A Lesson in Butchery and Cooking

michael fiorelli, lamb bolognese, terranea mar' sel

Slow Cooked Lamb Bolognese
Paccheri Pasta, Homemade Ricotta

FA and I had the pleasure of attending a class offered at the Chefs’ Summer Cooking Series @ Terranea Resort where we were invited in to the Mar’ Sel restaurant kitchen for a step-by-step lamb butchering demonstration by the talented and engaging Chef Michael Fiorelli. After the lesson we, along with 8 other guests, were seated in the beautiful dining room overlooking the Pacific Ocean to feast on a fabulous luncheon highlighting lamb.

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Joël Robuchon, Claude Monet & 5 Years of Taste With The Eyes

L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon
A Menu of Small Tasting Portions

Monet’s Table: The Cooking Journals of Claude Monet
(book giveaway at the end of this post, thru July 6)

“Cap Martin, Near Menton”
Claude Monet

cap martin, near menton floral arrangement

“Cap Martin, Near Menton”
Floral Arrangement

On our trip to Las Vegas we “encountered” two ultra-gifted Frenchmen, artists Joël Robuchon and Claude Monet – the Chef and the Painter. It wasn’t until after I returned home that I realized how the two are ultimately connected…

The oil-on-canvas landscape painting “Cap Martin, Near Menton” is from Monet’s more experimental works of the French Riviera in 1884. We were delighted by the ingenious flower arrangement on display at the Bellagio Conservatory which has been modeled after Claude Monet’s painting.

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Pan-Seared Branzino, Cucumber Salmoriglio, Borage Blossoms

branzino, salmoriglio, ciao fiore

Pan-Seared Branzino, Cucumber Salmoriglio, Borage Blossoms

Here we are on the sparkling azure Mediterranean. I’m in the cucina with Chefs Norma and Debi, cooking for opening day of our virtual ristorante Ciao Fiore! Norma is in the process making ricotta fresca for the extravagant antipasti tavola, and Debi is using sodium alginate and calcium chloride to craft the strawberry caviar which will top her lavender & mascarpone panna cotta as a part of the fabulous dessert course.

branzino, borage, salmoriglio, castelvetrano

My job is to execute the main course, and with the risotto already done, imagine my delight as the fishing boat pulled up to the dock, loaded with just-caught branzino! Fresh from the sea pan-seared fillets will be served with salmoriglio, a Sicilian fish sauce made with olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and herbs. For our grand opening, this particular version of the classic sauce will be enhanced with Meyer lemon confit, red chiles, cucumber, and Castelvetrano olives. Borage blossoms will finish the dish, with their sweet cucumber flavor accenting the sauce while their bright blue hue mirrors the sea.

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Where to Eat Next in Chicago: Balsan


Enjoy the luxurious two-star Michelin restaurant RIA in the fabulously chic Waldorf Astoria Chicago with one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs 2012 Danny Grant. Then go try Balsan – RIA’s hip casual-yet-sophisticated little sister, sharing the same kitchen.

Balsan’s rustic artisanal menu, crisp easy-going service, and a gregarious atmosphere for which Chicago is known make for a winning combination. Looking for a place to hang out when you attend the National Restaurant Association SHOW next month?
This is the place.

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Brunch. Manhattan. Beach.

post bangin' brunch, mb post
Manhattan Beach Post
POST BANGIN’ BRUNCH

She called it one of the most surprising openings of the year. As one of the Best Meals of 2011Los Angeles Times Restaurant Critic S. Irene Virbila lists her experience at M.B. Post as one of 2011’s most memorable. The upscale Water Grill in Downtown LA with Chef David LeFevre at the helm for years has been our favorite seafood restaurant, and that hasn’t changed. But now this Michelin-starred chef is in the South Bay, our neck of the woods, down at the beach, and we’re thrilled.

manhattan beach post restaurant

M.B Post serves imaginative, artisan global-style dishes in a casually sophisticated atmosphere that purposefully lends itself to a “social house” setting. It’s a fresh brilliant concept where sliding doors open onto the street, with beach-town ambiance, but in a non-stereotypical fashion.

The Chef began offering his Post Bangin’ Brunch in January. Hooray.

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