Monday, March 31, 2008



Rabbit! Rabbit!

Wishing a lovely spring to all. If you still have snow and ice - hoping for the best of luck, that the weather will change soon. California is exploding into bloom, bird songs, and pollen!




Meanwhile, back to the epicurean delights we found in Chicago...






I can't remember what the name of the cheese was that they poured brandy on and then lit on fire for the appetizer, but it made a lovely show.






There was a divine roasted lamb dish, with two types of lasagna (meat sauce and spinach & cheese) plus a delicious eggplant dish. By the time we were winding down toward dessert time, I was um.. stuffed beyond uncomfortable.








There was Baklava, and some kind of custard cake to be had.






But the grand finale of the evening was the rice pudding - lightly scented with cardamom and topped off with cinnamon.. and coffee. We were tempted to try the Ouzo, but while listening to a few of the other rambunctious tables who were partaking, we felt it best to refrain.





21 comments:

RED MOJO said...

Rabbit rabbit...Wow, I just gained ten pounds looking at the pictures!
I hope those are your snow sneakers!

Ariel the Thief said...

Rabbit, rabbit!

Was sugar from your baklava runnning down on your fingers and chin? Mmmmmmmmmmm... That thing can wake the dead. And kill the living, heh.

Doug has new jeans, yay!

Anonymous said...

You must be stuffed enough for cooking now! Mwhahahhaaa
};-}

javajazz said...

Wabbit Wabbit, baby.
awesome pictures,
coolest feet
and i could totally dig
some rice pudding right now.
i make a nice one
with coconut milk...
its supposed to have
cardamom and pistachio nuts
in it but i havent gotten that far yet.
sooo comforting...
i honestly cant tell who's feet is
who...! (maybe bear but dass all...)
i guess that's the closest to faces
we're gonna get here, huh?

barman said...

I believe they may refer to the cheese as Saganaki and if this restaurant is anything like the several other Greek places I have been (two of which also bore the name Parthenon), they used to yell Opa when they lit the cheese.

A word of caution about the cheese. It might just be me but if you have consumed much alcohol at all, it seems the flame from the cheese really messes with your head. It feels like the flame draws you in and tries to explode your head or something.

Now you have my mouth watering. The last decent Greek restaurant I know of in town closed as the owners decided to retire. What a shame.

Hopefully this week will help the people with snow. Being from Michigan I can say we are without snow where I am (again) and I would guess all but the upper half of our state and our upper peninsula are now without snow. Spring is on its way even for us poor Northern states, just hang in there.

SOe said...

Great, now im hungry! When is lunch time? In Germany, the saying of "April, April!" is very popular on the 1st of April. You have to tell a untrue story and persuade someone with it. And afterwards, you have to say: "April, April!" to tell it was a joke.

lime said...

rabbit rabbit!


baklava..spanakopita...mmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Anonymous said...

It is good to read a little about what you folks did in Chicago...so far a lot of eating in my favorite places...I used to live in Chicago...right in the city :)
It will be 70 degrees here today...going to see the Frida Exhibit in Philadelphia :)

G said...

Rabbit, rabbit!

Boy am I hungry! Now there's a fourth foot there - who's that? Walela? :)

Just catching up after being out of commission for a bit. Hope you're feeling well and I'm loving browsing all the food here...yummmm.

G said...

Love the Rabbit illustration by the way.

Doug The Una said...

Barman is right, Saganaki. JJm I'm on the right.

Rabbit rabbit, crow and bear.

Anonymous said...

Reason-(you call it)-the ?logic? used daily to explain away the daily "rite" of blog check.2)-self-imposed idea/action used to justify anything(ie.Bush/Clinton).3-argumentative flat earth society diatribe used to demoralize ,dreamers.4)Reasonable,to live simply so others may simply live....Jackalope Jackalope Jackalope...Greetings all,feel free to be an april fool more then once this month...HUMOR is good for the soul...Peace

Doug The Una said...

Bear,

APRIL FOOL, n. The wizard of March.

Way to integrate!

Unknown said...

ok, Now I'm hungry! The last two posts were just loaded with delights to tempt me into eating... and I have nothing hear at work to eat! Great pics!

Tom & Icy said...

Rabbit rabbit. Yum yum.

tsduff said...

Red Mojo - so did I - but mine weren't virtual :( Those are my "-don't-have-any-boots-so-I-just-wear-these" sneakers...

Ariel - Do Bears love honey? Yes, the sugar/honey high went on for hours. The baklava was heavenly. But I was too full.

Anonymous - The funny thing about being stuffed, is that it goes away the next day and somehow the eating must go on.

JJ - The Bear's feet are the big black ones. I needed cleats to walk on that ice. I doubt I'll ever get the hang of it. Your rice pudding sounds fabulous - I am helpless where coconut is concerned. Lime is cooking with coconut too.

Barman - It is so very nice to have your comment today. That IS what the cheese is called - and wow, they did shout something like that but I didn't know what it meant. It was delicious - something I've never sampled before. Um - if that is the case with the alcohol - I suppose it is a good thing we didn't imbibe that night. So THAT is what was happening at the other tables LOL!

SOe: Here in the US we make a joke or prank, and then after watching the effect, we say "April Fool" because, April 1st is April Fool's Day. Long ago when I was a child, my Mom came downstairs with her leg in a splint - crutches and all -and told us she had broken her leg. We all fell for it, and I was never more confused than later on in the day when she abandoned the crutches, and seemed to be completely healed! I was the last to know it was an April Fool!

tsduff said...

Lime - Yes, it was exactly like that ... yum :-) I hope you will put up your receipe with coconut in it. Anything from Trinidad would be good too.

Mo'a - I didn't know you lived in Chicago! It was fun - and not like any other city I've visited. Of course the entire trip was like a dream - we played in the snow, went to the top of the Sear's Tower, stayed in a posh hotel (for a fabulously discounted price from Priceline) ate great food, and even saw some great museums. The company was okay too :) Enjoy the Frida exhibit - it sounds rather intense.

G - The 4th foot was a mystery guest who shared our repaste. You never who or what you will find in Chicago with such a motley crew. Sorry I don't have any chicken soup for you here - I know it would help you get back up to speed.

G - We found YOUR illustration in a magazine! It is your lamp, svelt and amazing in all its glory. I was going to send it to you - but then, you probably already have the picture. It was fun to see it. :)

Doug - I think I forgot what it was called because it sounds like a sushi word :-D. I didn't forget what it tasted like though...

Anonymous - Thank you for permission to be a fool the rest of the month. You are good for my soul. Bear Bear.

Doug - He is good, isn't he? Nice definition of April Fool.

~gkw - Nothing to eat at work? Then go home! It is as good of an excuse as any.

Tom and Icy - mew mew milk milk

jillie said...

Ummmm...the baklava looks good and the coffee too. Ouzo...I've only had it once and that was more than enough....ewwwwww!!! LOL

javajazz said...

k , i knew Dougie was one of the
white running shoes,
and i for sure knew
Bear was big black running shoes
(you cant be that tall and have
teeny tiny feet, i'm sorry)
see how vast my powers
of deductive reasoning are?

ps heres how you cook with coconut.
you open a can of coconut milk
and pour it into the cooked rice
(i use basmati) and pretend its cream.
there no muss no fuss, no shell to crack....
i've got a cool recipe
called indian rice pudding
by my favourite Alton Brown
who is almost as smart as Doug...
i'll E it to you...
was Terry the other white running shoe?
see more deductive reasoning,
cuz you probably are closest
to your own feet.
or one would hope...

tsduff said...

Actonbell - You would have really loved the eggplant - in fact all of it was outstanding. Nothing like a little epicurean delight once in a while.

Jillie - After reading Barman's comment, I am rather shy about trying the Ouzo... :D The coffee was just the thing to cut all that rich other stuff we stuff ourselves with.

JJ - Yes, I was wearing my tenners...they were slippery on the ice. I know, the fashion police want me.

Thanks for the recipe - it's a winner.

javajazz said...

running shoes rule.
we've lived on ice here
for almost 6 months
continuously this
horrid winter,
and honestly,
even with super deluxe
industrial strength
winter canadian boots,
we were dropping like flies.
even my car slipped.
you need spikes in footwear
not to slide around.
its the only way.