It's been a good while since we last checked in with the globe trekking Bunny, who left her comfortable seat at Chicago's brunch table a few years ago to explore the hidden wonders of the world with her intrepid archaeologist husband, Benedict, but recently Bunny was able to make a quick stop in Chicago in between flights from Portugal and Buenos Aries. "It's funny, but when I'm away from Chicago, all I crave is hot dogs, butter burgers, and of course, Chicago style pizza!" Bunny told Brandy once, which is what gave Brandy the idea to send Bunny to one of Chicago's most storied institutions during her brief stay in the city.
Connie's Pizza is currently celebrating over 50 years of existence as a Chicago institution with its' first location opening in the South Side back in the 1960's. Still owned and operated by Jim Stolfe and his family, Connie's original location was purchased with a classic Oldsmobile and a few months of free labor (Jim couldn't afford to change the sign, so the joint stayed Connie's even though Connie herself went into retirement after handing Jim the deed) and soon blossomed into seven Chicago locations, a frozen food empire, and the honor of serving crowds at all of Chicago's major sports arenas at some point in its history. Now with the opening of their newest location on State Street in the Gold Coast, Connie's is hoping to reacquaint the North Side of Chicago with their brand of fresh, home made, and authentic Italian-American cuisine.
Part of this initiative was an event called Connie's Night Out, in which a group of some of Chicago's most influential foodies were invited to come and see what Connie's could bring to the table, so to speak. "Now that you've gone, my time is taken up almost exclusively by covering brunch in this city, but while you're here, you can cover dinner," Brandy explained to Bunny, "Don't worry. I'll send Bailey along with you so you don't have to dine alone." "Well," Bunny mused, "I have been dreaming of deep dish... alright, if you insist!"
Upon arriving at the enormous State Street location, Bunny and Bailey went straight to the bar. Bunny ordered up a Blue Lemonade to start off, a fun little summery concoction with an equally summery appearance. Then she switched to The Paradise, which boasted a citrusy zing topped off with a hit of sweet strawberry and a cooling mint. "An unusual combination, but it works really well!" Bunny exclaimed, "And it's so pretty!" Bailey, who is one of
Chicago's leading Cider experts, ordered up an Angry Orchard Traditional. When the bartender suggested she try it with a shot of Fireball whiskey, she couldn't help be a little skeptical, but one taste of the mix and Bailey realized how perfectly paired her favorite beverage was to the spiced spirit. "This might be my new birthday drink!" she said as she went in for a second sip.
To start off the feast, slices of wood fired pizza began to make their way around the table. Bailey and Bunny sampled the classic Margarita, the spicy Calabrese, and the fresh Al Prosciutto Rucola, all of which came straight from the amazing center piece of the restaurant, a wood fire oven which had been custom ordered from Italy and rebuilt brick by brick into its new home. The charred flavor from the wood oven was a perfect match for Connie's custom crust and served to enhance all of the various toppings, but especially the rich prosciutto and peppery arugula on the Al Prosciutto Rucola.
Next came the barrage of appetizers: Calamari, Spinach Dip, Caprese Towers, and Bruschetta. Bailey took a special liking to the creamy Spinach Dip, which came with wood fired flat bread chips, while Bunny adored the light and crispy Calamari. The Caprese Towers were probably the most beautifully presented and most traditionally Italian, while the Bruschetta boasted a variety of fresh and boldly flavored toppings.
For the next course, two of the house salads were brought to the table: a classic Caesar and the daunting Antipasto Salad, which came with tons of cheese, sliced meats, olives, tomatoes, and peppers. "This is less of a salad and more of a charcuterie plate!" Bunny giggled. Both ladies actually favored the simple Caesar, which had a nice light dressing and delicious garlicky croutons.
Next came the pasta dishes, a Penne with Vodka Sauce and a Spaghetti with Marinara. Both featured pasta imported from Italy cooked to a perfect al dente as well as delicious sauces made fresh in house. Bunny loved the simple marinara, which was full of chunky tomatoes and garlic, while Bailey fell in love with the creamy vodka sauce, which had an almost sweet flavor.
After that came two of the signature entrees, Chicken Marsala and Sausage and Peppers (by this point, the girls were getting pretty full, but powered on through bravely. "We shall leave no food untasted!" Bunny proclaimed) The chicken was incredibly moist with a nice earthy topping of mushrooms, while the sausage had a perfect snap and a slight flavor of fennel that matched well with the sweet onions and peppers as well as the spiced potato wedges on the plate.
As the piece de resistance, the Connie's staff had everyone at the table design their own individual pizzas, choosing from among the seven different crusts and a wide variety or veggies, meats, and cheeses. Bailey went with the Artisan crust, which resembled a light focaccia style bread, and topped it with mushrooms, peppers, and sausage, while Bunny went for the Stuffed crust, which was somewhere between a deep dish pizza and a calzone, and filled with with mushrooms, onions, spinach, and crushed garlic. Both ladies were barely able to manage a slice of the amazing pies, but luckily, the staff was prepared with take home boxes.
Lastly came the desserts: Cheesecake, Mini Cannolis, Tiramisu, and Connie's original Ice Box Cake. The Cannolis rivaled that of any from a bakery in Little Italy, while the Cheesecake had a nice denseness to it, and the Tiramisu an indulgent lightness. The real standout, surprisingly, was the Ice Box Cake, made from Executive Chef Guilio Fulgenzi's grandmother's recipe, which consisted of layers of vanilla pudding, chocolate, bananas, and graham crackers.
As they attempted to extradite their now bursting bodies from their seats, Bunny took one last look around Connie's and the glisten of a tear formed in her eye. "I must have missed Chicago more than I realized," she told Bailey, who was looking concerned, "It's funny, but with all the traveling I've done over the last few years in search of hidden history, I almost forgot just what a rich history I was leaving behind here in Chicago!"
The writers of this blog were invited by the restaurant to sample their food in exchange for an honest review.
Blueberry Graham Sandwich Cookies
Vanilla Cream Cheese Ice Cream (Yield 1½ Quarts) 
Long Grove, which is about a 45 minute drive from Chicago, is a small but scenic village with lots of historic buildings dating back to the 1800's that reminded Brandy of her homeland in the Europe. Eccentric little shops line the meandering cobble stone paths of downtown Long Grove, winding their way across stone and wooden bridges that cover a picturesque stream running past many of the old world style buildings. In the last few years, the village has become known as a food festival haven, hosting not only the summer Strawberry Festival, but an Apple Festival in the fall and a Chocolate Festival in the spring. "The thing about getting out of the city is I'm always so shocked by how even the busiest suburban square is so quiet in comparison," Brandy mused as they exited the car. "I love how the air doesn't seem choked with pollution," Bailey grinned. "I'm just glad we're going to a food festival that won't be jammed to capacity," said Hawk.
First stop was the booth labeled The Great Grape for some quick, sweet bites. Bailey indulged in a bag of peanut butter filled, chocolate covered pretzel bites, which though a little messy in the heat, had an awesome hit of salty and sweet. Hawk and Brandy were more curious about their name sake confection, milk and dark chocolate covered grapes, which came served cold and in a lavender paper cone. "I don't know... isn't this the strawberry festival?" Hawk protested. "I think it's clever. There's going to be thousands of chocolate cover strawberries, but whose going to have heard of chocolate covered grapes?" Brandy countered and ordered up a cone. One bite had everyone convinced these were a terrific idea; cold inside, but not frozen, so that all their juices came rushing out in the first bite to mingle with the thin layer of crisp, velvety chocolate, these little beauties were a truly unexpected delight. Though the milk chocolate was tasty, everyone agreed that the slightly bitter dark chocolate was a better compliment to the sweetness of the grapes.
Next stop was the booth for the Long Grove Confectionery, which had a host of strawberry donuts on offer. Hawk and Bailey grabbed a half dozen, while Brandy sprang for one of the specialties, which had a rich butter cream filling sandwiched inside the donut. Brandy loved the soft cake like texture of the donuts, and although they appeared to be bursting with strawberry goodness, the flavor wasn't quite as exciting.
Wandering around the charming little village proved to be a much needed dose of perspective for city folk such as Brandy, Bailey, and Hawk. For an hour or so they wandered along the adorable cobble stone avenues, ducking in and out of shops to see what kind of treasures there were. Brandy loved the little coffee shop known as Beans and Leaves, so much so that she had to be dragged away when Bailey suspected she might settle in amongst the tins of loose leaf teas and never leave again (the same was true when Brandy spotted a little spot marked High Tea with Geri, which Bailey wouldn't even permit her to enter). Bailey's favorite stop of the day was at the Long Grove Popcorn Shoppe, which sported a wide variety of sweet and salty flavors of popcorn (though sadly they ran out of the strawberry flavor very early on in the day). Bailey grabbed a bag of Chicago Mix (a combo buttered, cheddar, and caramel corn for those unfamiliar, like Brandy), which she happily munched on as they continued to wander. Although there wasn't any food to be found in some shops, Hawk loved getting lessons in his heritage from an Irish gentleman at Paddy's on the Square, who talked the group through some Irish history and some of their possible lines of ancestry ("You're descended from a great warrior," he told an amazed Bailey, "And your ancestors were some of the original natives of Ireland," he told Hawk. "And my ancestors probably built the first pub in a cave somewhere," Brandy joked). There was also a Scandinavian market, whose cooler full of imported sodas caught Hawk's eye.
Deciding to go inside and enjoy a little air conditioning, the trio headed for the historic Village Tavern. There they sampled three delicious specials: freshly made Strawberry Daiquiris, a Strawberry BBQ Chicken sandwich, and a Strawberry BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger. Brandy loved the sauce that topped to the two sandwiches so much that after their lunch, they headed to a little booth down the road for Smokin' T's, which was selling the stuff by the bottle and by the jar, along with some of their other signature sauces.
A break from the city was definitely welcome, but the three were glad they headed out when they did, avoiding the downpour that arrived in the late afternoon (this was a bonus to Bailey's plan of keeping Hawk away from the strawberry pie eating contest, which he vowed to win. "I think it's for children," she protested, to which Hawk replied, "Good! I'll definitely win then!"). Halfway out of town, they were already making plans to return for the apple festival in the fall, at which Bailey and Hawk hoped their favorite beverage, cider, might be on the docket. "Ah, days like this almost make me miss living in a quiet little village," Brandy sighed, "Although, if I really did move out to the suburbs, I'd be probably be dying for a day trip into the city every weekend. Still so much brunch to be tasted..."
Here Comes the Lime Punch
cherry jam, jelly, or
fruit spread (store bought or home made) 
The worst thing you can do to Brandy is hand her a delicious looking snack and tell her its "healthy." You'll be treated to the most withering eye roll you've ever witnessed, and that's only if you're lucky. At Brandy's advanced age, she seems to no longer care about what's "good" for her. "All I want is something that tastes good," she says, "If it tastes good and keeps me alive a little longer, than I suppose that's a bonus." 
BBQ Apple Biscuits
As elaborate as Brandy's brunches can get, sometimes she likes to take a step back with a simple, easy breakfast. "My stomach and my wallet can't handle a lavish feast every day of the week," she likes to say, "Besides, it's supposed to be about the simple things in life, isn't it?"
Having made it her personal mission to try every yogurt on her local grocery's shelves, Brandy's eye was recently caught by a new product from Quaker, their Muller Corner Yogurt, which came in both traditional and Greek varieties, each with a little pocket of interesting mix-ins kept separate in the corner of the package. "Hmmm," Brandy mused while blocking the aisle for several other shoppers, "Very interesting. I suppose I really should try all the flavors for...scientific purposes." And with that, she proceeded to load up her cart with six flavors to try out throughout the week.
In the snack category, Brandy thoroughly enjoyed the Caramelized Almond, which had the crunch of the nuts as well as a nice burnt sugar flavor. Falling in as her least favorite of the pack was the Raspberry /Blackberry flavor, which Brandy found had a rather unpleasant texture to the bits of berry in the jam.
Having put all of the Quaker Muller Corner Yogurts to the test in a week's worth of healthy and light breakfasts, Brandy was once again ready to indulge in her usual rich, fatty, and sugary brunches. "It was nice to have a break," she said, "Sort of a week long palate cleanser. Now, time to wrap some bacon around a stick of sugar coated butter and deep fry it!"
