A great event! Thanks to Cathy, Michelle, Mary, and everyone else who helped to make this such an enjoyable day.

I ate so many good things yesterday, but my favorites may be Trixie's Korean pork, Kenny's focaccia, and Jimswside's crispy, spicy wings.

Ronna

I went through the LTH Picnic spreadsheet, and discovered that I had tasted 41 of the drinks and dishes! I am quite proud of that. The one that I missed was Rene’s artisanal mother-in-law sandwich. Next year (as they say on the north side).

I started to make lists of my favorites, and in my mind…handing out awards. Why keep it to myself? Here are my picks:
Appetizers:
• Stuffed Dates
• Cavoio Nero

Mains:
• SteveZ’s brisket
• Jim’s smoked wings
• Spicy North Africa Beef Ribs
• Mapo Tofu (way better than I thought it might be)
• Spinakopita

Sides
• Spatzel fried in duck fat
• Gianduja tart with hazelnuts
• Raw corn salad

Sweets
• Scottish short bread
• Bing cherry crumble
• Chocolate sauerkraut cake

Drinks
• Spiced Sangria
• Sprecher Root Beer Keg (genius)

Most unusual: Pickled grapes

Most perverted: The Excited Pig

Overall Grand Prize Winner: Rab & Reb’s BLT Crostini

Thanks for the memories!

great event, a tip of the hat to the organizers, and all who attended for making it great.

Once again my drinking, cooking, and chatting got in the way of me trying everything I wanted at the picnic. however the items I did try I enjoyed quite a bit.

particularly: steve's brisket, Ronnies sandwich, panther's jerky, kenny's foccacia, tom's bear lettuce and tomato sandwich.

Special thanks to attrill(chris) for letting me toss my wings on his barrel cooker to crisp up the skin.

jimswside wrote:tom's bear lettuce and tomato sandwich.

Wasn't it camel?

Jim, your little drumsticks with bacon were especially pleasing; thanks.

Wow! What a day!

Even though I had printed a list I only made it about 3/4 of the way through before the approaching food coma impaired my judgement and I started eating at random.

There are some items I truly regret not trying and I have promised myself to do better next year.

There was not an item in the group that I did not enjoy with my leanings towards the meat items although I did sneak in a few salads and desserts. Sitting out back near the cookers did influence my leanings.

What a great community! A Big Thanks! goes out to everyone and their efforts.

A special Thanks! goes out to Cathy and her crew as there was nary a hitch the entire day. Great Job!

You know what would be awesome?

Publish a cookbook of the items making an appearance at the picnic.

David Hammond wrote:

jimswside wrote:tom's bear lettuce and tomato sandwich.

Wasn't it camel?

They were both available.

David Hammond wrote:

jimswside wrote:tom's bear lettuce and tomato sandwich.

Wasn't it camel?

Jim, your little drumsticks with bacon were especially pleasing; thanks.

thank you, it was a pleasure chatting with you yesterday.

I thought there was bear and camel offered, but I could be mistaken.

Someone brought a big round of white creamy goat cheese. I do not enjoy goat cheese, but this was really something special. What kind of goat cheese was it?

I was happy to learn that environmentalists encourage the consumption of more camel meat. Happy because I like the environment, and happy because I thought the flavor and texture of Tom's CLT were terrific. Tender, with an ever-so-slightly gamey flavor that I found quite pleasant. I plan to do some camel cooking myself in the near future.

Kennyz wrote: I plan to do some camel cooking myself in the near future.

How about some camel testicles en croute!! And don't forget the pictures please!

There was bear and camel. Because just bear would be boring.

I really liked the cochinita, as good as any restaurant version I've had here, by DRC1379 and his wife, who also were kind enough to let me set up pastrami on their table. I also loved the cocktail sorbets, which always go so quickly, the melon-feta salad which was just what all the meat on my plate wanted, Santander's suggestion of my pastrami on Kennyz's focaccia, the jamon, Dansch's spring roll which I just got one bite of, many sausages from Laikom & co., the pork mechado sliders (easily the best Filipino food I've ever had, a marginal compliment which doesn't do them justice), the bacon on RAB & REB's little crusty things, Carolyn's venison bean thing, lemongrass chicken, the last but not least dish of corn clafoutis from Gastro Gnome, duck fat spaetzle, the welcome return of Joan's orange cakey thing, and more, I'm sure.

The down side of reading the reviews is thinking, "How did I miss that?" every other post. Especially since I tried so many things.

And there were so many wonderful things. Hard to pick favorites -- and hard to even remember everything at this point. All the meat and charcuterie was splendid, from hot links to Oxtail en gelee. The Thai apple salad was magic. Loved the spiced sangria. For the first time ever, I got to sample the sorbet (it always runs out so quickly), and it was wonderful. Excellent ma po tofu -- as good as any I had in Sichuan Province. Corn to camel, grape leaves to guacamole, papaya salad to pastrami, the variety was astonishing and the quality was excellent.

Of course, the company was a highlight, too. Great people, all cheerfully contributing and indulging and talking about food and travel. Lots of fun.

Amazing event. Thanks especially to those in charge, but also to everyone who contributed. Already looking forward to next year.

Mike G wrote:There was bear and camel. Because just bear would be boring.

There was black bear and camel because Czimer's only had about a pound and a half of camel on hand when I was there, so I had to get something else. (FWIW, both were brined, cooked sous vide and then seared before slicing. Wanted to try to make them tender.)

Czimer's Game & Sea Foods Inc.
13136 West 159th Street
Homer Glen, IL 60491-8768
(708) 301-0500

Gypsy Boy wrote:

David Hammond wrote:

jimswside wrote:tom's bear lettuce and tomato sandwich.

Wasn't it camel?

They were both available.

Damn, really regretting missing this now. These and the Jackfruit Cupcakes. Oh well, next year!

nr706 wrote:

Mike G wrote:There was bear and camel. Because just bear would be boring.

There was black bear and camel because Czimer's only had about a pound and a half of camel on hand when I was there, so I had to get something else. (FWIW, both were brined, cooked sous vide and then seared before slicing. Wanted to try to make them tender.)

Czimer's Game & Sea Foods Inc.
13136 West 159th Street
Homer Glen, IL 60491-8768
(708) 301-0500

Mom1, Mom2 and I appreciated the opportunity to add black bear and camel to our list of food eaten during our lifetime. When Mom2 hesitated, I reminded her it was something to tell the church ladies later. She rose to the challenge.

Thank you!

Regards,

Sounded like a great time!

Hopefully I can make one of these in the future.

dan

Let me add my own thanks to the chorus! What a wonderful spread... I'd been having a challenging weekend, and was considering bailing on the picnic. I am SO glad I decided to go!

Thank you, thank you... counting the days until the 2011 event!

A post-event salute and wish for a return of the day by one of Burns' lesser-known drinking buddies--

Master Planners, ye plan'd; / Able Comers, ye came.
Thankful, let us All Stand, / Toasting: Year-again same!

My belated thanks to all who organized this event, notably Cathy2 (the ultimate organizer), Mhays and the GP. It was a great time, but ultimately very frustrating … when you have at least 100 – 200 dishes to try, and your SO has arranged for you to go to a cookout as soon as you can get away from the picnic. Even without the cookout, the dazzling array of foodstuffs was almost paralyzing – I have only so much precious stomach space, where do I begin?

I wish I’d been able to try Gary’s Ma Po Tofu. Mike G’s pastrami was better than any commercial pastrami I‘ve ever had (not that I’m an especially experienced pastrami connoisseur). I wanted, but failed, to try jimswside’s wings. Dan’s Vietnamese Spring Roll, freshly fried on-site, wrapped in lettuce and appropriate herbs made me feel like I was in Saigon. Jimthebeerguy’s habanero stout, in its transparent titanium growler, was amazingly complex, with its pepper flavors up front, and only a bit of heat way in the back of the mouth. I wish I’d been able to try his South African polenta-style dish. But I did get a taste of SteveZ’s brisket – the Platonic ideal for that piece of cattle (at least, after it had been subjected to fire). And, on the protein concept, the artisanal ham in a fascinating holder, brought by CrazyC and her hubby Mike, was another obvious highlight. But I wasn’t quick enough to snarf up one of ReneG’s artisinal Mothers-in-Law.

Frankly, Alan’s stuffed Cavolo Nero wasn’t quite as photogenic as his previous efforts, but the presentation was memorable (I’ll post a photo if no one else does soon), and the flavors and toppings made for an especially complex one or two bite experience.

I wish I could have stayed longer and tried more, but a family cookout took precedence. Maybe next year. I have 9/11/11 in my calendar.

edited for clarity

And, on the protein concept, the artisanal ham in a fascinating holder, brought by Mike, was another obvious highlight.

That was CrazyC and her husband Mike, not me (as it seems to read).

Being chained to the brisket table certainly appeared to have its disadvantages. As I read everone's comments about their favorite dishes, I realize how much great stuff I missed. Next year, I'm going to make an effort to eat even more.

Here are some pics of Alan's beautiful cavolo nero:



After seeing these photos, I think I'll go to the fridge to have a couple

Like Steve said, being chained to a table (and arriving late) did make me miss out on a lot of cool-sounding stuff...but it was very cool how so many folks saw that I was chained to a table and brought me things to eat

With so many friendly, passionate people involved, it's no surprise to me that the picnic was as fantastic as it was. Can't wait until next year's!

Khaopaat wrote:
but it was very cool how so many folks saw that I was chained to a table and brought me things to eat

thats the only way I got to try the few items I did, kind folks bringing them by as I was cooking.

Next year, if we are able to attend, we are going the route of pre made items.

Let me add my thanks to all the others-
Cathy and Michelle and crew- you are completely awesome!

Everything I tried was amazing!, I can't even begin to list it, and I know I'd leave someone ouut and they'd feel slighted,
so I won't try, but thanks to everyone who cooked, created, smoked, grilled, composed, and brought such wonderful treats and delicacies.

I can't believe there were so many things I didn't get to try!
Ah well, there's always next year...

The best part, was just sitting under the tree in the breeze shooting the breeze....
Great friends, Great food, great weather, what more can you ask?

Thanks to all who helped make it magic!

stevez wrote:Being chained to the brisket table certainly appeared to have its disadvantages. As I read everone's comments about their favorite dishes, I realize how much great stuff I missed. Next year, I'm going to make an effort to eat even more.

Agreed! I was by the grills for most of the picnic, and while I thought I had done a pretty good job of sampling as much as I could, these posts make me realize how many things I missed. On plus side - being where I was gave me easy access to BrendanR's Thai chicken, Jimswside's korean wings, Nancy's North African shortribs, the great offerings from Laikom/David, and Jimthebeerguy's stout and hefewiese!

It was great to meet everyone, and I definitely hope to attend more LTH events in the future. Thanks Cathy and everyone who helped put this together!

Like--it seems--everyone else, Sunday night found me full, tired, and happy, with barely enough energy to catch up on the Sunday Trib. I had to laugh when I came across my horoscope for the day:

"Your schedule takes you out of the house and into the world. Allow someone to persuade you to try new and exotic flavors."

I don't think it took too much persuading! Thanks to Cathy2, Michele, and the GP for all of the organizing, to everyone who brought wonderful dishes to share, and to everyone who contributed to great conversation.

Cynthia wrote:The down side of reading the reviews is thinking, "How did I miss that?" every other post.

Exactly! Next year I'm going to follow the advice of those who make lists of "must-tries" beforehand. I missed so many dishes that it wouldn't be fair for me to list favorites, BUT....

nr706 wrote:Mike G’s pastrami was better than any commercial pastrami I‘ve ever had (not that I’m an especially experienced pastrami connoisseur).

I visited Kenny and Zuke's in Portland OR last month, and I have to say I liked Mike G's pastrami EVEN MORE than the version I tried there! Any leftovers, Mike?

LOST AND FOUND

Large white plate with green striped border; came with chocolate cake

Small white oval dish with black wavy border

Showtime six star boning knife

Wedge-shaped Sunbeam spatula with black plastic handle

Long handled cooking spoon

Post here or PM me to arranged pick up.

I think there's a solid consensus that the gustatory nadir of the picnic was the Burmese snacks from Fort Wayne. David "Excited Pig" Hammond summed it up nicely when he said both were near the threshold of edibility, but wasn't sure on which side. We still don't know exactly what they were. Here are the names of the two treats written down by the shopkeeper in Fort Wayne. Anyone have any idea what we were eating?

Rene G wrote:I think there's a solid consensus that the gustatory nadir of the picnic was the Burmese snacks from Fort Wayne. David "Excited Pig" Hammond summed it up nicely when he said both were near the threshold of edibility, but wasn't sure on which side. We still don't know exactly what they were. Here are the names of the two treats written down by the shopkeeper in Fort Wayne. Anyone have any idea what we were eating?

I'll send this to my Burmese friend to see if she can enlighten us.

Jyoti