The Chopping Block Cooking & Wine Blog

Emily T

Emily is a Chicago native and Logan Square resident and a Class Assistant at the Chopping Block. In addition, she writes, mostly about environmental issues and green architecture, and illustrates, for local Chicago blogs and magazines (see her writing portfolio at https://emily-torem.squarespace.com/new-page/). A treehugger from an early age, she is extremely interested in building sustainable food systems, which includes a desire to hone her vegetable cookery. She spends her free time doing lots of things, but rest assured during all of them she is dreaming about owning a dog.

The Argument for Returning to the Same Place on Vacation

Last week I went to San Francisco and the coast with a dear friend, and we had some of the most fantastic food of our lives. But here's the kicker that might raise an eyebrow or two: of the handful ...

Eating Well Can be a Treat for the Senses

Our Chef's Dinner last week with Chef Maria Clementi was full of flavorful vegetable dishes that reflect spring's bounty of produce. Her dinner was a great way of bridging the gap between healthy ...

Eating May's Flowers

The flowers of Spring are gorgeous, fragrant and abundant, but they can be more than eye candy (and best friends of bees). There are a ton of edible blossoms that are as tasty as they are pretty.

Is Rinsing Rice Really Required?

Even though it's a staple the world over, making a really good pot of rice is harder than it looks. There's a reason those boil-in-a-bag things took off, you know. Let's assume you don't have a rice ...

Adventures in Cheese Making: Ricotta in Three Easy Steps

It's easy to make cheese at home. You need only simple equipment (a strainer, a pot) and ingredients you likely already have on hand (heavy cream, milk, vinegar, salt) and just a little bit of time. ...

Why Sharing Food is So Special: A Valentine's Day of Memories

For our past three Valentine's Days together (in three different Chicago apartments; that's real estate for ya!) my boyfriend and I have each made each other a surprise dish to impress each other ...

Mushrooms On My Mind: The Tale of a Fungi

"Yuck! Mushrooms!" How many times have I heard that exclamation from the mouths of kids (and many of my beloved adult friends and family). If you are a mushroom hater, I understand you: the texture ...

Japanese Homestyle Foods You'll Want to Make in January

While we love making sushi and ramen from scratch (like, love-love), we couldn't help but want to share with you some of our other favorite Japanese dishes to make in your home kitchen. If sushi and ...

What the Heck's Up with Honey?

How does that Cole Porter song go? "Bees do it"? I don't think Porter meant "fall in love"; I think he meant make honey. Put on your beekeeping outfits, because not only are we going to explore some ...

Clean Eating Boot Camp with Chef Alia Dalal

Chef Alia Dalal taught her first hands-on cooking class at The Chopping Block this past Saturday, and it was a total success. Clean Eating Boot Camp was a fun-filled, educational day of learning how ...

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Cooking Techniques	Cookbooks & Tools
Food News	Local Spots
Travel	Wine
Vegetarian	Gluten-Free
Kids	Baking & Pastry
Boot Camp	Retail

Emily T

Recent Posts

The Argument for Returning to the Same Place on Vacation

Eating Well Can be a Treat for the Senses

Eating May's Flowers

Is Rinsing Rice Really Required?

Adventures in Cheese Making: Ricotta in Three Easy Steps

Why Sharing Food is So Special: A Valentine's Day of Memories

Mushrooms On My Mind: The Tale of a Fungi

Japanese Homestyle Foods You'll Want to Make in January

What the Heck's Up with Honey?

Clean Eating Boot Camp with Chef Alia Dalal

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