Food News: Meet Chef Josh Capon's at Macy's on 1/19!

Note: The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Agency for the information contained in this post, but any thoughts and opinions expressed are unbiased and uninfluenced.

Happy 2018 brunch fans! Brandy has decided to kick off another year of fantastic culinary adventures with a spectacular event at Macy's on State Street and she wanted to make sure all her followers got the details so that they could join her.

On Friday January 19th at 12pm, the Macy's Culinary Council will welcome Chef Josh Capon to the demo kitchen on the 7th floor for an afternoon of fun and food. Chef Capon is the genius behind several highly acclaimed New York and South Florida restaurants, as well as the host of Spike TV's Frankenfood (which filmed right here in Chicago) and a four time winner of Rachel Ray's Burger Bash.

Those who attend the event are promised an earful of Chef Capon's best kept culinary secrets as he walks everyone through some of his award winning recipes. The audience will also get to sample his food in real time and will be provided with recipes for all the dishes so that they can try their hands at cooking like a champ. After the demo, attendees will be invited to meet Chef Capon in person down in the Lower Level kitchenware department. Any purchase of $30 or more will enable guests to not only chat one on one with Chef Capon, but will also get them a $10 Macy's gift card and a special surprise gift!

The best part of all is that the demo (and the three course lunch served at the demo) is completely FREE and only requires an RSVP by calling 1-800-329-8667. Make sure to visit the official event website for more details.

Hope to see you brunch fans there!

Food News: Meet Michelle Bernstein at Macy's State Street!

Note: The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Agency for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.

The unseasonable warmth in Chicago has Brandy feeling a little confused as to exactly what city she's in lately. "I could swear I live in the Midwest, but every time I go outside, I suddenly start wondering if I accidentally moved to Miami." Her confusion grew recently when she discovered that one of Miami's favorite chefs, Michelle Bernstein, was going to be making an appearance at Macys on State Street on Friday October 6th at noon as part of their free Culinary Council live demo series. 

The James Beard Award winning chef will be bringing her unique culinary perspective to the Culinary Council demo kitchen on the 7th floor of Macys on State as she prepares some of her signature recipes, which have been inspired by her Jewish and Latin heritage, while telling stories from her legendary cooking career and offering invaluable cooking advice. The gathered crowd will also have the opportunity to taste her creations as she prepares them live. After the demo has ended, they'll be able to meet Chef Bernstein down on the lower level of Macys (in the kitchen wares section) and if they make a purchase of $35 or more, they'll get a $10 Macys gift card and a copy of Chef Michelle's cookbook, Cuisine A Latina, which they can even get personally autographed! 

"Whatever it is city I'm currently living in, I wouldn't want to miss something like this," said Brandy.

To join Brandy on October 6th, for the free demo and tasting, simply RSVP here: http://bit.ly/MichelleOct17 

Food News: Meet Chef Dana Herbert at Macy's on State Street!

Note: The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Agency for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.

Bunny has once again returned to the surface for a breath of fresh air, and this time she is coming back into Chicago with a mission. "My sweet tooth is itching," she texted Brandy, "and that means something exciting must be about to take place. You know I don't usually just start craving sugar out of the blue."

In fact, Brandy didn't think this out of the ordinary at all. She was rather used to Bunny's near psychic ability in sensing when there is good food to be had. Knowing better than to take her friend's instincts lightly, Brandy began researching, and quickly realized that there was indeed something exciting on the horizon. "Your sweet tooth never fails," she text Bunny, "Seems Chef Dana Herbert is hosting a big-to-do at Macy's. Can you get to Chicago by next week?" "I'm already at the airport," was Bunny's quick reply.

Bunny had been a fan of Chef Herbert ever since his big win on Cake Boss: Next Great Baker, where he first demonstrated his knowledge, artistry, and passion for pastry to the public. But it's not just the sweets Chef Herbert is good at; he is also trained in culinary arts, meaning he can pretty much handle anything thrown in his direction. His cookbook, Sweet and Savory Union, therefore could not be a more perfect for Bunny and Brandy, who live their lives by the principles of finding the perfect balance between savory and sweet.

On July 28th at 12pm, Chef Herbert will host a free fun-filled event in the Culinary Council test kitchen on the 7th floor of Macy's on State, where he will demonstrate some of his favorite award winning dishes and serve them to the gathered crowd before heading down to the lower level to sign cookbooks and hobnob with foodie fans (you can even get one of Chef Herbert's cookbooks as a free gift by making a $35 purchase from the Macy's Home Department the day of). Anyone can attend the free demo by RSVPing in advance by calling 1-800-329-8667. For more information on the event, please visit http://bit.ly/Herbert17 and to learn more about the Macy's Culinary Council and all future events, please click here

Postcards from Bunny: Rick Bayless at Macy's

It's no secret that one of Bunny and Brandy's favorite things to do in Chicago is checking out the Culinary Council demos that happen every few months at Macy's on State Street.  Bunny tries to attend them when ever she can make a quick jot into Chicago, but failing that, she will often send Brandy to watch the stars of the culinary world as they cook live and offer the crowd samples of their dishes so that she can take copious notes and report back to Bunny with the results.

Recently, when Bunny heard that Chicago icon Rick Bayless was going to be doing a demo, she nearly burst into tears as she realized there would be no way for her to attend.  "I've been waiting for them to do a Rick Bayless demo for years!" she cried into the phone.  "Well, I'll go for you and take notes like we've done before," Brandy sighed.  "It won't be the same!" Bunny whined.  Then suddenly, Brandy remembered something.  "He's the one you go all squishy for, isn't he?" she asked Bunny with a smirk.  "I do not go all squishy!" Bunny shrieked.  "I can practically hear you blushing over the phone," Brandy said, "Look, why don't I try that new fangled video chatting thingy while I'm at the demo?  Then you can watch the whole thing from your seat in... where are you now?"  "I'm not entirely sure, but everything smells of curry, so I'm guessing either India or Thailand."

So Brandy trotted down to Macy's on State Street early enough to grab a seat with a good view, and then enlisted the help of a nice young woman beside her to get Bunny on to the screen so she could watch as Rick Bayless entered the kitchen space.  "Oh, it's just like watching his PBS show!" Bunny exclaimed, and Brandy hushed her, wondering briefly how she was going to keep her arm from getting tired holding up the phone the entire time.

Chef Bayless began by making a simple guacamole in the same sort of rustic Mexican cooking with a twist that he is famous for.  "People often add too much lemon or lime juice to their guacamole because they think it will keep the avocado from going brown, and it will, but it also overwhelms the taste," Chef Bayless told the crowd.  He also suggested serving the guacamole as cold as possible, even utilizing a thermionic container like a terracotta flower pot with an ice pack under it when leaving the dip out at a party.  This particular guacamole he spiced up, so to speak, with serrano peppers, as he felt that jalapenos were inconstant in their heat levels, due to genetic manipulation.  He also added a bit of sweetness and crunch with some fennel and green apple, which sounded odd, but as Brandy assured Bunny, actually tasted quite good.

Then Chef Bayless took his guacamole mix and used it to coat some pre-cooked shrimp, plating the dish in a martini glass as he told the crowd how much he liked this kind of thing as an appetizer at parties.  "In America, we're more chippers and dippers," he said, "But in Mexico, this is how you would serve a guacamole, as a sort of dressing."  He also gave the crowd tips on how to cook authentically Mexican by keeping dried chilies in their pantries, buying avocados at Mexican markets (because they cost less and are more ripe), never buying tomatoes out of season (he prefers to use sun dried tomatoes when he can't get fresh), and making sure to rinse your sliced onions to rid them of their natural sulpherous compounds, which not only cause eyes to water, but make digestion difficult and cause food to rot faster.

Lastly, Chef Bayless presented a simple, yet delicious shortbread cookie, which was a combination of a pecan sandy and what people often call Mexican Wedding Cookies (Chef Bayless said the cookies are actually more traditional for things like Christmas than weddings).  Indeed, the crumbly little cookies were so delicious that the chef himself couldn't keep his hands off them, munching away as he took questions from the crowd.  "I'm quite pleasantly surprised," he told everyone, "When I saw we were doing a demo at noon on a Monday, I thought four people would show up and I'd just cook us all a nice lunch!"  "I wouldn't mind that," came Bunny's dreamy voice from the phone screen.  He also spoke about his devotion to yoga, which he practices every day.  "I always make all my difficult decisions while I'm doing yoga," he said, "I find that it puts me in touch with my body, so I'm more aware of when I'm hungry, when I'm tired, I smell things more clearly, and even taste things more clearly."  "No wonder the man is so zen all the time," Brandy whispered to Bunny.

After the demo, Chef Bayless stayed and signed copies of his newest cookbook, Frontera: Margaritas, Guacamoles, and Snacks (or "The three major food groups," as he put it), so Brandy dutifully joined the line after much begging from the tiny woman in her phone, but by the time she reached the front, Bunny seemed frozen with nerves and couldn't even manage to squeak a "hello" to her hero.  "Don't mind her," Brandy said to a befuddled Chef Bayless, "I think all that talk of yoga gave her a mental picture her senses weren't quite ready for.  She'll be fine in a bit."

The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Agency for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.

Rick Bayless Live at Macy's on State Street!

Happy Monday, brunch fans!  Brandy has forwarded us some top secret information to share with all of our readers in regards to one of Chicago's most famous and well loved chefs.  Rick Bayless of Frontera Grill, Topolobampo, and Xoco, three of Chicago's top restaurants, will be appearing next Monday, October 20th at Macy's on State Street to demo some of his favorite holiday recipes, which the audience in attendance will get to sample!  There will even be an opportunity to meet and greet the chef, as anyone who makes a purchase of $35 or more will receive a free copy of his cookbook, Frontera: Margaritas, Guacamoles, and Snacks, and can have it signed by Rick Bayless himself!

For more information on the event or to find out how to reserve a seat, click here, or if you won't be able to attend, check back here on Wednesday October 22nd for Brandy's full recap of the event!

The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Agency for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.

Postcards from Bunny: Macy's Culinary Council with Marcus Samuelsson

After Bunny's little surprise for her on Thanksgiving, Brandy suddenly found herself with a house full of Portuguese handball players who didn't seem to understand that they'd vastly over stayed their welcome.  "Well, what have you been feeding them?" Bunny asked over a crackly phone line (she was deep inside a cave at the time).  "Turkey, of course!  That's all they want to eat, thanks to you," Brandy moaned.  "Well there's your problem!" Bunny laughed, "You need to feed them something else and then they'll know its time to leave.  Try some Swedish food."  "Swedish food?"  "Yes.  Their last big defeat was at the hands of the Swedish team, so it will definitely send a message."

Not knowing enough about Swedish home cooking to make a convincing meal (and not wanting to trek all the way out to the IKEA in Schaumburg for some frozen meatballs), Brandy did a little bit of research and quickly found out that world famous chef, Top Chef Master, Macy's Culinary Council member, and nice judge on Food Network's Chopped Marcus Samuelsson was giving a demo at Macy's on State Street.  Though Marcus was Ethiopian born, he was actually raised by a Swedish family, making his culinary perspective particularly unique.

Chef Samuelsson was also at Macy's that day as part of a partnership with the Make a Wish Foundation, granting the wish of one particularly awesome young lady named Sara who had been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and wanted nothing more than to be a chef.  Chef Samuelsson spent a good part of the morning with her, teaching her various techniques and letting her taste the wears from his burger joint on the  seventh floor food court, then had her assist him in his demonstrations by doing a little bit of prep work and helping to hand out food to the crowd.

The first dish on the docket was a Couscous Paella with Shrimp.  Though not very Swedish in nature, Chef Samuelsson's motive for making a dish like this was more to use holiday leftovers in a creative way.  "Did you know we throw out about 40% of our leftovers, especially during the holidays?" he asked the crowd before launching into the recipe, which he said could be adjusted to fit any meats or vegetables one has lying around.  His paella had a spicy kick from some mild peppers and a hearty chorizo sausage.  By using couscous instead of a traditional rice, Chef Samuelsson added a more interesting creamy texture to the dish as well as making it more international feeling.

Next up was his grandmother's recipe for Meatballs. which he suggested serving with a carrot and apple mash.  These meatballs were not what Brandy expected at all, as Chef Samuelsson coated them in a sweet barbecue sauce instead of gravy, which matched well with the sweet mash.  "You can make mash out of any root vegetables for a nice change of pace," he instructed, "Don't give potatoes all the attention."

Lastly was a very simple Korean style Short Rib, which was marinated in honey, soy sauce, and spices over night and then grilled and sliced.  Chef Samuelson served the tender slices of beef on leaves of lettuce, which provided a nice contrast of cool crispness to the slightly salty and tender beef.

Though initially there to learn how to cook Swedish food, Brandy soon fell in love with Chef Samuelsson's charm and international fusion skills.  He liked to emphasize including all of the family in cooking meals and did this by inviting several members of the audience to cook with him during the demo, including one young lady who had just started on the line at fellow Culinary Council member Stephanie Izard's restaurant, Girl and the Goat.  Chef Samuelsson also delighted the crowd by telling stories about his culinary adventures, like cooking for President Barack Obama (when asking his mother's advice on the occasion, she told him, "Leave before you mess up.") and asking them to name their least favorite judges on Chopped, then threatening to call said judges to tell them the crowd's opinion.

Not sure what to do upon returning home without the Swedish recipes she'd hoped for, Brandy chose to prepare what she had learned anyway, making her handsome young house guests pitch in by rolling meatballs, deveining shrimp, and massaging pieces of short rib.  And to her surprise, at the end of the meal, the dear young things began to pack away their things, presented her with a beautiful poinsettia plant, and finally left her house.  Confused as to what had happened, Brandy once again called Bunny.  "Oh, I know why they left!" Bunny exclaimed, "I told them you would give them a cooking lesson!  They must have been waiting all this time for you to show them some recipes!"  "Bunny, do me a favor," Brandy sighed, "The next time you send someone to my doorstep, at least make sure they've got a couple of bottles of sherry with them.  That way I won't care how long they stay."

*The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Society for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.

Postcards from Bunny: Bento Box Treats with Takashi at Macy's

Seeing as how several dozen presidents and monarchs have finished their reigns since the last time Brandy was in any sort of school classroom, its understandable that the "Back to School" season is always somewhat confusing for her.  "What do they mean by back to school?" she often wonders, "The children don't leave school until they are 18 or 22 or 30 even these days, they're constantly in school!  Seems to me, its more the 'End of the Break that's Slightly Longer than All the Other Breaks We Take Throughout the Year Season.'"

To help Brandy be a little more empathetic with the parents of the world, Bunny sent her to another one of Macy's on State Street's amazing cooking demos from a member of the Culinary Council, as it was to be a Back to School themed afternoon with snacks meant for a busy student's lunchbox.  Brandy was a little hesitant at first, but once she learned the star of the day was none other than Takashi Yagihashi, famed for his namesake restaurant in Bucktown and Slurping Turtle in the Loop, she decided to make an exception.  "Normally I don't pay any mind to the young and their goings on, but I suppose this one time, I can stand to learn something."

The afternoon started off with a refreshing carbonated cranberry lemonade, garnished with a sprig of mint.  Brandy was three cups into the day before she realized the beverage was non alcoholic.  "I suppose a wine spritzer after school would be a bit of a faux pas," she mused.

Chef Takashi started off with Shrimp Shumai, a steamed dumpling filled with chopped shrimp, water chestnuts and mushrooms and topped with a soy sauce/mustard dressing.  These perfect little pockets had the a delightfully chewy outside and a tender, salty filling.  Chef paired them with a little bit of steamed bok choy and said that if someone wanted to make a larger batch of them, that they freeze extremely well and could even be deep fried for a more crunchy shell.

Next Chef Takashi demonstrated Chicken Yakitori, a sort of Japanese shish kebob with juicy chunks of boneless chicken breast, thigh, and leg meat skewered with onions, green peppers, shiitake mushrooms, and fresh scallions.  "These make perfect snacks for a BBQ or picnic too!" Chef Takashi proudly proclaimed.  The secret to these tasty bites was definitely the marinade, a traditional Japanese concoction called Tukedare, which consisted of soy sauce, sugar, fresh ginger juice, sesame oil, lemon juice, kombu (a type of seaweed), and a Japanese spice blend called Togarashi.

Finally Chef Takashi prepared his famous Chicken Tatsuta-Age, a Japanese style fried chicken served with a spicy Asian Slaw.  Again, the secret to juicy, flavorful chicken was down to the marinade, flavored with garlic, ginger, mirin, and sesame oil.  Chef Takashi advised using potato starch to coat the chicken, as it lent a better crunch and flavor than corn starch once fried.

As one last flourish, the chef gave the audience some tips on how to properly steam rice, then assembled a few pieces of all of the goodies he'd prepared into a lovely bento style lunch box, which he said would be sure to make everyone's children "Never want to leave their parents homes!"

At the end of it all, Brandy actually found herself slightly wishing she had some classes to attend just so that she could take with her a fabulous lunch like this one (all of the items Chef Takashi prepared we meant to be eaten at room temperature so no ice packs of microwave were necessary).  But instead, she compromised by buying a brand new rice cooker, a floral backpack ("This will be perfect for carrying my darning supplies to Quilting Club!"), and enjoying a bowl of noodles from Takashi's own Noodles on the seventh floor of Macy's on State Street.  She may not be going back to school any time soon, but Brandy was now happy enough to welcome in the season with the rest of the world.

The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Society for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.

Postcards from Bunny

Greetings friends!  We are delighted to inform you all that our dearest Bunny has once again had an opportunity to stop by Chicago inbetween her latest adventures; uncovering the long lost Temple of Artimis in Athens and cataloging the ancient pottery deposits of Machu Picchu.   A quick lay over at O'Hare provided just enough time for Bunny to stop at Macy's on State Street for another one of their famous Culinary Council cooking demos, this time with brand new inductee to the council and Chicago's favorite girl, Stephanie Izard, winner of Top Chef, James Beard Award nominee, and owner/head chef of two of the most talked about restaurants in town, Girl and the Goat, and her newest venture, the diner inspired Little Goat.

Chef Izard (whose last name comes from a type of French mountain goat, hence the affinity for goats) started the attendees off with a refreshing "mocktail" of blueberry juice, seltzer, and cucumber over ice, then moved on to demo several "flower" inspired dishes, as Macy's was kicking off its annual Flower Show.  First was a homemade Water Cracker, a wafer thin, crispy yet sturdy morsel, which was served with some creamy crab dip.  "The best thing about making a giant cracker is you can eat the whole thing and still say all you had to eat was one cracker," Chef Izard pointed out.  "A woman after my own heart," Bunny sighed.

Next was a Roasted Cauliflower dish ("Cauliflower is a flower too," Chef Izard joked) with pickled peppers, parmesan cheese, and pine nuts.  Bunny especially loved the compound butter used in the dish, which was flavored with garlic and panko bread crumbs, giving the veggies a very subtle, but wonderful crunch.  "We like to put a little crunch in all of our dishes," Chef Izard explained, elaborating that her style of cooking uses lots of bold flavors and layers of texture.

Last but not least was a crepe, made of what was essentially a rice noodle batter, stuffed with shredded goat (Chef Izard pointed out that really anything could serve as a filling for these crepes), and served with a little spring salad of blueberries, raw asparagus, and sunflower seeds in a light vinaigrette.  Bunny absolutely fell in love the crepe, which had a lovely chewy texture.  Luckily, everyone in attendance had been provided with the recipe (and you can find Chef Izard's recipes in her new cookbook, Girl in the Kitchen), so all Bunny had to do was find a propane burner and a frying pan among the rubble of her next dig and she would be able to whip up a batch for Benedict and his excavation crew.

Of course Bunny and had to ask about Chef Izard's favorite breakfast.  "I had half a Powerbar on the way over here, does that count?" she asked.  Eventually, she admitted to loving a good omelet full of fresh ingredients  like raspberries, mint, and goat cheese.  Chef Izard also re-iterated over and over again how important shopping at local farmers markets can be.  "If you don't believe me, try it yourselves," she said, "Get some eggs from your grocery store and compare them with fresh eggs from a local farm and do a taste test at home.  You'll be really surprised at the difference."

And so Bunny was off on her travels once more, with a belly full of deliciousness and a head full of new ideas, thanks to Chef Izard and another wonderful event from the Macy's Culinary Council!

*The writers of this blog have been compensated by Everywhere Society for the information contained in this post, but the opinions stated were not influenced.