As every home chef knows, a great gadget can help cut down the time you spend in the kitchen while also adding flair to your dishes. An egg slicer can thinly slice not just eggs, but also strawberries and avocados for salads that look like they came from a high-end restaurant. A 2-in-1 oil mister […]
If you’ve been reading the news lately, you know that the global environmental outlook isn’t just bleak, it’s cause for panic. As we all look for ways to reduce our environmental impact, it’s important to be aware that the food we eat directly and indirectly accounts for nearly a third of our global carbon footprint. […]
The James Beard Foundation (JBF) might be based in New York City, but they certainly seem to love Chicago. Since 2015, our “toddling town” has been the site of the James Beard Foundation Awards, and we’ve certainly had our share of winners, be they chefs, authors, broadcast journalists, sommeliers, or restaurateurs. The JBF returns to […]
October is National Apple Month and the timing is perfection. Farmers markets and grocery stores are teeming with apple varietals, piled high in gleaming pyramids of green, yellow, and red. How important are apples to our produce economics? Consider this: In 1904, the celebration of the humble apple lasted but a week. The USApple Association is […]
October is National Apple Month and the timing is perfection. Farmers markets and grocery stores are teeming with apple varietals, piled high in gleaming pyramids of green, yellow, and red. How important are apples to our produce economics? Consider this: In 1904, the celebration of the humble apple lasted but a week. The USApple Association is […]
Sometimes I just want to be heard. I’m exhausted from dining out in of-the-moment restaurants and shouting “conversations” at my dining partner. True story: A few summers ago, we were dining in a then-new, pricey Fulton Market restaurant with friends, and the music was so egregiously loud that we asked the hostess if it could […]
When we first moved to the Chicago area in 1989, I knew that we would miss our San Francisco friends and family, the gorgeous view from every vista, the nearby wine country, and, of course, the fog. What I didn’t consider was how much I would miss Trader Joe’s. That realization hit me, hard, when […]
Taco Tuesday? Sure. We’re down with that. But why limit yourself to one day of the week? Truthfully, any time is taco time, but what better day to salute this humble, hand-held deliciousness than National Taco Day, Oct. 4? We’ve pulled together some of our favorites in and around Chicago for a quick and handy […]
Fall sports are back in action, and athletes — from pee-wee to professional — need their sustenance. Energy bars to the rescue! They’re portable, they fit easily in the pocket of your shorts, they keep well. And it’s not just athletes that they appeal to: Who among us hasn’t grabbed a bar for breakfast as […]
There’s a magical sliver of time, from July to September, when a bounty of Midwest fruits and vegetable show up in all their bright, colorful glory at the markets. And then, almost as quickly as they arrived — POOF — they disappear. But lucky for us, some of our favorite local chefs have mastered the […]
