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The Berghoff Café Cookbook: Berghoff Family Recipes for Simple, Satisfying Food

by Carlyn Berghoff and Nancy Ross Ryan

Description
Few understand the connection between family and food better than Carlyn Berghoff, a fourth-generation Chicago restaurateur, caterer, and mother of three. Hot on the heels other highly successful first cookbook, Carlyn now shares a new collection of classic dishes from the cafe founded by her great-grandfather more than 110 years ago: The Berghoff Cafe Cookbook: Berghoff Family Recipes for Simple, Satisfying Food.

Carlyn puts her signature "tradition with a twist" spin on many of the recipes in The Berghoff Cafe Cookbook, including Alsatian On- ion Soup, Apple Pie Squares with Cheddar Crust, and Westphalian Ham Panini with Granny Smith Apple and Applesauce.

Carlyn deliciously demonstrates the three principles upon which the cafe food is built: reuse, recycle, and reinvent. Potatoes become Lyonnaise Potatoes, Potato Soup, and much more. Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast also stars in the Turkey Reuben, and there's enough left for Turkey, Okra, and Rice Soup. Pizza is reinvented by topping it with Berghoff signature ingredients creating Brat, Kraut, and Onion Pizza with Swiss Cheese and Caraway Crust; and more. Even the chocolate chip cookie has been reinvented at the cafe, becoming the Chip Cookie, limited only by your imagination.

At home, Carlyn keeps things interesting as she continues to reinvent familiar dishes for her family, cafe-style, and finds ways to save time and bolster nutrition. In The Berghoff Cafe Cookbook, she details her home-style salad bar, redefines the grilled-cheese sandwich (leftover meats and cheeses? Hello, panini), and discovers simple ways to reduce fat and add flavor (a few potato chips on a sandwich, for instance, provide just the right crunch and keep chip-eating to a minimum).

The 85 delicious recipes plus creative variations in The Berghoff Cafe Cookbook represent the full range of Berghoff Cafe food, from soups, salads, and sandwiches to pizzas and desserts. Color photography and interesting historical and cooking-related sidebars complete the book. The delicious recipes are easy to prepare, look good on the plate, and deliver the flavors befitting a Chicago institution.

Founded in 1898, the Berghoff Cafe has come to symbolize the American dream and the joy that comes from sharing food with family and friends. The Berghoff Cafe Cookbook will fulfill your dreams of mouthwatering food, made with versatile ingredients and prepared simply, served with style, flavor, and good memories.

About the authors
Carlyn Berghoff, CEO of the Berghoff Catering & Restaurant Group, is the fourth generation to continue the Berghoff legacy of serving great food and entertaining guests. She is an author, a chef and restaurateur, a caterer, and a wife and mother. She coauthored The Berghoff Family Cookbook. She graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and now operates out of Chicago's century-old Berghoff building, her base for off-premise catering. She also runs the restaurant, bar, and the historic cafe. She lives in Chicago with her husband and three children.