by Chef on September 1, 2010
Here at CBI we represent a slue of football teams, both college and professional. We may disagree on who to root for on Saturday and Sundays but one thing we can agree on is tailgating. Usually the responsibility of food and drinks is delegated and variations of chip dips, veggie plates, mini-meatballs, and desserts are served during the big game, but who is in charge of food safety? May sound dorky but how often do you go home after tailgating feeling less than par? Although feeling sick could be a result of one too many Clemson inspired purple and orange Jell-O shots or the disappointment of another Purdue loss but you would be surprised how often it is from foodborne illnesses. Bacteria can grow on almost any food, so after you wash your hands wash all of the food you’re preparing and store appropriately. No prepared foods should ever sit at room temperature (68-77 degrees Fahrenheit) for more than two hours. The bacteria growth danger zone is from 40 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit, this being said a good rule of thumb is ‘if it’s hot keep it hot, if it’s cold keep it cold’. For cooked meats and warm dips keep the dish in a Crockpot or heating pan to prevent growth of Clostridium perfringens. For cold mayo-based vegetable and chip dips as well as potato salads and sandwich spreads have one bowl full of ice under your serving bowl to prevent growth Staphylococcus aureaus. It is also important not to cross contaminate causing Salmonella or E. coli to grow. Raw meats should be stored by themselves and should not be cut with the same knife or placed on the same plate. Discard the raw meat plate immediately and have a second plate ready for the finished, fully cooked, meat product. These small, yet costly mistakes cause millions of football fans to search for comfort in the pretty pink Pepto-Bismol bottle while spending hours in the bathroom or even the hospital. This football season take some responsibility and do your part to prevent foodborne illness amongst your friends. Just remember when it comes to food safety: ‘When in Doubt, Throw it Out!’
by Chef on August 30, 2010
Disclaimer: This proves that although I have a serious passion for food, I still have so much more to learn!
For my boyfriend’s birthday I polled the employees of CBI to find a great new place neither of us had been to before. After researching the menus and discussing it with Tim (my boyfriend) we decided on Piccolo Sogno located on Halsted at Milwaukee and Grand. The inside was beautiful but we heard the outside patio was the place to be! This blog really begins when we were ordering our entrées. (I don’t want to make light of the atmosphere or the wine, appetizers etc. because they were all delightful but there is a point to this!) Anyway, Tim ordered the short ribs with polenta and vegetables and I ordered spaghetti neri, a black pasta served with clams, muscles, calamari, and shrimp (all delicious things I love!). I thought the pasta being black was just a cool perk and didn’t put any thought into what makes it black. Green noodles are traditionally spinach, red noodles are made with tomato or roasted peppers etc. but what makes black noodles black? I asked our server and he mumbled out “it’s soaked in ‘squiddle’ to give a really extraordinary flavor!” After that description he flew off leaving us even more confused. We played with the word ‘squiddle’ for a few minutes trying to figure out what he was talking about. Finally, Tim in a joking voice said “what if he actually said they’re soaked in squid ink!?” My face turned thinking about my delicious seafood pasta soaking in an animal’s defense mechanism…
Our food arrived and Tim dove right into his ‘fall-apart-eat-with-a-spoon’ tender short ribs while I looked intriguingly at my very blackest black pasta. Anyone who knows me can tell you I will never turn down trying new food (especially after a glass or two of wine). So I gave it a twirl figuring worse comes to worst I eat half of Tim’s and we indulge in two desserts or stop at Chipotle on the way home. Boy was I shocked! By no means could this exquisite pasta have been soaked in squid ink. It had a bit more texture than regular noodles and flavor that I can hardly describe. Our server came back to check on us and I had to know the truth. Sure enough he was not saying ‘squiddle’ but in fact my beautiful black pasta was soaked in squid ink. Needless to say I was way too invested in the flavors of the pasta to care what it was soaked in! It added a ‘just caught’ fish flavor to the pasta without crossing into the dreaded fishy taste. Now looking back and after doing some research I still think the concept is a little weird. (Probably doesn’t help that I watched a “How to Harvest Squid Ink” video on youtube…) But both the pasta and our whole experience at Piccolo Sogno was wonderful. If you ever get the opportunity to try either, dive-in and enjoy! As for me, I’m beginning to wonder what else I’m missing out on….
