Great Taste

New cookbook on steak by Chicago chef Rick Tramonto

Here's an interview with Rick Tramonto, including some background on his latest published work, "Steak with Friends: At Home, with Rick Tramonto."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/claire-bidwell-smith/chef-rick-tramonto-on-his_b_557893.html?ir=Food

Tramonto's culinary abilities have proved to be wide ranging. In the late 90s, Tramonto and pastry chef Gail Gand opened Tru restaurant just a few steps off posh North Michigan Avenue. The new Tru was one jaw-droppingly ethereal experience: Meticulously prepared, gorgeous plates served in a decadent ambiance ideally timed with the booming real estate/internet era. 'Tru-ly," getting a table reservation was a feat.

After that serious foodie high jump (which is a going concern; visit http://www.trurestaurant.com), it seems strange to find Tramonto with this family-oriented cookbook. But the chef was also part of suburban Brasserie T, a large operation that catapulted burgers and fries--along with the rest of its casual French-American fare--to the sublime. In 2005 he opened Tramonto's Steak & Seafood in Wheeling, Illinois, among other ventures.

Tramonto has it all; he's a versatile, prolific, world class chef--with longevity. Great Taste looks forward to picking up a copy of his newest cookbook.  

Monique Hooker offers cooking classes in La Crosse

Monique Jamet Hooker, author of the divine "Cooking with the Seasons: A Year in My Kitchen" cookbook, is sharing her vast knowledge and talent in classes at Sideboard Fine Gourmet Kitchenware, La Crosse, Wis. 

Check out the schedule here: http://www.sideboardkitchenware.com/cooking.html

More about Monique Hooker:

http://www.moniquescuisine.com/aboutmonique.php

Sign up for CSA--and get ready for fresh-off-the-farm produce

Community Supported Agriculture--commonly known as CSA--is a hot trend in Minnesota.

And that's good. By supporting a CSA consumers support their local small farmer and get uber-fresh garden delights throughout the growing season. 

The CSA concept is so popular that it's best to think ahead for the season and sign up sooner--rather than later, when one may discover that area farmers have sold out of their "subscriptions" to the public.    

To find a CSA close to you visit the Local Harvest website:

http://www.localharvest.org/search-csa.jsp?scale=&lat=&lon=&x=&y=&ty=6&zip=&st=25&but.x=29&but.y=6&but=s

Local Harvest also offers "Tips for Potential CSA members."

Even while Great Taste stares into the computer screen and types this on a dreary late winter morning she can turn her thoughts to Deborah Madison's "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone" and imagine the prospect of cooking up her spring and summer vegetable dishes, and other fave recipes, in coming months....

By the way, Great Taste just discovered that Deborah Madison has a blog: http://deborahmadison.com/blog/

The Italian cookbook to give for the holidays--and for gifting yourself

Great Taste splurged on a recent trip to the Chicago area. On nothing more than a cookbook.....At a price of $45 on the jacket a woman has a right to think twice. 

But then, "La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy," by the Accademia Italiana Della Cucina (The Italian Academy of Cuisine) isn't just another Italian cookbook.

Yes, there are rave reviews for it. And yes, it took decades for the Academy to gather the recipes. All 2,000 of them.

But that's not why Great Taste bought the cookbook.

"La Cucina" sat on a table at a Barnes & Noble store. The vintage-styled illustrated cover held promise. The book's heft indicated it wasn't some dalliance by, maybe, a celebrity whose career has otherwise peaked.

The recipes were approachable--easy to follow and, for the most part, without multiple steps and long lists of ingredients.* Yet fascinating. 

Lamb with Egg and Cheese (Campania), mushrooms with pork loin and sausage (Lombardia), polenta with pork and turnips (Lazio), sweet-and-sour braised cabbage (Cappucci Acidi), Sicilian caponata.....Rustic torte with artichokes, stewed frittata strips, sole with peppers....

Then--mama mia--the sweets: almond cake glazed with chocolate, ricotta pie, panettone, mascarpone cake with Marsala, and crescent cookies. And coffee ice cream, and, and.... 

Great Taste wants nothing more this holiday than to cook recipes from this book with her family!  

For more about "La Cucina," see these reviews:

http://www.foxbookshop.com/book/9780847831470

http://www.forewordmagazine.com/reviews/la-cucina-regional-cooking-italy

*If spaghetti and meat sauce enjoyed to the melodies of Sinatra is as far as you've gone with Italian cuisine, this book may be daunting; if you're curious about Caruso, it's a must.     

GG

 

To our veggie and veggie-leaning readers: We love you!

Gourmanda Galore is back with a vengeance!

She is here to remind her Great Taste compatriot JF that many of us do not like to think too much about our meat as we eat it. As JF's cow may walk by the grill, GG prepares to pray to a porcelain god. 

Let's not dwell only on deep-dish carnivores and instead make that leap beyond rare to discuss RAW.

GG doesn't mean steak tartare.

The raw food movement is one of the most exciting things to ever happen to Gourmanda Galore. Not only does well-prepared raw food taste surprisingly good, GG actually feels healthier and more energized from it. Here are videos about GG's favorite raw restaurant, Juliano's Raw, in Santa Monica, California.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hdqw5L5Fl0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCHtiMaUXkY&feature=related

In the Midwest famed Chicago-based chef/restaurateur Charlie Trotter has partnered with West Coast chef/restaurateur Roxanne Klein to create the "Raw" cookbook.

http://www.charlietrotters.com/store/books/product.asp?catID=2&productID=113

Gourmanda encourages readers to email suggestions for Minnesota establishments that serve raw vegan food. 

Antonio Cecconi and Sopra Sotto: La dolce vita

Perhaps you missed "Fruits of the Italian Harvest" Saturday night or "Italian Fall Classic Dishes" on October 10.  Maybe you didn't make it a few days ago to "Buon Pranzo! Italian Sunday Lunch,"  featuring sauteed artichokes with sizzling lamb chops and timballo pasta tower.

No worries. Cookbook author and culinary consultant Antonio Cecconi offers four more Italian cooking classes at Sopra Sotto, Rochester, through November 22.

Cecconi, a Twin Cities-based caterer and consultant to food companies, is former restaurant owner and  author of eight cookbooks, including Betty Crocker's Italian Cooking. In classes the native Sardinian presents insightful, witty instruction as he creates Italian staples and specialties in a colorful corner of the Sopra Sotto store. Then it's "buon appetito" for course participants as they feast on preparations, usually  washed down with paired wines.

Upcoming classes are: "Heartwarming Fall Meal, " featuring suppli al telefono (filled rice fritters), fettucine agli asparagi e Gorgonzola, veal saltimbocca alla Romana with spinazi alla Milanese, insalata, and espresso and fresh strawberries with zabaione sauce; "Buon Pranzo: Italian Sunday Lunch," with spinach polenta soup, tranci di pollo all'agro (chicken in savory sauce), eggplant Parmesan side, and dessert of alpine almond torte; "Italian Holiday Specialties," demonstrating how to make fresh basil-wrapped and assorted cheese truffles, tortellini, round ravioli, chicken piccata, fresh basil and spinach salad with green beans, and suppa inglese made with panettone; and "Buon Pranzo! Italian Sunday Lunch," showcasing how to make roasted garlic and onion soup, polenta with sauteed spinach and pine nuts, roasted loin of marlin with fresh insalata, and hazelnut biscotti.     

Mama mia, Great Taste is feeling hunger pains while writing this.

Class size is limited, so it is suggested to sign up earlier rather than later; however, in case of sellouts Sopra Sotto organizes additional classes for a minimum of 8 participants.   

More information: http://www.sopra-sotto.com/news.php

Note about Cecconi's Betty Crocker cookbook:  This 336-page little work of art functions as both introduction to Italian cuisine for beginners (with step-by-step, numbered directions; 10 pages featuring "A Culinary Tour of the Twenty Regions;" and numerous glossaries) as well as an addition to the veteran cook's library, presenting straightforward, authentic recipes usually accompanied by full-page photographs. Great Taste has this cookbook in the personal collection.       

   

I confess I'm not a Ruth Reichl fan

A reader asked (thank you!). Gourmanda Galore responds:

Ruth Reichl is a beautiful, knowledgeable writer....A terrific editor....A personality. But....

In the end (at least for moi), it's about recipes--the food you create in your own kitchen.

Sometime after Reichl took over Gourmet magazine, the recipes didn't hold up anymore. Gourmanda can't give you a date--though at some point she definitely noticed a difference.

Gourmanda was incredulous. She thought that by happenstance she must have picked out some of the less stellar recipes. So when Reichl's tome was published in 2004, Gourmanda still ran out and bought it.

Guess what? That cookbook, with its golden-yellow jacket, sits prominently on the shelf, but only because it looks good compared to the worn-out books stained with melted butter and flecked with flour. Gourmanda has yet to find a recipe out of the Gourmet Cookbook that she would want to make a second time.

Reichl should have stuck to restaurant criticism. She was superb.

 

Ms. Ephron, more one point

In the video you said: "Aspic, because who would ever make it?"

Here are a couple instances of "who would ever make it" making it:

1. Moi. I made a version as an appetizer on a recent Thanksgiving.  

2. Grand Hotel, Mackinac Island, Michigan, offered a dinner appetizer of "Duck Confit in Aspic with French Beans," accompanied by "Foie Gras Creme Fraiche" when Great Taste visited earlier this summer.

And, look, Julia Child made aspic. 

Great Taste wants to give "Supremes De Volaille En Chaud-Froid, Blanche Neige [Breast of Chicken in Chaud-froid]," featured on page 551 of "Mastering the Art of French Cooking,"  a shot. Ms. Ephron, you are invited to our tasting.

PS..... "Julie & Julia" opens Thursday at midnight (Isn't that time slot usually reserved for "The Rocky Horror Picture Show"?) at Chateau 14 and on Friday at the Hollywood 12. Also read/view Great Taste's post of July 30.

Merci beaucoup.

  

Marin--A few more words (and pictures)

Our Marin County journey fades in the rearview mirror. But the hardcover book on my kitchen counter, "Organic Marin: Recipes from Land to Table," keeps tastes, sights, and smells alive. Find 50 seasonal recipes, with photographs-- including Arroz con Pollo (from Sol Food, mentioned in an earlier post), Fava Bean Bruschetta, Gnocchi with Morels and Peas, Grilled Pork Tenderloin and Nectarines with Bacon Vinaigrette, and Panna Cotta with Fresh Strawberries-- from 25 Bay Area organic restaurants.. For more information or to purchase: http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/organic-marin/index.html

This only gets better: Book proceeds go to Marin Organic's school lunch program.... http://www.marinorganic.org/organic_school_lunch.php 

Cookbook hopes in Lanesboro

Annual Rhubarb Festival organizers plan to publish a cookbook of recipes from the first five years of the fest's tasting contest. 

"We've found that our tasting contest is always very successful.... We have the greatest of variety," says Nancy Martinson,  known as the festival's "top stalk."

Previous tasting winners include rhubarb chili Cubano and  rhubarb and onion chutney. Last year's winning recipes are available on the event's web site. This year's festival is June 6, with cookbook to follow. 

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Peggy Hanson, co-owner of the Cady Hayes House Bed & Breakfast, says she will operate the inn for its last season and close in the fall. 

Hanson and her husband, Frank Wright, were noted in The Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook, published last year. They share a passion for fresh-from-the-farmyard-and-garden foods; Wright participates in the Lanesboro Farmers Market.

Upcoming projects: Hanson's considering a cookbook of her recipes.