urbanfoodie

Launching Localicious! Localicious is a new local-food radio...

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:45:00 -0600

Launching Localicious!

Localicious is a new local-food radio show, launching live this Sunday, this Sunday, December 20th, from 6-7 pm CST. Hosted by my friend, Amanda Balagur, the show is devoted to local-food news, issues, and events. More info from Amanda:

Local Food Enthusiasts:

I am launching my local food radio show, Localicious, with a live in-studio episode broadcast this Sunday, December 20th, from 6-7 pm Central time, as part of KFAI’s Wave Project. From that point on, a new episode of the show will be available for download as a podcast or webisode every other week or so — the show is still evolving, so the format and timing may change.

This Sunday’s episode will feature an interview with JoAnne Berkenkamp, Director of the Local Foods Program at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, and music from The Field of Medicine, featuring members of Easy Bean Farm and Coyote Grange Farm. In addition, the show will be filmed by local filmmaker Dave Deal, and I will be putting some footage on the Localicious website so you’ll be able to see what the show is like in addition to hearing it!

Listen live by tuning in to KFAI from 6-7 pm Central time this Sunday at 90.3 FM Mpls/106.7 FM St. Paul, listen live online at www.kfai.org , or listen to the archived show once it’s aired by going to www.kfai.org/waveproject and clicking on the “Listen Now” button next to the show listing for 12/20/10.

I’ll be sending out more information once the Localicious site is up and ready to go, which will be soon after the show airs on Sunday.

Stay tuned…
Amanda

The Gift of Local Flavor - Æbleskiver If you’re a devotee...

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 23:33:00 -0600

The Gift of Local Flavor - Æbleskiver

If you’re a devotee of the Mill City Farmer’s Market, you may have come across Aunt Else’s Æbleskiver (I had my first delightful taste of a savory sausage aebleskiver with ginger simple syrup during the last weekend of the market). Did you know that these unique spherical donut-pancake-popover-ish pastries of Danish origin are traditionally popular around Advent and Christmas-time? Well, how appropriate for Aunt Else to offer a little package ($52.99) that would make a great holiday gift - one cast iron pan, a package of their organic batter mix, and a stainless steel chopstick for turning the little guys. You could also just get someone one of the unique pans ($39.99) specially forged for Aunt Else. Super cool: the local, family-owned Aunt Else got some press on New York Magazine’s website!

"Bodily delight is a sensory experience, not any different from pure looking or the pure feeling with..."

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:02:10 -0600

“Bodily delight is a sensory experience, not any different from pure looking or the pure feeling with which a beautiful fruit fills the tongue; it is a great, an infinite learning that is given to us, a knowledge of the world, the fullness and the splendor of all knowledge. And it is not our acceptance of it that is bad; what is bad is that most people misuse this learning and squander it and apply it as a stimulant on the tired places of their lives and as a distraction rather than as a way of gathering themselves for their highest moments. People have even made eating into something else: necessity on the one hand, excess on the other; have muddied the clarity of this need, and all the deep, simple needs in which life renews itself have become just as muddy.”

- Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet (Letter #4, July 16, 1903)

7 Foods Experts Won’t Eat (via chemicalfreeskinny | source)

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:17:50 -0600

7 Foods Experts Won’t Eat (via chemicalfreeskinny | source)

Are you a Minnesotan Local Food Lover?

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 13:22:30 -0600

Are you a Minnesotan Local Food Lover? :

Today, Simple, Good and Tasty launches their Local Food Lover program - a partnership with several local, sustainable, organic, and fair trade businesses in the Twin Cities. The program allows you to support these folks, save some $$$ with the designated participants, and benefit the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Pollicy (IATP). Here’s a sample of what the $29 price can save you over the next year:

Buy one get one free entrées at Common Roots and Brasa Premium Rotisserie
$10 off 2 entrees at Spoonriver
Free desserts with the purchase of an entree at the Birchwood Cafe, Restaurant Alma, and Sen Yai Sen Lek
10% off all purchases at Galactic Pizza, Grassroots Gourmet, and Local D’lish
$8 off a cake at Salty Tart
$5 off your $25 purchase at Clancey’s Meat and Fish Market
$5 off your $40 purchase at Linden Hills Co-op
2 free items with a $20 purchase from Sweet Cheeks Baby Food
A free glass of wine with the purchase of an entree at the Craftsman
A buy one get one free sandwich at Golden’s Deli
Buy 1 get 1 free ice cream cones at Pumphouse Creamery every month for a year
$2 off every $10 purchase at Fireroast Mountain Cafe
20% off all of your purchases at Peacecoffee.com
More!

Purchase your Local Food Lover card at the SG&T event tonight at the Craftsman or at the Birchwood Cafe, Brasa, Local D’lish, Grassroots Gourmet at the Midtown Global Market, or online at the SG&T website. This would also make a thoughtful gift for your favorite Minnesotan local food lover (ahem)!

(via simplegoodandtasty)

café haiku no.4

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 11:37:00 -0600

soy mocha latte

sugar, caffeine therapy

resuscitate me

January Local Food Event Announced! Family Style Meal at Brasa St. Paul for $30!

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:49:19 -0600

January Local Food Event Announced! Family Style Meal at Brasa St. Paul for $30!:

(via simplegoodandtasty)

Project Macaron evidence accumulates: Macarons close in on NYC

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:54:00 -0600

Project Macaron evidence accumulates: Macarons close in on NYC:

A mainstay of French celebrations, the crumbly, ganache-filled macaron is finally catching on here, thanks to versions now available at patisseries like Dessert Club, ChikaLicious, L.A. Burdick, and François Chocolate Bar. Most recently, Adour Alain Ducasse’s shop at the St.Regis (2 E. 55th St., at Fifth Ave.; 212-710-2277) has begun retailing its macarons (pictured from bottom, chocolate/passion fruit, raspberry, pistachio, and orange); you can also order any combination of its standard offerings (which include dark chocolate, coffee, and coconut) with 48 hours notice; $15 for a half-dozen. (via NYMag.com|Best Bets)

delishyourdish: Delish Detector!- Wisconsin Cheese Cupid Tis...

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:23:05 -0600

delishyourdish:

Delish Detector!- Wisconsin Cheese Cupid

Tis the season to be…struck by the Cheese Cupid. Many of us are busy planning holiday parties and family gatherings for the upcoming winter festivities. Like me, I’m sure you’ve scoured the internet and holiday entertaining magazines looking for the perfect additions for your delish menus.

This year I plan on adding a beautiful cheeseboard to my holiday tablescape. While I usually have a hard time pairing wine and spirits with my cheeses, this year I have Cheese Cupid to help me find the perfect match.

Whether you’re a wine, beer, Scotch or Brandy drinker, Cheese Cupid helps you find the perfect cheese “soul mate” for your drink.

Your cheese, wine, or beer will never go unpaired (or worse, mismatched) again! Don’t forget to click on the cheese picture for more information, such as the flavor, drink pairings, and other serving suggestions such as nuts, fruits, and the like. Not only is this website PURE GENIUS in its utility, the design is quite sexy.

Subo? Sige, kain tayo! (Tagalog-English Translation: Alright, let's eat!)

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:43:00 -0600

Subo? Sige, kain tayo! (Tagalog-English Translation: Alright, let's eat!):

Whoaaa, there’s a new Filipino restaurant in town - Subo, serving up small plates in the old Hell’s Kitchen space. And it’s not a greasy buffet. It might even be a source of Filipino Fine(r) dining that seems to elude the restaurant scene - especially outside of major metropolitan areas (see the now closed Cendrillon in NYC and Patio Filipino in San Mateo, CA).

I’m tentatively hopeful. Subo, expect me to bring an army of Filipinos hungry for something better than buffet fare. Stay tuned.

Press release via The Hot Dish/CityPages

Subo features exotic ingredients not easily sourced in the Midwest to create a feast. The Filipino chef-driven menu can be sampled through its distinctly adapted foods from China (pancit is similar to lomein, only using rice vermicelli), Southeast Asia (sour broth-based dishes have a cooling effect in hot tropical weather) and Spain (unlike its Spanish name, the Adobo Chicken Wings are marinated in sweet rice vinegar and garlic with coconut milk and soy sauce.) A chef for twenty years and most recently working in Manhattan, Neil Guillen was discovered by a business man from Minneapolis who returned to his cuisine countless times (despite Manhattan’s many offerings) for Guillen’s addictive cooking style. Guillen was then enticed him to Minneapolis to hang a shingle and share the joy of his unique sauces, meats, seafood, and vegetables in crunchy, brothy, comforting and palate-stimulating foods. Oddly enough, the space developed resembles a Manhattan bar, long and deep with a narrow storefront.
Almost literally, the Southeast Asian adventure scene is set. Market awnings, a cobblestone style floor and dangling star shaped light fixtures frame the entrance to the restaurant and invite a romantic cultural shift. The back bar itself is constructed of aged produce crates, arranged as if they are actually hanging off the back of a truck in the Philippines or somewhere in the tropical clime where rainy and dry seasons, mountains and forests meet. Continuing toward the back room, offset by a narrow brick archway, the perspective becomes distinctly more food-centered, with Subo’s iconic wooden spoon and fork logo applied to a pillar marking the exposed kitchen. The back room, whose sliding doors suggest rice sacks in their burlap panels, and skylights above, lined with sheer swags, create a tropical hideaway with delicate bamboo lights and buttresses overhead.
The approach for the “Subo Family,” as Guillen calls themselves, is to offer grand scale Filipino hospitality that unites the land of 7,000 islands just north of the equator and blends flavors of its nearby China, Thailand, Vietnam and even the colonies that settled there, like the Spanish, with classical French culinary training and two decades’ experience. This creates a confident use of noodles, rice, vegetables, seafood, spices and cured meats that only a cooperative approach to cuisine can deliver. The dishes are best ordered in sequence, so the flavors can remain the superstars and the “Subo Family” experience can charm any adventurer who comes in off the street. Its Chili Chocolate (Italian-named) Panna Cotta served in an espresso cup captures the “best of the best” in Subo’s eclectic style. The logo captures the host’s approach to the feast, with a fork in the left hand and a spoon in the right- all the better to mix and merrily combine the varied dishes with heaps of rice and accents of dipping sauces and each created by a master.

Can You Buy Local and Organic at Cub Foods? | SG&T

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 08:22:13 -0600

Can You Buy Local and Organic at Cub Foods? | SG&T:

(via simplegoodandtasty) Hey Tumblrs, did you know that SG&T can now be followed and reblogged at http://simplegoodandtasty.tumblr.com?

(image via Serious Eats) When I recently declared that macarons...

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 08:06:00 -0600

(image via Serious Eats)

When I recently declared that macarons were the new cupcake, I thought I was some kind of trendcasting genius. Token indulgences like this are bound to explode in these difficult economic times, much like lipstick sales skyrocket when times get tough. I even went and did a little Google Trends analysis of searches for “macaron” in the U.S., learning that interest in macarons has gone up dramatically from practically nil in the last two years:

Then I did a little more research and found that the Foodista blog beat me to this trend report by less than a month (goes to show…don’t neglect your blogging). They even included a little Google Trend screen cap (note that most searchers were within France). Then there was the macaron cookbook review featured on Eat Me Daily. Serious Eats has featured many a macaron post since 2007, most recently breaking some news that Starbucks is going to start selling macarons imported from France. That’s OK, this little blogger may not be the most forward food trendcaster, but I will continue to extol the virtues of this most sophisticated cookie (and don’t confuse it with the macaroon).

Pour moi, the X-Factor of a macaron is in the breakthrough of the delicate crust to a soft, airy cookie texture. The closest I have ever come to experiencing macaron perfection is Miette Patisserie.

Bouchon Bakery comes a close second:

Here in the Twin Cities, Sweets Bakeshop in St. Paul brings a respectable offering to the meringue gods. But I do find myself wanting in the texture department with the Sweets macarons, which have more of a dense, somewhat pasty interior. Perhaps the recipe will evolve, as Sweets is relatively new. I do have to say, the flavor of the salted caramel filling is outstanding. Below are a couple of macarons, one pistachio/chocolate and the other some other flavor that was not very memorable.

One of my friends suggested that macarons are too difficult to make to ever achieve the popularity of cupcakes. I am going to put that to the test with my own attempt next weekend. Stay tuned. Project *Macaron will return soon enough with the next effort at making this pastry take over the world.

EDITING NOTE: *I mistakenly added a second “o” the first time I posted this, totally proving that….well, I guess it’s pretty easy to mix up the macaron and the macaroon (hey, at least I know the difference), and I need a copyeditor. Oops!

When I came across The Kitchn’s Holiday Gift Guide: 15...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 01:44:30 -0600

When I came across The Kitchn’s Holiday Gift Guide: 15 Small Luxuries for Home Cooks, I immediately thought of this gift of truffle salt I received on my recent trip to San Francisco. We were at the Far West Fungi shop in the Ferry Building, and I tasted my first sample of truffle salt. C later surprised me with the salt, saying that she had to buy it for me after seeing the look on my face. I would have never bought this for myself, which makes it my favorite kind of gift.

By the way, truffle salt is AWESOME. In scrambled eggs, roasted potatoes, french fries, plain popcorn, pasta, and many more yet to be tried or discovered. If you have some suggestions, drop me a line.

Here’s the recipe for the Japanese-style cheesecake that...

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:42:00 -0600

Here’s the recipe for the Japanese-style cheesecake that Reiko prepared for Cohort Thanksgiving, with some personal tips. The texture is more like a dense cakey bread, rather than the heavier creaminess most are accustomed to with cheesecake. Thanks, Rei!

Japanese Soufflé Cheesecake (via foodista.com)

Ingredients:

4.4 oz (125 g) cream cheese at room temperature
0.70 oz (20 g) butter, soften
40 ml milk
2.29 oz or .14 lb (65 g) caster sugar (superfine sugar in the U.S.)
3 large eggs, white and yolk separated
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
40 g self raising flour (or cake flour)
1/4 tsp salt
1 scant tbsp orange juice
1 tbsp orange zest

Method:

1. Add 500 ml water into a big baking tray (the tin you use for the cheesecake to fit in) and place the tray in the oven then preheat the oven to 320F (160C). Line the base and side of a 18-20 cm spring form/cake tin with parchment paper. Then use a big piece of foil to wrap the tin around from the bottom up to top of the tin side.

2. Place the butter, cream cheese and milk in a bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, being careful not to let the bowl touch the water, then wait until the butter has melted, remove the bowl from the heat and give it a really good stir until the mixture is smooth, set aside and leave it cool to the room temperature.

3. Add the orange juice and zest to the cream cheese mixture, stir to blend then add the yolks and mix them until incorporated. Sift the flour and salt into another mixing bowl, pour over the cream cheese and egg mixture in the center of the flour. Quickly whisk or stir everything until just blended (don’t overmix or the cake will be tough).

4. In a separate mixing bowl, beat the egg white with cream of tartar until foamy, then gradually add the sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, and continue to beat at high speed until you achieve soft-medium peak (more than soft but not stiff peaks). Gently fold the whites into the cream cheese mixture until blended.

5. Pour the batter into the prepared tin. Place the tin in the preheated baking tray and bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted from center comes out clean. Turn the cake out on to a wire rack once taken from the oven (the cake will shrink if left too long in the tin!). Leave to cool at room temperature, then let it set in the fridge for another hour or so before slicing and serve.

Thankful for New Thanksgiving Traditions

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:54:00 -0600

Every year, my grad school cohortmates + partners come together for a Thanksgiving meal. Now in its third year, it has become a much anticipated tradition with delicious food and a lot of laughter. Every year we rotate who hosts and gets to cook the turkey (I took on the inaugural bird!) and roughly plan who will bring the rest of the meal. One of my cohortmates and his wife proclaim that it is the most delicious out of their three Thanksgivings, and this year was no exception. The photo above features the highlights of the meal: (from top left, clockwise) rolls (Archer Farms & Sam); classic American green bean casserole (Sam & Brooke); Lemon Barley Stuffing With Shiitakes, Hazelnuts and Chive Butter (Sandra); garlic mashed potatoes (Steph), herb roasted turkey with home-cooked gravy (so proud of Kimmy for her first time handling a turkey!), and good ol’ cranberry sauce (Ocean Spray & Michael). No celebratory meal is complete without a special beverage, and Reiko prepared a fabulous and beautiful hot cider with oranges and Minnesota Honeycrisp apples:

Despite distended stomachs full of scrumptious food, we all found room for our variety of desserts. Reiko prepared her Japanese-style cheesecake; I made pumpkin pie; and Sam & Brooke brought some apple crisp.

As we took in all this wonderful food and later fought food coma, we shared some of the things that we were thankful for and had the usual laughs about the sitcom of our lives. More than just the great food, this past weekend’s meal felt even more special because of all the changes we have gone through this semester - and really over the last three years. We went from two years of sharing an office, a clinical practicum site, and many classes - to going our separate ways in many respects. Even so, we remain a close group, which is a very fortunate thing in graduate school. I am thankful that these folks are not just colleagues but part of my Minnesota family.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes My contribution to the annual Cohort...

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:52:00 -0600

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

My contribution to the annual Cohort Thanksgiving. Last year, no one made mashed potatoes, and it just didn’t feel right. I freestyled with these yukon gold potatoes and experimented with using a food mill, resulting in a lovely fluffy texture. (I know that this kitchen tool is not a staple in the modern kitchen, but I highly recommend picking one up if you ever run across one in a garage sale or the like.) I also mashed in whole garlic cloves which had been slowly simmered in the milk and butter, resulting in a mellow, subtle flavor. All measurements are approximate.

Ingredients

6 cups potatoes, quartered, skins kept on (variety is up to you; I prefer Yukon Gold for a moist, creamy texture)
2 cups whole milk, plus extra for later
1 stick unsalted butter
6 whole, peeled garlic cloves
Kosher salt to taste

Boil the potatoes until they flake with a poke of the fork. Meanwhile, simmer the milk, butter, and garlic on low until the garlic is very soft and easily mashed with a fork. When potatoes are cooked, drain and then run through the food mill.

Mash the garlic in the milk before adding to the potatoes. Incorporate milk mixture into potatoes, careful not to overwork. Salt to taste. Don’t be afraid of the salt. If the potatoes dry out later before serving, add some warmed milk.

Support your sandwich addiction while looking like a generous gift-giver.

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:47:00 -0600

Support your sandwich addiction while looking like a generous gift-giver.:

Potbelly is giving a coupon for a free sandwich (exp. January 31, 2010) with the purchase of every $25 gift card.

(Confession: I bought the gift card for myself.)

"That having been said, I think the notion of “I want to forget it as quickly as I can,” or “I’m..."

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:05:00 -0600

“

That having been said, I think the notion of “I want to forget it as quickly as I can,” or “I’m simply not going to read it”—that, to me, well, I guess, that’s kind of lame. {Laughs.] We wouldn’t accept that attitude in other areas of life.
…

The goal is not to somehow be perfect—that’s silly, that’s naïve. The goal is to just recognize there are choices in front of us, and to try to make better ones.

”

- Interview with Jonathan Safran Foer | The A.V. Club

Great interview - I really appreciate that JSF recognizes the inherent complexity of how we make personal choices about what we eat. His book sounds like an excellent first read of 2010.

Feeding America, from MSU, is a searchable database of American cookbooks from the 18th to the early 20th centuries

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 22:36:07 -0600

Feeding America, from MSU, is a searchable database of American cookbooks from the 18th to the early 20th centuries:

fightwithknives:

Both the archives nerd and the food freak inside me are exploding like overheated soup in a microwave at the possibilities of this resource. Zoinks!

Via Martha & Tom, which uses the archive to explore the historical difference between “stuffing” and “dressing” to great effect.

Potato-Leek Soup

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:48:00 -0600

Last month, I participated in a potluck night that brought together many loves - soup, community, and Thomas Keller. My contribution? Potato-leek soup, inspired by the abundance of leeks at the Farmer’s Market in the fall. The recipe? The Bouchon cookbook that doesn’t get enough love in this graduate student’s home.

Now, I love the way that potlucks bring people together around food, and I love to cook for people. But I also have to admit that my anxious-neurotic tendencies make it a somewhat stressful endeavor - so much so that I ended up making this potato-leek soup not once or twice, but three times! First time was a test run met with much success (pictured below). The second time was supposed to be for the main event, but then I left the soup unattended and scorched the cream in the soup. I just couldn’t deal with the brown tinged product (and let’s face it, I have a food blog…people are going to have expectations). So, I prepped a third batch (including a whole new batch the vegetable stock) that I cooked right before the event. Really, it’s not a difficult soup to make, but even with proper planning and prep, it is a multi-step process. Boy, did I learn from the experience.

After all that craziness, the soup turned out to be delicious. The combination of leeks, onions, and shallots maintain a delicate, yet assertive aromaticity and savory flavor. Cream and potato offer body, and plenty of herbs (in the stock, the bouquet garni/sachet) add to the simple, yet sophisticated flavor. It’s good stuff, for sure. But…I’d have to say that after the binge (and having to eat the 2nd batch for a week), you could call me potato-leek souped out. I’d have to even turn away Thomas Keller if he came to my door with a quart of the stuff.

Who am I kidding, I’d never to that to TK.

Potato Leek Soup, from the Bouchon cookbook

2 lbs (about 3 large) leeks
4 Tbs. (2 oz.) unsalted butter
Heaping 1/2 cup sliced (about 1/4 in. thick) shallots
1/3 cup sliced (1/4 in. thick) onions
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lb (about 1 large) russet potato, peeled
1 Tbs. minced garlic
Bouquet garni or sachet of 8 thyme sprigs, 2 Italian parlsey sprigs, 2 bay leaves, 1/2 tsp. black peppercorn, wrapped in cheesecloth
5.5 to 6.5 cups chicken or vegetable stock (I used a standard veggie stock, adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup minced chives
Extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

Cut away and discard dark green leaves and roots from leeks, leaving only white and palest green sections. Cut in half lengthwise, rinse in cold water to remove dirt b/w layers. Place leeks cut soide down and cut in 1/4 inch thick slices (yields about 3 cups).

Melt butter in large suacepan over med-low heat. Add leeks, shallots, and onions. Season generously w/ S & P. Increase heat to med and sweat the veggies, stirring often, for 3 to 5 minutes - veggies should wilt but not brown.

Meanwhile, cut potato lengthwise into quarters, then cut crosswise into 1/4 in thick slices, yielding about 1-1/4 cups.

Add garlic to the sauteeing veggies and cook for another minute, then add sachet and potatoes. Cook for 2 to 4 min longer.

Add 5.5 cups stock, adjust seasonings. Bring to simmer, then reduce and simmer for 30 min, or until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat and let soup cool for about 15 min. Remove the sachet. Transfer soup in baches to blender and puree, starting at low speed (to release heat remaining in soup), and then slowly increase speed until soup is smooth. Dno’t overfill the blender, since hot liquid can spurt out. It is helpful to place your hand over the lid while holding a towel. Strain through a fine sieve or the like if you want the soup to be extra smooth. (Or don’t because your friends and family won’t know the difference).

To finish, return soup to a rinsed out pan and bring to simmer. Add cream and simmer on low for 5 min - stir frequently and careful not to burn! Remove from heat. Stir in chives if serving hot. If refrigerating, pour into container and place in ice bath to cool (it keeps about 2 days). Serve sprinkled w/ chives and olive oil and fresh ground black pepper.