March 2008

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Sunday Night Pot Roast at Pittsburgh Blue

Filed under: Food

Sunday nights can be slow in the restaurant business, so it's not a bad time to play around and try out some recurring, customer-building, weekly specials.

Few places in the area have approached the dead zone/opportunity with as much smarts and moxie as Pittsburgh Blue, the relatively new Parasole property out in Maple Grove.

For $8.95 — an amount fractional in terms of the restaurant's other offerings — you can get a share of a table-sized helping of old-school pot roast (two people are needed for a minimum order, and it scales up as needed). It's not much more than a humble cut of beef stewed until forkably tender and served up with carrots, potatoes and small (possibly Bermuda?) onions.

Covered in pan gravy, impeccably seasoned, lip-smackingly moist and flavorful; this is old-school home cooking, available, surprisingly and affordably, at an upscale concept restaurant. The craziest thing is that while the name suggests a load of heavy food, the actual portion sizes are modest and reasonable. The stuff sticks to your ribs, but doesn't bust a gut.

Posted by James Norton at March 31, 2008 10:05 PM | Comments (1)

 

Celeb-spotting at 7 Sushi Lounge

Filed under: Food

According to one of its waiters, the hot new nightspot 7 Sushi Lounge, upstairs from R. Norman's on 7th and Hennepin, is frequented by "lots of hockey players" and "minor celebrities." I, unfortunately, didn't see any on my visits. The only person I recognized was WCCO's Sue Zelickson (in R. Norman's, actually) whose fame may rank more on par with a player from the Junior Hockey League than the Minnesota Wild. Here's my tally so far:

R. Norman/7 Sushi Lounge
Sue Z.

Bellanotte
Rashad Mccants (check out his poetry)

Who have you spotted? And what constitutes a "minor celebrity" in this town, anyway?

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 27, 2008 7:07 PM | Comments (4)

 

In Defense of Midwestern Road Food

Filed under: Road Trip

Yesterday, a commenter named "East Coast Doug" took a moment to savage my short endorsement of the Target Bluff German Haus. He offered no indication of having been to the restaurant, and, in essence, said my views were invalid because I had kind things to say about Culver's and the Norske Nook. He then offered the opinion that Midwestern highway restaurants weren't worth patronizing.

This kind of crap gets my blood up. The arrogance — pure, unmitigated, ignorant arrogance — of trying to dismiss an entire region's cuisine based on a couple of bad experiences is absolutely mind-blowing.

And while I could choose to chuckle quietly to myself about the experiences this guy and his fellow-travelers will miss because of the blinders they're wearing, I'd rather deal with it head on.

Like the judging at a state fair, you need to be able to assess things within their class. Culver's doesn't compare to Gramercy Tavern or Chez Panisse, it's true. But within the class of "fast food" it does exceptionally well, in my opinion — the average quality of food and service at Culver's is far and away better than the national chains, and stacks up well against even foodie-worshipped chains like In-n-Out. (Allowed to choose between the two on a regular basis, I'd probably switch off; Culver's for the frozen custard, In-n-Out for the burgers.)

It's true that on the East Coast you're going to find some great, ancient, world-class pizzerias. Go far enough north, and you'll get places that'll serve lobster rolls that'll knock your socks off. Far enough south, and you'll find places that will do fantastic crab. Etc., etc., and let's not forget New York City bagels. I certainly can't.

So when I say the farmstead sausages, master-made cheeses, Friday fish fries, draft beers and homemade pies of the Midwest stack up, I don't say it lightly. If you love food, you can be happy out East, and you can be happy here. It's just a matter of knowing the terrain and understanding what to expect.

I guess, in retrospect, I'm not actually angry with "East Coast Doug" and the other miserable East Coast exiles who suffer every day because they can't find a decent meal out here; I feel kind of sorry for them. There's an art to finding a good meal, and if you practice it diligently, you'll be surprised at just how many are available, regardless of what part of the country you're in.

Posted by James Norton at March 26, 2008 6:33 PM | Comments (5)

 

James Beard nominees: 3 locals in the mix

Filed under: Food

The James Beard Awards, aka the restaurant world's Oscars, announced this year's nominees and we've got 3 Minneapolis chefs representing our region: Isaac Becker of 112 Eatery, Tim McKee of La Belle Vie and Alex Roberts of Restaurant Alma.

In the past, local chefs faced stiff competition from those in Chicago, but, as of last year, the Beard Foundation split the region into two categories--now we're in Midwest and Chicago's in Great Lakes--giving our chefs good odds of taking home the prize in June.

In the meantime, the best way to congratulate these guys is to make a reservation.

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 26, 2008 1:09 PM | Comments (1)

 

Road Trip: Target Bluff German Haus

Filed under: Road Trip

If you're driving down 90/94 toward Madison — as I inevitably am — you've got a number of good options vis-a-vis food. There's Culver's, home of the ButterBurger. There's decent local cheese and sausage available at most gas stations. There is, of course, the Norske Nook, home of awe-inspiring pie.

And then there's the Target Bluff German Haus. Located at Camp Douglas (30 miles north of the Dells), the Haus faces Target Bluff, a damned fine looking pile of rocks.

The Haus (which doubles and triples as a bicycle rental depot and gift shop) doesn't exactlly scream haute cuisine, and that's perfectly fine; what it delivers is sprawling small-town supper club atmosphere crossed with a Bavarian beerhall. It also sports a massive leather bar that could easily seat 50.

Here's the killer order: a bratwurst sandwich ($4) and a draught mug of Spaten Optimator, one of the most thrillingly smooth-drinking beers in the world.

The bratwurst (of the white, relatively gentle, easy-eating variety) comes on a flat buttered bun with a jar of German-style mustard on the side. It's soul food for the central European soul, and it's available on a major highway near you.

Posted by James Norton at March 25, 2008 6:14 AM | Comments (10)

 

Knockout Punch!

Filed under: Food

I was at Punch Pizza in St. Paul this weekend, facing the usual dilemma: Could I will myself to resist ordering a favorite (the Borgata, the Vesuvio) and try something new? My friend recommended the Toto--melty goat cheese, cracked red pepper, toasty garlic, crisp bits of proscuitto, and heat-wilted arugula--and I think it's my hands-down favorite...that is, I suppose, until the next time I try something new. Any recommendations? What's your favorite knockout Punch?

Also, the restaurant recently launched a new blog to announce the winners of their "Capture our Fire" photo contest: They're showcasing the finalists in each category right now, by posting new photos every other day, to sustain the suspense...

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 21, 2008 9:38 AM | Comments (4)

 

Off the Menu: Eric Nigg's Kulfi

Filed under: Off the Menu

Local comedian Eric Nigg isn't a renowned culinary authority, but he deserves to be considered one — at least vis-a-vis the Indian ice cream-style dessert kulfi. He brought this stuff over to my place to follow a meal of homemade chicken tikka masala, and it was cool, refreshing, subtle and damned delicious.

Kulfi — Ingredients

8 cups milk
1 cups cream
A generous pinch of saffron, about 8-12 strands
1 tsp. ground cardamom (best if freshly ground)
1 cup sugar
A few tablespoons shelled pistachio nuts, coarsely ground with a
pinch of salt and a heavier pinch of sugar
Additional pistachio for garnish, if desired

Bring the milk, saffron and cardamom to a gentle simmer. Stir regularly as the milk simmers until the volume of milk is reduced by half. Add sugar to dissolve. Add cream, and refrigerate until chilled, generally several hours or overnight.

Pour mixture into an ice cream maker with a 6 cup capacity (if your machine
is smaller, the recipe can easily be halved). After 20-25 minutes, stir in most of the seasoned pistachio mixture.

I reserved some of the pistachio mixture for a nifty silicone mold I generally leave, neglected, stowed above my kitchen cupboards. I simply sprinkled the pistachios into the bottom of the mold before pouring in the ice cream mixture. Freeze the molds overnight. Unmold and serve, perhaps with some additional broken pistachios.

If you don't have such a mold, sprinkle the pistachio over scoops of ice
cream after it's hardened in the freezer overnight.

In place of pistachios, almonds work quite well.

This kind of kulfi is ordinarily poured straight into a mold and frozen, rather than using the intermediary step of an ice cream maker, but the ice cream maker results in a smoother, softer texture. The extra cream, generally not used in Indian recipes, makes the ice cream extraordinarily rich and indulgent.

Although it's also not typical in Indian recipes for kulfi, the small hint of salt in the pistachio helps bring out all the other flavors in the ice cream. Like the great salted peanut butter ice cream at Seattle's Veil, one of the most remarkable items I've sampled there, it may evoke some strong reactions: At Veil, people either love it or hate it. I don't use as much salt as Veil does in my pistachio blend, so nobody who has tried my version was terribly shocked, but getting the balance might be tricky. Start with just a little pinch.

Posted by James Norton at March 20, 2008 1:40 AM | Comments (1)

 

The cheese (cart) does not stand alone

Filed under: Food

In a recent review of Meritage in St. Paul, I mentioned that they were the only restaurant in the Twin Cities that had a cheese cart. I just found out that's no longer the case: Heidi's in Minneapolis recently transitioned from serving a cheese plate to a cheese "trolley," under the command of maitre d' Frank Thorpe. (At Meritage, cheeses are sold individually, for $5 apiece; Heidi's offers an assortment for $17.)

If you're a fan of having your food wheeled out and served tableside, try the bananas Foster at R. Norman's, which offers a pretty fantastic flaming display.

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 19, 2008 11:34 AM | Comments (3)

 

Three Items or Less: Upper Crust Brownies

Filed under: Three Items or Less

An introductory note about this ongoing grocery-store exploration feature: Yes, it's more properly "three items or fewer." "Or less" is a tongue-in-cheek concession to the way the real world actually functions.

Now, the food.

You can get an excellent rundown of what Upper Crust is all about right here, but in a nutshell, it's a local company that markets relatively healthy, ready-to-use dough that bakes up into morsels including cookies, breads, brownies and blondies.

The brownies caught my eye over at Kowalski's largely on the strength of their hauntingly beautiful rosemaling-style packaging:

When baked, the dough creates a relatively rich, respectably homemade tasting batch of brownies. Better than Betty Crocker? You bet. But the truly remarkable thing about these things is that they arrive as big honkin' square of brownie dough.

Here's the secret: Pop open the box and eat the dough. It's essentially a cold, cocoa-rich, extremely dense fudge.

As brownies, these things rate a 7 or 8 out of ten. As fudge? 9 out of 10.

Posted by James Norton at March 17, 2008 11:44 PM | Comments (0)

 

Govt stifles growth of local food

Filed under: Food

Farmer Jack Hedin of Featherstone Farms in Rushford recently published a New York Times opinion piece about his efforts to expand his production of organic produce being stifled by the Agriculture Department's commodity farm program.

If you buy local, organic fruits and veggies, you've probably eaten Featherstone's food as the farm supplies all of the Twin Cities co-ops, Whole Foods, Lunds/Byerly's, Kowalski's, plus restaurants like the Birchwood Cafe, Lucia's, and Common Roots. But the demand for local foods is growing to include a much wider distribution network, and when I checked in with Hedin this week, he told me that's why he’s been trying to expand his operations. When a wholesaler asked him to supply melons for large supermakets such Cub Foods last year, he says, he simply didn’t have enough product. "They wanted twice or three times what I could produce," he says. Hedin has been trying to raise awareness about the Farm Bill in the midst of trying to recover from last year's flood, which he estimates caused about half-million dollars worth of damage to the farm. "The Federal Farm Bill is something that anyone who eats in this county has an enormous stake in," he says.

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 14, 2008 10:00 AM | Comments (3)

 

Off the Menu: Noah Barton's Chilaquiles

Filed under: Off the Menu

One of the attendees of my "brunch for dinner" party late last year was Chino Latino's executive chef, Noah Barton. His contribution to the gathering was a dish that — frankly — didn't sound that impressive, in theory.

But then, it turned out that it was good. Really good. "Guests competitively scraping the bottom of the pan" good.

"Chilaquiles don't sound as good as they are," concedes Barton. "They're basically tortilla chips that are softened in a salsa and topped with eggs, and sour cream, and queso fresco — sometimes they're made with chicken or chorizo, depending on your preference."

"My first encounter with chilaquiles was when I was in Southern California. You could always tell when one of the line cooks was hung over, 'cause they would show up to work and start making chilaquiles right away. They're the typical Mexican hangover breakfast."

"I believe firmly in having them any time of the day, but they're typically a breakfast food. This recipe comes from one of the employees at Chino Latino who showed up hung over one day and showed us all how to make them."

Chilaquiles Rojas
Serves: About 8

1/2 pound chicken breast
2 cups chicken stock
2 tomatoes, cored
2 Guajillo chiles
1 jalapeno chile pepper, stemmed, halved
1/4 yellow onion, peeled, halved
1/4 yellow onion, diced
1 T. minced garlic
1 T. cilantro, chopped
1 T. epazote, chopped
pinch oregano
salt to taste
6 ounces tortilla chips
4 eggs
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 pound queso fresco
1 T. cilantro, chopped

1. In large stockpot, combine chicken and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Simmer until chicken is tender, remove chicken and cool. When cool enough to handle, shred chicken and hold in refrigerator for later use.

2. Add tomatoes, guajillos, jalapeno and halved onion to chicken stock. Cover and bring to a low boil for 30-45 minutes.

3. Saute onions and garlic in large saute pan until translucent and slightly browned. Set aside.

4. Remove simmering vegetables from heat, add oregano, epazote, and cilantro. Completely puree with mixer to make salsa.

To make chilaquiles:

1. Heat chicken, salsa and tortilla chips over medium heat in large saute pan, stirring frequently and tossing to mix well.

2. Heat non-stick saute pan and spray with Pam or add clarified butter. Add eggs and cook over easy.

3. When tortillas are beginning to soften (not soggy), remove from heat and place on large serving platter. Add over easy eggs and top with queso fresco, sour cream and chopped cilantro.

4. Kiss that hangover "adios."

Posted by James Norton at March 13, 2008 11:24 AM | Comments (0)

 

5 common coffee mistakes

Filed under: Food

Brothers Miguel and Aaron Meza of Paradise Roasters point out five common coffee-making mistakes and how to avoid them:

1. Over-roasted beans. While dark roasting can mask bad beans' imperfections, it can smother the subtle flavors of good ones. Also, coffee tastes bests within a week or so of roasting: some serious coffee drinkers have taken to roasting at home.
2. Pre-ground coffee. Once beans are ground, there's a lot more surface area that can oxidize and make the coffee stale. Be sure to grind just before drinking.
3. Too little coffee. Miguel recommends using 10 grams (about 2 T) per 6 oz. water--twice what most people are used to.
4. Water that's not hot enough. Most at-home coffee makers don’t get the water up to the necessary 200 degrees. If you use a French press, use water just off the boil.
5. Impure water. Tap water is usually too hard or contains minerals that can taint flavor. Use spring or drinking water instead.

Oh, and if you like to dope your coffee with milk and sugar, the brothers definitely wouldn't recommend doing so with premium beans. “It'd be like going to Manny’s and ordering your steak well-done,” Aaron says.

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 11, 2008 4:33 PM | Comments (4)

 

Kitchenwarez : Garlic Zoom

Filed under: Gadgets

In the kitchen, there are gadget people and then there are knife people. Gadget people are never content to rely upon a traditional, elegant solution to a food preparation problem, and instead use various colorful and wittily named gadgets. Knife people want to turn their sharpest knives on the gadget people resulting in a colorful and satisfying plume of blood and a cascade of the ever-intensifying screams, but do not ultimately do so for fear of somehow damaging the blade.

I have always thought of myself as a knife person, and, in fact, actually enjoy the vast majority of the tedious chopping / mincing / peeling / slicing / trimming that gadget people are happy to farm out to whatever piece of plastic is most colorful and readily available.

That said: sometimes garlic gets to be a little bit of a drag. At every meal — yes, just about everything including some sandwiches — garlic must be peeled and chopped. A garlic press just isn't suitable for many applications; sometimes "chopped" or "diced" is better than "pressed into a juicy, undifferentiated mass."

While walking through Kitchen Window the other day, I stumbled upon a garlic chopping device that was sensibility-defyingly interesting. The Garlic Zoom ($9.99) has all the Euro-plastic appeal of old-school Capsela toys, and much of the same geeky mechanical charm; its little rubber wheels turn an internal blade, thereby chopping up your (peeled) cloves into tiny little bits. The more you zoom the tiny garlic death car around, the smaller your final product becomes.

It works like a charm. And the clever plastic trapdoors very quickly release the chopped garlic and allow for quick rinsing. As an added bonus: the tactile stink of the plant is kept clear of your fingers.

The GarlicZoom is pleasurable to use, but — and this is a real testament to its actual usefulness — it's also a pleasure to reuse. You'll keep it on a counter somewhere, and when you think "garlic," you may well think "GarlicZoom!" shortly thereafter. Take it from a knife guy: As gadgets go, this thing's OK.

Posted by James Norton at March 10, 2008 10:34 PM | Comments (3)

 

Strip Club: cheeky or offensive?

Filed under: Food

So far, at least, there's only been one incident of confusion regarding the name of the new restaurant, Strip Club, in St. Paul. Co-owner Tim Niver told me that one day two guys walked in with dollar bills in their hands and asked, "Where's the other room?" (The guys, likely non-native English speakers, apparently didn't realize the name is a pun on strip steak. Neither did my friend's fourth-grade son, who, when his father felt compelled to explain what strip steaks and strip clubs were, responded, "Why would anyone want to see somebody take their clothes off? That's gross.")

Niver says they chose the name because they thought it was funny and memorable and that, so far, only one neighbor has raised concerns about the name's appropriateness, citing concerns about the area's troubles with prostitution. We've seen this question raised in the past regarding Chino Latino's ad campaigns: Where's the line between cheeky and offensive?

Those who find the name in poor taste should at least be happy to know that googling "Strip Club" with "St. Paul" now brings up only mentions of the restaurant on the first page, which certainly wasn't the case when I tried that a month ago.

Posted by Rachel Hutton at March 5, 2008 11:14 AM | Comments (7)

 

Reporter's Notebook: Sarah Master

Filed under: Food

Barbette head chef Sarah Master (interviewed this week) had far more to say than could be contained within the puny confines of a 500-word print article.

ON THE INTOXICATING ODOR OF SEAFOOD

"When I started, I was doing a lot of Creole, fried green tomatoes, and oysters, and I worked at the frier station at my first cooking job down there. My husband used to complain that I came home smelling like oysters all the time — they call them "ersters" down there, you know, so I'd come home and he'd say: 'Oh, Erster Girl's home!'"

ON FORMER BARBETTE HEAD CHEF LANDON SCHOENEFELD'S DEPARTURE

"He wanted to open his own place. I don't know how that's coming along. He's over at Porter and Fry right now, line cooking. I think he's very creative, he's an excellent cook, and I think that this place was trying to rein him in a little bit to a certain style that he didn't really want to do. He parted on good terms. He decided that it wasn't for him, and he gave his notice, and said he would work out to the end of the year, but they decided to promote me."

ON SPOON RIVER

"Spoon River was good — it helped lead up into this. I was able to do a lot of specials there. I did the vegetarian special there, which is funny, because there aren't a lot of vegetarians in New Orleans. And everything there is really heavy. And Brenda [Langton] was always like: 'No no no no, we gotta keep it light... let's put some rice on here... brown rice on this and that...' And I was like: 'I don't even know how to cook brown rice.' She kind of reined me in a little bit, and showed me the ropes of vegetarian food."

ON THE LOCAL FOOD MOVEMENT

"I really like how most new restaurants around here now are going local. There's so many places around here where you can get great local produce. A dude dropped off a whole lamb in my kitchen today that he killed last week. That kind of stuff is really neat to me. It was hard from me when I moved up here to not get the guy knocking on the back door with a huge cooler of shrimp, saying: 'I caught these this afternoon.' But now, it's like, I've got people who are bringing me these great heirloom tomatoes. And I get to order whole lamb and break it down myself. We use Fisher Farms pork here... I'm trying to start a deal with Sylvan Hills Farm, for our produce, starting early summer and running until mid-fall, just getting produce from them. I see that shift happening here, and that's really neat. That was something they didn't really have in New Orleans, even though there were farms all over the place down there, they didn't use a lot of local produce."

Posted by James Norton at March 4, 2008 6:30 PM | Comments (0)

 

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