News from North Pond
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
May 2007
News from North Pond

Welcome to Year II!  Unquestionably the biggest news this month: you're reading the second-ever May newsletter. Happy (electronic) Birthday!  There are, indeed, other quite notable events happening this month, too:

 
·         Market's Open(ing)! Market's Open(ing)! Yes. As of  May 16th, the Green City Market (www.chicagogreencitymarket.org) will be open for business, Wednesdays and Saturdays in Lincoln Park.  We've assembled an even-more impressive list of vendors this year, and ratcheted up the standards even higher for their inclusion. Come shop for the best-tasting local product around, starting mid-May
 
·        Mother's Day is fast approaching.  For those not keeping track, this year it falls on Sunday May 13th. And if you haven't already made plans for your mom, grandma, great-grandma, step-mom, mother-of-your-children, etc., we're serving an extra-special three-course menu that day for everybody involved. We currently have limited later afternoon time slots available, should you be inclined to join us.
 

·       My daughters, Emma and Kate, and I will be featured in a new 13-part PBS series beginning this month (May 5th), titled "Chefs 'A Field: Kids on the Farm". In our episode --scheduled at this time as the 5th installment-- the girls and I visit Anne Topham at Fantôme Farm to help milk the goats and make fresh chèvre, then venture down the road to visit Rink DaVee at Shooting Star Farm to pick fresh vegetables and herbs with which to whip up something yummy back at the restaurant. Find out more at www.chefsafield.com or check you local PBS affiliate listings for more details.

 
·         We're hosting a very special market brunch here on the pond, Saturday May 19th with Slow Food International's inspirational founder and driving force, Carlo Petrini.  Consider joining a very limited number of guests that morning, as we serve a seasonal 3-course brunch in honor of Carlo's visit. For more information, please see the invitation here:  

 

 
Tips from the Green Market

May is prime local asparagus season at the market. Look for the tender grassy stalks at any number of farm stalls, and consider also the other crisp baby greens available this month: buttery leaf lettuces of many shapes and colors, bittersweet baby dandelion greens - yes, those same ones that grow on the parkway outside your home -peppercress and watercress, and best of all, the super sweet and refreshing tongues of Spring's first baby spinach -wonderful raw or just barely wilted. This product is way too delicate and nuanced to cook like conventional ruffled spinach!

 
 
 

 
Recipe of the Month
Alaskan Halibut, Snap Pea Puree, Organic Baby Carrots
Serves: four
Prep time:

24 oz  halibut or four skinless Filets

8 oz    sugar snap peas, cleaned
3 stem fresh mint, leaves picked

4 T    olive or cooking oil

1       small shallot, peeled, thinly sliced

4 oz   butter

salt and white pepper

¼ c  vegetable or chicken stock

16 oz baby carrots, peeled

chives, finely minced

parsley, finely chopped

 
  • Bring medium pot of water to the boil and salt generously.  Meanwhile, get a bowl of ice water ready to "shock" vegetables after cooking.
  • Dump baby carrots into boiling water and as soon as it returns to boil, count two minutes. Remove them with strainer and dump into ice water.  Strain, reserve.
  • Next, dump peas into the boiling water - when it re-boils - and boil  2½ minutes.  Immediately strain and dump in ice water to cool.  Strain and reserve.
  • Meanwhile, in a small non-stick pan, heat the olive oil and then add in the sliced shallot.  Salt and pepper the shallot and stir gently for 2 minutes until softened, but not colored.
  • When soft, place sautéed shallots and the chopped mint leaves in a blender and pour in the cold snap peas.  Place in about ¼ cup of the ice water and blend 1-2 minutes until perfectly smooth.
  • Pass the puree through a fine strainer and reserve.
  • For the meal, heat up a non-stick pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  Salt and pepper the fish on both sides and place in the pan.
  • Meanwhile, heat up half the water or vegetable or chicken stock in another pan and place the reserved carrots in it.  When the liquid comes to a boil, add in half of the butter and a bit of salt and pepper.  Finish by tossing in the chopped herbs. Place over a low flame to keep warm.
  • Turn the fish over gently to finish cooking.
  • Heat up the remaining half of the water or stock in another pan and when it boils, add in the reserved pea puree.  When it starts to simmer, add in the remaining butter and salt and pepper to taste.
  • On a heated dinner plate, place a "bed" of the carrots in the middle of the plate, and place the finished fish on top of the carrots.  Spoon the warm pea sauce around the perimeter and serve hot.


 

 
Charity of the Month
Deborah's Place  773.722.5080

Each year, we accumulate donations through our wine program for four deserving organizations. Their inclusion on our list is based on their work to help preserve diverse food choices, contribute to the local community, support local farmers, and help commit to a more sustainable future.

 

Deborah's Place is a city provider of supportive programs and housing exclusively for women. Deborah's Place offers access to shelter and vital support services in an effort to transition women out of homelessness and into permanent housing. Four sites provide programs designed to assist participants in their challenge towards sustainability and greater self-determination.

 
 
 
Drink of the Month
What's Up, Dock-tail?

This concoction was a hit during our Easter brunch this past month. We pair fresh-pressed organic carrot juice with spices and Chicago's very own North Shore gin. What a healthy way to partake!

 

1.5 oz North Shore Gin #6 (or your favorite)

4 oz    fresh organic carrot juice

dash   black pepper

dash   cloves

dash   cinnamon

stalk   celery

 

Add spices to carrot juice based on your desired flavor (i.e. a little more pepper for a spicy finish). Fill a tall glass with ice. Combine gin and spiced carrot mixture and stir. Garnish with a leafy stalk of celery. That's what's up, Doc!

 
Tips from the Fish & Meat Market
Salmon, Salmon, Salmon
 

Go Wild in May and source out some northwest king salmon for mealtime.  These beauties are really in their prime this month, as the fishing season up in Alaska and off the Pacific coast gets fully underway.  The fish are all "fatted-up" for their journey upstream.  Try cooking the filets a little less than you're used to -- at a lower oven temperature -- in order to fully appreciate the rich omega goodness that makes wild salmon so unique. I, personally, have to fight the impulse to avoid eating the fish, simply because of the long-term association with the overly assertive overcooked specimens often served in my youth. Yet this time of year, it only takes a moist, intensely flavorful piece of wild salmon to truly appreciate what salmon should be and to erase the unpalatable thoughts of yesteryear. We're currently serving this delectable fish wrapped in our house-cured lardo with semolina, favas and Vidalia onion coulis.  Mmmmmmm.  

 
Watch Our Garden Grow!

Here at North Pond, we take great care with our kitchen garden. Each month, we'll update you on the progress. 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Farm of the Month
Intelligentsia Coffee

Although coffee is not yet thought of in the same seasonal way as much of our Midwest farm products are, it should be.  Thanks to Doug Zell at Intelligentsia Coffee, people are starting to better understand some of the similarities between choosing wines and choosing coffees to serve with certain foods or at particular times of year.  The folks over at Intelligentsia do a remarkable job responsibly and sustainably sourcing and roasting much of the coffee they supply to many of the city's best restaurants and businesses.  Their care and attention to detail in the consideration of which coffees to purchase and roast back here in their Chicago roasting works result in some of the finest tasting coffee available in this country. We consider ourselves fortunate to have them as our coffee partners.
Another Pithy Article / Think Piece

A propos of Carlo Petrini's visit to Chicago this month, here's a link to a (translated) interview Carlo gave last October, just prior to the biennial Slow Food Terra Madre conference in Torino:

Petrini at Terra Madre
Bruce Sherman
North Pond -- Chefs Collaborative -- Green City Market
773-477-5845