Trader Joe's makes it so easy.

Last night a busted out the rice maker, chopped up a onion and put a pre-seasoned filet mignon steak in the oven. Although these pre-seasoned meats at Trader Joe's are super tender and flavorful, they are way  too salty. I can put up with it because I didn't do anything to the rice and made the onions sweet, but I'm a little disappointed. It's perfectly good for a quick dinner though. The onions were delish with just a little EVOO to aid in a steam-fry then some white wine and maple syrup. 

New Post on Earth Eats!

Hey Alll!

I was a guest writer again on the Indiana Public Media food blog Earth Eats. Please check it out and show you're friends so I can get more hits and 'Like" it too if you're Facebook-friendly!

Farmers Markets And Food Deserts: Access And Economics
http://indianapublicmedia.org/eartheats/farmers-markets-food-deserts-access-economics/

Plus my first post was one of the top most viewed articles on the blog!
Farmers' Markets Help Bring Life to Pittsburgh's Food Deserts
http://indianapublicmedia.org/eartheats/farmers-markets-bring-life-cities-food-deserts/

There's a lot of good posts out there but check out my old post if you a) can't remember what my thesis was about or b) love me so much you can't wait to read it again or c) haven't read it yet, maybe you don't even want to (IMPOSSIBLE!) but will support me anyways!

Lots of love!
-T

Roy's Hawaii Fusion

Roy's Hawaii fusion cuisine is probably not at it's best for brunch. The [family] rumor is that the fish is good but often still swimming in overwhelming sauces. Alex's Smoked Salmon Benedict (with wilted spinach and hollandaise sauce) really didn't hit the mark. Frankly the flavors did not reminding me at all of Eggs Benedict. Spinach didn't taste like spinach. Hollandaise sauce was of their own creation, not really tasting of the buttery goodness we love so much. (SO glad I got mine on the side.) Salmon was nothing brilliant or special and poor Alex got one over done and one underdone poached egg.

Alex and I have not had any great Hawaii fusion dishes at Roy's yet. Maybe another meal and another dish would be better?

Date at Roy's: July 25th, 2010

Breakfast for Dinner

Sometimes breakfast for dinner hits the spot. Although Alex was completely unknown the the concept i knew he wouldn't say 'no' to blueberry pancakes. The berries were from a local WI farm that traveled to the Dearborn farmers' market.

Lou Malnati's Pizza

Are you saucy or are you cheesy? I've been asking everyone this question with the intention of getting a pizza preference out of them. So many focus on thin vs. thick crust; this is not longer a question when you live in Chicago. The only crust is thick crust and thin crust is not an option. So now it's about the cheese to sauce ratio. Alex's is cheesy, therefore liking lots o' cheese and not so much sauce. I have been known to eat tomato sauce like soup, so I'm obviously the saucy type.

I'm on a quest to find the perfect saucy pizza in a town surrounded a cheesy state (hello, Wisconsin). On such a quest one must try Lou Malnati's. It's yet another one that's walking distance again! You have few but important discisions to make when you sit down. First, do you share well and how hungry are you? Here are some pizza sizes to consider:
6" Individual (serves 1)
9" Small (serves 2)
12" Medium (serves 3)
14" Large (serves 4)


Then, do you get classic cheese, pepperoni, sausage, or "the Lou"?

Extra toppings?
Mushrooms, onions, green peppers, black olives, sliced tomatoes, extra cheese, garlic, hot giardiniera, anchovies, extra tomato sauce or fresh spinach (enhanced with garlic, basil & onion)


When in doubt, keep it pure!

Ugg, Lou has a thin crust option. Save that experience for NYC. Be like the cool kids and get the Chicago crust.

Alex & I got spinach, onions, and hot giardiniera. (the Sausage & pepperoni had pork.) I could only eat one piece and then food coma. Bottomless Stomach Scott ate a small pepperoni all by his self though. What a trooper.

So, cheesy or saucy? Perhaps the next critical question while finding your soulmate on match.com or eharmony.

Date at Lou Malnati's: June 16th, 2010

Kiki's French Bistro

Kiki's, another restaurant just a short walk from the apartment, produced a mixed review from us. It was a good rustic atmosphere inside, cute little red car outside, and an endearing older french couple next to us, so it appeared authentic. We placed an order and it took forEVER to get our pate to get out to us to start with and then again it took forever for my Smoked Salmon Pastrami (with Brioche, Horseradish Cream, Red Onions, Capers) and Alex's Grilled Steak Sandwich ( with Roquefort Cheese, Lettuce, Tomato, Red Onion) to get out to us. All good without any 'WOW',  but we did notice something more important: we've completed ordered the wrong things. Everything else whizzing around us was Steak au Poivre or a du Jour item & beautiful looking mashed potatoes on every dish. The lesson was learned - get what everyone else (perhaps the 'regulars'?) was(were) getting.

Our huge (enough for 4 people) pate w/ two mustards, beats, + pickles and olives.

Date at Kiki's: June 9th, 2010

BIG & little's

Visit: July 24th, 2010 4:00pm CST

After a failed attempted to SushiSamba (aka it was bad and over priced) a local eatery was in order. BIG & little's is a scrumptious and economical way to bounce back from a bad experience. A former Hell's Kitchen contestant from the 6th season, Tony D'Alessandro, and culinary comrad/ co-owner, Gary Straus have created some super delish hand food that is only minutes from our apartment. Although the menue is short it's not lacking.

The celebrated and local favorite 6$ Mahi Taco. NOT Breaded (thank you, BIG & little!), perfectly seasoned, just a little veggie for a crunch, and a beautifully softened grilled corn tortilla. It's on the short list for food I could eat for the rest of my life.
Next time I need to ask where it's from. According to the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch:

SEAFOOD	RATING	MARKET NAMES	WHERE CAUGHT	HOW CAUGHT
Mahi Mahi		Dorado	U.S. Atlantic	Troll, Pole-and-line
Mahi Mahi		Dorado	U.S.	Longline
Mahi Mahi		Dorado	Imported	Troll, Pole-and-line
Mahi Mahi		Dorado, Dolphinfish	Hawaii	Troll, Pole-and-line
Mahi Mahi		Dorado, Dolphinfish	Imported	Longline

I'll hope for the best on this one, but next time I'll ask.

My shockingly fresh tasting shrimp taco with similar accompaniments. All of the shrimps' population is contaminated with foreign (aka human placed) DNA and the majority of what we eat is farmed.

SEAFOOD	RATING	MARKET NAMES	WHERE CAUGHT	HOW CAUGHT
Shrimp		Pacific White Shrimp, West Coast White Shrimp, Ebi	U.S.	Closed systems, Inland ponds
Shrimp		Pacific White Shrimp, West Coast White Shrimp, Ebi	U.S.	Open systems
Shrimp		White Shrimp, Brown Shrimp, Pink Shrimp, Rock Shrimp, Ebi	U.S. Gulf of Mexico, U.S. South Atlantic	Wild-caught
Shrimp		Black Tiger Shrimp, Tiger Prawn, White Shrimp, Ebi	Imported	Farmed
Shrimp		Black Tiger Shrimp, Tiger Prawn, White Shrimp, Ebi	Imported	Wild-caught
Northern Shrimp		Bay Shrimp, Cocktail Shrimp, Salad Shrimp, Ebi	U.S., Canadian Atlantic	Wild-caught
Pink Shrimp		Bay Shrimp, Cocktail Shrimp, Ocean Shrimp, Salad Shrimp, Ebi	Oregon	Wild-caught
Rock Shrimp		Rock Shrimp	U.S.	Wild-caught
Spot Prawn		Prawn, Spot Shrimp, Amaebi	British Columbia	Wild-caught
Spot Prawn		Prawn, Spot Shrimp, Amaebi	U.S. Pacific	Wild-caught

(Monterery Bay Seafood Watch, 2010)

Alex's beef burger w/ very easy (maybe a little too easy?) egg. He said, it was a good burger and the quality of the beef was definitely there. I also watched form the meat in his hand- this is no pre prepared patty. Even though, he had a bite of my Mahi and is ready to convert to the surf side on our next trip.

Everyone loves french fries (see my previous post) and this ends my french frie adventures. They're not bad since they were fried infront of us and some foie gras was pan seared before our very eyes, but a little on the greasy side (more than usual) for me. Although the truffle oil fries are CALLING MY NAME. And lets just not talk about the environmental toll with the foie gras. Do you're own research. {Insert environmental shame.} I'm going to find some geese to apologize to later.

Ps. Upside to this post? We supported a small, local, non-chain, two man shop! YAY.