The Hungry Apple

I went to Chicago this summer. I had so much to say about this wonderful city,  that I decided to stew on it and come back later to give my report. And later is now. 8 months later. I have a friend who is traveling to Chicago this spring and I promised a post.

Now, the group didn’t do anything tremendously educational. It was mostly touristy sight seeing, a whole lot of the culinary scene, staying out late and sleeping late to recover. Taking in as much as we could in a short amount of time.  The trip was nothing short of legendary.

I want to go back as soon as possible. That’s the thing about traveling to cool places. I’d like to find new cities to love but there is always so much that I could still discover about the cities I have already been to. First world issues to be sure.

Sometimes I am just baffled that all my pictures are taken with my phone [and some, not so much]. But…it is the hungry apple after all.

Among my city favorites were:

the bean

adventures in babysitting building:  (Elizabeth Shue: what is it really called?!)

Ruxbin Restaurant: the greatest dining experience of my life thus far. byob.

Mott Street: restaurant whose a/c was broken and it was still a blast. that’s saying a lot in 90 degree weather.

Girl and The Goat: Bucket list restaurant where we were placed in outdoor seating no less. Check. This is also the place where I had goat cheek for the first time. how could that not be memorable?  it was delicious.

The J. Parker: bar on top of hotel. views of lake and city.

Hotel Lincoln: the hotel that the bar is on top of.

La Vieille Ferme: this wine was 6 bucks at trader joes and somehow it was so delicious. not really chicago related, but I did have it for the first time in chicago and Ruxbin is byob. i’m just sayin.

Leggo of that Eggo. There’s a new waffle in town.

Having a basic waffle recipe in your arsenal is clutch. This one should suit most tastes, it’s not too sweet but it’s fluffy and doesn’t take long.

They have a high calorie count (at 300 calories per waffle) but they are from scratch and could easily be made organic.  They also freeze beautifully, wrapped in wax paper and stored in a ziploc bag.

Adding the milk.

Here is what the whites should look like.

You can make them as thick or thin as you like. I use a half cup measure for each waffle. I prefer that they not spill over the edge. Waffle makers are a bitch to clean. Am I right?

For fun, i combined 1 cup of frozen berries, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon water and 1/2 teaspoon of cornstarch in a small pan and simmered it over low heat until it had the consistency of jam.

Then i topped my waffles with it.

Basic Waffles

ingredients: 

1 1/3 cups flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

2 eggs, separated

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 3/4 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

instructions and directions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients together. Stir well.

Separate the eggs. Put the yolds in the dry ingrediens and the whites into their own small mixing bowl.

Beat the whites until they stiffen.

Add milk, vanilla and melted butter to the dry ingredents and blend together until combines.

Fold in the egg whites and set aside for 5 minutes.

Ladle into waffle iron and cook until desired.

Makes 6-8

adapted from food.com