Pro Bono Baker

Miracle Fruit Dinner Party

Several months ago, my friend Joanna posted about the miracle fruit dinner she hosted on her site, My Vegetable Blog.  While the buzz surrounding this fascinating natural plant had somewhat diminished, my interest in trying it out for myself did not. Miracle fruit contains a protein called Miraculin that binds with the taste buds to create a sweet flavor when it comes in contact with acids. The reaction can last two to three hours.

I decided to buy miracle fruit through an online vendor called Miracle UK. I ordered a pouch containing enough freeze-dried miracle fruit powder for 10 and split it with six friends.  The distribution of this pink powder was rather amusing, but once we had all spooned it into our mouths a silence fell over the table as we waited for it to dissolve.

I reached for a lemon wedge and bit into it, bracing myself for disappointment.  I was met with the flavors of a perfect batch of lemonade. It had worked as advertised.

Our dining selection was certainly one of the strangest I have encountered at a dinner party. We all brought odds and ends, many of which were informed by other miracle fruit party descriptions.  Here is a list of what we had on hand:

Swiss chard
Hot sauces
Vinegars
Hot peppers
Olives
Capers
Pickled onions
Sardines
Lemon-herb butter
Pickles
Cocktail sauce
Goat cheese
Cream cheese
Blue cheese
Sour cream
Bagels
Fried tofu
Radishes
Sour Patch Kids
Rice
Curries
Lemon
Mandarin
Tomatillo
Pear
Meyer lemon
Orange
Granny Smith apple
Pineapple
Lime
Key lime
Rhubarb
Grapefruit
Guinness
Buttermilk
IPAs
Tequila
Sherry

The most striking item to many of us was the tomatillo. It tasted like a complexly flavored apple.  Absolutely delicious. All of the citrus fruits and fresh vegetables responded well.  The vinegars and tequilas were smooth and the buttermilk tasted like cream. The goat cheese and sour cream tasted like frosting, and the strong blue cheese we had been enjoying before dinner tasted very mellow after eating the miracle fruit.

We all agreed that the Guinness did not taste "like a chocolate milkshake" and in fact, we started to suspect that the spicy foods and the alcohols might have actually sped up the dissipation of the miracle fruit reaction.  Those that had foods from these two groups early on seemed to have a much shorter experience.

I certainly hope miracle fruit never finds its way into my foods as a commercial sweetner, but the dinner party sampling was a lot of fun.

Homemade Peppermint Patties

This post is the last in a series of three on edible handmade gifts. You can find the first post on homemade vanilla extract here and the second post on infused vodkas here.

Peppermint patty candies are festive and, believe it or not, incredibly simple to make.  They only call for a few ingredients, making them easy to turn out quickly and cheaply.  In a matter of 30 minutes, you too could have your own tin of these easy chocolate treats that serve as a great last minute gift.

I came upon this recipe over at The Kitchn earlier this month and was surprised how easy it seemed.  I made a batch last week with great success and decided to double it and give these chocolates as gifts. 

I only made one slight change.  Where the recipe calls for refrigerating the filling for 20 minutes, I popped it in the freezer.  I refrigerated the first time around and the filling became gooey and misshapen when I tried to coat it in the melted chocolate.  In my experience, there was no discernible difference in the texture of the filling in the final product using either method.

I had some cellophane bags that I was planning to wrap these in, but I was lucky to see this quick guide to making gift boxes at Heather Bailey's beautiful, color-drenched site.  While the original project is intended for gift cards, they perfectly fit three or four chocolates. 

I didn't have any fancy paper, but I did have some plain heavy card stock sitting around.  I printed ten of these out, cut them with regular scissors, and scored the folds with an empty mechanical pencil. Some pink tissue paper and a decorative stamp completed the packages.

Nick was also making candy this weekend. He had the ingenious idea to make a Twix style candy bar with pistachio butter. He made shortbread cookies, processed pistachios into a butter, and dipped the whole thing in semi-sweet chocolate.  Delicious! 

Handmade gifts might take longer to prepare, but it is a lot more satisfying than selecting a regular store-bought item -- and quite a bit cheaper too.  I hope you have enjoyed this edible handmade gift series.  These new projects are sure to be holiday staples for me for years to come.

Happy holidays everyone! 

Infused Vodka

This post is the second in a series of three on edible handmade gifts.  You can find the first post on homemade vanilla extract here and the third post on homemade peppermint patty candies here.

My friend Harold, who used to guest post on Pro Bono Baker when this site was primarily dedicated to Chicago Bakery Reviews, makes excellent infusions.  He is fervently opposed to the notion that infusions have to sit for weeks on end, and creates most of his in under 30 minutes. 

Harold and I recently shared a warming winter meal at Russian Tea Time here in Chicago where we enjoyed a hearty spread of vareniky, Uzbek stew, and vodka flights.  We selected the coriander, caraway, and horseradish infused vodkas.  The horseradish infusion was so powerful and refreshing, that I decided on the spot that I should make it at home.

On a recent evening, I made three batches of infused vodkas to give as gifts: horseradish, cucumber and ginger.  Infusing your own vodka is simple and quick, and a bottle makes an excellent last minute gift -- you only need an evening and two ingredients.  It is wise to use a vodka that you wouldn't mind drinking without flavor embellishments.  It doesn't have to be fancy though.  I found a good deal on a handle of Stolichnaya to use for my gifts.  I also enjoy using Monopolowa.  I used these Quattro Stagioni 1 liter bottles to make my infusions, but any glass bottle will do. 

Horseradish Infused Vodka

Ingredients

1/2 liter vodka
4 inches horseradish root

Method

Pour half a liter of vodka into your glass bottle.  Using a vegetable peeler, skin the horseradish root.  Quarter the root from top to bottom with a sharp knife.  Now chop the four lengths into half-inch pieces.  Put the horseradish root into the vodka, give it a little shake, and set aside.  Horseradish is pungent.  I only let mine sit for about 3 hours.  It would be wise to check on it frequently in order to achieve your desired strength. Strain the vodka when it is complete.

Cucumber Infused Vodka

Ingredients

1/2 liter vodka
1 small cucumber

Method

Pour half a liter of vodka into your glass bottle.  Rinse the cucumber and chop into quarter inch discs.  Put the cucumber slices into the vodka, give it a gentle shake, and set aside. I let my cucumber vodka infuse over night.  When it has reached your desired strength, strain out the cucumber pieces.

Ginger Infused Vodka

Ingredients

1/2 liter vodka
3 inches ginger root

Method

Pour half a liter of vodka into your glass bottle. Using a spoon, peel the ginger root. Chop into quarter-inch discs.  Put the ginger slices into the vodka, give it a gentle shake, and set aside. I let my ginger vodka infuse over night.  When it has reached your desired strength, strain out the ginger pieces.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

This post is the first in a series of three on edible homemade gifts.  You can find the second post on infused vodkas here and the third post on homemade peppermint patty candies here.

Each year I test my crafting skills with a new handmade gift for the holidays.  These projects have been met with varying degrees of success.  A few years back I labored over handmade soaps that ended up looking tacky and wallowing on my friend’s sinks for months. Another year I knitted little finger puppets that no one seemed especially excited about but me.  Lately I’ve been sticking to handmade gifts of a more edible variety, and I think I may have finally hit my stride.

This post will be the first of three in an edible homemade gift series.  Homemade vanilla extract is easy and fairly inexpensive to make. While it is too late to make your own for this holiday season, the next two gifts in this series will be easy to have ready in a week.

I’m sure you’ve noticed that store bought pure vanilla extract is very expensive.  I go through a lot of the stuff in my kitchen, and the cost was adding up.  I also found that I was avoiding recipes that called for whole vanilla beans because I couldn’t justify the cost unless it was a special occasion.

Around this time last year I about read about the Organic Vanilla Bean Company that sells low cost vanilla beans through Ebay. I ordered 30 beans for under $10.  I highly recommend this economical option.  However you decide to get your vanilla beans, making vanilla extract is a simple process.  I recently read, and recommend, the excellent and highly detailed instructions at The Traveler's Lunchbox.  Read on for my short and sweet method.

 

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Ingredients

1 liter cheap vodka
10 vanilla beans

Method

Split the vanilla beans down the middle.  (Scrape out some of the seeds if you have an immediate use for them, otherwise just toss them all in.)  Cap the bottle and give it a shake.  Stash the bottle in a dark place, like the back of your pantry or in the basement.  Every time you use a vanilla bean, add the pod to the bottle and give it a gentle shake. The vanilla extract should be ready to use in 6 - 8 weeks, but it will keep much longer.

Mirabelle Bakery

(Mirabelle Bakery's Seeded Boule)
Many of my weekends over the past few months have started aboard a southbound train that deposits me 150 miles away from home in Champaign, IL.  Nick returned to finish his last year at the University of Illinois and we have been traveling back and forth to see each other since September.  We weren't particularly thrilled about the prospect of spending time in a central-Illinois college town, but the discovery of Mirabelle Bakery made it all a bit easier.

(Mirabelle Bakery's Onion and Rosemary Foccacia)
The bakery is closed on Sundays, so nearly every Saturday morning we make the half mile walk from Nick's apartment to downtown Urbana.  We stop at Strawberry Fields, the local natural foods store, for coffee and head up the street to wait in the perpetually-crowded storefront of Mirabelle.

(Mirabelle Bakery's Mexican Brioche)
We always select something to eat immediately on the park bench outside, and often purchase a loaf of fresh baked bread to accompany our dinner.  I am a glutton for traditional breads, and Mirabelle may have the finest baguettes that I have ever encountered in the United States.

(Mirabelle Bakery's Chocolate Brioche)
The only complaints I could possibly muster about Mirabelle would be their loose interpretation of brioche as more of a pastry than an enriched bread, and their coffee which is a weak and pedestrian variety tucked away in a self-service corner.  But, I do visit for the breads and pastries and I would not suggest that they turn their attention away from these incredible offerings.

(Mirabelle Bakery's Onion Roll)
My favorite pastry of all is the Mirabelle Bakery Onion Roll.  The roll is soft and buttery, stuffed with poppy seeds, sour cream, red onions and an indescribable, delectable savoriness that makes my mouth water just thinking about it.  If you have occasion to visit Mirabelle Bakery, this would be my first suggestion to sample.

(Mirabelle Bakery's Pesto, Tomato and Goat Cheese Foccacia)
If you have a heartier appetite, their foccacia servings are huge and easily make a meal.  The crumb is chewy and tender and the toppings are always very fresh.

(Mirabelle Bakery's Seeded Boule)
The other two highlights of Champaign-Urbana have been the Blind Pig, a beautiful bar with over 21 taps and Prairie Fruits Farm goat cheese.

(Prairie Fruits Farm Herbes de Provence Goat Cheese)
This locally produced goat cheese can be purchased at Strawberry Fields, and while a bit pricey (about $7 for 6 oz.), it is worth every penny.  We do not have a car available to us, but I am hoping to find a way to make a trip out to the creamery in the spring, if the owners will have me, to see the farm's operation first hand. I often fantasize about making my own goat cheese and it would be fun to see a local example.

While we would both rather be living a normal life back in Chicago, it has been fortifying to find these high-quality, local and affordable establishments in a town with too many trashy sports bars and fast-food chains.  I have to admit that I didn't expect to miss things about Champaign-Urbana, but I will.

For an inside look at Mirabelle Bakery and to learn more about the food in Champaign-Urbana from a well-versed resident, visit the lovely blog Champaign Taste.

Mirabelle
127 W. Main
Urbana, IL 61801
217/384-6460

Herb-Roasted Hasselbacks

Last Thursday I visited the Daley Plaza Farmer's Market over lunch and came away with quite a haul: Heirloom tomatoes, purple bell peppers, sunflowers, fresh basil, smoked string cheese, a LaBriola whole grain loaf and a beautiful selection of potatoes.

These pretty yellow, red and purple potato varieties came from Nichols Farm & Orchard.  This family run farm is from Marengo, Illinois -- quite near where I grew up.  They sell their produce at several farmer's markets in the Chicagoland area.

I'm a sucker for the $5 cookbooks that can be found in piles near the register in bookstores, especially when they cover a finite topic. A few months ago I purchased Potatoes by Annie Nichols and decided to try one of her recipes.

Bay-Roasted Hasselback Potatoes

(adapted from Annie Nichols)

Serves 2 as a side dish

Ingredients:

8 small potatoes, unpeeled and scrubbed

12 fresh bay leaves

1 Tbl butter

2 Tbl olive oil

3 garlic cloves, crushed

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 375F

Place two chopsticks on either side of a potato and make crosswise cuts about 1/4 inch apart.  The potatoes will fan open as they cook, but you want the base of the potato to remain intact so they will not fall apart.  Insert whole or partial bay leaves between a few of the cuts and repeat with the remaining potatoes.

Melt the butter with the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet or roasting pan over moderate heat. Add the garlic and the potatoes in a single layer.  Gently move the potatoes around for about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and generously salt and pepper.

Place in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden brown and tender.

This simple method of roasting potatoes produced very delicate and colorful results.  You could substitute any fresh herbs for the bay leaves.  My favorite herb to use with potatoes is fresh rosemary, and that is what I will use with this recipe in the future.

Pasta Fresh

Last week Nick picked up some handmade pasta from Pasta Fresh for our dinner.  Pasta Fresh is located on Harlem between Belmont and Addison, so it is a bit of a hike for us normally. However, we had my parents van while they were in Alaska in order to drive Nick to school, providing us the luxury of quick transportation for a week.

Nick ordered the eggplant ravioli and we made a nice peppercorn cream sauce to go along with it.  They offer quite  a selection, but when I return I especially want to try their artichoke ravioli, asparagus ravioli and lasagna.   

With a peppercorn studded Brie, crusty bread and a bottle of Shiraz it was a very nice dinner.

Pasta Fresh
3418 North Harlem Avenue
Chicago, IL
60634
773-745-5888

 

Chicago Botanic Gardens

Last Friday Nick and I both took the day off from work and traveled north to the Chicago Botanic Gardens. We took the Metra Union Pacific North line to Braeside and walked about a mile down Lake Cook Road (there are sidewalks).  The area had a large cicada population which made the walk quite entertaining.

The gardens are truly stunning and we had the perfect weather to enjoy them.  Of particular note, we most enjoyed the Fruit & Vegetable, Japanese, Bonsai and English Walled gardens.  As we entered the Fruit & Vegetable garden a woman gave us a tiny potted zucchini plant to take home.  I am happy to say that the zucchini has sprouted and appears to be happy sharing the planter with our tomatoes and basil.

I highly recommend a trip to the gardens this summer for all of those that live in the area, especially those in Chicago proper.  It is a simple trip, and an inexpensive one too (they ask for donations, but there is no real entrance fee). 

Logan Square Farmer's Market and the Chicago Honey Co-Op

Last weekend Nick, Jerry and I made it over to the opening day of the the Logan Square Farmer's Market.  I was really excited for farm fresh eggs but alas, it will apparently be a few more weeks before they available.  However, we did buy some incredible unfiltered honey from the apiary I have been curious about.  The Chicago Honey Co-Op not only produces fantastic products, they are also a great organization.  Located in the neighborhood of North Lawndale, they provide community based training for non-profit social service organizations.  The Co-Op aims to "help residents who are locked out of the traditional labor market due to criminal records or other barriers to employment."  For more information, please visit the Chicago Honey Co-Op website.

Farmer's Markets

I missed the first day at Federal Plaza on Tuesday, but I did manage to wander over to the opening of the Daley Plaza Farmer's Market today.  These markets are a welcome change from the otherwise uninspiring loop lunch options.  Today I enjoyed the live music and came away with a basil plant and a mint plant ($2.50 each) and baguette for dinner tonight ($1.50).  Other items of note:  Fresh mozzarella, honey from a northern Illinois apiary, asparagus that was harvested yesterday evening and crates of assorted potatoes.  I will be sure to have more cash on me when I visit next week.

You can find a comprehensive list of Chicago farmer's markets here (the sidebar has the markets divided into downtown, weekly and other).   I am anxiously awaiting the Logan Square market opening on June 3rd.

Additionally, for those not in Chicago the USDA has a listing of farmer's markets by state or you can search by zip code at Local Harvest.

Wandering through the Daley Plaza offerings today made me miss my old garden in Hyde Park so much!  If only my new neighborhood had such a thing. . .