Ending the Year by Sharing Something Good

I want to share something good. This is a posting I added to a wonderful healthy, organic blog. In your spare time, if you desire to make any changes and/or keep up to date on "healthy" information, check out this blog.
...As we approach 2010, I am in a personal quest and business quest to be healthy and only pass healthy product on to my clients...I am a chef. I stumbled upon the blog posting re: mono/di-glycerides while doing research on the subject. What I found in the contents was important information to me personally. I found out that because I gave up synthetic sweeteners, the tingling in my fingers is gone. I thought it was because I was working far too much. (You know how small business means much more work for the owners to keep costs down and keeps business flowing if the economy gets bad.) So I want to reinforce the beauty of your blog. Thank you for doing what you do. We out there do appreciate your work and support your cause and products. You will find me shopping from your site soon!

I'm Organic Blog

Happy 2010 and may the earth change for the good,
Diane Botica

Fa la la, SpinArTo and Free Coffee Too!

Christmas time always makes me think of uncomplicated times from long ago.
Things like… making 20 kinds of Christmas cookies and storing them in tubs so the flavors don’t mix. My sister and I would flip through endless amounts of magazines, looking for the most beautiful recipes that promised diversity and/or complications in flavors. No potato chip drop cookies in our house. We would do layered cookies with chocolate, cherries and orange rind. Of course there was always the traditional Italian crescent cookies that batched at 10 dozen and each hand rolled cookie had to be rolled in powdered sugar right after baking. Okay, we would do the good old spritz cookies with a cookie gun but if we took the short cut there, we would balance it out with complicated decorating. Isn’t it a wonder we never cracked a tooth on a dragée?
Since I have become a chef and converted to Judaism, I have had to give up the old list of traditional cookies. The main reason is limited amounts of time. The good news is that I have focused on perfecting the roll-out sugar cookie that we make and sell in the shape of snowflakes.
We did the Farmers Market at the Empty Bottle in Chicago last weekend and our cookies were a hit. We don’t boast that our cookies are vegan or low fat. We proudly proclaim that our cookies are comprised of full fat butter and fresh eggs and yes… flour. This is the holiday season for goodness sake. Diet next week when you are lamenting all your wrong doings of the season. There were many who followed the same belief when they proclaimed, “add a SpinArTo and mini baked Brie to my bag”. I’m sure Gayle has a story about the farm market as well. It was lots of fun and great to see the local providers who painstakingly raise friendly farmed fish and free range chicken and pork. Not to mention Vera our favorite grower from Videnovich Farms and Tom the owner of Earth First Farms, the Organic award winning Cider. Yes, they represent the great state of Michigan. (You know, we are located in the crook of the hand, between your thumb and forefinger.)
I was recently asked to describe my love for coffee, and relay a cherished story. Since I am an admitted coffee snob. So here is what I wrote…Growing up in Chicago and weekending where I currently live, my father would brew coffee in his percolator on the stove top. He was a Chicago police officer and worked 24/7 at home. So weekends were the times when I would get to see him. I would wake to the smell of coffee teasing me to get out of bed. Of course this meant more than just the smell of coffee. This meant my dad had gone to the store and picked up coffeecake or some sort of sweets, and was back brewing the first pot. I would get up, kiss him hello and I would have my bowl of cereal while he drank his strong black coffee from his white fire king mug. After I was awake, (yes coffee is very important to my waking up), we would catch up with each other's week and then go about the day. To this day, waking up to the smell of coffee, takes me back to those times.
My personal consumption began in college. We didn't have microwaves in our dorm rooms in those days. We had some coil device with a plug that we would stick in our mug and heat our water to boil. Then we could put in some horrid freeze dried granules that would produce a rancid bitter beverage. Post graduation, when I started making money is when I started to define my pallet. I'll try every coffee that boasts they are the best, or the most earth friendly, or the crème de la crème. I have my favorites and I admit I'll give a latte a try at just about every independent or franchise that says they serve the best. I do not however, under any circumstances do vending machine coffee.
I have recently decided to become healthier since I am just a few years away from turning 50 yrs old. So I now use sugar in the raw and lean more toward using products that actually care about the earth. My recent viewing of Food Inc. has had a very strong influence in my decision making.
If you are a coffee lover, send me your favorite coffee story and if I like yours the best, I will blog it AND I will send you a free package of coffee! Send your entry to info@dinners-ready.com

Happy Christmas!!!

Venison Stock... Dem Bones

Aaah, there is nothing like using fresh stock for cooking. I procured some beautiful venison bones from a local butcher that is well known for processing game. So I was thinking of how I wanted to make some amazing, extra special stock to sell in the shop and for preparing sauces for my catering clients.
I thought about the 200 or so spices and herbs I currently possess. Since venison can be so strong in flavor, I want to celebrate and enhance the differences of using venison bones as opposed to using beef bones but mellow any edginess they might have. Another important factor is that this stock will be used in winter time. So, a bit more boldness in flavor is welcome.
To begin, I brush tomato paste on my bones and broil them in a single layer until browned. This will bring out the flavor. Yep, I decided this was a necessary first step, just like beef stock. Now back to my spices and herbs....hmmm, I like the idea of star anise, cinnamon and ginger to start. Not too much of any of these but a delicate presence will be divine. Now let's back that up with some classics.... garlic, bay leaf, peppercorns, parsley (always a great flavor filter), onion, definitely thyme, some chopped carrots and celery too.
Put all those goodies in a large heavy bottom pot and cover with fresh water. Leave it alone. Don't mess with it and don't add salt. I learned from an elderly Asian chef a long time ago to never salt anything in the beginning stages of cooking. Salt can bring out bitterness and with seafood, it makes seafood tough. I always salt at the end of cooking, and I often do not salt my stocks at all. There is plenty of time to adjust the flavors later.
Bring this big cauldron of goodies to a strong simmer, not a full boil. When reaching this point, back down on your flame so the surface is not disturbed while continuing to simmer. I usually brew a full stock pot for 2-3 hours undisturbed. You might want to skim the surface if you see a lot of scummy foam (yes it does not sound pleasant) on the top. This does not always happen. It just depends on what is coming out from the bones.
Once done, let your stock pot cool in a shock-bath. Fill your sink bay with cold water and set your pot in there. The coldness of the water will draw the heat from the pot. One shock will not make a big pot icy cold but much cooler and easier to handle.
Now do your first straining. Put a strainer over big bowl and remove all the large items from your pot with tongs, placing them in the strainer. Let that sit for a while then discard the scrap. Pour your drained liquids back in the pot.
Take another large vessel, another large pot is fine, and place a fine strainer lined with cheese cloth over it. I rinse and squeeze out my cheesecloth so I do not get lint in my liquid. Start to pour your stock thru the cheese cloth lined strainer, slowly. Strain the rest of your batch and place your newly filled pot in the fridge to settle over night.
The next day, remove any fats that have layered on top and slowly pour or ladle your beautiful stock into containers. Freeze, use or share but definitely keep refrigerated!
If you are not this ambitious, you can stop by and purchase some from us. We make fresh stock, of various types all the time. I love to cook with elements from basic scratch.
Enjoy!

Then Bittersweet It Is

What a lovely cold, brisk morning walk. The dogs anxiously pull me along as I eye new colors of berries on trees and vines that I have never seen before on my walks through Michiana and Grand Beach. We walk along, as I think about my day in the kitchen, and what I am going to make today. Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I will be cooking like crazy, preparing special orders for all my lovely, very special clients. I always feel like a bit of myself is at their table as I prepare their foods with as much love and attention as I do my own.
Little random thoughts creep forward from the back of my mind. What am I going to name the cabin? I have been working on it for 10 years now. All these beautiful names that I come up with when I am in England, just don't stick when I come home. I wonder what Eva & Sherri are doing for Thanksgiving? I need to call and ask them. Should I make cookies today? I haven't made those lovely iced cut-outs in a while. They sell like mad but they are very labor intensive. I sure miss Amanda. She was the best cookie designer ever. The other young ones that work for me never understand the importance of that piped outside line.
Then we turn off Old Grand Beach road, toward the Dunes Theatre that is shut down for the winter. We come upon the loveliest, intense swirls of vines completely dripping with bittersweet berries. I decide that this is too amazing, and must send some to my dear Aunt Louise. I made her cry last year when I sent them. It was purely unintentional. I remember as a little girl, her teaching me about the beautiful berries and how they pop open as they dry. I did not know the story of how she and her childhood friend Gussie, would venture deep into the woods in Massachusetts every fall and gather Bittersweet branches from their favorite hiding spot that no one else knew about.
Now the dogs reluctantly slow their hurried pace and allow me to twist off some beautiful branches to send to my dear aunt. Unfortunately not all I touch are dry enough to snap so I end up snipping off the bits to pack and ship. Small garden shears are a must and always with me on our walks. You never know what beautiful, wild blooms you will find on your journey. All of a sudden, it becomes perfectly clear to me. I will name the cabin "Bittersweet". That is perfect!
Yes, now my entire day is unfolding in focus. I will call Eva & Sherri and make cookies. And prepare some Bittersweet vines and goodies to ship to my aunt.

All that, and we got our morning exercise in too. Off to the kitchen I go....

Friend of a Foodie!

I always thought being friends with a chef would be so exciting...boy did I have a lot to learn! Oh there's lots of excitement in the chef's kitchen, but it's not all ooh la las and lip smacking over haute de yum yum.

It starts out with shopping, then there's the schlepping....loading and unloading, etc. By the time we got back to her shop from Chicago it was pretty late. Diane had a big party to cater the next day, so needless to say, there wasn't any time to spare and she dove right in...and it was 11pm. So, I offered to help since it didn't seem right to stand around and watch. Really, how hard could it be... I'm a decent cook and my friends like my dishes, right? But, seeing as how I'm a commercial kitchen neophyte, it probably wasn't my wisest choice.

Diane says, "fine, here's some asparagus. I need them all trimmed the same length so they look great on the plate." I swear she gave me a whole bale of asparagus to cut. I have never seen that many rubber banded asparagi in one bundle in my life.

Okay, given my analytical approach to things, I figured I'd use a sharp knife and trim 'em right up. HAH! You try getting 127 spears of asparagus cut in one whack while they're all trying to escape the rubber band! Frankly, I was lucky they didn't all end up on the floor...maybe even luckier that I still have all my fingers. Hmmm, maybe I needed a sharper knife? "Hey, Diane, do you have a knife sharpener?"

Next, she put me in charge of the couscous. Now in my little world, the box shakes out a manageable little 2 cupper.....I had to pull out a calculator to adapt the amounts for this giant saucepan. Okay, I can do this...no problem. Well, so far it's looking good and I'm feeling a little more accomplished; now for a taste. Hmm, I think it needs a little something; salt, mint? "Hey Diane, will you taste this?" I turn to put the spoon in the pot to grab a little taste for her and she screams, "NO!!!! CODE!!!" Oh, my god! I threw my hands up in the air and dropped the spoon on the floor...what the heck did I know? "Geesh, you scared me!" What the hell?? My friends never complained about my germs.

Anyway, that was the beginning of my baptism by fire in the Dinner's Ready kitchen.
I'm getting quite a few lessons hanging around with Diane. And, though I don't think I'll ever be as creative or as good a cook as she is, I'm not hanging up my apron just yet.

Dinner is perfect... when you get home from the emergency room

The rain kept us away from the campground for most of the day. We came home just in time to see the clouds part and make dinner.
Gayle started her amazing five spice chicken stew. It didn’t start out as a stew but wow was it wonderful! While she trimmed the chicken pieces and mixed her spices, I went to gather kindling. She looked up in surprise as I ran towards her chanting, “bar soap and sugar”, repeatedly. After cramming anti-histamines in my mouth, she pounded soap and mixed in sugar to make a paste and draw the 8 stingers out. Yes, as you guessed by now, I am allergic to bee stings. Gayle demanded we abandon dinner and go to the emergency room now, since the campground does not have an emergency EpiPen. I demand that we get the Dutch oven filled with her beautiful assortment of bone-in chicken pieces and vegetables going in the hot coals and then we can go. Yes, Gayle’s dish slow cooks to a tender and buttery conclusion. Ready when you get home from the emergency room. We were ravenous and heartily ate our fabulous meal with chunks of cornbread.

Jane and Jane go camping

So the Jane and Jane team strike again. A camping we go...Diane and Gayle set out for one of those joyous, laid back, easy going camping trips. Yeah right.
We borrow my neighbor's pop up trailer. This is going to be a piece of cake. Well you know that old saying, never say "piece of cake". It only means trouble.
After a 3 hour tutorial, yes 3 hours. Let me tell you, there was a lot to learn and we used every minute of those 3 hours. Thank you Bill & Kathy!
We struggled on location, even with the best directions. Finally 2 men that were sitting with their families enjoying the entertainment during dinner came across the campground and saved the day. We would have figured it out, I'm sure.
The first night dinner was delish. We started with mojitos...aaah. My house rubbed rib eye steaks were amazing... as always! It's really all about the rub. Dinner was made square by a bountiful salad with tons of veggies and mango salad dressing. Yes, that was made scratch as well. Dessert...who had room. The night finished with a roaring fire, even through a consistent drizzle of rain. We kept warm by keeping our chairs snuggled up close to the heat.

In the begining

The company that I work for focuses on service, just as strongly as our gourmet, in-house created products. Things get interesting when you combine high quality goods & services with small business.
Yes, we do a lot of catering on location. A lot of stories come from this diverse arena of work spaces. Hot tiny kitchens, late guests, too many guests, no linens…and many more. These stories make exception cocktail hour entertainment... just ask Gayle! She had an induction by fire!
So I have decided to go full Monty, (if you will) and add my personal stories as well. Topics like, MacGyver moments when camping...the challenging experience of sourcing, cooking and converting in the U.K., and don’t forget my food lovin burglars.
There are many more stories and experiments to come. In fact, the stories get more plentiful every day.