Prime Plates: Where to go for Restaurant Week
February 17, 2012
Top 5 Picks for Chicago Restaurant Week
February 16, 2012
Gayot Selects Benny’s Chop House as One of the 2012 Top 10 Chicago Steakhouse Restaurants
January 31, 2012
Forget dinner, do drinks: 6 Chicago restaurants with can’t-miss bars
January 11, 2012
Phil Vettel Recommends Steak Houses
December 12, 2011
Cécile Savage and Calvin “Koco” Brunson perform at Benny’s Chop House
Cécile Savage (bass and vocals) and Calvin “Koco” Brunson (piano and vocals), who co-lead the jazz group “Komango,” perform at Benny’s on Wednesday, December 7 and Wednesday, December 21 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. They offer a culturally diverse repertoire steeped in the African American, French and Brazilian traditions.
Add a touch of seasonal elegance to your Thanksgiving Dinner with these unique Spiced Pumpkin Soufflés
November 15, 2011
From RedEye Chicago
This year’s Thanksgiving menu at Benny’s Chop House (444 N. Wabash Ave., Chicago; 312-626-2444) brings forth an especially elegant and delicious pumpkin dessert that will add more than a touch of taste delight to your Thanksgiving meal. The Spiced Pumpkin Soufflés, created by Benny’s pastry chef Aaron Lindgren, are a delicate and creative way to transform the traditional pumpkin dessert experience into something truly memorable.
You can enjoy this dessert at Benny’s Chop House on Thanksgiving (Thanksgiving dinner is served from noon to 8 p.m. on Thursday, November 24) or, if you’re planning to enjoy Thanksgiving at home, you’ll be thrilled with the accolades you’ll get from your friends and family when you serve this sophisticated dessert creation, made with spiced rum. This year, let the kids enjoy the pumpkin pie while the grownups marvel at your dessert-making prowess. Here is the recipe and preparation from Chef Lindgren:
Spiced Pumpkin Soufflés
Serves four (4)
Ingredients
4 Tablespoons (2 ounces) butter, plus 3 oz. of butter for ramekins
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar for ramekins½ cup spiced rum
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons canned, unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
¼ teaspoon clove
¼ cup of milk
¼ teaspoon allspice
Pinch of nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt
8 eggs
6 Tablespoons Pumpkin Powder
3 Tablespoons of flour
Pinch of cream of tartar
4 soufflé ramekins, 4 inches OR 16 ounces in diameter
Directions
How to prepare the soufflé molds:
Generously grease your soufflé ramekins with 3 tablespoons of melted butter and. Refrigerate the buttered ramekins and then butter them again. Dust the insides of the ramekins with 3 tablespoons of the sugar and return them to the refrigerator. Keep the remaining butter at room temperature.
How to make the pumpkin pastry cream:
Separate the eggs, reserving the whites in the bowl of a stand mixer. In a small bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, egg yolks, 1/4C or 2oz. sugar, spices, salt, flour, and pumpkin powder. Gradually add milk and whisk until lumps are removed. Heat the mixture on low, stirring with a whisk, until it begins to thicken. Cook over medium heat stirring vigorously until you can see the bottom of the pan. Cool slightly and stir in the butter and rum, set aside to cool.
Make the meringue:
Combine all but 2 tablespoons of the remaining sugar and 4 tablespoons water in a small saucepan over medium heat and attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan. Simultaneously place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk on medium high speed. Once the egg whites begin to foam up, add the cream of tartar .When the egg whites are completely foamy, shiny and begin to hold the lines of a whisk, add the sugar. The whites should become shiny and gain volume. If you see the whites beading (small lumps of egg whites forming on the side of the bowl), you have whipped them too dry; slow the machine down and add the remaining sugar.
Prepare Soufflé Mixture:
Add about a quarter of the meringue to the pumpkin custard to lighten it and then add the remaining meringue by placing a spatula in the center of the bowl, scrape the bottom, and bring the bottom over the top. Rotate the bowl 45 degrees and continue folding until all the egg whites are incorporated.
Fill the prepared ramekins:
Using a rubber or plastic spatula, fill the prepared ramekins with the mixture, avoiding leaving any air pockets under the mixture in the ramekins. Flatten the tops of the ramekins with a metal spatula, scraping any excess mixture back into the bowl. Clean off any bits of mousse that might have dropped onto the sides of the ramekins.
Bake the soufflé:
You can now either bake your soufflés or place them in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 4 hours or in the freezer for up to 24 hours. Before baking frozen soufflés, allow them to sit out at room temperature for 1 hour. When you are ready to bake the soufflés, preheat the oven to 375°F. Bake the soufflés until they are raised over the rims by about ½ their original volume, 9 to 12 minutes in a convection oven or 15 to 20 minutes in a regular oven without a fan.
Egg Nog Crème Anglaise
1qt heavy cream
1 cup sugar
6 egg yolks
1T vanilla extract or 1 Vanilla pod
1t Cinnamon
1t Allspice
1t Nutmeg
Directions:
Heat cream in sauce pot but do not boil. In mixing bowl, combine egg yolks and sugar. Gradually pour heated cream into bowl with yolks. Mix well with whip. Pour mixture back into pot. On low heat, stir constantly. When sauce coats spoon, remove from heat. Pour through a fine strainer and chill.
Benny’s Chop House Slideshow Menu
April 19, 2011
Foodies Chicago: Benny’s Chophouse
April 15, 2011
Chef Jonathan Lane appears on NBC Chicago.
Israel Idonije partners with Benny’s Chop House
The Bears’ defensive end hosted a private reception and dinner benefit for his nonprofit Israel Idonije Foundation, which economically provides programming and opportunities for deserving children and their families in Chicago, Canada and Idonije’s native Nigeria. Donors, fans and a few local celebs including Pursuit of Happyness film inspiration and brokerage firm owner Chris Gardner, Bears defensive tackle Anthony Adams and ABC sports reporter Ryan Chiaverini were in attendance.
Chef Jonathan Lane interviewed on WLS-AM
February 11, 2011
Benny’s Chop House Reviewed by Splash Magazine
Chicago Tribune: Three new arrivals muscling onto River North dining scene
January 26, 2011
Matt Lamb: Art found at Benny’s
January 20, 2011
Urban Daddy: The Most Romantic Tables in Town
January 10, 2011
Midwest Living – Top 10 Best New Chicago Restaurants
January 9, 2011
WCIU: Chicken Under the Brick at Benny’s
August 4, 2010
Imagine deboned chicken pressed, seared and baked – Benny’s Chop House’s “chicken under the brick” is literally flattened under a brick for an extra-crispy bird!
Watch the video on WCIU.com