-style dining, but the flavors are decided eclectic. Original art hangs on the deep azure walls, and the noise factor, unlike that of many newer restaurant spaces, is quite manageable. You can hear your dinner companions speak without shouting, and your lively conversation won’t disrupt the experience of the people sititng at the table next to yours. We were hungry, so we ordered big--11 of the 14 small dishes on their main menu. They also had four small-plate specials and four large plates, but the main menu options sounded so delicious ... and we weren’t disappointed. Our selection:
- arugula with shaved fennel, fresh lemon juice, and extra virgin olive oil
And while every dish was well prepared, balanced in flavors, and perfectly portioned, the big winners were the coconut green curry shrimp, spring rolls, southern fried quail,and mussels. Oh, and the shrimp stuffed calamari. Definitely the calamari! Hell, it was all fantastic, and the sauce from the mussels was so good that Patrick joked about asking for it to-go in a sippy cup. He was only half-kidding, I think. Of special note, the music, which was as blended and varied as the menu. Billy Joel, Derek and the Dominos, Norah Jones, Jack White and Loretta Lynn, the Allman Brothers, the Kinks, vintage Neil Diamond, Sade… when we weren’t commenting on the food, we were dishing about the music--the memories they evoked, the strange-yet-suited combination of tastes, the age we were when we first heard this song. The service was also wonderful--our servers were attentive and friendly and clearly loved the food they were presenting. I can’t fairly say that Dish is the best restaurant in Lynchburg--it’s my first time in the city and the only restaurant I’ve been to. But I can gladly say that the meal and setting were both memorable among the places I’ve been in while. They met every craving I had tonight--from food to escape to leisure--and that the next time I’m here in Lynchburg, I’ll be there. You can find Dish at 1120 Main Street, Lynchburg VA, 434.528.0070--their website will be up shortly. Tuesday, February 20, 2007The Alpha Romeo of Espresso Machines
“Oh, but when it drives, on the open road, it’s speedy bliss.” I’ve often joked with my honey P. that we own the Alpha Romeo of espresso makers. Witness the Kitchenaid Pro Line KPES100PM. Dual boilers, a 15-bar water pump, twin temperature gauges, a Solenoid pressure valve, cup warmer, 67-ounce water reservoir, die-cast aluminum construction, and articulating frothing arm. And the “on” light--it’s blue (not a tacky green or garish red, but a cool electric blue). Can it make espresso? Absolutely! Crema? like a velvet blanket on any icy lake (forgive the reference to cold). Does it leak? Like Scooter Libby… I find it horribly ironic that if you follow the tamping instructions to the letter (the instruction manual, by the way, is one of the best I’ve seen), grind the coffee to almost-precise espresso fineness using the matching Kitchenaid Pro Line burr grinder, you’ll eventually tap the machine out. It’s taken me four machines (each defective one replaced without question by the good folks at Williams-Sonoma) to discover that the machine’s pressure system doesn’t deal too well with too much tamp, too fine a grind. So we’ve dialed back, babying it, wondering every morning as the rich brown liquid drips slowly slowly slowly into our demitasse cups whether we’ll be swabbing the counter and refilling the machine. I can’t bring myself to buy a new one (yet), but when I do, it will either be the uncomplicated Nespresso Cube or the classic La Pavoni Europiccola lever machine, each of which is owned by good friends who swear by them. And neither of which requires a mop. Bistro CampagneBistro Campagne, located at 4518 N. Lincoln Avenue (773.271.6100), is arguably the best French bistro in Chicago. I must admit, it wasn’t our first choice for dinner last night, but we’re old and lazy, and trekking out of our neighborhood for even small distances is never attractive. Finding no other good restaurants open in the vicinity on a Monday night, we made reservations for dinner at the Bistro. Who’d have thought that five friends desperate for the simple pleasures of a glass (OK, several) of wine and good company would experience a night of best-in-memory? The meal started with lemondrops (the best, Jeff commented, that he’s had, possibly ever)--the perfect balance of tart and sweet. Then baguettes were crusty and chewy and light, with fresh butter (Michael, you’d have liked the butter!). Everyone else at the table chose the onion tart for a starter, which our server Mark (who spoke flawless French and provided terrific service) promised would be like French onion soup, minus the liquid. It was, indeed, more than anticipated, and just enough to whet the appetite for our entrees and salad. I’ve always believed that steak frites is the signature dish of a good bistro, and Bistro Campagne’s is quite swell (I stole a taste from a friend). The frites were crispy and golden, perfectly seasoned, and ample on the plate. My roast chicken with mushrooms and a light cream sauce was the ultimate comfort food after a long Monday. And the pork chop, roughly three inches thick, was perfectly tender and evenly cooked throughout the cut. I could barely take a bite out of the salad, but it was also exceptionally yummy, with long leaves of baby romaine and a tangy garlicky Caesar dressing. The wine, however, was what I loved best. Chateauneuf du Pape, Telegramme 2004. Mark explained to me that our wine came from the very chateau we love best--the Brunier family that creates the Vieux Telegraphe Chateauneuf du Pape. As he explained it, the 2004 Telegramme was created during a year in which the family declassified their grapes and produced what they considered a second-tier wine, Telegramme. The label itself shows the original Vieux Telegraphe logotype, reversed in the background of the new Telegramme banner. And the taste--a pour of memories. The musty, subtle, layered character of quintessential French wine that brings to mind quiet and unrushed dinners in the Marais and late lunches in cliff towns of the Luberon and the first time I really fell in love for keeps. |
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