Sugarbeet

After an uneventful Saturday, Jonathan and I decided to go out to dinner. We picked Sugarbeet in Longmont, since it was close by and Jonathan had been itching to get there for a while.



Well, the itch has been scratched. All I can say is that Jonathan’s wishes were granted, we finally ate at Sugarbeet. Me, I’m still itching. It wasn’t that the food was bad or the place was unappealing, it was just average. And since we’ve been discovering a life of above average, average just didn’t cut it for me. Now, remember, I’m not a food snob by any means, and when I say that the food was average, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It was just alright, and alright just wasn’t what I wanted last night.



The restaurant itself is very charming, from the wooden beams overhead to the brick walls and columns. A small restaurant that is divided into 2 rooms, with a bar area right when you walk in with 3 or 4 tables, to a more spacious area to the right with about 8 tables.



You’ll notice that we have no pictures to post with this meal, as he who will remain nameless forgot to put the memory card into the camera. Oh well, you’ll just have to take our word for it.


Barb and Jonathan



To start with, we had the Gorgonzola stuffed Medjool Dates wrapped in Parma Prosciutto.


He says: Ok, I liked this one. It was good, it had some great textures and taste and a great mix of sharpish cheese flavor and the sweet date. This dish also gave me great hope for the rest of the meal and I give it a 7.5


She says: This was a delightful start to the mean. The dates were warm and chewy with a nice flavor and smell. They were served with radish, spinach and baby tomatoes.


My main course was Cassoulet with Braised Rabbit, Toulouse sausage, Salsify and Cannellini Beans.


She says: Cassoulet is a rich, slow-cooked bean stew or casserole originating in the southwest of France. This one had lots of beans, some onion and celery and rabbit on top. You all know from previous posts just how much I’ve been enjoying rabbit, but this dish was somewhat of a letdown. All I could taste was the beans. The rabbit wasn’t distinguishable from the cassoulet. The flavors of the rabbit were just lacking. The cassoulet itself was very good, I do like stew, but I really wanted to taste the rabbit more. This is the first meal in a long time that I added any condiments to as well. I would give it a 5.

He says: OK, hmm this had a good taste to it and the taste was beans and as I like white beans, I kinda liked the dish. I think the problem is when I go out I want to feel I ate something memorable, something that makes me think about it later and want more. This was just not it. Dont get me wrong it was fine, the meat could of been anything, it did not add flavor and as Barbara said I thought it needed seasoned. I am going to go with a 5. here.


Jonathan’s main course was Baby Back Pork Ribs with Cantina Mustard Sauce, Mashed Yukon Golds and Sauteed Baby Spinach

He says: A full rack of ribs here and not one of those wimpy little racks either. This was alot of meat with a great smelling sauce. I enjoyed this. The meat was just falling off the bone and the sauce had a good taste to it. However, and I really hate to harp on this point it wasn't out of the ordinary and nothing that I will crave. In the end it was a good solid rack of ribs but nothing to wite home about. I give it a 6.


She ssys: I didn't try Jonathan's dish at all, except for some of his potatoes, which were good. So, I can't really rate his dish.


Barb’s dessert was Cooked Pineapple topped with Coconut Ice Cream.

She says: This dessert was very good. I might even go as far to say it was my favorite dish of the night. The cooked pineapple with the coconut ice cream was a nice mixture of textures and taste. I would give it an 8.

He Says: This was tasty, very tasty. The flavors mixed well together and the pineapple sweetness just went fantastic with this rich ice cream. I will go 7.5.


Jonathan’s dessert was Chocolate Bread Pudding

He says: I like a bread pudding and when you throw chocolate in the mix it was something I just had to try. The flavors were there and it was nice and rich and thick just like a bread pudding should be, but it was not very moist and that took away some of the enjoyment for me, even though the flavor itself was good. I give it a 6.

She says: This dessert was ok. Again, I wasn't blown away by it, but it tasted fine. I like bread pudding, but I think the chocolate took away from it. I would give it a 5.


I have heard alot of great things about Sugarbeet, so I tend to think maybe they had a bad night in the kitchen the day we were there. But, whatever it was, this was just an ok meal. If the main course's could of been as good as the it would have been much better, but as it stands our overall rating is going to be an .....


Overall really this meal was just ok and when I go out and spend money on a meal I expect it to be better than just ok.

Thanks for coming by and visiting our Colorado food blog and if you have any questions and comments feel free to let us know at jonathan or barb @milehigheater.com

A talk with Terroir's chef Tim Payne

Hi all

We had a chance to ask a few questions to Tim Payne chef at Longmonts Terroir restaurant. If interested in our previous post of our meal here it is located at our post




1. What attracted you to cooking?

I simply love food. The whole cycle of it, from ordering and menu planning to prep to the finished product, plus since we use so many small farmers we stay connected with the supplier side. It is very satifying.

2. What is the philosophy behind your cooking, or in your kitchen?

Make everything from scratch, let the ingredient shine and utilize all of the culinary influences within America when making menu changes. Our kitchen is one of respect, it is a small team and we work very closely together, and everyone brings good experience to the table when executing our ever changing menu.



3. What is the biggest influence on the way you cook?

What fresh, local and if not local, small farm organic ingredients are available. The seasons are very important too.

4. Is there a chef living today you would like to work with?

Melissa Kelly (Primo Restaurant in Maine) on the east cost, Frank Stitt down south ( Highland Bar and Grill in Birmingham, Alabama), Judy Rodgers (Zuni Cafe) out west, or Hugo Matheson at the Kitchen in Boulder

5. Is there a particular ingredient you like to cook with more than others?

I love fresh pasta in all of its forms, from filled pasta such as agnolotti to fresh cut pasta like fettucini to gnocchi. We will always utilize these in our menu. I love seafood as an individual ingredient though particularly scallops.

6. If stuck on a desert isle and could have one meal from then on out what would it be?

Gnocchi, followed by an arugula salad, followed by seared scallops, followed by braised short ribs followed by sorbet. I would always be full.

7. Is someone asked you for two Colorado restaurants to try other than your own what would you suggest?

Aji in Boulder is one of our favorites and I would tell them to go to the Rioja in Denver.

8. How about one restaurant any where in the world?

The French Laundry of course. Other than that Restaurant Daniel or Blue Hill in New York City or The Zuni Cafe in San Francisco.

9. Would you be willing to share a recipe with us?

Gnocci


4 large potatoes (russet preferably)
2 eggs
2 cups of flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped thyme and parsley

Bake the potatoes at 450 until soft. Remove the potatoes, slice open and pass through a food mill or potato ricer onto a clean work surface lightly dusted with all purpose flour. Allow steam to die down from the warm potatoes. Make a well in the center and place 1/4 cup of flour in the middle then crack both eggs and place in the middle. Place 1/2 cup more of the flour, the herbs and salt and pepper on top of the potatoes. With a pastry knife or spatula chop the the mixture until it is mixed and resembles pebbles, bring the mixture to a ball and place 1/2 cup more of the flour and gently fold (do not knead) just until the flour is incorporated. If the dough is tacky or sticky place 1 tablespoon more of the flour and repeat the process until it is not tacky or sticky. Let the dough rest for five minutes then divide the dough into 5 balls. Take each ball and gently roll out into a snake approximately 1/2 inch wide the slice the snake into 1/2 inch pieces and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and set aside. Once all of the dough is rolled out the gnocchi can be frozen immediately or placed into lightly boiling salted water. Once the gnocchi float then can be strained out and incorporated into whatever sauté or sauce you choose. We change our ingredients seasonally and it generally consists of a vegetable that can be sautéed immediately without prior cooking (such as sugar snap peas or mushrooms) or a heartier vegetable such as butternut squash that we parboil until al dente that is lightly sautéed with garlic then deglazed with vegetable stock, seasoned, mounted with a small dab of butter, fresh herbs then the gnocchi is added and once plated finished with fresh grated cheese. If you do freeze the gnocchi, once the gnocchi are frozen individually the can be collected and stored in an airtight container for as long as a month. Cook the frozen gnocchi from this state, do not thaw then cook the gnocchi.





As always thanks for coming by our Colorado food blog and if have any questions or comments please let us know at jonathan@milehigheater.com or barb@milehigheater.com.
And if you happen to check out any of the restaurants we have mentioned let them know you heard about them from our blog!

Jonathan and Barb



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Out west at the Fort

Hi all,


We went out to eat at The Fort ( www.thefort.com ) with my father for no particular reason. The reason that is in bold is that for a few years now every time we have tried to get together for a special occasion the sky falls down, the car dies or the restaurant has a bad night and the food is terrible, so we decided to go out this time for no particular reason!

The Fort is one of the restaurants I think about when someone asks me for a uniquely Colorado restaurant.


The restaurant outside is a reproduction of Bents Fort and coming into the courtyard you can almost feel you are leaving the present behind and stepping back into the old west.


Once you come inside, that illusion fades away as the smells from kitchen hit your nose and your mouth starts craving to taste what is coming out of there. The menu itself is very game heavy with buffalo, quail and many other items to tempt you.

We decided to split two appetizers between the three of us. Here is the first.



Bison Eggs: Pickled quail eggs wrapped in house made buffalo sausage. Served with a
raspberry-jalapeno jam.

He says:This was good on many levels was crunchy on the outside and then you hit the softer sausage and the even softer egg so the textures were very nice and the flavors went together very well also. Nice sage flavor with the sausage along with the egg and finally the sweet and slightly hot flavor of the jam. I will give this a 7.5.
She says: This was a very good start to the night. The soft egg and the hard crusty shell was a nice combination. The raspberry jam was a nice dipping sauce. I give it a 7.

Our second appetizer.



Bison Empanadas. A flakey pasty stuffed with buffalo meat, with two sauces: a chili or chipotle sauce.

He says:These had a good flavor to them but the pastry was a bit sweet which threw off the over all taste for me. I will give it a 6
She says: These were delicious. I liked the sweet pastry taste with the tender buffalo meat inside and the chili sauce. I give it an 8.

My fathers main course.



An 8 oz buffalo filet mignon with ‘fort” potatoes and corn.

The meat was perfectly cooked and tender and was everything you could ask for in a steak. The potatoes were fried potatoes with a bit of spice added in which gave a little bit of heat with the potato and butter flavor. I would go a 7.5 here.

Barb’s main



Washtunkala Cast Iron Kettle: Tender tips of Buffalo Tenderloin in a rich buffalo demi-glace with roasted green chilies, pearl onions, fresh thyme, fire-roasted corn and sunflower seeds

He says: I wanted to like this I really did but the meat was a bit tough (though Barb says not all of it was) and honestly the overall taste and consistency just did not please. It was not bad but just kind of ehh. This will only rate a 5.5 for me.

She says: When I ordered this, the waiter told me it was like a stew. I thought, ok, sounds good to me. When it arrived then, I thought it would be more stewy in it's look. I was expecting a more soup like texture I guess. The meat for the most part was tender (although there were a couple of harder to chew pieces as well).
The sunflower seeds were a surprise at first. I had forgotten about them in the menu, but once I realized what they were, they were good (but a little too plentiful). I would give this dish a 6.5.

Jonathan Main



Buffalo Ribs, slowly braised, smoked and smothered with our own tangy Jack
Daniels BBQ sauce. Served with historical BBQ heirloom beans and seasonal vegetable.

He says:No, this is not an extreme close, they are that big. If you happen to go to The Fort and order these, order the half rack not the full! These were great, a sweet smoky flavor and meat that just fell off the bone. The beans were ok, but nothing special. The only down side if you can even call it that was the shear size of the platter which ended up being lunch and dinner the next day. This was an 8.

She says: I didn't even try these as Jonathan had them blocked from us (just kidding).

Our dessert.



Peaches topped with an oatmeal streusel served hot with vanilla ice cream and a lime-caramel sauce.

He says: This was good and once again a huge portion the three of us split it but nothing really special just a good solid dessert. I would give it a 6

She says: I enjoyed this dessert. I love the oatmeal cruncy topping that comes in dishes like this. The peaches were delicious. I would give this a 7.


Numbers and such as for the price we were taken out to this meal and so I was not allowed to peek at the check but it is not a cheap place. The overall score was a 6.9 and we had a great time.

Thanks for stopping by if you have any questions or comments please let us know we would love to hear from you.

Jonathan and Barb




Member of the Boxxet Network of Blogs, Videos and Photos









Gayot's fort review

Molecular gastrono-what?

Barb and I are heading out to O's tonight (www.http://www.westindenverboulder.com/page.php?url=restaurant)
to try out Chef Kleinman's molecular gastronomy tasting menu. We have never had the opportunity to dine at a restaurant that really uses these techniques so I thought I would do some research and came across a neat little recipe book I thought I would share with you:
http://khymos.org/recipe-collection.php.

Also Chef Kleinman has a really cool blog that shows many of the items he makes at http://www.food102.blogspot.com/.

We will let you know how the meal went in a posting.


Thank you for stopping by.

Back to the Black Cat and a Recipe from Chef Skokan

Back to the Black Cat
A review of our return meal at Eric Skokans Boulder Restaurant.

Make sure to look at the end of the article for Chef Skokan's Duck Confit Recipe!


Barb and I went back to the Blact Cat about a week or so after our chat with Chef Skokan. We were given different seats this time and honestly both of us thought that the change of seating really made the entire experience better as the table we were in the first time was right near the door and just a little small. This time we were seated at was a booth like table against the left wall (these are the ones I would ask for when coming to the Black Cat) with a full view of the kitchen where you can watch the Chef perform his magic.

One thing that really struck me was how intense Eric looked while he was cooking, completely focused on the cooking, hardly ever even pausing to look up, just now and then speaking a few words to his sous chef or the patron or 2 that came up to the window to ask him a question. This was a large contrast to the easy going relaxed attitude we saw with Eric when we visited him at his gardens (see our previous posting -Going Green with Eric Skokan). This time around we chose to go with the 5 course tasting option with wine pairings as last time around, the 7 course ended up having us waiving the white flag well before it was all over).


Looking into the kitchen there are shelves lined with spices and cooking implements as well as a few cook books.





As we were waiting for the meal to begin we watched Chef Skokan working away in the kitchen.





First the amuse bouche.


Chilled Lemon Cucumber Soup with a little bit of olive oil on top.
Wine served was a non vintage Villa Sandi White Wine (this wine was a pairing for the first course - not the amuse bouche).

He says:
I am not a huge cucumber fan so this was kind of meh for me however it did taste just like a cucumber without the crunch. I can only rate on what I think regardless what someone who likes cucumber a lot more than I would. I give it a 6.

She says:
As you may remember, I am not a fan of the cold soups, but this one was head and shoulders above the rest that I've had. I'd give it an 8.


Our server was Jordan and she was very enthusiastic about the food and the chef of the Black Cat and seemed to know everything about any of the courses or the wine that we wanted to know. She told us if we come in again and want to up the adventure level of the food just let her know, we may just have to do that next time though I am not sure what this would entail.

The pacing was pretty well done and shortly after we finished the first item the second came out.



Himachi Crudo with Seafoam, a slice of lemon cucumber and garlic chive flowers and a bit of burnet. Served with the non vintage Villa Sandi White.

He says:
I am starting to like this kind of dish more and more. The fish had a nice almost buttery taste and the lemon cucumber gives it a little citrus kick that stays with you for a bit. The flowers and burnet were a nice little visual touch though I don’t remember them adding much in the way of taste. I will give this a 7.5.

She says:
I too am enjoying this dish more and more. At first, I wasn't a big fan, but the pairings have started to make a big difference. I would give this one a 8.
Third item out



Crispy Duck Confit with Plums and Greens from the Chef's Garden

Wine was a Selbach Riesling Cabernet '06

He says:
WOW- Yes I said WOW. I think WOW may trump Mmmmmm or even Yummmmmm. The combination of the Duck Confit and the plums was so darn good. The sweet taste of the plums and the rich slightly gamey flavor of duck just blew me away. The duck was sooo good… How good was it? It was so good I used the greens to try to mop up some of the juice after all the duck was gone. Yes That good. 10 for sure

She says:
OMG! From the first bite to the last, this dish was down right delicious. The mixture of the plums and the duck was so tasty together. I wish the next coureses were the duck confit over and over again. I give it a 10!


Next out:



Semolina Flour Gnocchi with Farmer Cheese and a Highland Beef Bolognese Crème Sauce and Rosemary, Tomatoes and Parmesan Cheese.
Was told the gnocchi is boiled in the whey from the house made mozzarella!

Wine Domaine Dupeuble Beaujolais '06

He says:
Ok, yes, there is only one Gnocchi in that picture. I don’t know if it was the left over enthusiasm from the duck or the mouth watering description of this dish but I forgot to take a picture till it was almost gone. Needless to say it was good, very very good. The Gnocchi had a wonderful soft texture and a great cheesy taste and the sauce added a great meaty overall taste to it. I have been going back and forth on what to give this it meets the 9 rating criteria by making me go Mmmmm out loud, but I am not sure it’s the best I have ever had but Barb is pretty darn sure of it so another 10 here.

She says:
In the past, the Gnocchi I've tried, I have just not liked. Well, guess what: this Gnocchi was awesome. Maybe it's because it's made in the whey, I don't know. But this is the first time I've enjoyed it. It melted in your mouth, so delicate. I would give this a 10.


Next course:


Roasted Prawns with Pistachio Risotto and Red Bell Ppepper Puree and Purini on top

Wine: Clos Dula Coutal Loire Valley - 80% Malbec and 20% Merlot

He says:
The Prawns were very meaty and well cooked and the risotto was outstanding with a deep nutty flavor. The red bell pepper sauce had a rich flavor that just enhanced the taste of the shrimp without overpowering it. I will give this one a 8.

She says:
Again, a dish where I haven't liked it in the past: risotto. But the Chef was on this night. The red pepper sauce and the the risotto blended so nicely that I don't think I left any on my plate. I have to say that each dish that came out was just outstanding. I would give this one an 8.5.

Next course:


Lamb Two Ways: Roasted Loin with Fennel Puree and Braised Lamb Leg with Grilled Fennel and a Garlic Sauce with Fingerling Potatoes
Wine: Cotes du Rhone 2006 syrah Domaine de la Jardiniere

He says:

The lamb was very good and had a great flavor and I overall enjoyed this. The one turn off for me was the grilled fennel. I took a nibble of this and decided, no thank you. Leaving that aside it was a very good course. I will give it a 7.

She says:
The lamb was very good as Jonathan said, but after the previous dishes this did not hit me the way they did. I guess I was in a Duck Comfit coma still. I would give it a 7 as well.

Last main course:



Confit of Pork Shoulder with a Red Wine Gastrique with Summer Fruits, Creamy Polenta and Dandelion Greens

Wine - Magness Napa Valley cabernet '05

He says:
What can I say, the man does confit well and while this did not reach the heights of the duck, it did pretty darn well. Very tender with a great slightly sweet flavor. Strangely, the one thing that stood out for me was the polenta. The last time I had polenta my reaction was basicly yuck and I really was not happy to see the pork resting on it but to my big surprise I liked it in this setting and it seemed to pair very well with this course. Overall, I would give it a 8.

She says:
As Jonathan mentioned the man can do confit, but agree that the duck was the winner of the night. So much so, that I don't ever remember this dish, so I don't feel right in giving it a score.



Dessert


Back to Front Flourless Chocolate Cake with Cream and a Malt Crumble, Peach Cobbler with a Maple Sauce and Berry Consommé with Lavender Custard

Wine Kopke Non Vintage Port

He says:
The surprising thing about the dessert course is that the chocolate cake was actually the weakest of the lot, which totally shatters a comment I made a few weeks back about it being hard to impress with a non chocolate dessert. The cake was nice and rich and had a great chocolate taste but nothing really special. The Peach Cobbler was fantastic the peach flavor just bursting out and the maple taste added in very well without over powering the peach flavor. The Berry consommé was the winner for me here. The berryies just exploded with flavor and the lavender custard was something I have never tasted before and it was very pleasing and the only way to describe it I can think of is that it tasted as good as lavender smells. I will give the desserts a 8.

She says:
The Berry Comsomme was my favorite as well. The lavendar custard was light and airy and the mixture with the berries was delightful. The Peach Cobbler was also very tasty. And I do love my chocolate, but this cake was just ok. We started with the chocolate and ended up with the berries and the berries were my winner (which suprised me). I would give the desserts a 9.

Numbers and such: The overall score including the .75 bump for a 5 or more course meal was a 9.09, which is our current best score we have given in Colorado it was just a outstanding meal. The cost for the Black Cat 5 course tasting is $62 per person if you add the outstanding wine pairings it brings it up to $99 per person.

Thanks again for stopping by and if you have any questions, comments or ideas where we should go next; we would love to hear from you. Make sure to look below for Chef Skokans Duck Confit recipe!

Jonathan and Barb



Chef Skokan was nice enough to give us his recipe for duck confit!

Recipe: Duck Confit with Ginger Gastrique


Serves 4

4 duck legs
1 ½ T salt
3 cups rendered duck fat
1 stick cinnamon
1 orange, halved
1 T whole black pepper

1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine duck legs and salt. Mix to ensure that legs are evenly coated with salt. Let duck legs stand for 10 minutes.

2. In a casserole dish combine duck, duck fat, spices and orange. Bake at 400 degrees until fat temperature has reached 170 degrees when read on a thermometer (about 20 minutes). Decrease oven temperature to 170 and cook until drumstick bone begins to show, about 6 hours.

3. Remove and drain legs from fat. Duck fat mat be reused multiple times. Serve legs hot with a drizzle of ginger gastrique.


Ginger Gastrique

1 cup white vinegar
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons fresh ginger sliced thinly on a mandeline

1. In a stainless small steel pot over high heat, combine vinegar, sugar and ginger. Boil and reduce until it becomes a syrup, about 25 minutes.

A talk with Beatrice and Woodsley Chef Pete List.. and a great recipe he gave us.

Hi all

About a month or so ago we had the chance to sit down for a fantastic meal at Beatrice and Woodsley(www.beatriceandwoodsley.com)and recently asked the Executive Chef Pete List if he would have the time to talk to us a little about what drives his cooking. You can find our review of Beatrice and Woodsley at (http://milehigheater.blogspot.com/search?q=In+the+woods)
and here are the questions and his answers. The recipe he shared with us is at the very end.
Here is a picture of Chef List.




1. What attracted you to cooking?

Food has always been important in my life, and I found that I have a desire to create and produce good food. It makes me happy and hopefully the people I cook for as well.



2. What is the philosophy behind your cooking, or in your kitchen?

Keep it simple, if you have good ingredients, let them speak for themselves. I try not to mess with the natural flavors that make fresh food so good to begin with, only to enhance the experience.



3. What is the biggest influence on the way you cook?

I am a very seasonal cook, using products in the peak of freshness, the height of quality.



4. Is there a chef living today you would like to work with?

Yes, Thomas Keller from the french laundry and Grant Achutz from alinea in Chicago.



5. Is there a particular ingredient you like to cook with more than others?

Currently pork is the thing for me, a good well treated pig may well hold the most potential for creativity (if only they had eggs!)....... If you go out to Beatrice and Woodsley and the pork belly is on the menu TRY IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!



6. If stuck on a desert isle and could have one meal from then on out what would it be?

A sandwich. Just kidding, Give me a good pad thai or a curry and I am a happy guy.



7. Is someone asked you for two Colorado restaurants to try other than your own what would you suggest?

This is a tough one for me to answer because since moving back from Chicago, I have not had a chance to eat around much. I would ask you the same question, where should I try? .... Currently our favorites are Luca D'Italia in Denver and the Black Cat in Boulder



8. How about one restaurant any where in the world? Restaurant Paul Bocuse in Lyon France. The epitome of classic french cuisine.

9. Would you be willing to share a recipe with us ?
yes:


Curried lamb, pearl cous cous salad.

The Lamb:
2# lamb stew meat or shoulder cut into 1/2 inch cubes (you want some fat attached)
1 med yellow onion diced
2-3 cloves of garlic crushed and chopped
2 med carrots diced
3 small potatoes diced
1-2 hot chili peppers seeded and chopped
2tbl madras curry powder
1tsp cayenne
2tsp cinnamon
1tbl toasted, ground coriander
1tsp cumin
3tbl kosher salt
1tbl freshly ground pepper
1/3c flour
1/2 bottle cream sherry
1/8 c ea. golden raisins, dried fig and apricot (small dice)
2qt water

season the lamb with the dry spices, coating completely. Let sit out at room temp for 30-45 minutes. get a 6qt pot on medium to high heat add olive oil and a tbl of butter, toss the lamb in the flour to coat, add to the pan carefully it may splatter. Brown the lamb in the pan to form a crust, add the vegetables and saute to get a little color on them. Add the dried fruit and deglaze with the sherry. Reduce the sherry by 2/3 and add the water. Cover and simmer slowly for an hour or so. The cooking liquid should be at a sauce consistency and the lamb fork tender.

The cous cous:
1/2 red onion or 2 shallots small dice
1 clove garlic chopped
1/8c ea dried golden fig, currants and apricot
2c pearl cous cous
1c white wine
3c water
s/p/s tt

In a tbl ea. olive oil and butter, saute the onions and garlic, add the fruit and sweat. Deglaze with the wine and reduce by 1/2, add the water, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often to avoid sticking to the pan. When the liquid is absorbed, cool on a pan or platter. When the cous cous is cool, toss with a good olive oil, lemon juice and fresh chives.

To serve:
arrange the cous cous on a platter with a well in the center for the lamb, put the hot lamb in the center of the plate and garnish with baby arugula, yogurt, mint and lime zest. serve with warm flat bread.


That recipe sounds great we will have to try it soon and when we do I will put up our attempt on the blog. I want to thank Chef List and Kevin Delk for all the time they gave to us for this and hopefully when you get a chance you will stop by this great restaurant.

Thanks as always for stopping by and if you have any questions or comments we would love to hear from you.

Jonathan and Barb

White Chili on a cold day

We have had a few cold rainy days in a row and Barb started to crave one of her favorite winter dishes so I thought I would make it and share the experience on the blog. I will give the recipe first then show pictures of the making,

Chicken and White Bean Chili

Roasted green chilies add spice too this great white chili recipe that is also a great way to us up left over chicken!

1 pound dried small white beans ( I have used canned white beans and it works pretty well and cuts out a overnight step)
8 fresh Anaheim chilies
¼ cup butter (1/2 stick)
2 Large onions chopped
1/3 cup all purpose flour
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
3 cups half and half
4 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon white pepper (regular pepper works fine)
1 ½ cups grated Monterey Jack cheese (about 6 oz)
1 cup sour cream
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Place beans in a heavy large pot with enough cold water to cover by at least 3 inches. Let stand overnight.

Char chilies over gas flame or in a broiler until blackened on all sides. Enclose in a paper bag; let stand 10 minutes. Peel, seed, and chop chilies and then set them aside. ( I have used the chilies without roasting it still turns out well but the roasting adds a bit of flavor that is unique)

Drain Beans. Return to pot. Add enough cold water to pot to cover beans by 3 inches. Simmer until beans are almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour (add 15 minutes if in high altitude) the drain well.
Melt butter in a clean heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until tender, about 15 minutes. Add flour and stir about 5 minutes (do not brown). Gradually whisk in chicken broth and half and half. Simmer gently to thicken, about 10 minutes. Add in the beans , chilies, shredded chicken, and everything else except the cheese sour cream and cilantro. Simmer gently to blend flavors about 20 minutes. Chill until cold and cover this can be made up to one day ahead of time and the chilling is not essential but will make it much more flavorful.

Reheat before serving add grated cheese and sour cream stir just until chili is heated through and cheese melts (do not boil). Ladle into bowls and garnish with Cilantro.

Makes 10-12 servings.
All the ingredients


Soaking the beans


Roasting the chilies

The onions


Chilies


Chicken

Getting the pot ready

In goes the chicken broth

And the beans


Here comes the chili powder

Cheese

Stirring it up


White chili on a cold day a Happy wife makes.



It was fun documenting the cooking process here. Tuesday our Talk with the chef of Beatrice and Woodsley will be posted and he gave us a Lamb recipe we just have to try I will more than likely put that up when we make it.

Thanks for coming by if have any questions or comments please let us know.

Jonathan and Barb