A Lovely Luncheon at the University Club

We had yet another delightful and interesting

luncheon at the University Club in the IMU today.

Our guest speaker was Dr. Tom Morrison, 

who is Indiana University's 

Vice President for Capital Projects and Facilities.

He spoke to us about the Master Plan for the Bloomington campus.

They have things planned out years and years in advance.

 They leave nothing to chance.

If you are interested in learning all the details,

the fine print can be found here.

It was a fascinating talk for those of us

who are familiar with the campus.

But since this is actually supposed to be a food blog,

with some gardening 

and some other stuff thrown in from time to time,

let's get to the food...

 

First up was a Bitika Salad 

of iceberg and romaine lettuces

 with blue cheese, bacon, chopped cauliflower 

and garlic sweet and sour dressing.

I liked the fact that the salad wasn't swimming

(or rather drowning) in dressing.

It was done just right.

 I chose the

Grilled petite pork chop with rosemary and garlic 

over mashed potatoes 

with country style gravy and green beans as my entree.

The pork was cooked perfectly and was moist and tender.

 

 Several others at our table ordered the vegetarian option of

Eggplant Parmesan.

They were very happy with their choice.

I could tell.

Their happy smiles and clean plates told the tale.

 

Dessert was a cheesecake with cherry sauce.

The food was delicious as always.

We are fortunate to have

such a great chef and kitchen staff at the IMU.

Lunch at the University Club

Last week we had yet another luncheon at the

Indiana University Club at the IMU.

This time our guest speaker was Doug Booher,

the Director of IU Auditorium.

Mr. Booher told us how they go about bringing all the

wonderful shows to the auditorium.

Some of this season's offerings were

Jon Stewart, Good vs Evil, Stomp,

South Pacific, Young Frankenstein,

and Bernadette Peters.

Lunch, as always, was superb.

We started off with a spinach berry salad.

Obviously the berries in question were strawberries.

The dressing was a strawberry vinaigrette.

The entree was turkey with sherried mushrooms au jus,

brown rice pilaf, asparagus, and mushrooms.

The vegetarian option was an Idaho baker with

mushroom artichoke ragu served with seasonal vegetables 

and roasted sweet red peppers.

Dessert was grilled angel food cake with mixed berries.

I loved how grilling changed the flavor of the angel food cake.

IMU Catering did a terrific job, as always.

A lovely spring bouquet graced the center of the table.

It was a delightful luncheon

and we had a wonderful time.

A Snowy Day on Indiana University Campus

Winter finally decided to visit us,

with temperatures in the teens

and a bit of snow.

We lucked out in that we only got about a half an inch of snow

instead of the one to two inches that had been forecast.

I had a meeting today at the IMU,

so I decided to take my camera with me

and get some shots of the winter scenes on campus

for those of you who crave snow.

 The snow covered banks of the Jordan River.

 Dunn Cemetery next to the IMU.

 Beck Chapel in the snow.

Just be glad you weren't out in the weather with me.

The temperature may have been 19 degrees,

but the wind chill was about 5 degrees.

The Last Tailgate of the Season

This past Saturday was
the annual IU vs. Purdue (hiss) game,

otherwise known as the Oaken Bucket game.

The winner of the game gains possession of 

the Oaken Bucket for the next year.

Each year, a link with the winning team's initial

on the chain is added to the bucket.

Then, the winning team's initial is proudly displayed

outside the oaken bucket until it is claimed by the

next winning team.

Enough of the football:

on to the food.

Our theme this week was "Thanksgiving Leftovers".

So I adapted my recipes to match that theme.

First up:  Brie en Croute.

1 puff pastry sheet

1 8-ounce round of brie

3 to 4 tablespoons F.R.O.G (Fig, Raspberry, Orange, Ginger) Preserves

Allow the puff pastry sheet to thaw and roll out to a square.

Place the brie in the center.

Spread enough preserves on top to mostly cover the top of the brie.

Then, gather the corners of the pastry together and tuck in "artistically".

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Normally, one would let this sit for 20 to 40 minutes before serving with sliced apples and/or crackers, but this is a tailgate.  At this point, the baked brie en croute went into the refrigerator.  I will heat it back up over low flame on the mini grill at the tailgate.

Next up are the Krab Bites.

I sliced each fake crab leg into four sections.  Then the "pre-cooked" bacon is cut in half crosswise.  Each crab section is wrapped with a half piece of bacon and secured with a tooth pick.

The final dish of the day was Ina Garten's French Apple Tart.

1 puff pastry sheet
3 Honeycrisp apples
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup F.R.O.G. (Fig, Raspberry, Orange, Ginger) preserves
2 tablespoons rum

After thawing the puff pastry, roll out on a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet.

Peel, core, and slice the apples and arrange in diagonal rows on the pastry.

Sprinkle with sugar and dot with the cubed pieces of butter.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, turning halfway.  If the pastry begins to puff up, stab with a knife (gently, not like Norman Bates would stab Marion).

Let cool for a few minutes before gently (there's that word again) prying off the parchment with a spatula. Wait any longer and you run the risk of the tart becoming one (and not in a good way) with the parchment.

Heat the preserves and the rum together until melted.  Pour over the top of the cooked pastry.

After the tart has cooled, cut with a pizza cutter.

We really need to work on figuring out a way to prevent the spillage of the sugars over the edges, resulting in burnt caramelized edges.  Ina doesn't address this problem.  Well, this isn't the first time I've had problems with an Ina recipe.  Too bad I don't work for her, because I could save her much embarrassment.

Can you believe it?  The last Saturday in November and the temperatures were in the low 60s.

The feast is spread.  Besides our contributions, our tailgate buddies brought regular chili and chicken chili, sliced BBQ pork loin, turkey, stuffing, iced pumpkin bars (cake, really), apples with caramel, and cheese spread and crackers.  Later, more food arrived with more tailgate buddies.

Already, half the French apple tart has disappeared.

The crock pots are working their magic.

This is a mighty feast.

Meanwhile, our tailgate neighbors had made their famous spam and bologna egg sandwiches for breakfast and later had venison/beef burgers and brats.  Sadly, I missed out on the venison/beef burgers. 

Once again I opted to stay outside instead of going into the game.  This allows the others to know that I am there to guard things while they are watching the Hoosiers lose once again, I was able to sit outside without fear of getting another migraine (after just finally getting rid of a month-long one) I had the chance to get some writing done. 

After writing for a bit, I grew restless and wandered next door.  Our very nice neighbors invited me over to watch the game on their TV and to eat some food.

And back to some food.  I love stuffing.  This stuffing was super moist and very well seasoned.

On the left is the brie en croute.  It may not look pretty, but it is oh, so delicious.  Especially on a thin slice of apple.

The tailgates were going strong.

Everywhere you looked.

Except for the student section.  Seems that many of the kids were still at home with their families. 

Despite a few sprinkles and a bit of wind, this was a wonderful day for a tailgate.

And yes, IU managed to lose yet once again.  But hey, we almost managed to have a perfect season!  A perfect losing season, that is.  We won one game against a minor team from South Carolina.  Whoot?

On the bright side, downtown is brightly lit.

I'm already looking forward to next year.  Maybe we'll even have some wins to go with the good food and great company?

Tailgate Time!

The last Saturday in October dawned clear and cold.

It was a balmy 32 degrees when we arrived at the tailgate

just after 8 am.  

The Foodie Daughter was due to start work at 9,

so we needed to be there early for her.

The trees are wearing IU red.

The feast is spread.

But let's go back a couple of days

so I can show you how I made my offerings

for this veritable banquet.

First up is Ina Garten's Homemade Marshmallows.

The ingredients are:

3 packages unflavored gelatin

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Dissolve the gelatin in 1/2 cup water.

Meanwhile, combine the granulated sugar, corn syrup, salt

and 1/2 cup water in a sauce pan.

Cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.

Raise the heat to high and cook until the temperature reaches

240 degrees.

Make sure that the thermometer is not touching the bottom.

You want to be taking the temperature of the liquid,

not the pot.

The gelatin is ready for the candy mixture.

Once the mixture has reached 240 degrees, 

slowly pour into the gelatin while

the mixer is running on slow.

It would be best if you had a stand mixer,

but it is entirely possible to make these with a hand mixer.

Just a bit tiring.

Continue mixing for 15 minutes.

After five minutes the mixture begins to turn white.

At the 15 minute mark the mixture is thick and 

the mixer is struggling.

And why is it that when you want an appliance to die

it just keeps on going and going,

but when you are trying to keep something alive

it croaks if you even look at it?

Add in the vanilla and mix in until well-blended.

I like this picture.

I hate the shadows in my kitchen, though.

Despite what Ina says, 

a dusting of confectioner's sugar is not enough to 

keep the marshmallow from sticking to everything and anything.

I recommend placing parchment paper in the 8" x 12" pan

and spraying that with cooking spray to keep the 

marshmallows from sticking.

Trust me on this.

Dust the surface with confectioner's sugar.

Let sit out overnight to dry out.

Spray a pizza cutter with cooking oil

and after turning the marshmallow out

of the pan, cut into squares.

Roll all sides of the cut squares in 

confectioner's sugar.

Store in an air-tight container at room temperature.

The second dish was also from Ina Garten.

This was my riff on her French Apple Tart.

I opted to substitute a sheet of puff pastry 

instead of making the pastry as I was also making several

other things that day.

I also changed out a few other items,

such as substituting honeycrisp apples for

Granny Smiths.

I don't like Granny Smiths. Period. Dot.

I also didn't have apricot preserves,

but I do have F.R.O.G. preserves.

(Fig, Raspberry, Orange, Ginger)

The ingredients:

1 puff pastry sheet

4 honeycrisp apples*

1/2 cup sugar

4 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes

1/2 cup F.R.O.G. preserves

2 tablespoons rum

*3 apples would have been enough.

Another nice thing about honeycrisps is their 

resistance to browning.

We snacked on the leftovers and had the rest for dinner.

I rolled out the puff pastry sheet to about 10" x 14" 

on a sheet of parchment paper.

Ina suggests trimming the edges so that the 

tart looks pretty,

but frankly I think that is a waste of good pastry

and doesn't that defeat the purpose of "homemade" anyway?

Homemade should look wonky and out of square.

Place in the fridge while prepping the apples.

Peel, core and slice the apples.

Arrange in a nice diagonal pattern on the pastry.

Sprinkle with the sugar and the small pats of butter.

Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

I found that the tart was done after 45 minutes.

But your mileage may vary.

Ina suggests turning the pan halfway 

during the baking process

and to prick any areas that are puffing up.

I forgot to do that, but life goes on.

The sugars caramelized as they seeped over the edge of the tart.

Heat the preserves and the rum before pouring over the tart.

Gently lift from the parchment and allow to cool.

The tart can be served either warm or at room temperature.

Another dish that I made was sloppy joes.

I started from a Rachael Ray recipe 

and jumped off the deep end from there.

The ingredients:

2 pounds ground chuck

2 cloves garlic, grated

1/4 cup onion, grated

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 (14.5 ounce) can tomato sauce

1 tablespoon steak seasoning

1/2 cup barbecue sauce

Cook the meat in a pan over medium-high heat, 

crumbling it as it browns.

Add the onions and the garlic and cook for two more minutes.

Drain off the excess fat.

Add the remaining ingredients to the pan

and simmer for 15 minutes to meld the flavors.

I reheated this dish in a pan on the grill at the tailgate

before putting it in a chafing dish.

The final dish was marinated mozzarella and tomatoes

which is a riff on this recipe.

I started with small mozzarella balls and grape tomatoes.

Then I added extra virgin olive oil and chopped

fresh parsley and oregano.

Allow to sit and let the flavors marry.

Homemade marshmallows.

Even pandas love these.

It's true!

After everyone else left for the game

a panda wandered over and hugged me - twice.

It turns out that pandas are very friendly and he asked

if he could try some of our food.

I gave him a marshmallow and he said I should start my own

company.

I don't think Ina Garten would approve,

but it was a nice compliment, 

coming from a panda.

The finished apple tart.

Everyone loved this.

This recipe is a keeper.

Our tailgate buddy always makes "Touchdown Brownies".

Maybe she needs to put the opposing team's logo 

on the brownies?

As she noted, "At least we are losing better now."

And yes, IU did lose once again.

Other dishes on the banquet were sausage and biscuits,

meatballs,

pulled pork,

Buffalo chicken spread,

spinach dip,

chips and pico de gallo.

Pico de gallo is essentially uncooked,

or fresh salsa.

This is my preferred dip.

We also had a pumpkin cake.

The student tailgate fields are ramping up.

As this was both Homecoming and Halloween weekend,

the police and rescue were kept busy.

The ambulance had to stop twice across from us to help

injured or passed-out students.

The band marches across the still mostly empty parking lot.

It was early; it was cold.

We had fun looking at the different costumes.

Sadly, our tailgate neighbors were absent this week,

so the port-o-potties seemed that much closer.

A gaggle (giggle?) of clowns.

And an "old" lady.

I don't think these kids need more energy.

I looked up in the pine tree to see an oak seedling growing 

in the crotch of the tree.

Squatter.

Pretty clouds.

Pooh and Tigger ride away.

I didn't know Poohs could drive.