If you’re wondering what Mariah Carey, Leonardo DiCaprio, Adam Sandler, Alec Baldwin, Liam Neeson, Jimmy Fallon, Kevin Costner, and P. Diddy are eating this Memorial Day, it might be something that Andrea Correale, the founder and president of Elegant Affairs, has whipped up. Correale counts such stars as well as corporations like Ralph Lauren, Amazon, American Express, American Heart Association, and Cirque du Soleil among her clients.
She started her own company at 16 after working in a variety of jobs at a local country club. Initially she hoped to earn enough money to buy a car. She not only got the car but also was set on a career path. Correale received her training at the Hotel and Restaurant Management program at New York Institute of Technology and then founded Elegant Affairs, a full service off-premise catering and event planning company in the Hamptons, Long Island and New York City.
Besides the following recipes, Correale also shares some of the latest in food trends which can easily be incorporated into Memorial Day entertaining.
This being the fruit best, it works that cobblers are trending. Correale says you can serve blueberry, apple, peach, cherry, or any type of fruit cobbler you’d like simply à la mode — oversized and baked or deconstructed in a glass or jar.
Andrea with Kevin Costner.
For condiments, peppers are totally in starting with sriracha and other unique hot sauces. Correale says the hotter the better and also, when they’re available at farmers’ markets—salted shishito peppers.
It’s not really corn on the cob time yet, but if you can find some, Correale suggests a corn on the cob bar where besides roasted or steamed corn, there’s every topping imaginable: flavored butters, spreads, herbs, cheese, bacon, and spices.
Gluten-free and vegan anything and everything.
People want fresh food, it doesn’t need to be fancy.
“It’s much more about the quality of the ingredients, and the freshness,” says Correale, than it is about overabundance.”
Watermelon Pizza
Servings: 8
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
1 large watermelon
5 cups vanilla frozen yogurt
3 cups fresh raspberries
3 cups fresh blueberries
Cut watermelon into 8 thin slices, to create your “crust”.
Spread a layer of vanilla frozen yogurt on top of each watermelon slice.
Add berries as your toppings and serve immediately.
Red Velvet, Berry and Cream Parfaits
Servings: 4
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
4 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 cups fresh blackberries or raspberries
8 inch red velvet cake
Bake a red velvet cake in an 8-inch pan, using your favorite recipe, and let it cool.
Combine cream cheese, and sugar in a bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat on a medium-high speed until creamy.
Add in the heavy cream and mix on low speed, until the mixture has a pudding-like consistency.
Line the bottom of your glasses or dessert cups with
cake and a layer of cream. Add another layer of cake, followed by another layer of cream, then add in a
layer of berries. Repeat these layers until you fill your glass or desert cup.
Refrigerate for at least one hour, and garnish each serving with a cookie or pastry of your choice.
Penguins, Bourbon, Art, & Haute Southern Cuisine come together in Louisville.
Much more than a place to lay your head, 21c Museum Hotel with locations in Louisville, Cincinnati, Des Moines, Chicago, St. Louis, Lexington, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, Nashville, Durham, and Bentonville, Arkansas, is a total immersion into art or, maybe better put, it’s a night in the art museum.
Penguin Love. Photo of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
In Louisville, it started when I spied a 4-foot penguin at the end of the hall as I headed to my room but 30 minutes later when I opened my door, the rotund red bird was there in front of me. “Don’t worry,” said a man walking by. “They’re always on the move.”
Proof on Main. Photo courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
The migratory birds, sculptures first exhibited at the 2005 Venice Biennale and now part of the collection of 21c Museum Hotel in Louisville add a touch of whimsy. But with 9,000 square feet of gallery space and art in all corridors and rooms, three-fourths coming from the owners’ private collection valued at $10 million, 21c is a serious museum.
Proof on Main. Photo of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
Carved out of five former 19th-century bourbon and tobacco warehouses, 21c is both part of the revitalization of Louisville’s delightful downtown and a transformation of art from backdrop into upfront and thought-provoking.
The sleek, minimalist interior — uber-urbanism with linear white walls dividing the main lobby and downstairs gallery into cozy conversational and exhibit spaces — is softened with touches of the buildings’ past using exposed red brick walls and original timber and iron support beams as part of the decor. Named by Travel + Leisure as one of the 500 Best Hotels in the World, 21c is also the first North American museum of 21st-century contemporary art.
Photo courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
I find more whimsy on a plate at Proof on Main, the hotel’s restaurant, when the waiter plops down my bill and a fluff of pink cotton candy — no after-dinner mints here. For more about the cotton candy, see the sidebar below. But the food, a delicious melange of contemporary, American South, and locally grown, will please even the most serious foodinista. It’s all creative without being too over the top. Menu items include charred snap peas tossed with red chermoula on a bed of creamy jalapeno whipped feta,
Bison Burger. Photo and recipe courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
And, of course, the Proof on Main staple since first opening. 8 ounce patty, char grilled to your preferred temp (chef recommended medium rare), served with smoky bacon, extra sharp cheddar and sweet onion jam to compliment the game of the meat nicely. Local Bluegrass bakery makes our delicious brioche buns. The burger comes house hand cut fries. For the ending (but it’s okay if you want to skip everything else and get down to the Butterscotch Pot De Créme, so very luxuriously smooth and rich pot de creme with soft whipped cream and crunchy, salty pecan cookies.
Mangonada at Proof on Main. Photo and recipe courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
House-cured pancetta seasons the baby Brussels sprouts, grown on the restaurant’s 1,000-acre farm. Local is on the drink menu as well with more than 50 regional and seasonal Kentucky bourbons.
A meal like this demands a walk, so I step outside (more art here) on Main, a street of 19th-century cast-iron facades, the second largest collection in the U.S. Once known as Whiskey Row, it’s refined now as Museum Row on Main. To my left, a 120-foot bat leans on the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory, across the street is the Louisville Science Center, and nearby are several more including the Muhammad Ali Center.
Heading east, I take a 15-minute stroll to NuLu, an emerging neighborhood of galleries, restaurants and shops. I’ve come for the Modjeskas, caramel-covered marshmallows created in 1888 in honor of a visiting Polish actress and still made from the original recipe at Muth’s Candies. On the way back to 21c, I detour through Waterfront Park, a vast expanse of greenway on the Ohio River, taking time to bite into a Modjeska and watch boats pass by.
21C MUSEUM HOTEL, 700 W. Main St., Louisville, Ky., 502-217-6300, 21chotel.com
Pink Cotton Candy for Dessert. Photo courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
As an aside, the idea for the cotton candy originated with co-founder Steve Wilson. Here’s the story, from the restaurant’s blog, Details Matter. “A memory that sticks with Steve from his younger years is the circus coming to town. Steve grew up in a small town in far Western Kentucky along the Mississippi River called Wickliffe He distinctly remembers the year the one striped tent was erected on the high school baseball field. Certainly not the large three ringed circus many others may remember, but the elephants, the handsome people in beautiful costumes…they were all there. When Steve sat through the show he got a glimpse into a fantasy world he didn’t know existed. A departure from reality. Oftentimes, after his trip to the circus, when he was sad or frustrated, he would daydream about running away to the circus. In fact, he’ll tell you he used to pull the sheets of his bed over his head, prop them up in the middle and pretend to be the ringmaster in his own crazy circus tent! In his eyes, the circus was where everything was beautiful, and no one would cry.
There’s that darn penguin again. Photo courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
“Fast forward many years later, Steve met Laura Lee Brown at a dinner party in Louisville. He was immediately smitten and wanted to impress her. SO naturally one of his first dates was a trip to the circus at the KY Expo Center. Whether she was impressed or not, it seems to have worked.
“Years later, as Steve and Laura Lee were working on the development of 21c Louisville, they took a trip to Mexico City. At the end of one particularly memorable dinner, the server ended the meal with pink cotton candy served on a green grass plate. It was sticky, messy, and immediately brought back memories from Steve’s childhood. It was a feel good memory he wanted to last.
“Steve often says 21c makes him actually FEEL like the ringmaster in his own circus, so as the restaurant plans were getting finalized, he wanted to incorporate cotton candy as an homage to that feeling. As we opened up each new restaurant, the cotton candy continued, each time with a color and flavor to match the color of the hotel’s resident penguins. Eight operating restaurants later, the hope is that each and every diner ends their meal a little sticky, a little messy, and feeling nostalgic about good childhood memories.”
And again! Photo courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
Recipes courtesy of Proof on Main
Buttermilk Biscuits
2 cups self-rising flour
½ tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp light brown sugar
1 cup buttermilk
¼ heavy cream
6 tbsp butter
2 tbsp Crisco
Pre-heat oven to 350F. Grate butter on the coarse side of the grater and put butter in the freezer along with the Crisco. Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl. Mix cream and buttermilk in a separate bowl. Once butter is very cold combine with the dry ingredients with hands until a coarse meal is made. Add the cold dairy to the mixture and fold until just combined. Roll out dough on a floured clean surface and cut biscuits with a ring mold cutter. Layout on sheet trays 2 inches apart. Bake for 8 minutes and rotate set timer for 8 more minutes. Once out of the oven brush with melted butter.
SMOKED CATFISH DIP
Smoked Catfish Dip. Photo and recipe courtesy of 21c Museum Hotel Louisville.
This recipe makes a lot, but you can easily divide it—or put the extra in a mason jar and give to a friend as a holiday gift.
YIELD: 1 QUART
1 lb. Smoked catfish 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 cup sour cream 3 Tablespoons small diced celery 3 Tablespoons small diced white onion Juice and Zest of One Lemon 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise Salt and black pepper to taste
TO SERVE
Lemon wedges Hot sauce Pretzel crackers Fresh dill for garnish
Flake the fish with your hands until it is fluffy. Combine the mustard, sour cream, celery, onion, parsley, lemon juice and zest and the mayonnaise together. Combine with the catfish and mix until it is well incorporated. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve cold with fresh dill and lemon wedges, your favorite hot sauce and pretzel crackers.
Mangonada
“This is a slightly complex variation of a margarita, adding smoky mezcal, bright cilantro and tangy mango-tamarind syrup. It was created as a play on the Mexican sweet treat, the Mangonada, with mango, a tamarind candy stick, and Tajin seasoning.” – Proof on Main Beverage Director, Jeff Swoboda.
3/4 oz Banhez 3/4 El Jimador Blanco 1/4 oz Cynar 70 1 oz mango-tamarind syrup 3/4 oz lime juice big pinch of cilantro
Shake together with ice, strain over fresh ice and garnish with a Tamarrico candy straw.
Proof on Main’s Mint Julep
1 cup mint leaves, plus a sprig or two for garnish
1 ounce sugar syrup
2 ounces bourbon
Crushed ice to fill glass
In a rocks glass, lightly press on mint with a muddler or back of a spoon. Add the sugar syrup. Pack the glass with crushed ice and pour the bourbon over the ice. Garnish with an extra mint sprig.
Lisa Walker, whose blog Neighborhood Sprout is designed to inspire her readers to put time and energy into their homes, is guest blogging today with ideas for the perfect budget friendly travel gift ideas in time for the holiday season.
Save money with coupons and promos and be able to travel the world.
Check Out Coupons From Top Retailers
Before you shop for travel presents, you need to check for Black Friday promo codes and holiday deals first. You may also be able to combine these promotions with cash back offers for even more money back in your wallet. Need a few suggestions from top retailers? You can score deals on luggage at Macy’s, whether you plan on buying a single piece or an entire set. Looking for stocking stuffers? Travel-sized beauty products from Ulta are the perfect fit for stockings and your loved one’s carry-on. Just be sure to check for coupons before checkout!
You can purchase gift cards and vouchers for restaurants, tours, and other experiences for your family and friends. For instance, if your loved ones have a trip to Michigan in the works, you could pick up gift cards and gear from award-winning Michigan breweries like Founders Brewing in Grand Rapids or Perrin Brewing Co in Comstock Park. If they’re not into beer, pick up gifts and passes to give them yearlong access to thousands of national parks and recreational sites.
The travel industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, there are countless hotels and resorts offering discounted vouchers and packages to entice folks to travel once restrictions are lifted. If your loved ones have their hearts set on a Caribbean vacation, for example, you may be able to snag some pretty sweet deals on spa services, massages, and extra nights when you purchase gift cards now. Your loved ones can then put those gift cards towards future travels. Be sure to confirm expiration dates and restrictions before you buy.
If you want to give your loved one a gift with fewer limits, you may prefer travel gift cards instead. Gift cards purchased from Airbnb, Uber, Southwest, Hilton and a handful of other airlines, hotels, and retailers usually do not have an expiration date. This means you can rest assured that future pandemic restrictions won’t put a damper on any redemption plans. You can choose how much you would like to spend, which is even better for your budget.
Pick Up Some Popular Travel Essentials
When you want something more tangible to wrap up, one or two of the top travel essentials for 2020 could do the trick. There’s always something for every traveler and every budget. So whether you want to spend $10 on a relaxing travel mask or $300+ on a pair of noise-cancelling headphones, you should be able to find something that fits your spending limit. You can also scan through reviews of the latest travel tech for even more ideas. Then you can impress your loved ones with a cutting edge smartwatch or a secure travel safe.
Shopping for gifts on a tight budget doesn’t have to be stressful. Use coupons, promo codes, and cashback offers whenever you purchase travel gifts, or pick up gift cards so that you can choose a value that’s in line with your budget. Either way, the travel-lovers on your list are sure to be grateful that you chose such practical and thoughtful gifts, and you’ll be grateful for the savings!
Guest blogger Lisa Walker is the proud mom of two adorable (but feisty) sons. She created Neighborhood Sprout as a passion project to share her love of homeownership with others, and she enjoys writing home- and community-related articles in her spare time. When they’re not tackling their latest DIY home project, she and her husband, Jake, love taking their boys trail hiking or beach combing.
The charming Ticino region is a well-kept secret for travelers in the know wanting to escape winter’s cold. But that’s likely to soon change with with the opening of the Ceneri Base Tunnel this December. Train times between Zürich and Lugano are now less than two hours making a trip to this magical Italian-speaking region of Switzerland within an easy reach of the North..
Lugano, the largest town in Ticino, is located in the very heart of breathtaking mountain and lake landscapes, and offers year-round a fascinating mix of culture, cuisine and Mediterranean joie de vivre.Curretnly, a selection of hotels are offering special deals with a 20 percent discount on the daily rate, theme packages with overnight stays, and fixed price offers including dinner.Bookable through ticino.ch/ceneri
The 4-star Hotel LUGANODANTE, located right at the center of Lugano has a colorful urban stylewith public areas that create an ambience of an open living room looking out onto city living. The 85 rooms and suites, as well as the lounge and conference room, have been decorated to reflect the pleasant and soothing color hues of the lake and surrounding landscape. In the newly opened Flamel restaurant, the Maci brothers wow diners with an innovative gastro concept that blends Italian and French cuisine and offers – in keeping with the French alchemist Nicolas Flamel’s name – a unique flavor experience. www.luganodante.com
Monte Brè –An excursion above the roofs of Lugano now also available in winter The Monte Brè and Monte San Salvatore are two majestic local mountains that are now accessible during the holiday season aboard a historic funicular. Over a half-mile high, Monte Brè is considered Switzerland’s sunniest mountain. Both mountains offer stunning panoramic views of Lake Lugano and the surrounding snowy peaks. www.montebre.ch
Dario Ranza, Kuechenchef, Ristorante Ciani, Lugano. copyright by http://www.steineggerpix.com / photo by remy steinegger
Il Forziere del Vino – Tastings in a sublime Wine Cellar The luxury hotel Splendide Royal Lugano is home to the stunning Forziere del Vino (“wine safe”), which houses a real treasure – some 500 of the world’s very best wines. The guardian of the safe is Simone Ragusa, a Swiss Master Sommelier in 2015. The stunning Wine Cellar is ideal for enjoying first-class culinary experiences and wine tastings with Ragusa who shares his deep knowledge of the best vini of Ticino and other top-class international wines, also provides insider information about the wines and their producers. Oenophiles up for the challenge are invited to participate in an evening of blind tasting: four different wines are paired with food and answer questions about what they’re drinking.. At the end of the evening, one of the guests is crowned “Sommelier of the Evening”. http://www.splendide.ch
Exhibition at the MASI Palazzo Reali – Ticino in the Tide of Change
The Museo d’arte della Svizzera italiana (MASI) will continue to show the monographic exhibition “Ticino in the Tide of Change” in the Palazzo Reali January 10, 2021. Showcasing the work of local photographer Vincenzo Vicarni (1911-2007), the exhibition features more than 100 black-and-white and color photos he took of Ticino from 1936 and 1987. It’s a wonderful way to see how Ticino changed and its inhabitants adapted from the agricultural post-war years to the more urban Ticino of the 1980s. www.masilugano.ch
Da Vinci Experience – Dive into the world of Leonardo da Vinci
From 03.12.20 – 21.02.2021, the Centro Esposizioni Conza in Lugano is featuring a new interactive multimedia exhibition called the “Da Vinci Experience”. Bringing da Vinci’s story, art and inventions to life in multimedia format that includes projections and virtual realities, takes visitors on a sensory journey as they learn about his greatest inventions. In the Inventions Room, visitors interact with many of da Vinci’s original works reproduced in full scale. The Immersive Room is an extensive cinematic experience projecting a series of images and videos of da Vinci’s best artistic works and scientific inventions. The third room – the Oculus Room – houses eight 3D virtual reality stations with VR glasses where visitors navigate, by a virtual paddle boat or flying the roofs, of Renaissance Florence. davinciexperience.ch
Copyright DaVinci Experience
Carta MAM – five museums in the Mendrisiotto come together in one ticket At the southern tip of Lake Lugano lies the Mendrisiotto, a region which is not only rich in rolling hills and flourishing vineyards producing the best wine, but also a wide range of different cultural experience including the Carta MAM of the Musei d’Arte del Mendrisiotto (MAM) network. This consists of five different museums: the M.A.X. Museo in Chiasso, the Museo d’arte Mendrisio, the Museo Vincenzo Vela in Ligornetto, the Pinacoteca Cantonale Giovanni Züst in Rancate and the Teatro dell’architettura in Mendrisio. Visitors purchasing a ticket at any of the five museums also will be given the Carta MAM which provides a discount for the other museums and their gift shops. ! www.museidartemendrisiotto.ch
Nuova Segnaletica in Piaazza del Ponte a Mendrisio (FOTO FIORENZO MAFFI)
Lugano ex Convento Santa Maria degli Angioli Copyright Ticino Turismo – Foto Loreta Daulte
Grand Cafè al Porto – Lugano’s living room since 1803
The narrow alleyway Via Pessina in the old town of Lugano is home to the Grand Cafè al Porto, a café dating back as 1803. A gathering place for the literati, artists and politicians, it is still to this day referred to as the salotto (English: living room) of Lugano. The jewel in the crown of the Grand Café al Porto is the Cenacolo Fiorentino on the first floor, formerly a monastery dining hall with stunning 16the century wooden ceiling and wall frescoes thought to have be created by Florentine painter Carlo Bonafedi. In more modern times, In March 1945 Cenacolo Florentino was the setting for Operation Sunrise, a secret meeting between German officers and representatives of the Allied powers that resulted in the surrender of German troops in North Italy and shortening the Second World War by several days. The Hall is now available for private engagements. www.grand-cafe-lugano.ch
Grand Cafe al Porto di Lugano. Copyright by Grand Cafe al Porto / Photo by Remy Steinegger HDR-Image
Photo courtesy of Gabbani.
Gabbani – tradition and innovation The Gabbani delicatessen in the very heart of the old town of Lugano offers the best in fresh fruit and vegetables, regional cheese specialties, selected charcuterie products, the finest bread and sweet pastries as well as the great wines. The Gabbani name is synonymous with freshness, quality and tradition since 1937 when butcher Domenico Gabbani set up his delicatessen Via Pessina. His son, Lino succeeded him and since 2010, his sons Domenico and Francesco Gabbani have carried on the family tradition. In 2020, they established a boutique hotel, restaurant , wine bar, coffee bar and delicatessen stand on the Piazza Cioccaro.
The hotel has 14 stylishly designed rooms, each with the name of the different type of food upon which the room’s color palette is created. The latest innovation from the Gabbani family is the Ikobani Roof Bar & Restaurant on the fourth floor of the hotel. It serves traditional Japanese cuisine, ranging from classic temaki to fresh sashimi and special dishes such as Kaisen salad, fried fish in Nanban, the house ramen soup and many other traditional Japanese dishes. www.gabbani.com
Ristorante La Serra – a greenhouse with a twist
Located beyond the town’s borders, Ristorante La Serra or, in English, The Greenhouse is housed in an actual greenhouse now transformed into a cozy modern restaurant owned by Mara Bertelli, a yoga teacher. Their the motto “local food, global taste” translates into a menu packed with culinary creations from across the world but based heavily on regional, seasonal ingredients. In addition to the restaurant, there is also a lab which holds cooking classes, yoga lessons and other creative workshops. www.laserra.ch
Copyright Alina Smit – Ristorante La Serra
Restaurant Ciani – the address for gourmets in Lugano’s green oasisThe destination for any gourmet in Lugano is the Restaurant Ciani, where Head Chef Dario Ranza dishes are based on local ingredients and recipes including pasta, risotto and fish. The 15 Gault & Millau points awarded to the restaurant show is indicative of its quality and creativity. Situated at the edge of the Parco Ciani – the town’s green oasis – guests can enjoy stunning views of nature and the historic Villa Ciani while enjoying the restaurant’s modern and elegant design including its lounge, wine bar and large terrace. www.cianilugano.ch
For more information: Ticino Turismo Via C. Ghiringhelli 7 CH – 6501 Bellinzona T +41 (0)91 825 70 56 www.ticino.ch
For those who love Chicago’s wonderful food scene, this September is the time to enjoy one of the country’s best food festivals, Chicago Gourmet. Going on now until the end of the month, Chicago Gourmet organizers at the Illinois Restaurant Association (IRA), the event’s founding sponsor – along with presenting sponsor Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits – are offering a safe and spectacularly curated schedule showcasing Chicago’s diverse culinary offerings. Reservations and tickets are now available at chicagogourmet.org.
To help those impacted by the pandemic, this year the IRA is formally introducing the Illinois Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (IRAEF) Restaurant Employee Relief Fund, a new beneficiary of this year’s events. This recently established fund provides one-time, emergency cash relief to qualifying restaurant workers experiencing unforeseen hardships as a result of COVID-19. Funds raised through Chicago Gourmet will go toward providing necessary relief to those with critical need.
Chicago area star chefs and leading restaurants are embracing this year’s innovative format and community focus by volunteering their time, enthusiasm and expertise to the festival’s many programs. This September is a win-win for all. Food fans can enjoy a range of experiences and support the those harmed by the pandemic. Chicago Gourmet represents the best of this world class city–its caring and its wonderfully creative food scene. Here’s what going on:
Can’t Stop the Hop Presented by DoorDash
The official kick-off to Chicago Gourmet every year, the popular Hamburger Hop expands beyond Millennium Park in 2020 with Can’t Stop the Hop presented by DoorDash, the nation’s leading last-mile logistics platform. This year, 100 chef competitors offer tasty burgers for dine-in, delivery or carry out from September 1-13. Food lovers are encouraged to hop around town, or visit the DoorDash app or website, and try as many burgers as possible, and based on flavor and overall presentation, they will vote on their favorite at chicagogourmet.org.
The champion will be announced the week of September 14 and will receive a magnum of fine wine from Josh Cellars, a Yeti cooler filled with premium meat and seafood from Buckhead Meat of Chicago and bragging rights for a lifetime.
$1 of every burger sold benefits the IRAEF Restaurant Employee Relief Fund. Click here for a list of participants. Additional sponsors include Buckhead Meat of Chicago, Turano Baking Co., Blue Moon, Josh Cellars, High West Distillery and Choose Chicago.
As part of this partnership, DoorDash will feature an in-app carousel for customers nearby select participating restaurants to order their burgers for on-demand delivery and pickup.
Go Gourmet Dinner and Virtual Series
Go Gourmet Dinner Series Presented by UnitedHealthcare. Intimate. Delicious. Memorable. Chicago Gourmet’s Go Gourmet Dinner Series Presented by UnitedHealthcare includes special, in-person events curated with love by many of the city’s most beloved chefs. Held on various dates between September 14-30, fans can revel in outstanding, multi-course dinners paired with wine and spirit selections courtesy of Unshackled by the Prisoner Wine Company, Legent Bourbon and more. The lineup includes:
Monday, September 14 – Wednesday, September 16 & Monday, September 21 – Wednesday, September 23: Chefs Laura, Kelly + Michael Cheng, Sun Wah BBQ
Tuesday, September 15: Chef Jose Sosa, Gibsons Italia
Wednesday, September 16: Chef Carlos Gaytán, Tzuco – With special guest chefs Gaby Ruiz from Carmela & Sal (Mexico City) and Gourmet MX (Villahermosa, Tabasco); Rodrigo Estrada from Agua & Sal (Mexico City) and Yemanyá (Mexico City); and Benito Molina from Manzanilla (Ensenada, Baja California) to commemorate Mexican Independence Day
Thursday, September 17: Chef Kevin Hickey, The Duck Inn
Sunday, September 20: Chef Erick Williams, Virtue
Monday, September 21: Chef Norman Bolden, Norman’s Bistro
Tuesday, September 22: Chef Tony Priolo, Piccolo Sogno
Wednesday, September 23: Chef Sarah Grueneberg, Monteverde
Thursday, September 24: A special collaboration between Chef Cedric Harden, River Roast, and Chef Carolina Diaz, Terzo Piano (held at River Roast)
Wednesday, September 30: Chef Mari Katsumura, Yūgen
Reservations can be made directly with participating restaurants. To see the full lineup and reservations information, visit chicagogourmet.org. Prices and times vary per restaurant. All will adhere to current occupancy orders and health and safety guidelines.
Go Gourmet Virtual Series. Chicago Gourmet’s Go Gourmet Virtual Series invites celebrity chefs right into one’s home kitchen LIVE as they lead engaging cooking classes between September 14-30. Fans can purchase tickets to simply watch, or better yet, they can order meal kits in advance from anywhere in the U.S. to cook along and learn in real time. Meal kits arrive with ingredients to create a feast for four. Each live demonstration will also feature suggested beverage pairings and education from Campari / Aperol Spritz and JUSTIN Wines. The virtual schedule includes:
Monday, September 14: Chef Art Smith, Blue Door Kitchen & Garden
Wednesday, September 16: Chef Lorena Garcia, Lorena Garcia Cocina/Lorena Garcia Tapas
Thursday, September 17: Chef Thai Dang, HaiSous/Cà Phê Đá
Friday, September 18: Chef Fabio Viviani, Siena Tavern/Prime & Provisions/Bar Siena
Sunday, September 20: Chef Kwame Onwuachi
Tuesday, September 22: Chef Rick Bayless, Frontera Grill/ Topolobampo/XOCO/Tortazo/Bar Sótano
Saturday, September 26: Chef Jernard Wells, The Family Chef
Sunday, September 27: Chef Stephanie Izard, Girl & the Goat/Little Goat Diner/Duck Duck Goat/Cabra
Tuesday, September 29: Chef Jeff Mauro, The Kitchen/Sandwich King
@neiljohnburger
All Go Gourmet events benefit the IRAEF Restaurant Employee Relief Fund. In addition to those named above, the series is made possible thanks to Mariano’s, US Foods, Bank of America, Gordon Foodservice, Performance Foodservice, Choose Chicago, Pepsi, Coker Service Inc. and Coca-Cola.
Online Auction
Let the bidding begin! The Chicago Gourmet annual online auction goes live September 14-30. Featuring an impressive collection of wine, spirits and dinner experiences underwritten by Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, one hundred percent of proceeds from the auction benefit the Illinois Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. The non-profit organization – which has awarded more than $3 million in scholarships since its inception – provides mentoring, job training and financial support for the next generation of aspiring chefs and hospitality professionals.
Chicago Gourmet 2020’s media partners include NBC 5 Chicago/Telemundo Chicago, JC Deceaux, 93XRT, 101.9 The Mix and Chicago magazine.
ABOUT CHICAGO GOURMET. Chicago Gourmet, the nation’s premier culinary experience, returns for its 13th year September 2020. Created by the Illinois Restaurant Association to honor Chicago’s culinary achievements and the creative vision of the chefs, Master Sommeliers, and wine-, spirit-, and beer-makers who participate, it spotlights Chicago as an international culinary destination via its unparalleled epicurean talent. The 2020 event supports the Illinois Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (IRAEF) and the IRAEF’s newly established Restaurant Employee Relief Fund. Chicago Gourmet is possible with the support of presenting sponsor Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits. For more information, please visit chicagogourmet.org and follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
ABOUT SOUTHERN GLAZER’S WINE & SPIRITS. Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits is the world’s pre-eminent distributor of beverage alcohol, and proud to be a multi-generational, family-owned company. The Company has operations in 44 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, Canada, and the Caribbean, and employs more than 20,000 team members. Southern Glazer’s urges all retail customers and adult consumers to market, sell, serve, and enjoy its products responsibly. For more information visit www.southernglazers.com. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @sgwinespirits and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SouthernGlazers.
ABOUT DOORDASH. DoorDash is a technology company that connects customers with their favorite local and national businesses in more than 4,000 cities and all 50 states across the United States, Canada, and Australia. Founded in 2013, DoorDash empowers merchants to grow their businesses by helping to solve mission-critical challenges, such as customer acquisition, on-demand delivery, insights and analytics, merchandising, payment processing, and customer support. By building the last-mile delivery logistics platform for local cities, DoorDash is bringing communities closer, one doorstep at a time. Read more on the DoorDash blog or at www.doordash.com.
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The Golden Lamb had been open for three decades or so when Lincoln visited Lebanon, Ohio. Though no records exist that he dined or stayed at what was then a busy stagecoach stop, it seems more than likely he’d at least sup in the dining room with its wide fireplaces used for cooking as well as to heat the rooms.
Let’s hope if he did,
the scene was somewhat quieter than past meals such as the one described on the
Golden Lamb’s website, recounting how “superb dinners were prepared by Jonas
Seaman, Henry Share and others and served on the public square.
“These affairs
frequently ended in brawls, and on July 4th, 1804, one of the guests attacked
Jonas Seaman with his sword. Seaman brought charges against the man, Francis
Lucas, who was a guest at his hotel. The charges read that “the guest
Francis Lucas, with sword, staves and knives, force and arms, assaulted the
said Jonas Seaman and did great damage against the peace of the State of Ohio.
We’re not quite sure
when the Golden Lamb first began serving Thanksgiving dinners (Lincoln declared
the fourth Thursday of November a national holiday in 1863) but it was a
standard most likely from the very beginning.
John Zimkus, historian
for the Golden Lamb, a glorious four-story building located in Lebanon’s
historic downtown, discovered an article that ran in the Dec 6, 1888, edition
of The Western Star. The reporter boasts about how great the Thanksgiving meal
was, comparing it more than favorably to anything served in Cincinnati. Menu
items included oysters, consommé oysters and turkey stuffed with oysters, along
with whitefish, roast beef, chicken croquettes, wild duck, broiled quail,
celery and lettuce (plain or with mayonnaise), plum pudding, mince pie,
pineapple with “De Brie cheese” and Charlotte Russe.
I couldn’t find a
description of the “De Brie cheese” or even why it was in quotations, but it
must have been very popular as there were plenty of advertisements for it in
the late 1800s and early 1900s. As for Charlotte Russe, it’s a dessert of sweet
cream and sponge cake, popular during the Victorian and Edwardian eras.
Oysters, which were
cheap back then, no longer grace most Thanksgiving tables except maybe in the
stuffing and nobody I know serves chicken croquettes, wild duck, whitefish or broiled
quail for the holiday. So if you have a hankering for boil quail, look elsewhere.
But several traditional items remain from that 1888 meal–cranberry sauce,
mashed potatoes, turkey, sweet potatoes and the restaurant’s famous rolls. All can
be enjoyed in the central dining room original to the inn which opened in 1804.
The following recipes
are courtesy of the Golden Lamb.
Apple Sage Stuffing
1 teaspoon butter
2 Granny Smith
apples, in half-inch dice
1 tablespoon brown
sugar
Pinch of cinnamon
1 stick butter
½ cup diced onion
1 stalk of celery
1 leek, quartered,
rinsed thoroughly, diced
2-3 cups turkey or
chicken stock
1 teaspoon rubbed
(dry) sage
1 teaspoon poultry
seasoning
¾ teaspoon Kosher
salt
½ teaspoon ground
black pepper
3 quarts cubed bread,
stale or dried in oven (about 1 ½ pounds)
¼ cup fresh sage,
chopped
Melt the teaspoon of
butter in a large skillet. Add apples and sugar and sauté lightly until sugar
is melted and apples are softened but still have a bite. Remove to a bowl.
Melt the stick of
butter in a large deep skillet, add onion, celery and leeks and cook slowly
until onions become transparent. Add 2 cups of turkey stock, the rubbed sage,
poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Add the bread cubes and stir. The cubes
should be evenly moist, but not soggy. Add more stock if necessary.
Stir in apple
mixture.
Spread in a shallow
pan in a layer no thicker than 2 inches. Bake for about half an hour, until top
layer is brown and crusty.
Brussels Sprout Salad with Dried Cranberries and Sliced Almonds
1 pound fresh
Brussels sprouts, very thinly sliced
½ cup dried
cranberries
¼ cup slivered
almonds, toasted
½ cup lemon poppyseed
dressing
1 teaspoon poppyseeds
Salt and pepper
In a salad or serving
bowl, toss all the ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste, and more dressing
if necessary. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Lemon Poppyseed
dressing
¼ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon
mustard
1 clove garlic,
chopped
2 tablespoons chopped
shallot (about half a shallot)
Salt and pepper to
taste
1 cup salad oil
1 teaspoon poppy
seeds
1 teaspoon white
vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Blend lemon juice,
mustard, vinegar, garlic, shallot and sugar together in a blender. Slowly
drizzle salad oil in while running blender, until emulsified. (Or whisk with a
fork while adding oil or put in a jar and shake). Add salt and pepper and poppyseeds, taste and
adjust seasonings.
Cranberry sauce
There’s an easy way and
a difficult way to make a spice sachet. If you’re totally in on authenticity, cut
a square out of cheesecloth and place all the spices listed below in it. Then gather
the edges the square and tie tightly with twine or string.
Rather not?
Substitute a coffee
filter for the cheesecloth, just make sure to tie the ends tightly together.
1 teaspoon whole
cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon whole
coriander seeds
½ teaspoon ground
nutmeg
2 oranges
1 12-ounce bag fresh
cranberries (or frozen)
1 cup sugar
⅓
cup orange juice
1 ½ cups cranberry
juice
Put the cardamom,
cinnamon, coriander and nutmeg in a spice sachet. Peel the oranges, being sure
to remove white pith. Cut in half, then slice. Place cranberries, oranges,
sugar, orange juice and cranberry juice in a pot. Add the sachet. Bring to a
boil, then reduce to a simmer until the cranberries have popped, the liquid has
thickened and has reduced somewhat. Let cool, then chill.
An hour before Geoffrey Zakarian’s Interactive Cooking Demonstration at the 77th Senior PGA Championship began, the large room at the KitchenAid Fairway Club at Harbor Shores was already standing room only.
But when Zakarian, star and/or producer of six television shows including the Food Network’s The Kitchen, Cooks Vs. Cons, Chopped and Iron Chef American didn’t disappoint.
Dapperly attired in a suit and tie with a burgundy handkerchief tucked into his breast pocket, Zakarian began by engaging the crowd, asking for questions almost immediately before announcing that he was going to start by making a drink.
Almost immediately someone in the audience shouted “it’s 5 o’clock somewhere” and both Zakarian and the audience laughed.
The comment was in reference to the name of a Jimmy Buffet song. But Zakarian said that he’d been sued for using that phrase.
“That’s why we say kitchen cocktail,” he said. “The reality is we got sued. So are there any other questions before I make a cocktail for myself?”
The drink in question was a Gold Rush, a simple concoction of honey, bourbon and freshly squeezed lemon juice.
“It’s got to be fresh lemon juice,” said Zakarian. “Don’t buy those plastic things shaped like a lemon. You know why, they’re full of ascorbic acid to make it last forever.”
Processed foods and buying in abundance only to have it go rancid or stale is on the list of things Zakarian, who also adds restaurateur to his list of accomplishments owning several in New York including The Palm Court, The National Bar & Dining Rooms and The Lamb’s Club. His newest, Georgie and The Garden Bar at Montage Beverly Hills, are scheduled to open in August.
“We buy too much and we waste it,” said Zakarian who in his role as Chairman of the City Harvest Food Council, a food rescue organization dedicated to fighting hunger in New York City, oversaw the collection and distribution 50 million pounds of food. “No snack foods, no processed foods, all good healthy food. I hate waste. In my kitchens, if I see a radish in the garbage, you’re out.”
Bantering with the audience while he prepared lobster salad and a shaved asparagus salad, Zakarian was asked why he wore a suit while cooking.
“Because my dad always told me to dress for the job you want,” he responded.
“Then you should be dressed in golf attire,” someone else said referring to an early reference Zakarian had made about loving the game of golf. “That’s the job you want.”
“Why?” Zakarian shot back. “Have you see what some of those people out there are wearing?”
At the end of his demonstration, Zakarian lined up to have his photo taken with fans and to sign his newest cookbook, My Perfect Pantry: 150 Easy Recipes from 50 Essential Ingredients (Potter 2014; $30) to raise money for the Susan B. Komen Foundation.
Gougeres:
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar
4 ounces unsalted butter
5 ounces all-purpose flour
5 large eggs
5 ounces grated gruyere
cheese
Freshly ground black pepper
Gruyere Mornay:
2 ounces unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Kosher salt and freshly
ground black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
35 ounces whole milk
4 ounces gruyere cheese
4 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Beer Mustard Sauce:
8 ounces mayonnaise, such as
Hellmann’s
8 ounces Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons beer extract
powder
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon mustard powder
1 tablespoon malt vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly
ground black pepper
For the gougeres: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
In a medium saucepot combine
the milk, sea salt, sugar and butter, and bring to a boil. Add the flour and
cook until thoroughly incorporated, about 2 minutes. Transfer the mixture to
the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix until the
dough is the temperature of warm tap water, about 30 seconds. Add the eggs, one
at a time, until smooth. Fold in half of the gruyere and some pepper.
Transfer the batter to a
pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch round pastry tip. Pipe 1-inch-wide rounds on
the prepared baking sheets 2-inches apart, about 60 total. Sprinkle the top
with the remaining gruyere and some black pepper.
Wet a fingertip and press
down lightly to remove the point on each gougere. Bake for 8 minutes and
rotate. Bake until the gougeres are golden brown, another 4 minutes. Cool to
room temperature.
For the Mornay: In a medium
saucepot set over low heat, melt the butter and sweat the shallots and garlic
for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the flour and cook until it
smells toasted, 2 minutes. Add the milk and bring to a boil, stirring
continuously so no lumps form. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the
sauce reaches the desired consistency. Slowly add the gruyere and Parmigiano-Reggiano,
and stir until smooth. Add the mustard and season with salt and pepper.
Transfer the Mornay to a bowl and cool in the fridge or set over ice. When
cool, transfer to a piping bag fitted with a small tip.
For the sauce: In a large
bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, beer extract powder, honey, mustard
powder and vinegar, and whisk thoroughly to remove the lumps. Season with salt
and pepper.
Preheat the oven to 350
degrees F.
Fill the gougeres with the Mornay sauce and reheat in the oven to melt the cheese, 5 minutes. Serve the hot gougeres with the beer mustard.
Spring
Asparagus Salad
With Frisee,
Parmigiano Reggiano and a Caper Anchovy Vinaigrette
Yield: 6
Ingredients
For the Salad
1ea Bunch Asparagus
2ea Heads of Frisee (Trimmed)
6oz Parmigiano Reggiano
1/2cup Toasted Hazelnuts
For the Pickled Red Onions
1ea large Red Onion
1 cup White Wine Vinegar
1/3rd cup Sugar
1/3rd cup Water
3 cloves Garlic
For
the Vinaigrette
1 ea Shallot (finely minced)
1Tablespoon Capers
3ea Marinated White Anchovies
1Tblsp Dijon Mustard
3 Tbsp. White Wine Vinegar
¼ Cup Blend Oil
¼ Cup Olive Oil
Method
For the Pickled Red Onions
Slice the red onion in to thin rings, put in
to a bowl and set aside.
In
a small sauce pot, heat vinegar, water, sugar, garlic to a boil and pour over
red onion rings.
Cover
tightly and leave to cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate and save for
garnishing the salad.
For the Vinaigrette
Place
your minced shallots in to a medium sized bowl with the Dijon mustard, white
wine, and anchovies. Let this sit for
5-10 minutes to marinate.
Once
Marinated, whisk vigorously fully incorporating the Dijon in to the vinegar,
and the shallots.
While
whisking vigorously, slowly drizzle in the two oils.
Fold
in the capers and season with salt and pepper. Set aside for later when dressing
the salad.
For the Salad
Trim
the ends of the Asparagus that are stringy and woody.
Slice
the asparagus lengthwise on a mandolin, thinly, in to ice water, and let sit
for 5 minutes to stiffen.
Remove
Asparagus from ice water after 5 minutes, let stand for 1 minute on paper towel
to dry, then place in to a medium sized bowl with the trimmed frisee.
Toss
the asparagus and frisee, with the toasted hazelnuts, Pickled Red onion rings, season
with salt and pepper, then dress with 3 tablespoons of vinaigrette.
Set
on to a plate, and using a micro plane, grate the Parmigiano Reggiano over the
top of the salad and then serve immediately.
I’ve spent a lot of time lately traversing Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Ohio following, so to speak, in Abraham Lincoln’s footsteps . And while it’s not recorded that Lincoln stayed at the Golden Lamb in Lebanon, Ohio, it’s certainly possible ashe traveled throughout the area. The connection seems apt because the GoldenLamb has been in continuous operation since it first opened in 1803 when Jonas Seaman spent four dollars on a license to open a log-cabin tavern under the sign of a golden lamb (because literacy wasn’t common, signs with images were used instead).
Sister Lizzie’s Shaker Sugar Pie Photo courtesy of the Golden Lamb
A host of other
famous people have stayed there including, according to General Manager Bill
Kilimnik, 12 presidents, Mark Twain and Charles Dickins. Harriet Beecher Stowe,
author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and an avid abolitionist was also a guest and I slept
in the room she occupied and no (to the people who have asked) it’s not haunted
though another room is said to be and there’s also a ghost cat that some have
seen. But that’s a different holiday and the tie-in with Lincoln is that in
1870, he proclaimed the fourth Thursday of November a national holiday and the
inn’s restaurant has served Thanksgiving dinner since then–which has got to be
some type of record.
The restaurant is famed for many of their menu items including fried chicken, sauerkraut balls,Sister Lizzie’s Sugar Shaker Pie (White Water Shaker Village was once a large settlement of Shakers about three miles from Lebanon)–named by USA Today as the Best Pie in Ohio–and their yeast rolls made from a recipe first used by Robert and Virginia Jones in the early 1930s whose family still owns the inn. Their turkey dinners at Thanksgiving are very popular but if you can’t make it this coming Thursday,roast turkey is on the menu year round.
According to several
newspaper articles, back in the 1800s, the inn’s Thanksgiving menu included several
oyster dishes including just plain oysters, consommé oysters as well as turkey
stuffed with oysters. Other dishes were whitefish, roast beef, chicken croquettes,
wild duck, broiled quail, celery and lettuce—you could order it plain or with
mayonnaise), plum pudding, mince pie, pineapple with “De Brie cheese” and Charlotte Russe. I couldn’t find a
description of the cheese, but plenty of advertisements for it in the late
1800s and early 1900s so my guess is it’s a type of creamy brie. Charlotte
Russe a dessert of sweet cream and sponge cake popular during both the
Victorian and Edwardian eras.
Golden Lamb’s Mushroom Cobbler Photo courtesy of the Golden Lamb
The Golden Lamb
may be one of the few long-time restaurants that doesn’t have a cookbook and
their recipes are hard to come by, but Paige Drees who works at the inn shared
their Mushroom Cobbler which she said (and I agree) would make a great
Thanksgiving side dish. I also found an original handwritten recipe for Sister
Lizzie’s Sugar Shaker Pie on the website of the Vintage Recipe Project, an
online site founded in order to document and preserve historic recipes from
the past. I’m not sure if it’s the same as what the inn serves but I tried the
recipe and it seems very similar to what I had at the restaurant.
Yeast Rolls Photo courtesy of the Golden Lamb
Golden Lamb’s Mushroom Cobbler
1 cup
Shitake mushrooms sliced
1 cup button mushrooms quartered
1 cups
oyster mushrooms sliced
1 cups
cremini mushrooms sliced
2 each
shallot sliced
1 packet
fresh poultry blend herbs
1 cup heavy
cream
8 ounces
goat cheese
2 ounces dry
sherry
4 cooked
crumbled biscuits
1 packet
fresh poultry blend herbs, cleaned and chopped reserve ½ for Biscuit topping
1 cup heavy
cream
8 ounces goat cheese reserve ½ for Biscuit
topping
2 ounces dry
sherry
Heat a medium sized skillet add one tablespoon of vegetable oil
and sauté your shallots until tender, add all mushrooms and a pinch of salt and
pepper. once the mushrooms are fork tender add sherry to deglaze pan. add your
cream and reduce by half, fold in your goat cheese and fresh herbs, turn off
and set aside.
One of the private dining rooms at the Golden Lamb
Biscuit topping
4 cooked
crumbled biscuits
2
tablespoons melted butter
Remaining
goat cheese
Remaining
fresh herbs
Place all ingredients into medium sized bowl mix until it
resembles a crumb topping.
1 bunch
chopped asparagus
2 ounces
sliced sun-dried tomatoes
2 ounces
pearl onions
½ cup baby
spinach
Prepared
mushroom mix
In a medium skillet sauté your pearl onion until caramelized, add
your asparagus and sundried tomatoes and sauté for two minutes add the mushroom
mix from earlier. add spinach, check seasoning and put mix into casserole dish
sprinkle on biscuit topping and bake at 350 for eight minutes until bubbly and
golden brown
Golden Lamb Yeast Dinner Rolls
1 ½ cup milk
4 teaspoons
dry yeast
4 cups bread
flour
2 teaspoons
salt
½ cup sugar
5
tablespoons vegetable shortening
1 egg
Heat milk until warm, 100 degrees. Put yeast in a small bowl, add
about ½ teaspoon sugar, then stir in milk. Let sit until foamy. Combine flour,
salt, sugar and shortening in a mixer bowl, and mix to combine. Add the milk
mixture and egg. Mix on mixer until combined, then beat for about 13
minutes. Or, by hand, mix until
combined, then turn out onto floured surface and knead until smooth and
elastic.
Oil the dough ball lightly, cover the bowl with a towel and let
rise for an hour, when it should be doubled in size. Punch down. Divide the
dough into about 24 balls of dough. One way to do this is to divide the dough
into two, then all each half of the dough into a long rope on a flour-covered
counter. Cut each rope into 12 equal portions, and roll each into a ball.
Place on a flat baking sheet and cover with a towel, Preheat oven
to 350. After the rolls have risen about half an hour, bake them
until golden brown and fragrant, about 10-15 minutes. Check frequently.
Serve as soon as possible after they come out of the oven.
Yields 8-10 servings.
Sister
Lizzie’s Sugar Shaker Pie
1/4
pound butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 3/4
cups light cream
1/3
cup flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Grated nutmeg
1 9-inch
pie shell, unbaked
Thoroughly mix the flour and brown sugar and spread evenly in the
bottom of the unbaked pie shell. Pour
the cream and vanilla over this. Slice
the butter into 12-16 pieces and add.
Sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake in a
350°F oven for 40-45 minutes or until firm.
For more information, 513-932-5065; goldenlamb.com
Built in 1889, Tippecanoe Place, a fine dining restaurant in South Bend is an elaborately gabled and turreted 24,000-square-foot Richardsonian Romanesque-style house which belonged to Clem Studebaker, one of the Studebaker auto magnates. Perfectly preserved, it’s about what having it all meant back in the late 1800s. With 40 rooms, 20 fireplaces and ball room, it took three years to build at a cost of $250,000 (around $6.4 million in today’s money). Add in another $100,000 the family spent on furnishings for all four floors and you can see it was quite a home.
Clem and his brother Henry had made their fortune by growing their blacksmith shop into the world’s largest buggy business, making horse driven wagons for the Civil War effort and then segueing successfully into manufacturing Studebaker cars. At one time, after buying Pierce Arrow, the sleek automobile luxury brand, they even had a Rockne line named after the famed Notre Dame coach who talked up the cars at auto conventions. But alas, deep in debt and with the Depression in full force, Studebaker went into bankruptcy in 1933 and Clem’s son, George, who lived there with his family, abandoned the house which then stood empty for seven years until it was purchased for $20,000 and used first by the Red Cross and then as a school for the handicapped.
Placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, four years later Tippecanoe Place earned the even more coveted and prestigious designation as a National Historic Landmark. In 1980, it was restored at a cost of about $2 million and turned into a restaurant and since then, it’s been the go-to-place for weddings, family events, parties and gracious dining.
The interior of this splendid manse, all highly polished woods, stunning chandeliers, elaborately carved woodwork including the grand staircase, serves classic American fare such as prime rib with creamy horseradish sauce, Indiana roast duckling, shrimp cocktail and chicken Oscar amidst all this elegance (but don’t worry neither tiara or tux are required to dine—it’s casual despite the splendor). The sumptuous—and diet busting—Sunday Brunch is a feast that makes you swear, falsely of course, that you won’t need to eat for a month. There’s also an extensive wine and spirit list.
As for the name Tippecanoe, Clem was good friends with Benjamin Harrison, an Indianapolis lawyer who would become the 23rd President of the United States. Harrison’s grandfather, William Henry Harrison, was the hero (depending on whose side you were on) of the Battle of Tippecanoe which took place near Lafayette in 1811. He too was a U.S. President. But it also could originate from the fact that Tippecanoe, the leader of the Miami Indians, liked to camp on the land where Clem built his mansion. Guided tours are available but you can also take a peak on your own. And be sure to check out the historic memorabilia about the Studebaker family and business on display.
Here’s an adaptation of one of Tippecanoe’s signature desserts.
Frangelico Cream Mouse
3 large egg yolks
1-1/2 cups superfine sugar
1-1/2 pounds cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons Frangelico liqueuor
2 cups heavy cream (36% milk fat) Note: Avoid using ultra pasteurized as it won’t whip properly.
In a mixer with a wire whip, beat egg yolks with the sugar and the vanilla until light and pale.
Beat in softened cream cheese, then add the Frangelico, mixing until very smooth. Set aside in a cool place.
Whip the heavy cream until stiff in another bowl and then fold into the cream cheese mixture. Chill.
Garnish with fresh berries and mint leaves
Serve in individual glasses or in a large, pretty dish.
