Go Places & Eat Things

Bitten by love. And sugar.

There was a treat table at work yesterday. Here's where it started for me. All I'll say about where it went from there is this: There's no chocolate in this heart-shaped filled donut, but there was plenty on that table...

Cookies on the Menu!

So, I've been a fan of cookies on the menu for some time now. I first took notice of just how perfect dessert cookies were after lunch years ago at Michael's on 55th St. in Manhattan. They served a plate of bite-sized cookies that satisfied just about every little sweet craving. I hope it's still on the menu there.

After my first visit to Michael's, I started paying attention to dessert menus, looking for a plate of cookies. It is not as widespread an item as I'd like it to be. I was excited to find a cookie plate in a newly opened restaurant in my home town, but it went away pretty quickly and I was told it was difficult to estimate the demand in order to have fresh cookies to serve every day. I'm sure there's something to that. I'd like to understand the work and planning that go into getting a cookie plate on the menu.

I pulled some cookie photos to share.

A lovely little shortbread cookie with lemon cream filling.

Cookies with caramel and their perfect partner, a cup of coffee.

A little plate of biscotti at Zuni Cafe, San Francisco.

Cookies beautifully presented at a vegan place in San Francisco.

So, what are your favorite restaurants with cookies on the menu? When was the last time you put out a plate of cookies for dessert? What is your favorite cookie?

 

 

Three Dessert Night

After our second move in six months – from house to new state and temporary condo to new house – things are finally getting back to normal. Sort of. Well, of course there will be some kitchen reno, but more about that later. So, feeling a little more settled than we have in recent months, we ventured out this weekend for a little celebration dinner.

Our destination: Lee, Mass., with a late reservation at Chez Nous, where a husband and wife team serve French bistro food and delightful desserts. On the last Saturday of the summer season, we arrived onto a vibrant scene filled with the frenzied vibe that says “Enjoy it while you can!”

After a brief stop at the bar, we were shown to our table in a cozy room with a fireplace that I can imagine lighted and warmly glowing on a snowy night sometime in the too-near future.

With hot-from-the-oven bread before us, we considered the menu, and decided to try the appetizer special Jonah crab cakes with sauce chien – described as an Antilles-style salsa – and a smoky tomato and goat cheese timbale that featured Monterey goat cheese surrounded by seared and marinated tomato “petals” with greens and balsamic. Both were good, but the timbale was our favorite, with its beautifully contrasting textures and flavors.

You can hardly go wrong at a bistro with the steak-frites. At Chez Nous it is served with espelette pepper and herb infused EVOO. We also ordered the grilled organic salmon with coconut nage and 5-grain organic pilaf. All good, but the best was yet to come. And we ordered three of them!

That’s right. We ordered three desserts. It’s my fault. I couldn’t resist! Pastry chef Rachel Portnoy was trying out a chocolate and hazelnut tart for fall and, if it were up to us, it would make it onto the year-round menu. Creamy, luscious and sweet, it will surely develop a devoted following.

 

I had never had lemon-lavender posset, in fact had never heard of a posset, so I ordered one of those, too, and it was crazy good. It’s an “old-fashioned English dessert: creamy eggless lemon custard infused with lavender” and served with a red berry compote and two exquisitely tiny and perfect almond-raspberry macaroons. The tart lemon-lavender custard reignited my taste buds after the first two courses. You can find a lot of recipes out there for lemon posset. The Chez Nous version was served in a tiny canning jar – adorable. The macaroons were a preview of the goodness that still to come in our third (!) dessert, the Chez Nous cookie plate.

I may have mentioned it before, but I am a BIG fan of cookies on the dessert menu. After a satisfying meal I am not often looking for a big, gooey dessert, just a little something soft and chewy or crisp and nutty to go with my after-dinner coffee. Importantly, you can get maybe three tastes/textures on a properly composed cookie plate, whereas with another dessert, you get an often overly large portion of just one thing.

Cookies rule, and the standout on the Chez Nous plate was the sable, possibly a labor of love for Portnoy, who said it comes from the same region of France that her husband calls home. Here’s a link to a great piece from the New York Times about the cookie plus a recipe from Dorie Greenspan. The sable was wonderful and the rest of the cookies on the plate, at least the ones I tasted (the hubby might have beaten me to one or two), were all just perfect.

And speaking of after dinner cookies, I’ve been talking about launching a “Campaign for Cookies on the Menu,” for a while now. This seems like a good time to do it. Watch for an upcoming post, and tell me about your favorite restaurants with cookies on the menu.

In Which We Save the Birthday From the Rainy Day

A rainy day dampened our enthusiasm for a drive to the ocean yesterday, but it was the hubby's birthday so I resisted the urge to go back to bed, and considered our options. Antiques shopping in quaint small towns is not really his thing, but a nice meal out is something we both enjoy. The answer: lunch at Gramercy Bistro and a wander through MASS MoCA, which share a campus in North Adams, Mass.

Despite nearly constant precipitation, our ride through the Berkshires wrapped us in watery splendor - the hills reduced to overlapping shades of gray-green, lush, and sanctified to a higher purpose by fingers of cloud reaching down from the sky. It goes without saying that iPhone photos don't begin to do justice to the scene before us. For a couple of recent transplants from the flat though equally blessed corn and soybean fields of the Midwest, it was breathtaking.

The peaceful quiet of the as yet unfilled dining room at Gramercy Bistro suited our lingering awe of the natural beauty of the drive, but it didn't last, and it was nice to see the space fill with a diverse crowd.

We took our time with the menu. I considered the soup du jour, which was leek and potato, but selected the smoked trout pâté - a spread, really - served with crostini, tarragon sauce, mustard and cornichons. I am a somewhat late arrival to the smoked trout fan club, but I'd like to be its president. My brother has a smoker and has tried all kinds of fish, meats and cheese and I am his grateful convert. The delicate smokey flavor of the trout in the pâté held its own with the other spread ingredients and the well-suited accompaniments. I enjoyed it with a glass of Domaine du Tariquet chardonnay from France.

The birthday boy had the shrimp and pork spring rolls served with a sweet and spicy chili sauce that he declared "tasty" with just the right amount of tang and heat and a nice crunch to the roll. I agree. The flavors were nicely balanced and the heat was pleasant. He selected a cabernet sauvignon and seemed happy with the pairing.

The cab was especially nice with his steak frites, a slightly over done grilled marinated flank steak and quite satisfying - I know because I had one several - hand cut fries.

I chose the lobster mac and cheese over the goat cheese quiche and briefly regretted my decision because the quiche came with roasted carrot and fennel and dressed greens, and the mac and cheese came with, well, lobster. I always feel a little bad when my entrée does not include a side of veg. But I soldiered through most it before I threw in the towel and declared myself stuffed. I recovered nicely when the server brought the dessert menu.

The chocolate hazelnut dacquoise cake with candied hazelnuts did not come with a flaming candle, but it was consumed until there was nothing left but plate. I have made dacquoise - lovely nutty meringue - and really should dust off the recipe I used many years ago. The Gramercy Bistro dessert by pastry chef Lindsay Bleau featured the dacquoise in a little crunchy/melt-in-the-mouth Stonehenge around a satisfying chocolate and hazelnut cake. Much to his credit, the celebrant did not once utter the word Nutella.

I didn't need a doggie bag for my dessert either. The fleur de sel caramel tart comprised a lot of lovely caramel and salt on a wafer thin chocolate cookie crust.  The little spoon decoration was of the same cookie dough.

We walked off our decadent lunch at MASS MoCA next door, spending quite a bit of time in the mind-boggling Sol Lewitt "A Wall Drawing Restrospective." It was as inspiring an exhibit as the scenery on our drive to the museum.

 

Dinner on the Porch, and a Cookie

I know I said I was going to tell you about vegan restaurants in Munich, but that will have to wait a little longer. Tonight hubby and I enjoyed a delicious meal on the covered porch at Alta Restaurant and Wine Bar in Lenox, Mass., and I just had to tell you about it.

This was not our first visit to Alta. We have been for lunch and were pleased with the food and the experience. On my first visit I had a sandwich called The Autumn, which consisted of house roasted turkey, grilled butternut squash, caramelized onion, cheddar cheese, and cranberry sauce. Oh, it was good! I've been back since and enjoyed a number of items but tonight was especially good. The fading light and mild temperature made their contributions to a pleasant evening, but the food was very much to our liking.

We shared an appetizer, Local Goat Cheese Roll, comprising unspecified local goat cheese and dates in a fried egg roll-type wrapper. Creamy and sweet and crunchy. A great start!

For the entree, I had caramelized diver scallops served with pineapple quinoa, Equinox spinach, coconut milk & fresh lime, and I took their suggestion of the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc 2009, from New Zealand. The citrus and light fruit flavors suggested a tropical setting. A perfect meal for a summer evening. The hubby likes to have a steak when we go out, so he had the pan seared NY strip steak, fingerling potatoes, tomate provencale, with fig veal demi-glace. Eschewing the recommended Russian River Cabernet Sauvignon, he chose instead a 2007 E. Guigal Cotes Du Rhone. He didn't say much while he ate, so I know he enjoyed it.

Winters can be long and cold both where we come from and where we now find ourselves living, so the first outdoor meal of the season is a real treasure, whether at home or on the porch of a lovely restaurant. The long sunset casts a glow that puts surroundings in a special light and memories can be particularly sweet.

In this case, the dessert was especially sweet, because Alta has a cookie on the menu! I think cookies should be on more menus, and I'll cover that in a future post, but suffice to say that the fresh, warm, chocolate chip cookie I enjoyed tonight at Alta was the perfect ending to a lovely light meal.

May it go your way!

Connecting with a city and its people takes a little extra effort when traveling on business, but the rewards can be rich. My trip last week to Munich is a case in point, with days spent at a trade fair and my evenings free. But as long as I could find the energy, I was willing to go places and eat things.

My colleagues and I arrived in Munich mid-morning on Sunday and as soon as we had checked into our hotel and eaten a little lunch to boost our energy levels, we were climbing aboard Munich's fantastic public transit system, headed for the heart of the city: Marienplatz.

I don't remember exactly how or when I first heard about the Rathaus-Glockenspiel there, but it is something I have wanted to see for a long time. It was exciting to come up out of the subway on Marienplatz and see it right in front of me, so you can imagine how much fun it was to see it in action at 5 p.m. that day. The carillon is part of the new town hall construction that was completed in 1909.

The square is surrounded by shops and restaurants, but the Ratskeller called, so we went inside for a beer. Jet-lagged as I was, I can't tell you what kind of beer I had to drink, but I do remember ordering a little treat called Obazda, which is described on the menu as bavarian camembert and cream cheese spread with weizenbeer, paprika and onions. It was exactly what I was craving at that moment, and it went really well with the beer. I have since seen it described as a Bavarian beer garden classic (also spelled Obatzda). Here's what it looked like:

What's not to like, right? One beer and a plate of obazda and it was time to find our way back to the hotel. But we returned the next night and discovered the vegan side of Munich. Prosit!

Afternoon Delight

After a quiet burger lunch today at The Lantern Bar and Grill, hubby and I did a little window shopping on North Street in Pittsfield, Mass., stopping to check out all the lovely things at the Museum Facsimiles Outlet Store.

After getting our fill of posters, cards and other delights, we resumed our walk and, crossing to the next corner, caught sight of the lovely sign outside Mary's Carrot Cake. We were drawn like moths to a flame. Who doesn't want a little something sweet after a meal? Oh, I know they're out there, but c'mon!

The three customers already inside, chatting with proprietor Mary McGinnis, filled the place - it doesn't take much to fill this adorable pantry-sized shop - but I was able to make my way to the cake case. What a lovely little jewel box it was, filled with two-bite carrot cakes and some slightly larger cupcakes including ones with chocolate cake, chocolate icing and a chunk of chocolate on top. Hmmm, which to choose?

Mary boxed up our little dessert and we headed home, where I put on a fresh pot of coffee and plated our cupcakes. Hubby commented on the "perfect cake to frosting ratio" and saved his chocolate chunk for last, while I ate the chocolate chunk right off the top and savored every bite of cupcake with a little of the rich frosting. No matter how you approach it, a small cupcake makes a perfectly satisfying sweet.

Was it a faux pas to choose the chocolate cupcake over the carrot cake on my first visit? Possibly. And I promise to go back soon and choose something with carrots in it. So, for now, I'm just going to sit here and finish my coffee and remember every chocolatey bite.

Post Lost and Found

Here's a post I wrote at the beginning of the year that got lost on my desktop. Time for a little cleanup there, I guess.

Happy as a clam?

We went with friends to a local seafood restaurant for dinner on New Year’s Eve. As I studied the menu, which included lobster and oysters and New England clam chowder, it struck me that I don’t know beans about fish and seafood.

Growing up in Illinois, the fish we ate most often was breaded cod in stick form and tuna from a can. As an adult, I ordered shrimp and calamari and crab in local restaurants and generally enjoyed the flavors but, with no frame of reference, I often wondered what I really knew about how they should or could taste and how much better such a meal would have been several hundred miles closer to the source, fresh from the icy sea.

One of my favorite food memories is of an order of scallops I enjoyed in a restaurant in Aix-en-Provence.  I almost didn’t order them, however, because of a bad experience with some frozen scallops my mother served one Christmas Eve when I was young.  Once, in Nice, I watched two friends devour a tower of frutti de mare and wondered if I could ever eat those things, let alone with such obvious enjoyment.

Well, I’m going to set a challenge for myself. We’re moving soon to New England, and I plan to devote considerable time and energy to creating a new frame of reference for the enjoyment of seafood. On a recent trip to my future home, I went to my first clambake. As people all around me consumed bags full of the things, I tried one.  Clearly I’ll need to taste a lot more clams before I can fully appreciate their flavorful charms – but I’m game!

I’m looking forward to this relocation for a number of reasons. After living in the same suburban area for all but the first two years of my life, I think it’s time for a change. I anticipate that moving several hundreds miles away from home will bring about a new awareness and appreciation of my surroundings and day-to-day activities. Everything will be new.

You know how you say aloud sometimes “I’ve been driving this same route so often my car knows the way,” or words to that effect? I’m ready to shake free from that feeling that I’ve done all this before.

I’m looking forward to trying all kinds of new foods, and familiar foods in new ways, and creating some new food memories. New England, here I come.

Diners and the Dined Upon

I tagged along with a friend the other night to a meeting of her dining club, Recipes for Fun, and enjoyed every minute of it. Well, maybe not the mosquitoes who began enjoying our meal with us (through us?) as the sun went down, but I guess they have to eat, too. I wonder if they're still buzzing about the meal?

Sous chef Jessica Conover and her team from CityGate Grille demonstrated the preparation of a three-course backyard BBQ menu, starting with a summer salad with raspberry vinaigrette. One big reason I love events like this is to experience combinations of ingredients and foods that I might never think to combine in a single dish. The salad included baby arugula, bok choy, parsnips, honey crisp apples, asparagus, red onion and candied pistachios, dressed in a beautifully balanced raspberry vinaigrette.

The main course included slow roasted beef brisket and grilled herbed chicken breast, with lemon garlic broccoli and roasted red potatoes. The brisket had a Cajun spice dry rub and the chicken was marinated simply in basil, parsley, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil.

Lemon curd in pate sucree was the perfect light dessert, and its preparation was a great reminder of the need to measure carefully when baking. Lemon curd is a favorite of mine, especially on a warm summer evening. The make-ahead aspects of this dessert are especially appealing for busy cooks.

The wines that accompanied each dish were all new to me. With the salad, we enjoyed Domaine Massamier La Mignarde 2008 Cuvee des Olivers Rose. Fresh and fruity. With the brisket and chicken, a 2008 Finca El Tesso Tempranillo, not too heavy with a nice range of flavors. And with the dessert, my favorite, Beckman Vineyards Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc. Perfect.

By the end of this lovely evening, even the mosquitoes were pretty mellow and, no doubt, full! I learned a neat trick for easy candied pistachios, watched accomplished chefs in action, tried some new wines and made some new friends. It was a great group of food and travel loving folks who added so much to my enjoyment of the evening.

(The photo is used with permission of the group.)

Perfect Summer Days

After days of rain that never seemed to end, and before the current heat and humidity pressed in, we enjoyed a run of perfect summer days here in the Chicago area. I'm talking about sunshine, temperatures in the 70s and low 80s, and that cloudless, endless blue sky the color of carefree childhood mornings spent roaming the local park, days that call you outside in magical voices that refuse to be ignored.

On two such perfect days, we made our way to Chicago by train and to Millennium Park which, at 24.5 acres is considerably larger than the playground of my youth, but no less ripe for discovery. Gardens, walkways and fountains that are wonderful on any day of the year are positively enchanting on such a perfect day, when the laughter of children and the hum of nature and human activity are never noise but music to the ear.

You're probably thinking that a picnic lunch would have been the best way to enjoy all this summer wonder, and you would be right. But on one day we just had a taste for a beer and, because it was a little early on the calendar for Taste of Chicago, we made our way into The Gage, a restaurant and tavern across Michigan Avenue from Millennium Park. We've eaten there before and the Smithwick's is always cold, the food is good and the service is great. On another day, dressed more for work than for play due to a meeting in the area, we ducked into the Elephant and Castle on West Adams for a quick bite. This was our first experience with the chain and we kept lunch really simple, so we have to go back some time for a more leisurely visit.

We walked around a bit before making our way back to the train, stopping into Pastoral, the artisan cheese, bread and wine shop, on one trip and checking out the Chicago French Market on another. As a former commuter, I found myself wishing the French Market had been there a decade ago. It would have been a pleasant stop before climbing aboard the train for home.

Here's to perfect summer days.