Category Archives: Chicago pastries

Eurofest 2013 at the Chicago French Market February 9

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Join the Chicago French Market for a showcase of European fare, artisan vendors and specialty food products, Saturday, February 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Enjoy intimate tastings, shop for European foods and beverages, listen to European music and watch demonstrations throughout the day. The Chicago French Market is located at 131 North Clinton St. between Washington and Randolph. Covered, ground-level parking is available in the MetraMarket parking lot located just north of Randolph with entrances from both Canal and Clinton. If you park for one hour or less, parking is free when your purchases total $20 or more at the market (receipts required for proof of purchase). #Eurofest

Bello Tea
Featuring English Tea Latte: English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Earl Grey Lavender, Earl Grey de la Crème ($3 each).

The Hot Dog Guy
The “Spicy Ditka”- The Hot Dog Guy is one of the first retailers to roll out this new item. Mike Ditka is expanding his empire and has teamed up with Vienna to create a new spicy Polish Sausage, $4.99 (regularly $5.99)

Lavazza Espression
Lavazza Espression will be sampling their new artisan crafted gelato made in house at the Chicago French Market. Each sample will come with a survey; the completed survey may be redeemed for a $1 scoop of gelato of your choice. Lavazza also will be sampling the Affogato al Caffè.

Affogato al Caffè
A typical Italian treat: espresso poured over gelato. The hot espresso and cold gelato combine perfectly, changing textures and temperatures ($3.60 for regular size).

Lavazza 56 affogato al caffeet

Lavazza Affogato al Caffè

City Fresh Market
City Fresh will sample traditional European specialties including Cevapi, house-made pastries made at the City Fresh bakery, along with Eastern European wines and spirits, plus a sampling of Burek – traditional street food of the Balkans. Bojan Aleksic “The Burek Man” also will demo how to make Burek, including a tutorial on making City Fresh Market’s house-made phyllo dough. It’s thrown similar to pizza dough! Fun to watch and delicious to taste.

 

 

Delightful Pastries
Dobra Bielinski, pastry chef and co-owner of Delightful Pastries, will be selling paczki (traditional Polish doughnuts) and Pierogi at EuroFest. On any given day, you can choose strawberry and whipped cream, raspberry jelly or custard topped with chocolate fudge paczki. Or, you can sample “drunken” paczki in scrumptious varieties like vodka and vanilla bean custard, Patron XO Cocoa with chocolate custard, and orange liqueur and passion fruit jelly. Purchase six Paczki and get one free; buy six Pierogi and get one free.

Pastoral Artisan Cheese Bread & Wine
For Eurofest 2013, Pastoral will be sampling a perfect pairing of Langres, a cow’s milk cheese from France paired with Mascaro Cava, a sparkling wine from Spain. Langres is a creamy, bloomy rind cheese made in Champagne, France and pairs perfectly with the crisp and fruity Mascaro made in the brut nature (completely dry) style in Spain. Langres even boasts a concave cap that holds a splash of Champagne or sparkling wine, making these two a perfect pairing of European counterparts.

 

 

Les Fleurs
Les Fleurs, the Chicago French Market florist, will be featuring Dutch flowers including tulips, hyacinth, daffodils, iris and lilies. Bunches start at $8 each.

Oh Olive
Sample Italian olive oils and balsamic vinegars from Moderna, Italy (3 large bottles 375 ml bottle for $51).

Saigon Sisters
Enjoy Saigon Sister’s most popular Banh Mi sandwich, The Frenchman for $7.00 (normally $8.00).

Frenchman Banh Mi 2

Saigon Sisters Bah Mi The Frenchman

Spicy Monkey
Enjoy Spicy Monkey’s Brunswick Stew for $3 for a 10 oz cup.

Vanille Patisserie
Sample Vanille’s famous macarons. Buy two macarons and get one free. Limit six per customer. Gift box not included.

Macarons

Vanille Patisserie Macarons

Wisma
Try linguini with Italian sausage ragu and their popular beef stroganoff ($10 Stroganoff; $8 Linguini plus tax).

Frietkotten
Frietkotten will be featuring its Belgian Special-Small Belgian Fries with a Tap Beer, $7.50 (reg price $9.00).

Fumare Meats
Fumare Meats will be featuring its European Style Sandwiches.

Klay Oven Kitchen
Klay Oven Kitchen will be featuring Chicken Tikka Marsala (Staple Entrée in London).

Loop Juice
Loop Juice will be featuring its Green Juice (apple, cucumber, ginger, parsley, spinach, kale, celery) 10% during Eurofest.

Raw, LLC
Raw will be featuring its Lemon Squares.

Live Music
Enjoy live music by Serbian pianist Bane Djordjevic and international singer Gretta Pope.
Sultry and Sensuous . Lively and Lyrical . Classically Comedic . Proudly Patriotic .

Greta Pope’s performance spans all of these musical moods…and more! Segueing smoothly from a lively Brazilian number into a beloved Broadway song…from a swing/jazz number into one with a Country flavor, this multi-talented entertainer demonstrates a striking versatility of voice and style.Greta Pope is an International entertainer. She has delighted audiences throughout Europe, the Far East, South America and the Caribbean, as well as the United States and Canada. Ms. Pope has been touted as one of the great voices of our time, as she performs with ease all styles from Country to Opera, and from Rhythm and Blues to Broadway.

Bittersweet Pastry Shop brings charm, pastry of France to Chicago

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Bittersweet Pastry Shop
1114 W. Belmont
Chicago, IL (773) 929-1100
http://www.bittersweetpastry.com/

Hours:
7 a.m. – 7 p.m., Tuesday through Friday
8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday and Sunday
Closed Monday

Prices:
Tarts: $20-30Cakes: $24-$100 (for custom cakes) Cookies: $15/lb Scones, croissants, muffins: $2.50-$3 Ice cream, $3 Bittersweet brings the joy of the French Patisserie to Lakeview

By Lee Barrie and Cindy Kurman
Story originally appeared in StreetWise

When we travel to France or the French Caribbean, each morning we head to the local patisserie to enjoy some fabulous croissants or brioche and café au lait. What makes patisseries so noteworthy is that they are everywhere. Even the small towns have their local, colorful patisserie—it’s “everyman’s” way of having breakfast, as well as the place to go for wonderful baked goods that are perfect any time of the day. The patisserie is a celebration of baking talent, ingenuity and aesthetics, making it the perfect place to go for a tasty and stimulating start to the day.

Luckily, Chicagoans don’t have to travel further than the Lakeview neighborhood to enjoy an authentic French patisserie experience. Acclaimed pastry chef Judy Contino opened Bittersweet over a decade ago and has built a fiercely loyal following—for good reason. The glass display cases are filled with delicate and delicious goodies, made with skill and tender loving care, just as in France.

We stopped in for breakfast recently (Bittersweet also serves lunch) and took stock of all the wondrous things that make Bittersweet so special. Our journey started by comfortably sitting down at a handsome marble top table and peering about the room. The ceiling fans and the clean, white walls make for a comfortable, unpretentious décor. Classical music permeates the room—it’s serene and welcoming.

On the wall is a handwritten breakfast menu board. Signature breakfast items include the quiche du jour and homemade granola, both served with fruit. Other choices include apple French toast and a vegetable frittata panini.

The breakfast goodies are amazing. We shared two homemade scones, one apricot and one ginger-peach—as good as scones get. The breakfast pastry display is a sight for tired eyes. Gorgeous croissants, scones, brioche, pecan rolls, tea bread and muffins. It’s almost impossible to decide what to choose. On weekends, when traffic is heavier, there are even more croissant varieties to choose from.

To accompany the scones, we enjoyed cappuccino made with the excellent Italian Illy coffee. The friendly staff is more than happy to make your espresso beverage the way you like it. Try a mocha or a café au lait. Other beverages include hot chocolate and fresh orange juice. A variety of unique carbonated beverages are also available.

The display cases feature beautifully executed baked goods; there is a steady stream of customers buying these items to go. You’ll find cookies, biscotti, cupcakes, coffee cake, tarts, bars, macaroons, cakes, custards, mousses, tartlets, truffles, and breads. Bittersweet’s cakes are legendary; call a day or two in advance and you can order a personalized birthday cake, made to order.

Walking around Bittersweet, we smiled at the special attractions making this patisserie more than a simple bake shop. There is a gelato display case with several flavors of ice cream and sorbets. Add hot fudge or caramel sauce for decadent joy.

Along the walls are shelves and tables displaying packaged foods and children’s gifts. There are Bittersweet-branded nuts and snacks, perfect accompaniments to the pastries.
You’ll find packages of the spectacular Terry’s Toffee, made in Chicago. There is an assortment of bottled French fruit syrups which, when combined with club soda or seltzer, make for a wonderful homemade soda pop, or use them as an ice cream topping.

What a pleasant morning adventure! Try making Bittersweet a regular part of your morning breakfast or weekly pastry-shopping routine. You’ll know the meaning of joie de vivre (in Chicago). Bonjour, nous amis.