Farmstand Toast- I Put A Egg On It

It was a real weekend. Tonight I feel like I have been wrung out like a tea towel but I take nothing back. Not the driving day to Wisconsin. Not the Sprecher's root beer or the spit-roasted chicken. I do not take back the pounds of produce purchased in a house bearing painted mushroom murals. I don't take back a whiskeydrink, a nip of pie crust, a lobster corndog or a single second of sunshine filtered through a large straw hat.

I can't bring myself to regret the hours spent being decidedly awake and giddy when I would typically have been drooling into a pillow. It was a real weekend, filled with ice cream and friendlies and dancing in the grass. I would not take the hippiechild moments back, even though it means I've launched into full-on cat stretches and cavernous yawns throughout the afternoon and evening.

While most of the weekend was spent as a fuzzy sweatfox (caught in a near constant state of music and junk food-fueled rush), I gave myself a break on Sunday. Knowing the day ahead would be festival hours and festival food, I took a look at my foodstuffs and set to work on a simple and delicious brunch that could easily transition to lunch or dinner.

Lake Geneva- Love that this could just as easily be 1970 as 2010. Gimme my glam rock and denim shorts.

We'd stopped at River Valley Mushrooms on the way back from Lake Geneva the day before (the Mushroom Council is a client but this was not official business. In the least.). I was thrilled to see more than just an array of the shrooms themselves but a full farmstand spread including muskmelon, golden plums, peaches, cherry tomatoes- all of which came home with me.

A slow morning with a light rain and nowhere to be for a few hours- that's the break needed from a really rascally weekend fun run. I'd been gifted with a loaf a multigrain bread from Flourish and thus proper toast has been the basis for many meals this last week. Two slices tossed into their dedicated blackener and I set to work on the veggies.

One big frying pan took on quartered creminis, halved garden cherry tomatoes and angular pieces of gai laan (Chinese broccoli), my latest vegetable obsession. All were sauteed in a small amount of olive oil with a minced clove of fresh garlic until they were cooked but still bright. From there I just scooted the veggies over and cracked a fresh egg into the pan, letting the whites go opaque on both sides. Ironically, tonight's bedtime reading is actually a new foodzine called "Put A Egg On It." So far so good- thanks Tasting Table for the tip.

The toast came out hot and crunchy and was immediately spread with a thin layer of Prairie Fruits Farm goat cheese then layered with the vegetables and topped with a single shared egg. It was fresh and light and the perfect way to temper some unapologetically indulgent behavior the rest of the weekend.

Case in point: Peach Blueberry Pie, served still-warm after being cut open with a pocket switchblade and passed in-dish from person to person with a pair of shared utensils. Cheap beer chaser encouraged. Felt right to end on that.

The Goodness and the Go Forth

Sun Wah Saturday

This is a celebration post. Not because anything terribly momentous has happened recently but because I woke up this morning after a great weekend and this whole day has been one little sparkler after the last, lighting up an exceptionally busy day. It's even not just today, it's been the last few days...and weeks. So here's a list of things that have the grins going.

"Now & then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness & just be happy."- Guillaume Apollinaire

1) Music from a part-time city lover. Portland is invading Chicago with aural goodness this week. Tonight the Portland Cello Project is in town, playing a free show at the ever-so-gorgeous Pritzker Pavillion. I've been long convinced that the cello is my spirit instrument. To have it paired with unlikely cover songs and that essentially odd duck persona that develops in the Pacific Northwest... it's more than I could really have thought to hope on.

That's how I'm starting this week but I'll be ending it among an entirely different Portland posse...those Trappers are back. I managed to weasel my way into a basement rehearsal when I was in Portland back in April, listening to a few of the new tracks in the process. Because of that, I can say with superb confidence that if you can catch Blitzen Trapper's Lincoln Hall show on Saturday night or be in the vicinity of the stage for their Lollapalooza show (2pm Budweiser stage), you will not only save yourself a smack of regret but you may be compelled to bake me some zucchini muffins. Or...something.

Forget the muffins, I'll just be glad to see you.

Though if you do have an abundance of zucchini, a warm muffin happens to pair beautifully with Stumptown coffee.

2) Flower power karma corral. I ordered flowers for a friend recovering from surgery this morning. Not 30 minutes later, I got a picture of a beautiful bouquet that another friend had been sent by her crushman. Having picked some up for myself at yesterday's farmer's market, I can attest to the fact that they raise a person's quality life by an exponent of at least 6.5 smiles per day- whether they are a gift for someone else or just you (in this case, me).

3) Swimming on two wheels. I spent the whole weekend on my bike. Not only was it 30 miles of personal tour guidesmanship but it was a hell of a workout. A workout that delivered me to not one, not two, but three separate feasts this weekend and then brought me home lighter than I left. Peking duck at Sun Wah (you need to do this as soon as possible), Brioche French Toast at LM and Green Curry from Silver Spoon (but at Gina's)... and I STILL got on the scale to good news this morning. This bike is a miracle machine. Not only that, but when you ride through shady spots, the breeze feels like swimming through cool currents. Riding that bike is properly lovely and the best part is that it is physically impossible for me to multi-task while doing it.


4) On the town with my girl Friday. Molly McGuff and I, despite our physical proximity, rarely have schedules that totally match up on the weekend. Friday night we discovered that we were both available for dinner and thus we feasted. And in the process of feasting, we had some wine. And that wine told us we should venture into the world and so we did. To Rainbo, to Bar Deville, to nostalgic shots of tequila and a photo booth. That wine is pretty persuasive but tequila is still tequila. Worth it.

5) Delivering the good goods. It's not quite a secret that I've got a little thing for kitchen bits. I manage to keep my hand out of the prodigal "big purchase" cookie jar but man does my cup runneth over with brightly colored spoons and mixed medium bowls. Being that it is wedding season, I have found my favorite gift to give and, of course, felt like I needed one for myself. So I ordered a pair of these lovely French carafe sets from Brooklyn Kitchen (a truly lovely little site) along with a couple other odds and ends (like a large ice cube tray for slow melting in my bourbon, a pie server and some grapefruit bitters). My box arrived but I was one carafe short- an easy mistake because who orders two (ahem...then two more...good gifts are hard to come by)? I shot an email over to the BK folks and was sent the missing set that day with a nice note and fantastically soft t-shirt. Happy happy.

6) Pages and Pages. It's been a great summer for reading. In addition to reading the books everyone seemed to be talking about (The Help, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), I've polished off The Known World, Eat Memory, several cookbooks and my current (and potentially most beloved), Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential. Where have I been? I love this book- thanks to Amanda for the reco. If you like food, feeling like you've got the inside scoop and some shameless sex, drugs and rock and roll as translated by a no-nonsense chef, this is your salacious summer read.

At the heels of these final chapters, I've already selected the next: Everything is Going to Be Great by Rachel Shukert. I'd heard some good things but her perspective on the Eat Pray Love phenomenon is what made this a must.

The Salty Sweet Life: Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte*

* Alternatively titled: "If Sex Was Baked It Would Have an OREO Crust and a Peanut Butter Chocolate Cream Cheese Middle"

Long absences aside, I'm not much of a hugger. But I will make you a pie with butter crust and serve it with hand-whipped cream melting off the top. I have a devout tendency to protect my space but the affection hasn't baked off of any cake I've ever made. There's just a balanced bit of bite in the frosting. A stack of lemon bars with shortbread crusts isn't made less sweet by a whiskey chaser.
In that way, I am a human equivalent of a quintessential combination- salty sweet. Never fully committed to one or the other, I am unlikely to provoke insulin shock with a superbly sweet nature but am incapable of hardening a heart on purpose.
This is my kind of dessert. Savory hits of peanut butter, creamy folds of cream cheese and then the chocolate. Goodnight...the chocolate.

In the midst of a folded-peanut-butter-cream-cheese-whipped-cream-mousse, bits of bittersweet chocolate and roasted peanuts rolled in cinnamon and espresso appear to break up that milky heaven with a toothsome crunch. It embarrasses me that one sentence was just that long but how do you break that up without the grammatical equal of a toothsome crunch?

As you've likely gathered if you've hung around for more than a post or two, I'm on the road a lot. What you might not realize is that for as much as I'm gone, I have a full family of friends who travel 10 times the amount I do. Jaimeson is my personal pied piper of musical gypsies but over the years the troop has widened considerably. I occasionally envy their rootlessness but, more than anything, I love the ability to provide an edible anchor of sorts when they appear in a 5 mile radius of Wicked Park's winding brick path.

These visits have punctuated the last five years. Once a month or so, someone will turn up to do something wholly wonderful onstage. New people, new sounds, new fun to be had and stories to be told... it's not a conscious effort but you would be hard-pressed to find a more interesting group of humans to spend time with on occasion. I just try to err on the side of mindful when talking about those occasions- we all have a right to determine our own level of public.

All this to say that it was one such visit that gave me a real good excuse to make this dense bit of magic so Amen for that. And on that note I'll throw out two related recommendations.


1) Food people love music and music people love food. I mean if you had to name the two concepts that gave you the most basic level of joy on a consistent basis, these two go together like peanut butter and jelly. Or peanut butter and chocolate, as the case may be. That link has never been more pronounced than it is now. Allie is a master bread baker and sends secret salad dressing ingredients. Elliot started a whole Tumblr dedicated to eating healthy on tour. And Jaimeson. I think you know by now.

If these kinds of things excite you (as they clearly do me), you should really check out the Epicurean Musician. Andrew interviews bands and musicians of all kinds to get the inside track on all the best ingestibles.

This week? He interviewed Cary Brothers. Cary released his second full-length album, Under Control (link is to iTunes, you will need that), on April 6th. The title kind've says it all, "Reformed Fast Food Addict Turns Toward Greener Pastures." Yes, I recognize the full irony of his TKTC love directed in the same breath with kale and asparagus while I'm here today posting about sex on a cakestand a Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte. However I will happily take the nod that this oft-neglected corner d'Internet helped point the way to greener living. It's nice that we can all feed each other in different ways.

I realize that's cheesy. Pop a Lactaid.

2) While I'll probably keep to my ambiguous personal guidelines regarding what to post and why, I think I could probably do a better job of speaking up when some of these folks are coming to Chicago...they give good (great) show, as the saying goes.

Starting with Bess Rogers and Lelia Broussard at the Elbo Room, this coming Monday, April 19. Be there- it's gonna be a rock show.

Without further ado (and thank you for your patience with all ado above), the instructionals for a pretty piece:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte
Ingredients:
For the crust:
32 Oreo cookies, finely processed into crumbs
5 1/3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt

For the crunch:
1 1/4 cups salted peanuts, finely chopped, divided (for the filling, crunch and topping)
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (I used bittersweet chips chopped down)
2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. espresso powder
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
Dash of ground nutmeg

For the filling:
2 cups heavy cream
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted (I found 1 cup perfectly sufficient)
12 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter (not natural)
2 tbsp. whole milk

For the topping:
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Directions:
To make the crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and place it on a baking sheet. Combine the Oreo crumbs, melted butter and salt in a small bowl. Toss with a fork to moisten all of the crumbs. Press into a thin layer covering the bottom and sides of the springform pan. Freeze the crust for 10 minutes. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before filling. Yes, that is the only baking that needs to be done. It's awesome.

To make the crunch, in another small bowl combine 1/2 cup of the chopped peanuts, mini chocolate chips, sugar, espresso powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Toss with a fork to mix and set aside.

To prepare the filling, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip 2 cups of the cream until it holds medium peaks. Beat in 1/4 cup of confectioners’ sugar and whip until the cream holds medium-firm peaks. Scrape the cream into a separate bowl and refrigerate until needed.

Wipe out (do not wash) the mixer bowl, replace the whisk with the paddle attachment, and beat the cream cheese with the remaining 1 cup of confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until the cream cheese is satiny smooth. Beat in the peanut butter, whole milk, and 1/4 cup of the chopped peanuts until well combined.

Using a large rubber spatula, gently stir in about 1/4 of the whipped cream just to lighten the mousse. Still working with the spatula, stir in the crunchy peanut mixture, then gingerly fold in the remaining whipped cream. Scrape the mousse into the crust, mounding and smoothing the top. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight; cover with plastic wrap as soon as the mousse firms.

To finish the torte, put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Leave the bowl over the water just until the chocolate softens and starts to melt, about 3 minutes; remove the bowl from the saucepan. Bring the 1/2 cup of cream to a full boil and remove it from heat. Pour the cream over the chocolate and, working with a rubber spatula, very gently stir together until the ganache is completely blended and smooth.

Pour the ganache over the torte, smoothing with a metal icing spatula. Scatter the remaining peanuts over the top and chill to set the topping, at least 20 minutes. When the ganache is firm, remove the sides of the springform pan. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Source: adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan and Annie's Eats, where I saw it first.

This last picture brought to you by a great show at the Riviera, the end of what I imagine to have been an awesome tour (Jaimeson was on it for a few weeks, dance moves and all), some deliciously obscure beer, two kinds of whiskey, two full bands and crew on one tour bus, a torte that turned out worthy of its alternate title (at top courtesy of Elliot) and one song made popular in a little film called Beetlejuice. Salty, sweet and delicious the whole way through.

Brother Beloved

Today my brother turns 25. Sometimes I forget exactly how close in age we are. Probably because I spent at least 15 years trying to act MUCH older. Older sisters. You know how this goes, yes? Particularly that bossy, hot-tempered, busybody breed. {sigh}

The older we've gotten, though, the more any imagined gap has closed. We've settled into our lives and into ourselves in similar ways. Going to shows, going to airports, going to dinner. Music, Travel, Food. The stacking order may change but it's the same sandwich.

In the last year I've come to realize even more that while, yes, he is my brother and I love him for that, he's also just quality. Sans familial ties, I'd love to have him around for brainstorms or writing projects at the office. I know him to be great company for last minute concert tickets or a trip to the movies. He's just that friend you want to have around. I'm still hoping at some point our locational lines will cross again but in the meantime we pass songs and stories back and forth, happy for the news and the tip-off.

In that vein, we've recently taken on a small project for the holidays based around a mutual sandwich component. One of my favorite music sites asked me to contribute to the annual compendium and, as Brother is frequently my resource for all things new and fantastic, we're going to co-write a few tracks for Jonk's Top 100. Sounds about right to me.

Happy Birthday, Brother- I hope you have a peaty scotch and a baked good in your near future!

The Morning Person Project

chicago skyline at dawn
Originally uploaded by lusia bee

I am embarking on a project.

Maybe best explained as "an experiment" called The Morning Person Project. You see, I am not naturally a morning person. I do not spring fully formed from the head of Zeus, arrows drawn on the day. I rarely sleep past 8:30 but, traveling mornings barred, it's tough for me to mobilize in the AM.

But I've noticed for awhile that a lot of the most successful people I know are true morning people. My dad, for instance, has gotten up pre-dawn my entire life. By the time I tripped over the breakfast table, he'd organized his thoughts, read the news and gotten a jump on the day's communication. The head of my company even named his blog after this same tendency. The list goes on. They are at their most creative, most clear-headed in the early.

Now, circadian rhythms being what they are, I have figured out that I currently have three push points throughout the day. These are natural energy bursts and they seem to be when I am most productive. The first is around 9:30 in the morning, the second at 2 in the afternoon, the third at 6 in the evening. This leads to me working a bit later because I need the quiet time in the office to hear above the dull roar of my own internal conversations for writing and/or bigger strategy.

But what if there was a fourth? A fourth time for me to find peaceful productivity. Perhaps lose a pound or two in the process. That would be worth the experiment, I think. Two years ago I saw a trainer at 6am 3-4 times a week for two months. While the trainer part isn't in the cards now, it was interesting enough to merit movement and I found that I was in the office earlier and my "push periods" self-adjusted. I could meditate quietly while working out, come home, shower, check my feeds while my hair dried and then head to the office without any added doddering around due to delayed alertness.

Eventually I fell back into a later set of habits (sadly one that involved less sweat) but I look back at that and remember that it was fun. Fun to be awake first. Fun to have started with something so holistically good for me rather than something that just tasted good or sounded good.

I'm not foolish enough to think that I'll stop relishing the slow meandering mornings and quiet curled up nights but I think it's okay for me to look into other sources of joy lit up by fresh morning light. I had a great weekend with my mom in town, she being the eternal motivator, and I think I've thought about it enough.

My proposal? I have a gym that is less than 2 minutes walking from Wicked Park. I will tweet every morning when I get up early enough to go and would be happy to see I have morning company. I know it's not a lot but it's a start. I've set out workout ensembles for the week. Experiment begins tomorrow. Fingers crossed that I don't blow up the lab.

Any natural risers out there? Care to share your secrets?

I put together a new workout playlist in the comments over at NOLA 2010 so check that out if you too could use the motivation.

The UnVeiling: Jaimeson Edition

For the duration of this blog, I've been inconsistently discreet about my paramour and his professional life. Today I’m going to break from whatever opaque secrecy I’ve had and say that the music man you've known mostly as Jaimeson has been working on something rather rad for a very long time and the first piece of it is being previewed on Aurgasm.

This particular selection off Coalition of the Unwilling was composed by Jason Kanakis (that would be him) with lyrics by the ethereal Priscilla Ahn and sung by the belovelied Laura Jansen. Three favorites in one song and goodnight I could not be more proud.

Good Night?

It's Friday night. I don't know if it's my body still decompressing from the craziness of March/early April or if I managed to mentally age myself an extra several decades.

If we're going to be really honest, I think Spring is out to get me and I'd just as soon not tempt fate till May. I'm a Fall person anyway, for me Spring is "Well yes, that's nice and all that things are greening but let the sun out and let's drink wine in the garden already. *ACHOOOO*"

I'm not Spring's favorite either. My acupuncturist (yes, I have one of those now) says that people are more likely to have mystery issues in the Spring. The season itself has too much energy than can't be expressed through wood- the medium of the season, apparently. So my diagnosis (once my tongue was deemed "very healthy," you would not BELIEVE the things you can tell from a tongue) was that I have a lot of internal energy and it's having a tough time expressing itself. I buy that. I buy that like I buy the fortune cookies and horoscopes that say nice things I presumed of myself anyway.

So I'm walking an extra lap around the block and stretching in the mornings and I'm mostly laying low at night.

Like tonight:

• Making chicken stock and matzoh balls.
• Arranging tulips.
  
• Organizing my taxes
  
• Talking to the cat (That little biz is in cahoots with Spring. Steals my earrings, chicken, sleep and dignity)
  
• Watching a documentary
• Listening to my iPod on random (the musical version of "shopping in my own closet")
• Folding laundry

Goodnight.

Not really "Goodnight", goodNIGHT for emphasis. It's 9:20pm so I have a good solid hour of hard partying until I'm in bed with my Cooking Light.

I'm not going to make it this way till May. Not every night. I can't.

So instead I'm going to go on tour for three days.

Yes, I'm going on the road with a couple awesome musicians through the Rocky Mountains.

• I will have excessive amounts of wine with Sass and Carlyle.
• I will sleep in Colorado, Wyoming and Utah respectively.
• I will visit radio stations and try to look like I can play so much as the tambourine (I will tease my hair to help disguise my lack of musicality).
• I will have whiskey drinks and fish tacos.
• I will have coffee and a camera on the state line.
• I will have Jaimeson. For the first time in 5 weeks and 2 days...if you're counting.
  

I will be on tour in the mountains this time next week. And I may not go to bed at all. Better get my goodnights in now...it's time for adventuring again.

Speaking in/of Trapper

Several of you have rightfully called out the Blitzen Trapper reference below and admittedly they've been on my mind lately. As always, it was completely lovely (in the most badass way possible) to have the boys in town last week. We caught up for a bit and it occurs to me just how much can change in 6 months. Mike's engaged, Marty's baby girl is almost a toddler and everyone has rearranged their facial hair, as boys are wont to do. And for me, even since they ran into Jaimeson in London, things have mutated between me+J and it's funny looking back on trying to explain it to them at the time.

I've loved having a houseful of Trappers at every opportunity and even though they've now upgraded so that no one has to sleep under my kitchen table anymore, there's much to discuss over whiskey and wine. That said, they are ROCKING OUT right now and it's so fun to watch. I caught the back half of the title track,Furr, when they performed at Schuba's last week but I'd encourage you to watch their Conan segment from last night and pick up the new album.

Furr- Blitzen Trapper from ToKissTheCook on Vimeo.
I had it on full blast as I trekked to the Northwest last weekend and I still want to be out in the leaves and rocks listening to it now. Hell yeah Trappers- keep it coming and keep coming back!

TKTC Note: Another one to watch would be the opener from last week- Horse Feathers. Finch on a Saturday is available via both iTunes and eMusic.

Grandfathered In: Return to Wild Mountain Nation

I'm freshly returned from three fabulous days in the freshest air I've breathed in weeks and more fun than could possibly/practically be recounted here. As you've gathered here before, my grandfather is one of my very favorite people so my annual trip to Seattle, etc. has become a major highlight as I always go alone and we spend the weekend going for drives, working on photography and cooking above all. Irreverent and romantic in every way, Pop is his own man but I'm quite happy to be one of his girls.

This weekend was a little different because I was able to time the trip with Jaimeson's travels! After Friday evening and Saturday of hogging Pop and his companion Jennifer to myself, I brought J home with me after our Saturday night in Capitol Hill (hamming it up on the way to the show above). The pics do more justice than I could....
Pop gave up on giving anything up years ago. Which is to say, he keeps the butter out at room temperature for easy access while cooking. Above you'll see our breakfast spread from Saturday morning- instead of cream cheese, he bought a round of brie. Brie and Lox on toasted bagels with excellent coffee (Peet's Tanzania Kilamanjaro blend) and OJ. Did I mention that it was stunning out? Brie and Lox....bringing sunshine to the world and with its Judeo-French roots, it's even more PopPop.
After a lazy morning around the internet, the three of us took to the store to buy food for our lunch the following day. As tomorrow (11/18) is Jaimeson's birthday, he needed a treat. It's hard for me to make pie outside of my own kitchen so we took a cue for Orangette and made a Tarte Tatin instead- behold our beautiful, Washington-grown ingredients!

Onward to downtown Seattle where I did miss photographing one meal. The show Saturday night was at a kitschy little place called Chop Suey in Capitol Hill. As soundcheck was later in the day, all my restaurant-tip mongering was in vain. Why? Because the Iron Wok within Chop Suey serves a damn good Pad Thai or Pad See Ew for $7. As in WOW.

Great fuel for a sold out show and everyone did a fantastic job. I do have to call out my latest music crush as well because Emily Wells had me at hello. Actually she had me at soundcheck when she was playing the shit out of a violin while mixing some old school Dr. Dre. Sounds strange, tastes amazing. I bought the The Symphonies and listened the entire way home today. I never end up taking many pictures at the show but if you dare, here's a special dance party treat courtesy of Emily and Rachael. Elephants- get it? Apologies for camera work courtesy of one Mr. Daniels with my narration/cackling:

Emily and Rachael Chop Suey Dance Party from ToKissTheCook on Vimeo.

The next morning with rather bloodshot eyes I left J in bed to go clear my head and immerse myself in fresh things (best for driving out those whiskeytango demons). Our hotel was right downtown so I wandered toward Pike Place Market.
Alas, my inspiration for the trek is not open on Sundays:( Oh Creminelli, how I want to buy some of your sweet meats for myself! May need to resort to mail order for this one.

Almost edible- picked up this gorgeous bouquet (including kale blossoms) for $7 at Pike Place. God I love fresh flowers and know Pop does too. Jaimeson's always occurred to me as kindred with Pop but there's nothing wrong with a little sucking up in my book!

Pop was also looking to impress- our spread was Cobb Salad featuring: hard boiled eggs, smoked maple ham, gorgonzola, honey roasted peanuts, raisins and homemade dressing with flaky rolls and a good amount of pinot grigio. Yum.

After we'd finished eating, I started working on the night's dessert (hence the naked apples and trashcan) but I was not the only one put to work for the cause. Jaimeson acquiesced to the begging for a short afternoon review on the mandolin. A captive audience from Pop and Jen! He has been on the road for something like 12 weeks AND is nursing broken pinkie but broke it out and just ad-libbed for a solid hour. I can't type anything about that without making you a little nauseous so just assume I was a big fan of the gesture. {sighs, swoons}

We eased ourselves into dinner with TiVoed SNL and a Caprese salad. While I was working on the tarte, etc., I kept hearing laughter coming from Pop's studio. Of course when the boys emerged later they had matching mugs-o-mischief on and I can't say that I really wanted to know what the joke was. Trouble. Always trouble.
Dinner on Sunday consisted of lightly breaded and sauteed sea scallops, rice and white asparagus. I'm not typically a fan of the monochromatic plate but I'll tell you what- those scallops were delicious! And easy to make with a simple dredge in flour, lemon pepper and kosher salt and then sauteed in a small pad of butter. 4 min per side for the jumbo sea scallops or until they develop that beautiful brown crust.

Tarte Tatin a` la Orangette made the perfect halftime show for Chicago and I don't think that's a night I'll forget soon. Salted caramel apples on puff pastry in their brown butter glory, all the rich colors of the film and me surrounded by two of my favorite guys, both singing along with Roxie and Velma. A wholly vivid conclusion to a perfectly edible weekend out west.And also...yum. Just Chicago-watching, wine-drinking, fake glasses-wearing and tarte tatin-eating deliciousness. Sorry. It's true though- look at those damn dimples!

And That's Why They Call Them The Blues

Laura, Jonny & Alexa for Jaimeson. I know...I need a real camera.

I spent last Friday night mostly at the House of Blues with a newly-arrived Molly and Lex. 75% House of Blues, 10% La Pasadita, 15% Getting rid of the hiccups at Wicked Park/my house. And while at the House of Blues, we were stage right for 60% of the time, upstairs in the upper left wing for 15%, wandering around the inner workings of the HOB for 5% of the time and in the Foundation Room for 20%.

This would be a good time to mention that my math isn't really trustworthy when I'm fed and caffeinated. Going on whiskey, maraschino cherries and fumes? Ballpark at best.

Joshua Radin was in town. He brought three rather lovely ladies with him: Miss Alexa Wilkinson, Miss Laura Jansen and Miss Vanessa Carlton. He also brought a very nice band including the exquisite and expressive Jonny but missing exactly one mustache in my opinion. So Friday night I hung out with some very good friends of Jaimeson's without him even in a 5 state radius. I'm sure he felt like he was there though. Upon looking at my phone on Saturday, I saw that he heard from us a lot that night. Pictures, texts, voicemails...Oh boy.

It was a great show, I hadn't seen Alexa since our field trip to Connecticut in June. As for Laura, I found her randomly on MySpace back in October and when I read that post now and think about all of the in-between and particularly how things tie together in the strangest ways...well, it's a "Dear Universe, thanks for listening to the things I wasn't really saying out loud" kind of thing.

Alexa in her voluminous white tutu with the cerulean trim and Laura with her bangs hangin' low did a version of Patty Griffin's "Long Ride Home" that gave me goosebumps. Truth be told, Ang's concert review is probably a little more reliable.
Mol and I needed to eat so we snagged Alexa and Allie and made a run for it to La Pasadita. Not real sure what's happening above but I love that you can see Alexa's tutu above the table and well into Molly's lap. I love that thing!

Below was part o Saturday morning's scene. Could NOT figure out why the sugar was out and open. Then I remembered. Someone had me convinced that eating a full tablespoon of sugar would get rid of the hiccups. No. Maybe 2 full tablespoons of sugar? No, but now my teeth feel funny.
We got the girls into a cab and headed back just in time for their bus call and while it was certainly sad to not have J around, being surrounded by his motley crew was further proof that good attracts good.

Now, as promised, new and new-ish to the playlist:

My Good Deed by Shearwater
Wandering Kind by Laura Veirs
Furr by Blitzen Trapper (fun guest post in the works with Jonk for the album release in Sept.)
Harmony 2 & I Didn't Mean to Hurt You (reminds me of Sigur Ros) by Spiritualized
Borne on the FM Waves of the Heart by Against Me! feat. Tegan (credit:Jaimeson)
It's About Time by Barcelona
Spend the Night by Deer Tick
The Garden by Mirah (credit: So You Think You Can Dance)
Southern Comfort by Arrah and the Ferns
Hometown Glory by Adele
Wanderlust King by Gogol Bordello


And visiting Dawn Mitschele's MySpace often

Bright Glittering Gifts

For the record, I have my least melodramatic tone on. I'm too tired. I think I've been running on an adrenaline/oxytocin/ good food cocktail for the last week. It's better than carb-loading but my body still feels like it hoofed a super-marathon.

Drove him to the airport at 4:30 this morning...two days later than he was originally supposed to leave but it was pushed and pushed and pushed until there was life and work to be done and it couldn't be pushed anymore without pushing back.

Can't help but think maybe though. I had my first work dinner with my new job last night. A fabulous time at Graham Elliot with smart women and incredible food. I came home full and happy and drawling from a bottle of Kangarilla Road Shiraz blend and a Lemon Basil Mojito.

I came home at the same time he did and we were coming up the walk a few seconds apart. It actually felt like coming home more for that reason than because I'd arrived at the place where I live. We hadn't been apart for more than 10 minutes in the last six days so several hours felt fairly exaggerated.

I'm too tired to feel too terribly much at the moment so I'm throwing myself into apartment hunting for friends and looking for any new food blogs. I'm listening to Laura Veirs' album Saltbreakers while staring at the clean and folded laundry in the corner next to my desk.

Thank God for the exhaustion or I might put on my new orange rose earrings, $3 thrifted polyester jacket and the extra-dark aviators I made him wear last night after he shaved his fu man chu into a SuperTrooper cop stache that showcases the dimples. Basically just ridiculously surround myself with the things that remind me of him being here. As it stands, I'm just tired enough to eat some leftover Smoke Daddy from two nights ago and ride out the impending summer storm from bed.

I'll probably take this down later. But I'm too tired not to say it now.

More on the fantasma that is Graham Elliot (plays Sufjan Stevens when you visit the website, makes cheesy brioche "twinkies" to accompany Caesar salad, salted toffee ice cream and molten carrot cake, smoked gelato on beef tartare...) tomorrow when I can accomplish more than drool on the keyboard in complete sensory overload.

"We're Winning!"

People rarely say it out loud because it tends to tempt fate but here goes: I'm happy. And it's not one particular thing that's making me this way but rather a comprehensive effort on all fronts.

As you're well aware, Jaimeson has been here since late Thursday. What does that entail might you ask? Well, it entails having the perfect partner in crime for all of the things I've been meaning to do in this city...mostly involving food, obviously.

For instance, I'm an avid fan of Check, Please. A while back I'd seen a Lebanese place reviewed deliciously by all three panelists and had been craving ever since. Friday we took our bottle of wine to the Brown line and for $2 each got all the way to Albany Park to visit Semiramis (visible from the Kedzie station). We split incredible fries covered in olive oil, salt and sumac, some Baba Ganoush and then J had the Beef/Lamb Kofte and I had the Falafel special. A pastry trio and some devout coffee later, I can't find strong enough words to recommend this place so I'm just going to say GO!!!

Afterward, we decided to continue our Northern trek to the land of old friends...Evanston. Jaimeson hadn't met CVDJ or Bobby J and I hadn't met his friend Phil so we all met up at Prarie Moon to get fully aquainted with each other and some Jameson (namesake, much?). Let's just say that I won't be changing my own CB Handle anytime soon and while we had so much fun, it was a slow Saturday morning and I was more than grateful for the other half of my falafel special!!

Let me rephrase, Saturday wasn't all that slow. Once we got moving, the hits just kept on coming. We grabbed coffee at Alliance, took the bus down Division and proceeded to collect bounty at two Farmer's Markets, Sur La Table (TOYS!) and Whole Foods. D$ and Mar met us at the Green City Market and D showed up with tomatoes, jalapenos, etc. from his own garden in O-H-I-O as well as oranges from his grandparent's grove in FL. I am one lucky girl!!!

7 miles walking and one naptime later, we started to make a feast. Flank steak salad with roasted shallots, a thyme vinaigrette and fresh Capriole goat cheese. Honey-roasted tomato bruschetta, sauteed baby courgettes and wine. All eaten outside with total gusto and appreciation.

Not a great shot but VOILA! Dinner!

Bruschetta. OM WOW.

But the hits just kept on coming... after our big night on Friday, we spent Saturday night watching Wall-E in a half-empty theater and proceeded to walk home. I love a nice walk on a good night....all the better with built-in security detail.

Sunday we couldn't figure out how to top ourselves so instead of overthinking it on an empty stomach, we went to Milk&Honey for brunch and then decided to "take a lap" around the neighborhood. Taking a lap then turned into attending the small but fabulous music festival on Damen where we shopped, danced and stopped to pet and identify every single puppy we came across. There were a lot. Dinner was Thai Village take-out in the park, still well within earshot of Bob Schneider's set, and then the return home to finish watching The Philadelphia Story (an all-time favorite). Also saw Film School, Maps & Atlases, Van Ghost, Dub Trio, The Most Serene Republic and listened to the Charlie Hunter Trio. Not bad for $5.

Last night we took the train up to Ravinia to picnic with Mama Jaimeson & Co. and hear Canadian Brass play. More outdoor eating, more wine and of course the requisite 4-6 year old dance company putting on an impromptu conetmporary performance on the blanket next to us. So cute and I wish I could have filmed that. Amazing. We got home, make popcorn and watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix until someone fell asleep.

*TKTC Note: The best part is the devious looks on our faces when we realize we consistently have the exact same best case scenario. Like watching Harry Potter and gorging ourselves on popcorn. Hilarious.

This probably wasn't the best organized post but I needed to say something and he has a profound impact on my ability to organize my thoughts anyway. The proximity is fleeting, but it's been nothing short of stellar/ I'm all glowy. The running joke has been that we keep winning. Only it's not quite a joke, it really feels that way.

Procreation of Awesome

Pritzker Pavilion during The Decemberists last year

I was just whining away about having to miss Fleet Foxes at Pitchfork but then I ingeniously deduced that they would be playing a FREE Preview Show at Pritzker Pavilion on Thursday night, July 17th! I think this is being co-produced by Music Without Borders...awesome.

And speaking of FREE...run over to emusic.com to pick up the FREE Pitchfork Sampler!! I love emusic- much more affordable for those of you with "I loved Indie before it was so cool it wasn't" tattooed over your heart in broken goldleaf cursive. Like me. 50 downloads a month for under $15...yes please.

While we're on the topic, one of the guys from Grizzly Bear just posted his top 17 for the moment and you can stream them from his site. He also has a pretty fabulous garden which makes me like him even more.

So what I'm telling you is that a few kickass items are making babies and you get to check them all out. FOR FREE!

Can you tell I'm running on fumes, so to speak, till payday? "Necessity is the mother of invention!" says Mom.

Put A Fork In It

I'll admit to being more than a little bitter about missing Fleet Foxes AND Bon Iver (Originally a Jonk find) at Pitchfork this year due to a work event. That said, this video of "For Emma, Forever Ago" shot in Paris is making me feel a small bit better. I really need to find a way to get to one of Bon Iver's shows when AA Bondy's opening! Top Two? Milwaukee on August 14th or Troubadour on August 26th. Sincere logistical difference between the two but you know how I roll...

In other music news, Dave McMillin put on a sillyfab set last night at Schubas. Brother's voice gets that amazing soulgravel to it and it's simultaneously energizing and completely heartbreaking. The new album sounds fantastic (Heartsteady, Go Easy) but an unexpected highlight was his duet with Grant-Lee Phillips for "The Weight" by the Band.

Sooo nice to have some musical friends in the neighborhood now! There have been empty threats floating around about pulling yours truly on-stage to play some mad hot tambourine. You should know I play tambourine about as well as I play mandolin even though it looks less complicated.

"It's kind've like Friday...it's summer!!" says Lexi on the way into Schubas.

Alright, I'm settling down early tonight. Lex, Jeffe and I got a little whiskeytangoed last night in our summer concert enthusiasm. As in I left J a 5 minute message that was straight out of Greenville, MS. Yikes.

Maybe if I put on my fancy shoes and click my heels three times I can get to Dan Wilson's show in time to see the boys go on. Really just the one boy would do...two weeks!!

Paying Attention

If I were going to pick a theme for the last year, it would be “Pay Attention.” I am naturally a little scatterbrained (please pretend to be surprised) so I try to remind myself to take a breath, take a step back, take no prisoners...whatever needs to be done to keep me fully inside my life rather than in several different directions, decades etc.

That’s largely what the whole “Dear Universe” thing has been about- things that laid down in my lap when I started paying attention or in some cases bit me hard on the ankle when I wasn’t.

Universe says, “Pay attention- this could be really good!” or “Pay attention- you’re forcing it!” or “Pay Attention- You’re happy!!”

The same could be said for knowing where I am. I’ve always generally known how old I was. It kept me out of trouble in high school because I knew I was young and I knew there’d be time for that.
And that.
And thoooose.

And what do you know? There has been. I'm young. I seem to be surrounded by great people no matter where I am. I'm broke 90% of the time but the weather's warm and I could have butterflies about any number of things at any given minute. The inevitability of both fantastic and very dark things ahead is not lost on me and I'm grateful for this.

What brought this on??? John Mayer wrote an excellent blog post to the same end yesterday. I read it and spent the entire time just nodding and saying “Exactly” in my head. Say what you will about JM, he’s one of my favorite musicians of the last 10 years. There are full chapters of my life that run to the tune of one song or another and to have that kind of songwriting ability plus a purist’s guitar talent....well it only comes around a few times in a generation.

There was a year or so there when I would read something or another and get annoyed but I gave up the gossip ghost with my last job and am back to just enjoying the music and respecting the man making it. I only wish he still played a more intimate venue but I'm not alone in my musical affections which is in fact, a good thing.

Someone just offered me tickets to see an advance screening of “Where The Light Is” tonight and then Jess mentioned him in a post last night. Having him come up three times in a 24 hour period strikes me as something I should pay attention to but in other news- I am just odd on a Monday.

Raving

For awhile I had several items in my queue that I was looking forward to so now is as good a time as any to acknowledge that they were worthy of the hype:

Frontera Grill: That mole sauce. That guacamole. Rick Bayless is cool for several reasons, but the fact that this place is STILL awesome is pretty high on that list. Plus CVDJ, Mag and I have been sipping Corona Lights and Margaritas together for the better part of a decade now. Makes it feel like May in earnest to be with old school loves.

The Assassination of Jesse James by The Coward Robert Ford: I fell in love with the soundtrack first. A collaboration between Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, the piano and cello are nothing short of hauntingly beautiful. Rather Lovely Thing in particular gives me the chills.
Just watched the movie tonight and would say the same. Brad Pitt may be "Brad Pitt" but he's a mighty fine actor on top of it and I've had a thing for Casey Affleck since he put his burger on layaway in Good Will Hunting. Such a stunningly shot movie. NETFLIX.

Iron Man: On top of the sheer pleasure of getting to drive 20 minutes to the center of an intricately built town, I got to go to the movies. One of my very favorite things and Shawn doesn't like to miss the previews either which is another reason we're friends. This is not your average superhero blockbuster. It is witty, it is thoughtful, it is well-done. Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow were perfectly cast and speaking of RDJ...I have missed him.

Seersucker: I wore wide-leg trousers with a matching vest to work today with a black T-shirt and I enjoyed every minute of it. Come on, Chicago...allllmost there.

Colin Hay: Former front man/ songwriter for Men At Work took on my latest favorite Chicago venue a couple weeks ago and Caro and I took front seats. It was the last night of his tour before joining Ringo Starr for his and Colin was clearly enjoying every minute of his own spotlight time. Funny. And still playing it well after all these years. Openers Kate Lamont & blueprint music are now on my radar as well- think Allison Krauss.

Move to Top of Queue:

CAPE COD: It may not be warm enough to beach but my entire Irish side of the family will be split between two houses and Susie's even coming over to witness the madness!! Two days!

Dori's Benefit: Tomorrow night I'm putting my hair in hot rollers and donning my fancy black taffeta dress (and probably having too many cocktails with Colleague) to fete one of my favorite fashionistas.

Garden Party: Co-hosting a summer soiree in the garden next weekend for TKTC and Caro's 25th birthdays (a week early for me, a week late for her). Lots of wine, food just as adorable as it is delicious, little vases of big blooms, every lantern/candlestick holder in my apartment and fabulous company on a nice afternoon. I'm bringing the kitchen table outside and setting out blankets to sprawl on. Yes.

Boys Night: All girls in the afternoon for the hostessed portion but the guys are meeting us at Pint later in the evening for all sorts of rambunction. All planes running in a timely manner, one boy in particular will be meeting many friends for the first time. Cross your fingers for both of us;)

Oh Really, Universe? Music Edition

I'll keep it brief. Y'all know I love my music but in two cases, I've now come to love the people making it as well. Obviously we have Jaimeson. But then there are also the boys collectively known as Blitzen Trapper. I came to know them about a year apart and they've both come to be standards here in Wicked Park.

Their music is completely different but both sets can hold their whiskey, put on a fantastic show, appreciate baked goods and stay chez TKTC when they come to Chicago (obviously in different parts of my little apartment) or even chez Brother in Boston. I've always suspected they would get along but they run in different circles and while I've mentioned each to the other, I hadn't really thought about it much.

Until this morning. Jaimeson called last night and we were chatting through when he was coming back, where the last show was etc. Cary was booked last minute for a gig in London so they were excited about a longer set and J's dad would be there for it. I thought, It'd be nice for Kate to finally meet Jaimeson so I'll look up the venue for her and send the link.

You've got to be kidding.

I knew Blitzen was over there but they arrived after I'd already come back so I just didn't think anything of it. But there they were. Playing the same venue as Cary. On the same night. In London.

My monsters are sharing a stage on Monday and somebody had better have some UK minutes left because that's a drunk dial I don't want to miss.

Brotherly Love of the Musical Variety

1) Cary Brothers' video for the song Ride got picked up by VH1 over the weekend and started into circulation early enough this morning to qualify as late last night. This is a fantastic thing for a number of reasons but mostly because it's a solid video done by a solid guy who's working off his own imprint (read: no big record label is pushing people around to get this kind of thing accomplished).



That's where you come in...If you get a second, can you go to the VH1 website in the "Wildcard" section at the bottom, then put that in the #1 position on the chart and click Submit? Click here to go to the site.

2) Speaking of TV, I will be watching Leno tonight. Should you have a penchant for Ingrid Michaelson, hats or big Greek guitarists, I would put that on your list. You know me...I love all of those things:)