Broasted Corned Beef Brisket

Nice and easy. Low and slow. This is how I always suggest cooking less tender cuts of meat. We do this because time is the only ingredient that will break down the connective tissue and let the meat realize its delicious destiny.

Macadamia Crusted Mahimahi

Mahimahi is the Hawaiian name by which this mild, sweet fish is most commonly known. Before air travel to the islands became affordable for the average Joe, the version of this seafood delight we would have experienced stateside would have been called saltwater Dorado. Although most of the eastern United States still gets fresh Coryphaena hippurus from South American waters, we now call it by its more “romantic” Hawaiian name.

White Asiago Pizza-ish Food

Growing up on the south side of Chicago, “pizza” meant two things; either thin with a sweet sauce, fennel-y sausage and browned melted cheese on top from any number of store-front shops; or deep pan, one slice is a meal but I’ll take two with buttery crust cradling layers of cheese, garlicky sausage, and chunky tomatoes from downtown restaurants. We left the north siders to their thick-crust variety and would certainly eat it when visiting, if necessary to maintain cross-town friendships, but we’d talk about the winning advantages of our south side thin crust pies all the way home.

Fierce Garlic Prawns with Red Pepper Aioli

True Prawns have a few subtle variances that distinguish them from jumbo shrimp – different gills, more pincers and longer legs. But for our purposes here, i.e. eating good food, those differences are really moot because we’re going for big.

Chili con dos Carnes

 Everyone has a favorite Chili recipe. Some like it savory, some sweet; with or without beans; red, white or brown and varying degrees of heat from mild to “I will never be able to taste again!” There are also those truly fearsome Chili aficionados with their set of rules that govern what is or is not real chili. Good for them, everyone needs a cause to fight for!

Mom’s Meatloaf (was never like this!)

It’s the rare American who is not passionate, in one way or another, about meatloaf. The pro-meatloaf contingency may speak fondly of meatloaf “every night when we were first starting out”, or stuffed with this or that or smothered in this or that or “the best part is the sandwiches”. Conversely, the anti-meatloaf camp will probably drone on about meatloaf “every night when we were first starting out”, or stuffed with this or that or smothered in this or that or “the best part is the sandwiches”. While the reasons to either love or hate the lowly loaf are many, and so very similar, I believe that most haters have just been exposed to too many bad attempts.

Hammy Chowder

Chowder... the word alone brings about delightful feelings of comfort and a sense of well-being. Add to that a nourishing and filling dish and you’ve got the perfect winter supper. This is not to say that I consider all chowders to be wintery fare. I can be persuaded to, without much coercion, indulge in either clam variety at any time of the year. When local sweet corn is at its peak of abundance and I’ve consumed more than my fair share of golden nuggets directly from the ear, my thoughts often turn to spicy southwestern corn chowder. But ham chowder just says such sweet things to me during the cold months.

Mrs. Powell’s Dumplings & Chicken

Mrs. Powell rented rooms from my Grandmother in Chicago when I was a little kid. Grandma Bess lived in what had previously been the home of the Mayor of Morgan Park, before the city of Chicago absorbed the once posh suburb. It was a big house with front and back parlors, a huge dining room and several floors of enormous bedrooms with sitting rooms. It had to be big; it was the house in which my dad and his four brothers, in ages spanning over twenty years, grew up. It was also the house in which she lived until she died. After my grandfather died and all of the boys left home, Grandma Bess took in boarders and Mrs. Powell, who I think was in her nineties then, was there as far back as I can remember.

Braised Chicken Paprikash

This has been a favorite around our house for decades. I’m not sayin’ how many decades, but just using that word should be enough to tell you that it’s been a long, long time.

Roasted Pork

On the near west side of Chicago, every Czech-Bohemian restaurant has their own version of this dish. They’re all based on some mom’s Sunday Dinner recipe. This kicked up version offers similar tastes to satisfy the “comfort food” region of our brains, while entertaining the other definition of Bohemian – the different thinker in us all.

Beef Wellington with Cumberland Sauce

My introduction to Beef Wellington came from a friend in Chicago with whom I had the pleasure to cook and cater some wonderful dinners, all the while studying Psychology. While I did not become a Psychologist, I am still cooking.

Nancy had convinced her friend Chef Louis to give her his prized Beef Wellington recipe by trading some or her own creations and then allowing me to assist in its preparation. I never did see the actual recipe – at the Chef’s insistence! Talk about a closely guarded secret!

No Holds Barred Mac ‘n’ Cheeses

We all know that Macaroni and Cheese is traditionally made with Elbow shaped pasta, but when you order it at your favorite gastro-pub it’s probably made with some other more trendy shape. There’s nothing really wrong with that, but don’t you secretly wish for at least some nod to convention? They, and we here, have already presented you with a dish as far removed from the little blue box of neon yellow cheesiness as can be. But why eradicate the last semblance of comfort from this, the quintessential comfort food?

Let’s stand up and demand our Elbow Macaroni, but no tantrums please and do remember to keep your elbows off the table!

Carbonada Criolla

Translated literally, Carbonada Criolla is Creole Carbonada... not much help, eh?  Well, let’s see what we can figure out here, and if I’m way off base, I welcome your assistance. Since this dish hails from Argentina, this usage of “Creole” probably refers to people born in the colonies with predominately unmixed Spanish descent.  Carbonada is most likely in reference to cooking over a wood fire to char the meat, signaling to us that there’s a substantial flavor treat ahead. So the first generation Spanish Colonial residents of Argentina made a popular dish that centered around nicely browned meat. I think we should thank them!

Chicken with Fresh Morel Mushrooms

Chicken with Fresh Morel Mushrooms, Pine Nut Polenta and Sauteed Brussels Sprouts

Here in Michigan, foraging for Morel Mushrooms can be all consuming for fans of this wild prize. A warm March gets the blood lust going and by April and mid-to-late May, talk of the hunt for the curly headed little marvels can rival even deer hunting fever. The Morel, like its snooty, upper-crust cousin the Truffle, has an earthy taste that doesn’t suit every palette. But since the Morel presents itself to the world by standing tall where it grows and not requiring trained pigs to locate it, they do give more folks the opportunity to learn to love them.

Bourbonator Chicken

Cajun food makes me happy. Okay any food that I find delicious makes me happy but, when food triggers good feelings from past experiences, I get really happy.

Food memories, for me, are not always connected with a specific dish. Often just a combination of spices or flavors will remind me simply of a place or a time that has nothing to do with the dish I’m eating. When I eat any food that makes me think of New Orleans, I immediately think of my very first “fine dining” experience, at the Commander’s Palace. I was twelve years old and I realized then, as I ate Turtle Soup and shared Floating Island with my parents, that I was gonna like good food.

Spicy Bolivian Chicken

Slightly sweet with a little bit of fire, just like a Gaucho. Well not really just like a Gaucho because cowboys don’t taste like peanut butter. You probably have most if not all of the fixin’s for this quick, simple dish at home now. It will probably become a go to favorite for last minute family dinners.

Mussels with Chunky Marinara

Mussels, like most shellfish, require virtually no additions other than some Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Garlic to make them a tasty treat. So why do we add other ingredients? To allow them to be flavored by the mussels!

Braised Chicken Finocchio (Fennel)

Chicken Finoccio with Fluffy, Lumpy Mashed Potatoes and Sautéed Kale

Finocchio (Florentine Fennel) is a seriously overlooked vegetable in most American homes, that’s probably just because most Americans only relate the Anise flavor it has to desserts, candy, and certain potent libations. But this aromatic Fennel bulb is available in every supermarket produce department across the country. Cooking mellows the flavor, but it’s still readily identifiable, so start using Fennel with this recipe and you’re sure to begin searching out other ways to incorporate the subtle essence.

Beef Stew with Roasted Root Vegetables

Beef Stew is one of the most loved comfort foods, especially during the cold winter months ahead of us. Nothing satisfies a hearty appetite like a steaming bowl of savory beef stew accompanied by slices of crusty buttered bread.

Red Beans and Rice

Nothing says Monday in New Orleans like Red Beans & Rice. This traditional staple started as a dish to use up Sunday’s leftover ham bone that didn’t take watching and could cook unattended for the better part of a day while the washing was done. Well, Monday may not necessarily be “wash day” anymore, but it does mean the weekend is behind us and it’s time to get down working again. So what better way to start the week than a smoky, spicy, plate of goodness from The Big Easy!