Last Dessert(s)

As previously mentioned, we recently (okay, that recent is quickly fading away) returned from a final fling/ touch-up of condo session in Chicago. And part of that joyous occasion was treating ourselves to a series of blissful food memories. After finishing dinner at Avec, my husband graciously acquiesced to one last visit to Mindy Segal's Hot Chocolate. Despite a hilarious history of awkward moments between me and the wait staff at this place, I love the dessert concepts. My all-time favorite was the hot-chocolate flight, but that flew off the menu a while ago, so I had to content myself with a cup of pure chocolate delight. If there were chocolate vampires, this would be their drink of choice. (Speaking of vampires, only 10 days until Breaking Dawn arrives. Squee!)
Why do I like Hot Chocolate? Take one part thought that goes into the desserts, one part because Chef Segal is a Kendall alum, one part that amazingly fun wait staff and a dash of I love all things dark chocolate, stir together and you have my answer. Go. Pay a lot for a small dessert that will be great fun on a gustatory and intellectual level, grab a cup of cocoa and maybe order some appetizers.

That said, my all-time favorite Chicago indulgence actually comes from what may be the best bakery in all of Chicago. Sure, the bread isn't the best, but the pecan sticky buns! Oh my. Yes, Bittersweet has the corner on bakery beauty, but Bonjour Bakery wins hands down for quality. My father longingly requests a white paper bag full of that gooey yumminess every time I fly home.

So you're leaving Chicago . . . Where do you have your last meal(s)?

It's official. I've cried my tears as we swept our ancient cork floor one last time, cried some more as we locked the door, cried as we drove away. Moving, it turns out, is hard. (Yep. That's the understatement of the year!)

Enough of the lachrymose thoughts. We took advantage of our work-filled week to do a few last favorite dining excursions, and it's time to share. One often hears the "if it was your last meal, what would you want?" question. I have my answers.

1--Dinner with a fellow blogger, and new friend, Courtney. She made the greatest tarte tatin, and I was a happy woman.

2--Dinner at Avec. I love this place--not for the service, which occasionally forgets about you (although was great this time), nor for the slightly uncomfortable backless chairs. It's all about the food here. And the fact that I am convinced Paul Kahan is one of the best chefs* in Chicago helps.

We started with chorizo stuffed dates wrapped in bacon and served in a piquillo pepper sauce. This is a box-out dish. Translation, you take your first bite and the elbows go up while you guard the rest.


This was followed up by the not-so-yummy-sounding but amazingly good cod brandade (think cod, butter, oil, garlic and potato whipped together, and you kind of have a picture of this dish, however that picture is so inaccurate you have to stop reading NOW and hop on a plane and go try some because the sensation of warm brandade on good bread is fantastically pleasing), and the english pea crostini. I think the camera liked the crostini so much it ate the picture. Or the picture taker (who could that be?) was so distracted she forgot to take. Pictures, that is.

We finished up with the warm spinach salad (Avec makes the perfect bean--a little crunchy a little tender and all flavor) and wood-fired pizza with gorgonzola, smoked grapes, tarragon, pistachios and saba. I'm a fan. My own home-made pizza crust crawled into a corner in shame when this showed up:



So that's dinner. Dessert comes later, tomorrow perhaps?

* This observation is based on working an event for Share our Strength that included a large number of Chicago's finest (although no Trotter). Kahan showed up early with his sous chefs, worked the entire event, and even helped clean up. Yes, this chef has kept his heart in the kitchen. Plus I can afford his food. Once in a while. :)

Not very daring Danish

I was a slacker last month--between defending my thesis, packing up apartment, getting my house ready to sell, baking actually moved down my priority list. Yes, strange.

However, I am lucky enough to have Lauren as a friend, and before wandering off to IFT where her team rocked the product development contest (well, a close 2nd place, that is, but still amazing!), she generously shared her danish dough with me. It made it home, into the freezer and then languished until yesterday when it finally got to shine.

A little almond pastry cream, some sauteed apples and here it is: my belated contribution to the Daring Baker's June challenge. An exhausted thanks to two amazing bloggers for hosting: Kelly and Ben . If you want to see more, check out the blogroll. Prepare to gain virtual weight instantly.

For the danish recipe, please see here.

Apple Filling
1 apple, your favorite kind, of course
1 Tbsp butter
1 tablespoon sugar

Peel apple and saute in butter until slightly softened. Sprinkle with sugar and cook until the sugar melts. Remove from heat and set aside.

Almond Pastry Cream (adapted from Dorie Greenspan)
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup 2% milk
1/2 of a vanilla bean, if you have one, otherwise skip it
1/8 tsp salt
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 tbsp butter

Mix together cornstarch and sugar in a small saucepan, then add milk, salt and vanilla bean. Bring to a simmer, whisking. The mixture will start to thicken. Remove from heat and temper the egg yolks by whisking in ~1/4 cup of the milk/sugar/starch mixture into the egg yolks. Add the tempered egg yolk mixture to the saucepan, whisking and return to medium heat. Continue stirring until the mixture thickens, approximately 1-2 additional minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the almond extract and butter. Cover with plastic wrap and cool in an ice bath.

Berries trees and morning

I felt a bit like Eve yesterday, awakening to the realization that those little black bits I hated getting in between my shoe treads were actually edible berries, scattered all along the creek by my house. I finally looked up and saw, and despite years of fatherly warning, decided to taste.
Realization of their existence didn't simplify finding them, as most of these wild little bits of yumminess grow 12+ feet off the ground. Luckily a few members of our local National Guard unit alerted me (it's quite startling, actually, to realize that those funny looking bits of greenery are actually people wearing camo) to one unique little tree that has managed to place its boughs within human reach.
So I harvested, and brought my fruit home to share with my husband. As any wife would. After all, there is well-established pattern here, isn't there?

A quick warming with apricots and butter, scoop into a crepe and off to the porch we went to enjoy a bit of morning peace before our innocence is stripped away and we find ourselves thrown out to the wolves of the world.