Posted July 29th, 2015 by Chris
Had a good turn out and there were no bad recipes. Win!
Poutine – http://www.food.com/recipe/real-canadian-poutine-113388, http://allrecipes.com/recipe/vegetarian-gravy/
This was a little rough, the gravy turned out great, but the “fries” took forever and we probably made way too much of them. Next time, a single sack of potatoes is plenty.
Maple-Glazed Salmon – http://www.canadianliving.com/food/maple_glazed_salmon.php
This was simple and AWESOME! So good…
Canadian Bacon in Wine Sauce – http://www.cooks.com/recipe/cs1t271q/canadian-bacon-in-wine-sauce.html
Everybody liked it and there were no leftovers.
Apple Snow with Preserved Ginger – http://www.canadianliving.com/food/baking_and_desserts/apple_snow_with_preserved_ginger.php
Basically homemade apple sauce with some extra stuff in it, turned out pretty tasty.
Posted June 22nd, 2015 by Chris
Hey there, eh?
Sorry for the delays in getting this out, we’re drawing our inspiration this week from our neighbors to the North, America’s hat, Canada. Some of their weather seems to be sticking around in Chicago right now, so why not bring their fancy meats and syrup too? We’ll be deep frying potatoes and making our own gravy, as well as mixing it with cheese for what can only be described as a direct assault on your arteries. Sorry! Hopefully we don’t burn down the place in the attempt.
Sorry!
When: This Wednesday, June 24th. Food ready by 7:30.
What: Poutine, Maple-glazed Salmon, Canadian Bacon in Wine Sauce, Apple Snow with Preserved Ginger
Bring your friends, put on your favorite lumberjack tune, grab a six-pack of LaBatt, and come on over. Sorry, it’s time to eat.
/Chris
Posted March 28th, 2015 by Chris
This Cooking Army was great, all the recipes were so good, we didn’t have ANY leftovers. And we cooked roughly 12 lbs of meat for about 11-13 people. Only downside was that since everything was baked (and at different temperatures), we didn’t finish cooking until 9pm.
Pomegranate and Gorgonzola Stuffed Pork Tenderloin Recipe – http://fitbottomedeats.com/2014/05/pork-tenderloin-recipe/
A little bit of gorgonzola goes a long way. This ended up not cooking through quite as much as we would have liked, but it was still tasty.
Stuffed Tomatoes With Gruyère – http://www.foodrepublic.com/2012/04/30/stuffed-tomatoes-gruy%C3%A8re
This was probably our best item of the night, the fresh basil and parsley was awesome. The recipe made WAY too much of the breadcrumb stuffing, but it’ll be perfect for some meatloaf.
Stuffed Tomato Basil Chicken – http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Stuffed-Tomato-Basil-Chicken/Detail.aspx
This came out perfect, just the right amount of cheese (parmesan and provolone) and it baked in the chicken juice and bacon grease, so it didn’t dry out at all.
Bacon-Wrapped Dates – http://www.popsugar.com/food/Recipe-Bacon-Wrapped-Dates-4952556
So simple and yet, one of our favorites and quick to make.
Posted March 24th, 2015 by Chris
Howdy folks!
You know those Russian dolls that open up and there’s another doll inside and then another one inside of that one? Well, I have one and it inspired me this week to see if we could cook a bunch of delicious things stuffed inside other delicious things. That’s right, I’m going to get stuffed! Or attempt to stuff you… with food that’s inside of food. Like the Inception of food… mmm… stuffing.
When: This Wednesday, March 25th. Cooking starts at 6:30. Food ready by 7:30.
What: Pomegranate and Gorgonzola Stuffed Pork Tenderloin, Stuffed Tomato Basil Chicken, Stuffed Tomatoes With Gruyère, Bacon Wrapped Dates
While there is no thanksgiving stuffing to be had, we encourage you to bring drinks of all kinds: beer, wine, mixed drinks, whatever’s your fancy. Prepare to stuff your face: bring your friends, bring your bellies, it’s time to eat.
/Chris
Posted February 25th, 2015 by Chris
Eaters,
I’ve been working hard to learn to cook fish. People keep telling me it’s healthy and stuff, but really it’s just expensive. I’ve found some great recipes to practice at home, unfortunately none of them are easy to make for cooking army. I give you fish that scales well.
When: This Wednesday, February 25th. Cooking starts at 6:30. Food ready by 7:30.
What: Fish green curry with rice, Pasta with fish, Crispy Fish Sticks, Bourride (poached fish with garlic mayonaise soup)
Bring booze please. I know people say white wine with, but I don’t know that many people that actually like white wine…
Come eat,
Jason
Posted February 9th, 2015 by Chris
China. Its global domination will soon be upon us. But if my viewing of popular science fiction is any indication (which it certainly is), at least we will soon be flying across the Verse, hiring a crew, finding a job, and keeping on flying. Until that time, though, we might as well get used to the native cuisine that we hijacked and made our own and then sold back to them with true red, white, and blue American grit, determination, and elbow grease. It’s Americanized food so there’s guaranteed to be some sort of grease involved. So come join us for our next Cooking Army featuring “Chinese” food. We’ll be serving up some of your favorite dishes you order from your local hole-in-the-wall Chinese place.
Stuff and junk!
When: Wednesday, February 11th, dinner at 7:30, cooking at 6:30
What: Veggie Fried Rice, General Tsao’s Chicken, Sweet and Sour Chicken
Bring your friends, bring your hardened arteries, it’s time to eat.
Posted January 26th, 2015 by Chris
Hola Compadres!
While the past few days haven’t been quite so bitter has they have been in recent weeks, we still long for the warmth of the places on the Earth that simply refuse to have cold Winters. This coupled with Carnival just a few weeks away, our thoughts drift to Brazil. We’re going to heat up this week’s Cooking Army with some blistering spices of the South American country and see if we can’t hold off the chill at least a little while. Or at least have your eyes and mouth watering for more…
Ariba!
When: This Wednesday, January 28th. Cooking starts at 6:30. Food ready by 7:30.
What: Feijoada (Black Bean Stew), Brazilian Collards, Pao de Queijo (Brazilian Cheese Bread), Brazilian Chicken with Coconut Milk, Brazilian “Lemonade”
While we’re focusing on Brazilian foods this week, you’re more than welcome to bring beers or wine of any South American variety, of which we hear are pretty tasty. Get ready for some food from South of the equator: bring your friends, bring your bellies, it’s time to eat.
Posted January 11th, 2015 by Chris
Hey Kids,
The holidays are finally over and old man winter is being his disagreeable-old-bastard self again. I can think of no better time than now to eat food that reminds us that the sun does actually exist and may decide to grace our fair city again someday. While I had a lot of options to choose from, I decided on Moroccan cuisine. Why? I can’t really say. The amount I know about Morocco can be summed up in less sentences than I’ve already forced you to read. However, I do know their food is full of delicious spices combined perfectly to make you forget any amount of bleakness. This week we have a variety of dishes, about half of which are eaten in Morocco during Ramadan to break one’s fast. If I were starving all day and had one meal to look forward to, harira would definitely be at or near the top of my list.
Anyway!
When: This Wednesday, January 14th. Cooking starts at 6:30. Food ready by 7:30.
What: Chicken Tagine, Lamb Harira, Couscous Shepherd’s Pie, Almond Paste Stuffed Dates and Moroccan Mint Tea
Despite the fact that we’ll be serving tea, you should still bring whatever else you’d like to drink. Tea is great and all, but the ABV on it is pretty low (unless you compare it to wide distribution American lagers). So come, shake the snow off your boots and shake the hunger out of your guts. It’s time eat.
-Jeremy
Posted September 22nd, 2014 by Chris
Howdy everyone,
This week at cooking army we celebrate the unbelievably delicious and varied food of New Orleans. New Orleans is a city everybody should treat their stomach to at some point. Sure there is a ton of poverty, and sure it’s effectively built to encourage biblical-grade flooding, but from a culinary perspective there is no better place to visit in the US. So do as they do in Louisiana and just ignore all the depressing aspects of the city and instead stuff your face with our delicious offerings. You’ll find it’s exceedingly easy after the first bite.
When: This Wednesday, September 24th. Cooking at 6:30. Food ready eventually.
What: Gumbo, Mufaletta Sandwhiches, Beignets, Okra Creole
As usual, bring whatever you’d like to drink and bring with you any other revelers who wish to attend. Also, pack your marching band and your bead necklaces. It’s time to eat.
-Jeremy
Posted September 11th, 2014 by Chris
This Cooking Army went fantastic with 2 of the sauces being great, butternut squash soup was amazing as ever, and I stumbled upon a great flour-less chocolate cake recipe. Had a good turnout too with about 15 people.
Tomato-Cream Sauce for Pasta – http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Tomato-Cream-Sauce-for-Pasta/Detail.aspx
This was the weakest sauce of the night, which is to say, it’s a perfectly decent tomato cream sauce. It’s good, but nothing fantastic about it.
North Carolina-Style Vinegar Barbecue Sauce – http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/north-carolina-style-vinegar-barbecue-sauce-recipe.html
This was a creeper, it looked very watery and it’s initial taste was a bit strange, but then the chipotle spice hit you and it was great. I think this is perfect for chicken, but could be great on other plain meats.
Fresh Strawberry Sauce – http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Fresh-Strawberry-Sauce/Detail.aspx
The sauce was fantastic, but was a bit overshadowed by how good the flour-less chocolate cake it was being poured over was.
Flourless Chocolate Cake – http://allrecipes.com/recipe/flourless-chocolate-cake-i
This tied many peoples favorite of the night with the butternut squash soup and that’s saying something because that’s one of our best recipes ever. It was very moist without being cake-y and too fluffy. Using Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate probably helped.
Butternut Squash Soup – http://www.food.com/recipe/creamy-roasted-butternut-squash-soup-188978
This is one of our best recipes and there’s a reason I won’t use another until someone show’s me a better one. An all time favorite and one of tonight’s favorites.