The Bohemian Crystal, Westmont, IL

Deep dish pizza may top most people's list of Chicago must-eats, but when my family visits Chicago, there's only one place we have to go - The Bohemian Crystal in Westmont. Back in the early days of The Traveling Spoon, I dedicated a post to exploring my culinary heritage, and The Bohemian Crystal was an important landmark on the journey.

Legendary Breaded Pork Tenderloin and Bread Dumplings at the Bohemian Crystal, Westmont, IL

To make a long story a bit shorter, I trace my culinary roots to the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Germany, so the Bohemian Crystal - which specializes in Bohemian, Slovak and Moravian cuisine (with a few classic German and Polish entrees thrown in for good measure) - is the perfect place to sate my ethnic food cravings. But this restaurant isn't just a mecca for my extended family, it's also a favorite of the sizable Czech population that makes its home in the Chicago suburbs.

Main Dining Room at the Bohemian Crystal

My family has been going to 'the Crystal,' for as long as I can remember - quite possibly, in fact, since before I was born, and I'm quite sure the decor hasn't changed a bit since those early days. Stepping into the Crystal really is like stepping back in time: leather-backed chairs, low, heavy-beamed ceilings, and brick interior accents speak to its 1960s-70s heyday, as does the superannuated clientele. On any given visit, my siblings and I are usually the youngest patrons by a few decades at least, but this is actually a positive because it means that the Crystal really understands good, stick-to-your ribs food, with generous portions that represent a value for money reflective of a bygone era. Simply put, it's good, old-fashioned food and a lot of it!

Start 'em young: my nephew, James' first visit to the Crystal

The Crystal is modeled on a traditional, Old World Czech restaurant, which means it's dark, dated, and decorated with masses of tchotzkes - including, of course, its namesake Bohemian crystal. Add to that the traditional dress of the young, female waitresses and you could be forgiven for imagining yourself in a pub in Prague.

So now that I've set the scene, what about the food? Well, since I've been to the Crystal so many times, you think I'd be able to give you a detailed run-down of the menu....and as a champion of variety, I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I've only ever ordered one thing off their ridiculously extensive menu (seriously, you might want to do an online recon to nail down a few options beforehand, or you'll be reading for a while). That's right - I've ordered the same meal every time I've visited the Crystal, but when your meal is as good and authentic as their Breaded Pork Tenderloin, why mess with perfection?

See? Perfection.

The Crystal is known for hearty favorites like duck, lamb shank, pork tenderloin, or veal cutlets, but it also boasts an extensive list of sides, including potato pancakes, both bread- and potato-based dumplings, veggies, and sauerkraut - all of which can be topped with the thick brown gravy that they serve in abundance. Each entree includes a choice of sides and is served with a choice of soup or salad and some rye bread and rolls. You also get a bottomless mug of coffee or tea and a choice of dessert to finish.

Liver Dumpling Soup with Rye bread

The breaded tenderloin is massive and crisp (ask for a lunch portion or half portion if you're intimidated), but lightly breaded and usually not too greasy. Taken alongside some pillowy bread dumplings - my favorite part of the meal - and a river of molten gravy, it's a richly satisfying culinary trip to the 'old country.' I usually preface mine with a slice of caraway-infused rye bread and a bowl of liver dumpling soup, popular for its clear broth and tender, lightly spiced dumplings.

Poppyseed Kolacky

For dessert, I always choose kolacky, but kolacky-lovers should be warned that it's sometimes a bit hit-or-miss with the quality of the pastries at the Crystal. They're sourced from different bakeries and suppliers in the area (I always imagine some little babushka churning out hundreds of pastries in her kitchen!) which means that they're often slightly different from visit to visit. Thankfully, we were in luck this past time and feasted on some of the fattest, juiciest poppyseed kolacky I've ever seen!

Fruit Kolacky

Sure it's a nostalgic eatery for me - just the smell of the Crystal's over-strong coffee is enough to bring back memories of childhood visits with my grandparents and extended family - but it's also a great choice for anyone who values good, rich food and good value. Of course, you can't keep such a great place secret, so if you find yourself craving old world favorites you might want to make a reservation - the Crystal is especially packed on Sunday afternoons and is closed on Mondays.

Easter Lamb Cake Pan (or How to Season Cast Iron)

A couple of days ago, I mentioned one of my favorite Easter traditions - the Easter Lamb Cake. This festive confection usually consists of some sort of pound cake, baked in a lamb-shaped pan, frosted with buttercream, and covered in coconut 'fleece.'

Photo of a photo - sorry for the poor resolution!

It's a tradition from Eastern Europe and Germany that's been in our family for generations (and one that's especially common in the ethnic bakeries of Chicago, where my Mum's side of the family lives). Sadly, I don't have a lamb cake to share with you today - instead, this post is all about my cast iron lamb cake pan, which I rescued from rusty ignominy.

Pre-treatment: sad and rusty

My mum has one of the old-fashioned cast-aluminum pans (the top photo shows a cake baked in her pan, years ago!), but these days, most lamb cakes are baked in modern, lightweight pans. I've come across dozens of these, but never purchased one - always holding out for the 'real' thing...so you can imagine how thrilled I was to discover this rusty little beauty languishing in our local thrift store.

Even in its rusted, dirt-encrusted state, I just couldn't pass it up (could you say 'no' to that cute little face?) - especially since I know these pans garner lots of attention on eBay and this one was only about $12! It may surprise you to learn that I've never owned any cast iron (I really want some, though), so I was unsure about whether this pan could be salvaged. After a few hours of internet research, I decided it was worth a try and got to scrubbing.

Most sites suggested that 10-15 minutes of scrubbing should so the trick, but I soon learned that you don't have to worry about scrubbing behind the ears with a cast iron skillet; this task ended up taking me the better part of an afternoon. Once the rust was gone, I dried the pan in a 250°F oven for an hour or two and then cooled it on a wire rack.

Rescued!

At this point, I brushed the cooled pan with vegetable oil, taking care to grease every nook and cranny, and wiping out the excess with a paper towel. The pan went back into the oven ( 250°F to 300°F) for another couple of hours. I should note, here, that bacon fat or lard is actually recommended for seasoning, since vegetable oil may leave a slightly sticky finish. Unfortunately, I didn't have either of these to hand so I'll just have to keep my pans covered to prevent them accumulating dust or dirt.

I repeated the seasoning process again and plan to do it once more before I use the pan for baking (especially if I can get my hands on some lard). After that, it's just hot water and a soft rag for this pan to preserve the seasoning. I'm hoping that's the end of the rust, but it if comes back, I'll have to repeat the whole scrubbing-seasoning process again!  This slightly-gray pan should turn a classic cast-iron black with increased usage - guess I'd better get started on my Easter baking!

Edit: Apparently lamb cakes are more widely popular than I'd first thought - here's an Italian version, complete with recipe!

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Cheesy Ham and Potato Hash

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Matt and I took a trip up to Chicago to meet my new little nephew and spend the holiday with family. We played games, stuffed ourselves with desserts and feasted on lots and lots of turkey. I'm still nursing a bit of a tryptophan hangover, so while everyone else is still talking turkey, I'll share one last recipe for transforming leftover ham!

I was so proud of myself for writing up this recipe over the holiday weekend (I rarely get the chance to write up posts ahead of time, but I knew I'd be busy unpacking today) - and then I accidentally deleted it this morning, so you'll be getting a bit of a condensed version!

Thank goodness, then, that this dish is incredibly simple; tender chunks of chopped ham, shredded cheddar cheese, home-fried potatoes and a bit of egg for binding. This may sound like the perfect leftover ham breakfast, but it's also great for lunch or dinner... or a post-Thanksgiving snack!

You Are What You Eat: A Look at My Culinary Heritage

Many of the foods and recipes I make, and the ones that appear on this blog, are influenced by places I've been to - England, Germany, Italy, or Spain, for example - but others are influenced by the places I come from.  Although I'm a third generation American, my family still has ties to the countries that brought us here and their traditions inform many aspects of our lives. Of course, one of the most obvious areas of influence is in the foods we prepare and enjoy - I call this my culinary heritage.

My ancestors on both my father's and mother's sides are mostly German, Czech and Slovak (with a bit of Ukrainian and Polish mixed in) so I grew up with an affinity for hearty Eastern European fare.  Daily menus were 'American' or a fusion of many cuisines (my mother was the original culinary traveler in our family!) but special occasions warranted a return to our roots; usually with pork tenderloin (veprova pecene) heavily spiced with caraway and served with handmade bread dumplings (knedlicky) and sauerkraut (zeli). 'Pork, Sauerkraut and Dumplings', as the meal is known in our family, is the staple of birthdays, holidays and pretty much any other occasion that might lend an excuse to indulge in our favorite meal.

Roasting pork in Prague - one of the most common meats in Czech cooking
(picture courtesy of my sister during her visit to me in Germany!)

The smell of caraway still reminds me of family gatherings and I have always considered my mother's firm-but-tender bread dumplings to be something magical and mysterious that no one else can replicate. Indeed, even a trip to the Czech Republic in 2010 left me still searching for a knedlick that could come close to their sweet, doughy perfection.  Many a boyfriend was put to the test with our family meal (because dating someone who doesn't enjoy heaping servings of sauerkraut or oceans of rich, brown gravy would be patently unthinkable) and if you're ever lucky enough to be in our house on Christmas day, you'll surely be able to try it yourself.

Of course, our home-country cooking isn't limited to a single meal.  No Christmas-cookie season would be complete without some form of Lebkuchen (spiced, gingerbread-like cookies from Germany for which I have a great recipe that I will one day share!) or Czech sugar cookies, which are made with powdered sugar and magically develop their own creamy, butter-and-sugar frosting when baked.  Easter is an occasion for the Osterlamm - a lamb-shaped cake baked in a special pan brought over from Germany.  Leftover Easter ham gets turned into flicky, a surprisingly sweet, Czech noodle dish made with brown sugar, ham, noodles and butter, while leftover dumplings (if there are any, which is rare) get scrambled with eggs and served for breakfast.