Restaurant Road Trip

Bin 36
339 North Dearborn at Marina City 
Chicago, IL 60610
Our rating: 8/10 atmosphere, 6/10 food
Admittedly, going to Bin 36 from D.C. would be quite the “restaurant road trip,” but if you are in the Windy City for a quick vacation or even a dull business trip grabbing a glass (or a flight) of wine and some cheese [...]

Soups, Sauces, Stocks and Chicago

Next week I will embark on the next chapter of the JOC: Soups, Sauces and Stocks.  This should be an especially interesting outing since as far as I am concerned soups, sauces and stocks all come from cans.
The idea of making my own chicken stock is at the same time fascinating and freaky.  But, the [...]

Cooler of Guinness

Cooler of Guinness
Originally uploaded by bethanyll22.

What’s St. Patrick’s Day without a little Guinness?

Mini corned beef sandwiches

Mini corned beef sandwiches
Originally uploaded by bethanyll22.

I really felt that the corned beef was very tough.  People assured me that the sandwiches were good, but really what are they going to say, “Gosh, your food is really bad … why didn’t you just get this catered?”
A friend and former chef suggested that I didn’t cook [...]

The spread

The spreadOriginally uploaded by bethanyll22.
Pictures from the gastronomical feast that was our St. Patty’s Day party! Courtsey of Bethany! She makes anyone’s food look great.
The corned beef and the potato pancakes were both JOC recipes, and the cheese platter followed the tenants laid forth by the all important entertaining chapter.

Creme De Menthe Bars, the Recipe

Definitely one of the better baking experiences I’ve had in recent months (years)! I keep opening up the refridgerator and admiring my smooth chocolate topping and creamy Creme de Menthe middle — just a mere two weeks into the JOC and already I see my patience for baking taking on a new life.
1 cup sugar
1/2 [...]

Luck O’ the Irish

Don’t worry, I haven’t been neglecting the JOC this week while I’ve been prepping for our St. Patrick’s Day/Housewarming bash.  Quite the contrary, I’ve been using it as a handy reference for everything from finger foods to corned beef. My husband’s even starting to get a bit miffed because I’m reading it so much our [...]

French Hot Chocolate, the Recipe

For those of you who requested the recipe … from the JOC (pg. 34)
You can keep the chocolate concentrate in the fridge and measure out single portions when you want a cup of hot chocolate.
Chocolate concentrate:
1 cup light or heavy cream
8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
In a medium-size, heavy saucepan, bring [...]

French Hot Chocolate

After diving head first into the coffee, tea and cocoa chapter of the JOC I came to one clear conclusion: I still love Starbucks. But, in keeping with my personal pledge I forged ahead …
Since St. Patty’s Day is a mere five days away I see Irish coffee (pg. 30) in our future and I [...]

The D.C. Food and Wine Festival

Let me preface this by saying that I have never had a bad time at a wine festival. How could one have a bad time at a wine festival? Wine, cheese, friends … not a recipe for a horrible afternoon.
When we attended the D.C. Food and Wine Festival this weekend I had high hopes. [...]