A new beginning.

I'm here, I'm here!!  Between illness, travel and a death in the family, I dropped off of the face of the blogosphere, but I'm back and I'm on a mission.  I've put a lot on my plate and I hope I can pull it all off.

First, I'm committing myself to running the Chicago Marathon this year.  Next month is registration, so I'll have plenty of time to train.  That shouldn't be a problem.  That also means I'll have to dedicate more time to running, balanced with time for fun, food, drink, travel, and perfecting my Italian.

Second, I still have a list of sandwiches that I need to tackle.  I thought for sure I'd have at least half of the 50 knocked back, but so many things going on, I've neglected this task, which also lead to neglecting my readers.

Third, Time Out Chicago put out their annual 100 Best Things We Ate and Drank This year, for 2012. So if Bacon Steak, Thai Style Fried Chicken, Gateau Breton, Peanut Butter and Jelly Donuts, Moqueca, Baccala Frittole, and Kimchee Mortadella bun, sound intriguing, stay tuned.

And finally, for Christmas, I received some new cookbooks, so I'll be doing some more home cooking as well.  I'm still looking for recipes from my readers, so please feel free to share.

One last note, this coming Friday I will be taking a cooking class.  This is no ordinary cooking class, no.  This class will be held at iNG restaurant (http://www.ingrestaurant.com) and we will be using the Miracle Berry, which Chef Homaro Cantu is really making headway in bringing this magic berry to the publics attention.  We will be making a few things from his new Miracle Berry Diet Cookbook, followed by a 6 course meal.  Every experience here has been amazing, and just keeps getting better.  So, stay tuned for results, and photos.  I still have photos to post from my last iNG flavor tripping experience.

So, I thank you all for following my blog, for your comments, emails, gifts, etc, and I hope to continue to keep your attention through the following year.

Ciao, ciao

Sean

Quiet moments.

Yes, it's been quiet the last few weeks.  As the seasons transition and we hop what seems like from Summer to Winter, I'm letting my body adjust to the change of seasons, temps, weather, etc.  I have a trip to NYC coming soon, and had to juggle my work schedule to help some guys do things with family and side jobs, which benefitted me.  So, I will be back into the swing of things shortly, and I will be focusing on some great Chicago eats.  I've also been hitting my kitchen a little more which is therapy to me and the fact that I can feed others, that makes me happy.  Digging through cook books and recipes that have been burning holes through my fingers has been a good thing.  Although I have a small galley kitchen, it works, for now, until I can afford to move somewhere with a larger kitchen.

So, now I ask of my readers a challenge.  Send me some recipes to try, something new, something different.  Because as the temps drop, the best way to warm my apartment is to heat up the kitchen.  So, send in your recipes and I will try them, and photo document them and post them here and on Facebook.

Looking forward to the challenge.

Ciao, ciao!