Chef-Boy-I-Be Illinois

about me

I live on the prairies of Central Illinois with my partner of 10 years. I work for the Army Corps of Engineers. For fun, we love to travel, flea market, antique, and attend auctions. My favorite cookbook is the one I bought at Biltmore Estate that features recipes from their restaurants. The focus is on fresh, in season ingredients. I also collect old cookbooks that I find at flea markets and antique shops. You know, the ones with the sprial bindings that are usually put together by church or local social groups? There are some treasures in those!

Oct 08: Well, we made our annual trek to the Parke County, IN Covered Bridge Festival. http://www.coveredbridges.com/ This county is home to more covered bridges than any place outside of New England. Beautiful Fall weather, wonderful food, and gorgeous scenery. People come from all over the country just to experience it. While there, I picked up a unique cookbook based on local recipes: http://shop.mansfieldvillage.com/product.sc?categoryId=2&productId=1

Aug 08: Summer is going too fast and Labor Day is almost upon us! We are enjoying all the fresh fruits and vegetables. Our Fall vacation plans are taking us to Asheville, NC to look at possibly purchasing some vacation property at Carefree Cove http://www.cgrdevelopment.com/ Then it's on to Hilton Head for some off-season enjoyment of the coast and the ocean.

June 08: Our latest travel plans are for Memorial Day weekend when we are taking my partner's Mom and Aunt to the Lucille Ball Festival in her hometown of Jamestown, NY http://www.lucy-desi.com/festival/festival_info.html

All of us are big Lucy fans and are looking forward to this trip!

Well, we had a blast! Beautiful Spring weather and friendly tourists celebrating Lucy's life. Here are some pics:
http://www.recipezaar.com/members/home/326039/Jamestown%20002.jpg
http://www.recipezaar.com/members/home/326039/Jamestown%20015.jpg






We are excited about becoming first time members of a local community supported agriculture (CSA) adventure, http://www.brackettfarm.com/

Every week we get a new vegetable or fruit. It's fun finding unique ways to prepare them. Bob's wife, Cyndy, also maintains a list of recipes on their site. Take a look! We very much like that we are supporting something local with the benefit that it's healthy for us too! We would urge you to seek out these opportunities where you live.

Favorite Foods:

The only things I really don't care for are chocolate (weird, huh) and asian cuisine.

I absolutely love anything Mediterranean.

I'm famous for my country green beans, and my company potatoes (not posted because there are similar recipes).

My favorite dish to cook are my beef and mushroom stuffed pasta shells (I STILL need to post this recipe).

My favorite restaurant (We do our best to avoid all chain restaurants) is a little steak house in Covington, IN called Maple Corner. They have steak, seafood, pork, catfish, and some Italian dishes. You will not believe their wine list! They cook all their steaks over real wood (cherry, sasafrass, pear, apple). Good stuff! Another (new) favorite is on old Route 66 south of Springfield, IL in a little town called Litchfield. It's a diner called Ariston's Cafe. If you are ever traveling through the area, do give it a try: http://www.ariston-cafe.com/ If you happen to be there for lunch, do try the Horseshoe Sandwich. It's a regional sandwich.

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