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Browse our collection of cooking guides. Browse our stunning collection of octopus recipes, well-loved by Italian chefs all over the country. For a simple preparation, try Salvatore Elefante’s grilled octopus salad recipe, where he boils the tentacles before grilling for a crispy exterior, and serves with a green bean salad. For an even simpler preparation, try this Luciana-style octopus recipe, cooked with olive oil, lemon and chilli for a flavourful antipasti dish. Daniele Usai’s braised octopus recipe is slightly more involved, but the results are stunning.
He freezes, braises, then tightly wraps the tentacles into a ballotine before setting, then slices ‘medallions’ and serves with sour cherries and sour cream. Forced to make due with root vegetables and shipped-in produce for much of the year, Chicago chefs love spring. During the short, intermittent season, they shake down their farmers for all they’re worth and preserve everything to hoard into winter. As a chef, that’s how I feel after months of much-loved but sometimes tiring turnips and rutabaga. We get a glimpse of summer only to get one more flurry of snow.
Like our own groundhog, the first strawberries on the farm list are the sign that the freezes are finally done and all the amazing spring produce we’ve been dreaming about is right around the corner. It’s the most exciting time being able to see flowers bud and all the young plants peek their way through the soil. But we can’t forget the humble carrot or potato that got us through the cold winters. Dressing up some staple Midwest ingredients with lilac flowers, mint, and fresh garlic captures how beautiful the seasons can all work together. We planted a garden on the roof of Ever’s building this spring. The bees have been busy pollinating the herbs and vegetables.
I get excited for spring produce but also for flowers to start blooming. I saw that Regalis had preserved sakura flowers and had to make a dessert with them. Seeing spring produce hit the markets is nature’s olive branch that farmers markets, gardening, planting season, and beers on the stoop while the sun sets over the city are not too far behind. Holland white asparagus and ruby red rhubarb symbolize spring. Their colors are vibrant and either complement or contrast with seasonal greens.