Vinsetta Garage = Great news for Woodward food

Couldn't be happier at the news that Vinsetta Garage is morphing into a real, local restaurant. Not theme stuff, T-shirts, Woodward cruise memorabilia.

I can't think of a better way to respect and re-use this iconic place on Woodward.
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An old favorite from my peeps

                                                               

                                                                 Chicken paprikash

My grandfather grew up about six hours outside Vienna, near the Hungarian border, and about 15 miles from the Yugoslavian border. My grandmother was born and grew up only several miles away from the village of grandfather, Rabfidisch, but over time it made all the difference. As the imperial Austro-Hungarian Empire gradually contracted from its wide world domination, the little village of Theresia Yost's became part of Communist Hungary.

Way before then, they had both emigrated to the U.S., landing in Allentown, Pennsylvania. That's where they met, not in the cozy landscape of their native land. My grandfather was a high-level professional waiter in Europe, and started his own restaurant in either Newark or Manhattan...a white table cloth place with a dining room and gentlemen's grill. My father remembers sitting in the kitchen with the very tall cook making small things.

So the upshot is, we grew up with a variety of Austro-Hungarian foods -- my German/Irish mother tried to keep up now and then.

And in this finally really cold chapter of winter, I decided to go back to the old school dinner. Hungarians make everything delicious -- meats, salads, vegetables, chicken-- with the addition of a little flour and sour cream.

Several chicken thighs, onions, some fresh Hungarian paprika, sour cream made a warming and nostalgic dinner.

And a loving salute to family.

Diner's Guide

With so much talk about sustainable agricultural practices and humane treatment of animals, where do the people who work in restaurants fit in?

Michael Pollan says, "Ethical eating takes in the welfare of the restaurant workers. Or at least it should."

A new national Diner's Guide is out listing those restaurants who take care of their employees and others who don't.

It's good to see how many Detroit area restaurants are on the stellar list!

Here's the link to the Diner's Guide

 http://rocunited.org/dinersguide/

Eat Your World = Detroit props

I follow Eater.com, and find all sorts of good stuff there. Today was an intro to a new website/blog Eat Your World. Creators have been all over the world and give insights into eating the real deal in cities.

Of course, I lasered in on Detroit. Expecting the worst or a bunch of cliches. Not.

They got us, the city, the food, the artisan and local food stuff, Eastern Market's importance. I'm impressed.

This was true Detroit food and they did us proud. I'll be watching these guys.

Fried yellow perch from Hamtramck

You know what this is.




http://eatyourworld.com/destinations/united_states/michigan/detroit

Ginger Scallion Sauce

I love running across great recipes on Twitter. In this case, this is an iconic food from a family that comforted the writer for many years. It's now a sacred food. I can relate. (Hello..Taylor ham?)

Here's the link that intrigued me: ginger scallion sauce.

So tonight's the night to make it. Followed directions, salted the hell out of it. Big bowl so it didn't blow up. Here's the sauce in the first minutes;

This is supposed to be transformative on noodles, eggs, rice, chicken, and whatever else you can think of.

Here's step one. Will update on using this ethereal sauce.

And the final product:

Coco Pazzo Cafe, Chicago

We had wonderful weekend trip to Chicago for the American Historical Association annual conference.

We had a stellar dinner at Coco Pazzo Cafe, walkable from our hotel. Convivial atmosphere - very much a neighborhood cafe vibe and look. Even more fun, a whole lot of history profs/teachers/writers there for the conference got the vibe to go there.

Loved the murals on the wall, and the baroque huge floral arrangement on an old farm table that also held bread and appetizers. It was cozy but still had room between tables and very reasonable noise level that lent itself to conversation.

We had some of the best service I've had in years-- personal, interested a little quirky and definitely sincere.

Of course.. the food. The pappardelle w/ wild boar ragu totally rocked. Wide, al denta papparadelle with diced boar in a tomato and spiced sauce that had strong hints of cinnamon and allspice. Served absolutely piping hot, it warmed the soul and body on a chilly and windy night. Could only eat half, just great as a reheat when we got home. Carpaccio a little weak but the parm was just delicious. The veal scallopine was pristine and very flavorful with a rich jus and mushrooms, however - the ragu won.

Wine prices were extremely reasonable ($28 for a bottle of hearty red) and added to the meal.

Might be the go-to meal next time we're in beautiful Chicago.

http://www.cocopazzochicago.com/coco-pazzo-cafe.html

A new Christmas tradition?

We always have a big breakfast Christmas morning. "Nero Wolfe" scrambled eggs (cooked over a double boiler slowly for a long time), ham from Christmas Eve, homemade rolls, fresh fruit salad, bacon, sausage. The whole nine yards.

But to gild the lily this year, Yorkshire pudding was introduced. A puffy, dramatic and - actually - pretty light carb to balance the proteins.

Michael Ruhlman's blog yielded a very simple but terrific recipe. Basically 4-5 eggs and a cup of flour and then good fat (we used bacon drippings), popover pan and high heat. Wow!

These were architectural beauties -- golden, narrow hipped, huge on top, light and fluffy and and filled with air and deliciousness.

This may be the start of a new tradition after 20 years of wonderful meals. Our pals Kim and George are new additions as well, with bubbly and bacon, and who add freshness and friends to the breakfast table.

You can't buy a breakfast like this for food, wine or especially company. And that's the big present of the day.