First of all, who wouldn't enjoy going to school on this beautiful farm????
But then you add the magical ingredient of the effervescent Chef Gand to the pot and you have a wonderful afternoon in the works!
On the menu for today, a Summer Pavlova with Roasted Rhubarb and Raspberries!!!!
A blueberry rice pudding- yum-
And the most delectable lemon curd that I have ever tasted!
Enjoyed simply by dipping ripe summer strawberries into this delightful confection.
How "summertime" is that? And so simple too!
How many times in one's life do they get the opportunity to take a cooking class- up close and personal- with a James Beard Award Winner, a Food Network Star and successful restaurateur?????? Plus she is this down to earth, funny, and extremely talented girl- an absolutely delightful person! And she's in our own backyard- teaching often at Elawa Farm.
The summer pavlova was started by roasting rhubarb in the oven with Tahitian vanilla beans, sugar, cinnamon, red wine, and cornstarch.
Chef Gale whips the egg whites to make the meringue and is showing us the perfect consistency.
This glossy confection of egg whites, red wine vinegar, vanilla, cornstarch, salt, cream of tartar and sugar is ready to be shaped into the lovely base for our dessert
The baked meringue base for the pavlova.
Next, the roasted rhubarb mixture was tossed with fresh raspberries for the fruit topping.
Layering the whipped cream on the meringue base.
Arranging the fruit and edible floral garnishes on the dessert.
And voila! A beautiful summer dessert- sure to impress your dinner guests!
A light, yet decadent ending to a meal!
Gale recently opened her newest restaurant venture in Chicago called Spritz Burger.
Spritz Burger, is a collaboration with The Hearty Boys, (Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh) who won Food Network’s reality competition “The Next Food Network Star”, season 1. The menu features vintage seltzer cocktails, house-made sodas including Gand’s cinnamon-ginger-vanilla root beer, grass-fed burgers, and desserts by Gale. Spritz Burger serves dinner Tuesday through Saturday with a fabulous brunch on Sunday and is family friendly, fun, and modern. It opened this past spring and is located in the LakeView neighborhood on the north side of Chicago.
I can't wait to try it!
Chef Gand is the author of numerous cookbooks, including two of my favorites, "BRUNCH" and "JUST A BITE". She has just recently published her newest book, "LUNCH!". I browsed through it last night and I was inspired ! Simple, yet thoughtful recipes are given in this photo filled gem of a book. There are several that I can't wait to try- Fried Chicken and Waffle Sandwiches, Mexican Chicken Salad, and the Chocolate Pudding in a Jar.
You can purchase her new book here.
Sure looks like it was a lot of fun as well as educational . So sorry I missed it!
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