Frank Lloyd Wright has been dead for half a century, but the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust’s 35-year-old Wright Plus weekend keeps getting livelier.
Since 2005, one of the highlights has been the Exclusively Wright Dinners, elaborate meals prepared by top Chicago chefs for a maximum of two dozen guests in homes designed by the famous — and infamous — architect.
This year the dinners will be held Saturday in three houses, and, at press time, a few spaces were left (877-848-3559). But just in case you can’t afford $1,350 per person for this fundraiser, here’s the scoop on how the chefs are tailoring their menus to the architect’s creations — with recipes you can try at home.
Chef: Gale Gand, executive chef and partner at Tru, cookbook author, host of Food Network’s “Sweet Dreams”
House: Avery Coonley House (1907) in Riverside; sprawling Prairie-style estate with lavish grounds
Recipe: Bitter chocolate pot de creme
A Wright fan since college, Gand was married at Wright’s Unity Temple in Oak Park, and she and husband Jimmy Seidita drive around the country visiting the architect’s houses with the dream of living in one someday. For her seasonal dinner, a collaboration with Macy’s corporate executive chef Tim Scott, she’s drawing on the Coonley’s earth-tone color scheme, as well as on the Prairie School’s horizontal lines; her pot de creme, for example, is being plated on a flat surface and paired with a rhubarb and raspberry tart. Gand also is paying tribute to the architect’s reputation for spontaneity by bringing impromptu garnishes, among them nasturtiums, a Wright favorite planted all over the Coonley garden and at most of his properties. “But unlike Wright, I promise to come in on time and not go over budget,” she said.
Chef: Jim Boardman, executive chef/managing partner, Taste America Catering
House: Charles F. Glore House (1951), Lake Forest; two-story Wright vision of affordable housing for the masses
Recipe: Mini roasted root-vegetable pot pie
Boardman is a veteran caterer of Wright dinners, but he’s psyched about his first in this house because of its 1950s less-is-more aesthetic. “I’m basing my menu on that era,” he said, “but adding contemporary American twists.” Hors d’oeuvres include mini pot pies made with root vegetables from the Green City Market. Deviled eggs — quail eggs — show up in the composed salad. “I get a kick out of doing this,” Boardman said, “the homes transport me to another time.”
Chef: Daniel Herskovic, of chefdaniel.com
House: Isidore Heller House (1896) in Hyde Park; one of Wright’s earliest Prairie-style three-story houses
Recipe: Crostini of heirloom beets and goat cheese
Herskovic says he always pictured Wright houses with lots of small rooms, so he was delighted the first time he saw the Heller’s fairly spacious kitchen, as well the home’s warm woodwork, stained glass, and gold leaf. He’s subtly incorporating these elements into his mostly organic menu — mirroring Wright’s “organic way of executing his architecture” — that starts with a trio of hors d’oeuvres: spicy sashimi tuna spring roll, the crostini of beets and smoked salmon and Gruyere croque monsieur. For dessert, a bittersweet chocolate-coconut mousse dome with salted peanut caramel comes with toasted coconut ice cream and is finished with 23-carat gold leaf that’s completely edible, Herskovic said.
Crostini of roasted beets and goat cheese
Prep: 25 minutes
Cook: 1 1/2 hours
Makes: 10 appetizer servings
This brightly colored appetizer is adapted from a recipe by Chef Daniel Herskovic, chef-owner of chefdaniel.com.
1 pound mixed red and yellow beets, greens trimmed off
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 shallot, minced
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 baguette (4-6 ounces) sliced thin, toasted, brushed with olive oil
1 package (4 ounces) goat cheese, softened
1 bunch chives, chopped
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Mix the beets with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt in a large bowl. Wrap beets individually in foil; roast until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Let cool; peel. Dice the beets, placing the red and yellow in separate bowls.
2. Whisk together 1/3 cup of the olive oil, shallot, vinegar, sugar and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of the salt in a medium bowl. Divide the vinaigrette between the red and yellow beets, tossing to coat. Spread the goat cheese on the baguette slices. Divide the beets between baguette slices, placing red beets on one side, yellow on the other side. Garnish with chives.
Nutrition information
Per serving: 179 calories, 67% of calories from fat, 13 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 9 mg cholesterol, 11 g carbohydrates, 4 g protein, 324 mg sodium, 1 g fiber
Bitter chocolate pots de creme with black pepper whipped cream
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Chill: 2 hours Makes: 10 servings
This rich dessert is from pastry chef Gale Gand. Custard:
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 quart whipping cream
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar Whipped cream:
1/2 cup whipping cream, chilled
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
4 grinds freshly ground pepper
1. Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl; set aside. Heat the cream and salt to a boil in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour over the chocolate, whisking until melted. Return saucepan to the stove.
2. Whisk the yolks and sugar together in a medium bowl. Add the melted chocolate mixture to the egg mixture, about a tablespoon at a time, whisking well after each addition. Pour mixture back into the saucepan; heat over medium heat until thick enough to smoothly coat the back of a wooden spoon. (Run your finger down the back of the spoon; when the edges do not blur, the mixture is ready.)
3. Divide the mixture into 10 small ramekins; place the ramekins in a baking pan large enough to hold them. Fill with water halfway up sides of ramekins. Cover the pan tightly with foil; bake until almost set but still jiggly in the center, 30-40 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the water bath; let cool 15 minutes. Tightly cover each ramekin with plastic wrap, making sure the plastic does not touch the surface of the custard. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or until ready to serve.
4. Just before serving, combine the cream with the brown sugar and pepper in a large bowl; beat with electric mixer until soft peaks form. Spoon a dollop onto each pot de creme.
Nutrition information
Per serving: 499 calories, 82% of calories from fat, 48 g fat, 28 g saturated fat, 274 mg cholesterol, 18 g carbohydrates, 5 g protein, 75 mg sodium, 1 g fiber
