WBEZ 91.5 Chicago

Friday was Epiphany, the Christian holiday, celebrated with galettes and roscas, which I mentioned in a previous post. It was also the first day you'd see Kings' Cakes in New Orleans for the pre-Lentan Carnivale season—so naturally my thoughts turn to nutria.

Nutria are furry creatures, also known as coypu or river rats. And they do look like rats—giant, cat-sized, prehistoric, saber-toothed rats, in my experience. They're wetlands dwellers, found throughout Louisiana, where they're also known as swamp rats.

They're also among us in the greater Chicagoland area. Some believe they're extinct around here. They're not.

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First Charlie Trotter, arguably the most important trailblazer in contemporary American fine dining, announces he's closing his restaurant. Then one of Chicago's pioneer gourmet food truck chefs—Matt Maroni, chef/owner of Gaztro-Wagon—says he's shutting down the storefront, handing over the keys to his truck, and stepping back from the metal-umlauted restaurant MörSo he opened.

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Resolved to start your oatmeal, kale and quinoa, and juice fast today? I know, me too. But not so fast. This week galettes des rois and roscas de reyes start popping up in bakeries around town.

Both pastries celebrate Epiphany/Día de los Reyes/the Twelfth Day of Christmas—the day the biblical Three Kings visited the baby Jesus—observed January 6.

There are many variations on the French galette, but now they're most traditionally puff pastry cakes filled with almond cream, hiding a fève (literally a bean, but now a small favor, some highly collectible). He or she who finds the fève wears the accompanying paper crown. King or Queen then hosts the next seasonal gathering: la Chandeleur, celebrated with crêpes.

Here in multi-culti Chicago we also have roscas de reyes, the Spanish-influenced sweet bread ring studded with colorful dried and/or candied fruits, also hiding a favor, usually a small baby-shaped figurine, representing the baby Jesus. King or Queen then hosts a Día de la Candelaria party—same day, different language—with tamales.

It does go on, doesn't it?

Reserve your roscas at Bombon (all four locations) or La Baguette.

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Black-eyed peas (beans, not band), collard greens, and cornbread—these seem to be the few lucky New Year's foods native to the U.S. But even they trace their culinary history back a long time ago, to places far, far away.

Like the South.

While Hoppin' John, cotechino with lentils, and mochi are eaten by Chicagoans whose families have lived here for generations, where are our New World regional lucky New Year's foods?

In Spain, on New Year's Eve at the stroke of midnight, they eat one grape for every strike of the clock in an old tradition—so they say. I question if it's a tradition that old.

On NPR's food blog The Salt, Kristofer Husted reports in a lovely post What The World Eats For A Better, Luckier 2012, "Legend has it that this '12 grapes in 12 seconds' custom stems from grape suppliers in the Alicante region who were bothered by a surplus of crop more than a century ago."

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Before we dive into New Year's Eve revelry, please allow me to answer a couple of questions that keep popping up from WBEZ's Jennifer Brandel's reporting that food pantries can't meet demand.

First, where can we donate food?

The easy answer: at all Chicagoland Dominick's and Chicago Whole Foods, to benefit the Greater Chicago Food Depository's 1 City, 1 Food Drive going on right now.

And, is it better to donate food or funds?

The short answer: both.

The Food Depository and other agencies have greater buying power, but food is still needed and highly appreciated.

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Today—the eve of Christmas Eve, the third day of Hanukkah, and the Friday before the long holiday weekend—I give you a sneak peek into my Egg Roll Project. The convergence of holy days means one thing: Chinese-American food—and the egg roll is its sigil.

OK, I concede that these days mean many things to many people, but across religious and secular boundaries, common ground can be found at Chinese-American restaurants. No, not Chinese-Chinese restaurants—and please, certainly not Chinese-American chain restaurants—but the disappearing breed of family-owned Chinese-American restaurants.

I submit three of my favorite Chinese-American egg rolls in the greater Chicagoland area for your consideration. Your taste memory and nostalgic needs may differ; these speak to mine.

Above you see the egg roll at Chinatown Cafe.

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Happy Hanukkah! The sun sets at nice and early at 4:22 p.m. today in Chicago. Who's serving candle salad tonight?

How about a heebarito? While its origins are lost to antiquity, it's most certainly an etymological take on the jibarito, but with latkes instead of plantains, and corned beef or brisket instead of steak.

In the mood for tavern food? Bring a non-perishable can of food—and please, make it a good one—until Christmas Day to the food drive hosted by my friends at Custom House Tavern for the Greater Chicago Food Depository.

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