Iron Rooster All Day (and All Evening)

The Iron Rooster in the Hunt Valley Towne Center is the newest link in the Maryland-based mini-chain (the others are in Annapolis and Canton). We haven't been to the other locations, but we've been hearing great things from people who have.

While Iron Rooster isn't a diner, they're all about the comfort food, and for many of us, that involves things like pancakes and scrambled eggs, not to mention biscuits and bacon. And scrapple. Who doesn't like breakfast all day? When we got an invite to a media dinner at Hunt Valley, we were more than happy to attend. Our mantra has been "yay for locally-owned restaurants in northern Baltimore County!" and we've enjoyed repeating it on a more-regular basis in recent months.

A few moments after arriving at the restaurant and finding our party, we were asked about drinks. Not having a drink menu handy we defaulted to ordering draft beers, but I would have liked to try the Sriracharita, a signature drink. Next time. Drinks in hand, we explored the buffet provided to our group--after taking photos, of course.

We tasted samples from the supper menu, including the Iron Head Steak Salad. I am a fan of grilled romaine; the smokiness brings another layer of interest to a salad already packed with flavor. The crispy fried leeks and garlic aioli led the tasty charge, followed by the bleu cheese. Slices of strip steak and nuggets of fried pork belly "croutons" provided meaty umami.

Iron Rooster's Fried Green Caprese is a very loose translation of the classic salad of ripe tomato, basil, and Mozzarella cheese. The tomatoes are fried and green, the cheese is queso fresco, and instead of tomato slices there's a roasted corn salsa. A sprightly poblano pepper sauce and a chipotle aioli add a bit of moisture and heat, but the tomatoes were good on their own.

We also tasted the house-made kettle chips, which were crisp and perfectly browned. They're an accompaniment to all of the non-burger sandwich items on the menu, and a nice alternative to fries. (Burgers do come with fries, which is the natural order of things.) The chips with accompanying aioli can also be ordered as a side dish.

The Crabby Mac is an indulgent blend of mac and cheese with crab and Old Bay; spinach and red peppers break up the richness. Good call on the veg, which can also allow diners to fool themselves into thinking they're eating something healthy.

We also tasted Iron Rooster's biscuits. Oh myyyyy, they were good. Fluffy, moist, rich yet light. Perfection. And even better with a schmear of spiced maple bourbon butter (which was good enough to eat with a spoon). The butter regularly comes with their pancakes, French toast, and Belgian waffles, so you can enjoy it even if you're not scarfing down a plate of biscuits. (But why wouldn't you order a plate of biscuits? They are SO GOOD.)

This is a condensed serving. A normal serving includes three pieces of boneless chicken breast
with one waffle and the black pepper pan gravy.

The final savory dish was buttermilk marinated fried chicken on cornmeal waffles with black pepper pan gravy and maple syrup. What can seem like an odd combination really makes sense here. The chicken is well-seasoned and crisp, and the waffle is tender but not soggy. The gravy and syrup bring it all together.

For dessert, we had Iron Rooster's famous pop tarts in both brown sugar and berry flavors. We tried one of each, and really enjoyed them. In fact, they probably stuck in Mr Minx's mind the most, as the next day he mused that he would like to have them on a regular basis. They're served plain at the restaurant, but we fancy media types were presented with the opportunity to gussy up our pastries with frosting and bacon-shaped sugar do-dads. But these tasty treats certainly don't need any such fussy toppings.

If you haven't been to any of the Iron Rooster locations for one reason or another and you live in northern Baltimore County, definitely try out the Hunt Valley outpost. Honestly, I've been thinking about those biscuits frequently in the three weeks since that media dinner, and now that the holiday hubbub is finally over, am planning to get back there on a regular basis. The menu is pretty big, and I'm looking forward to trying other things. But always getting the biscuits.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Best of 2016, Part 2

Every year we compile a list of what we felt were the best dishes of the year, both at home and in restaurants. These are completely subjective, of course - it's what tasted most delicious to our palates. This week we feature the best of home cooking. They are in order of posting, starting, of course, with January.

January

The Chamomile Honey Tea Gelato I concocted early in the year started me off with a decent amount (ok, a ton) of ice cream experimentation. There are some other flavors further down the list.

March

I went on a weird dairy- , wheat-, and sugar-free diet in March. Mr Minx made this corn pasta and meatballs dish to satisfy his own spaghetti and meatball craving, but it was easily the tastiest thing I ate while on the diet. Gluten free pasta can be surprisingly good!

May

I put this one together with a few aging sweet potatoes that were begging to be eaten. I turned them into a harissa-spiced mash and served it with lamb meatballs and a yogurt sauce. The sweet and tart flavors plus a dose of herbs made for a well-rounded dish.

June

When it gets warm outside, I like to make chilled soups. Avocado makes a super silky puree, and works really well with sauteed shrimp and blue corn polenta croutons.

August

The purple cauliflower tacos I made last summer had a ton of fresh ingredients in them: cauli patties; Mexican street corn; pickled carrots; and a harissa yogurt. I knew they'd be tasty, but I was surprised at just how very yummy they were--and nobody missed the meat. Definitely a recipe to re-make in the future.

I had a lot of fun experimenting with maple syrup last year. The syrup came from Runamok, a company I discovered at the Fancy Food Show in NY. Their flavored syrups are quite unique, particularly the ones infused with Makrut Lime Leaf and with cardamom. I used the latter to flavor the pistachios in this ice cream made with fresh summer apricots.

September

September brought me a new ice cream cookbook with a new technique that I was dying to try. I concocted a key lime pie ice cream that was rich and luscious and maybe even better than a slice of the pie itself.

October

I'm a bit of a carrot freak, and I gotta say that these charred carrots with white bean black garlic aioli were pretty super.

Yes! More ice cream! This time cardamom carrot made with homemade carrot halwa, an Indian sweet.

November

I like messing with cassoulet, making versions that have the required components--beans, sausage, poultry--but decidedly non-traditional flavor combinations. This one had a vague Caribbean vibe, thanks to the jerk seasoning used on the chicken and beans.

This pumpkin cheesecake was a bit of an accident. I wanted to create a recipe for Muuna cottage cheese, and I only had one small cup of the plain. Mini cheesecakes was the answer. They were fluffy and moist, not too cheesy, just the way I like my cheesecake to be.

There were other delish dishes here and there through the year--Mr Minx's meatloaf, the pork loin we at on Christmas day, some terrific sugar cookies--but those posts haven't been written yet. Maybe they'll end up on next year's list. Stay tuned!



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Baltimore Winter Restaurant Week 2017

This year, Baltimore Restaurant Week falls between January 13th and 22nd (with some restaurants extending it another week or through the end of the month). I know some people pooh-pooh the event and prefer to stay away from participating restaurants during that time, but I love it and think it's a valuable event. How else to get people out to eat when the weather is crappy and the days are short?

I have always used Restaurant Week as a way to try places that are out of my price range. And these days, there are more and more restaurants that fit that description. While it's fun to try a new restaurant and eat three courses at a bargain price, it's even more fun to go to someplace expensive and enjoy a great meal for little cash.

For instance, at Aggio, entrees average $28 and full-sized pasta dishes are $32. During Restaurant Week, one can enjoy an app, entree, and dessert for $35. Cosima's entrees average a bit higher at $30 (although they are very generously sized and can feed two easily if you order apps and/or a pizza as well) which makes the $35 Restaurant Week dinner price there a bargain. Even more upscale in the cost department is Magdalena, in the Ivy Hotel. Entrees there average over $38 and even dessert will set you back $13, so that reduced three-course price is an amazing introduction to their cuisine.

If you fall in love with one of the restaurants you visit during Restaurant Week, then it can become a regular in your dining rotation, or at least a place to keep in mind for special occasions. And if you don't like the restaurant, well, then you didn't make a huge investment.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Best of 2016, Part 1

Every year we compile a list of what we felt were the best dishes of the year, both at home and in restaurants. These are completely subjective, of course - it's what tasted most delicious to our palates. First up: the best of restaurant dishes. They are in order of posting, starting, of course, with January.

January

This rockfish dish at Waterfront Kitchen came with a plethora of carrots, and I couldn't have been more pleased.

February

A dinner at the Food Market's Private Kitchen included these succulent lamb chops, which we were happy to eat with our fingers in order to get every morsel of meat from the bones.

March

I indulged in a rather extravagant multi-course Korean meal at Gaonnuri in NY early last year. My favorite course was the kalbi, or short ribs, easily the best I've ever eaten. The bibimbap was pretty delicious, too.

Mr Minx and I had a great meal at Seasons 52. We enjoyed every course, but I think the sea bass with black rice was my favorite. Honestly, it was hard to choose.

April

Another tasty sea bass dish was had at the Rusty Scupper during an introduction to their Spring menu. Mr Minx also had blue crab ravioli that hit the spot.

May

Lamb shoulder isn't the first thing one thinks about when one considers chiles rellenos, but Chef Mike Ransom's lamb-stuffed chile in an ancho bbq sauce was among the best dishes at a B & O American Brasserie dinner where everything was pretty wonderful.

June

We went to a media preview of Gnocco in the spring, and honestly, there wasn't a bad dish in the house. The agnolotti with goat cheese, chanterelles, and hazelnuts was probably my favorite, though.

July

I'd never think I'd include a kale dish in a "best of" post, but here it is. The kale chaat from Sneha Indian Cuisine is an odd hodgepodge of crispy fried kale and a sweet tamarind yogurt sauce, and it was both unusual (not a classic "chaat" dish at all) and delicious.

September

In September, Mr Minx wrote about the best pizza we had all year - the cape sante di pancetta at Cosima. Topped with smoked baby scallops, smoked mozzarella, basil, caramelized bacon, and tiny whole onions, the pizza was fabulously unusual and unusually fabulous. The whole meal was excellent, but we gotta go back for this pizza.

October

It's hard to pick our favorite dish at Points South Latin Kitchen. Everything was marvelous, including this slab of meltingly tender short rib braised in a sauce containing bittersweet chocolate. The pork belly chicharrones and the evening's duck special were also amazing. One of the top meals of 2016.

November

Is it weird to have a salad on the best of list? This one,.the Fall Harvest Salad at the newly remodeled Milton Inn had mixed greens, maple vinaigrette, roasted butternut squash, feta cheese, and pistachio nuts and totally hit all the right spots.

B&O American Brasserie has yet another new chef, this time it's Scott Hines, who had been their executive sous chef for a while prior to his promotion. We love Scott - he's a great chef and a good guy, and always willing to help us out with recipes. He contributed several to our latest book, Maryland's Chesapeake. He's come up with some delicious dishes for the B&O's dinner menu, among them is this house-made pappardelle with veal sugo and an unexpected orange and marjoram gremolata. Another dish we need to have more of before the season ends and it comes off the menu. His oxtail marmalade and lamb dishes are notable as well.

December

We were invited to Charles Levine's new restaurant at Quarry Lake, Citron, where we had a lovely meal. There were many high points, the highest of which may have been this lobster bisque. Redolent of shellfish broth and containing two butter-poached claws, it is last-meal-worthy.

That's it for 2016. Not a good year in many respects, but not bad at all when it comes to restaurant food. Still, we can hope that 2017 is even better!



Posted on Minxeats.com.