Small House Dinner Exchange: Harner's, Aurora, 3/10/19 @ 1pm

I saw this place featured on Chicago's Best. The chicken is supposedly the bees' knees, and oh look! they have pie.

Small Household Mini Road Trip to...

Harner's Bakery & Restaurant
10 W. State St.
North Aurora, IL 60542
630-892-4400
http://www.harnersbakery.com/

If anyone who is participating wants to offer a suggestion on where to go, that is often difficult to get into and Super Super Sunday is a great day to get into hard to visit restaurants.

Note that we cap attendance at 12 with a maximum of 10 people exchanging dishes. Those who exchange dishes will have first priority, but they should post by January 28, to allow cooks to plan, shop and cook.

The basics
We’re always interested in fresh blood. Even if you can't exchange, please join us for dinner and conversation! But we encourage all to bring a few samples of the cuisine you enjoy at your home; it’s a great way for all of us to get to know each other better, discuss food and cooking techniques, and ultimately, later, have a meal at home that we might not have thought of making for ourselves.

What is the Small Household Food Exchange, you may ask.

Most importantly, it’s a gathering of like-minded folks at an interesting restaurant for a meal, taking advantage of the ordering power of a good number of people to share and sample a good number of menu items.

The Small Household Food Exchange started so that those of us in 1-2 person households who love to cook aren't stuck eating that big pot of chili for a whole week. Instead, we make 4-10 servings of one dish, and bring home 4-10 different dishes. Exchanging participants bring one pre-portioned serving of their food for every exchanger who has RSVP’d to come that month. The priority will be for entrees, meats, soups, salad, stews, pastas, grains, etc. (Check the Events Board, there’s a separate Dessert Exchange.)

The fine print
Number in the group: We will cap attendance at each gathering at 12, and food exchange participants at 10, so that participants are never making more than 10 servings of anything. Couples can be counted as one serving, or two — if you come as a couple, please specify whether you're bringing one or two dishes to exchange.

There will be no restrictions on the food – we’re an omnivorous bunch. IF ANYONE HAS ANY ALLERGIES, PLEASE LET THE GROUP KNOW.

The containers/delivery system: Everyone in the group should use the GLADWARE 3 1/8 CUP PLASTIC CONTAINERS (7” x 7” square container with a blue lid). You’ll portion your food into those containers to bring and hand out at the gathering. You can freeze them or not depending on your schedule and when you make your food. If you use something else to deliver your food that month (Ziploc bags, plastic wrap, etc.) you should also return the empty containers from the last round so that everyone always has a stash of these containers for the exchange, and no one has to run out and buy more. Ideally, everyone will find a way to label their containers, describing the contents, so we don’t end up staring into our freezers at a field of blue-lidded containers and wondering what’s in each one (not that there’s anything wrong with the occasional surprise …).

Please RSVP your attendance by responding in this thread one week before the monthly gathering. If you're exchanging, please post what you're bringing at least three days before the gathering.

The organizer will monitor the thread to see what people are bringing. The organizer will also make reservations for the group at the restaurant where we will be gathering.

Hope to see you there!

Dinner and Exchange
Pie Lady: pasta/chard/sausage thing with raisins
Cathy2: chili with a cinnamon roll
nr706: some weird variant of pork stew
moetchandon: beef cheeks with a side of mashed potatoes
Food Nut: smoked sausage, spinach and wild rice soup (homemade bone broth)

Dinner and sparkling company
Pie*
Cathy2 +1 (does not equal three. oh math, you delightful scamp)
nr706
moetchandon
Food Nut
toria
Ms. Ingie

*sparkles not guaranteed

Hi,

I will attend come hell or high water! (Not that I expect any challenges on this.)

Regards,
Cathy2

Damn. I was going to make something or other. I guess I'll have to make whatzis.

I’m in for dinner/lunch/ brunch and exchange

Just called: they're busy all day on Sunday, but the hostess suggested 1pm was a good time, so 1pm it shall be. They only take reservations for parties of 8 or more, but we can call 15 minutes ahead to be put on a list. So hey, 4 more LTH'ers, get off your duffs and sign up.

In for both!

Food Nut wrote:In for both!

Yay!

Food Nut wrote:In for both!

Yay x2!

HI,

I will have a guest coming separately, who has been to Harner's for Octoberfest.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:HI,

I will have a guest coming separately, who has been to Harner's for Octoberfest.

Regards,
Cathy2

Exchanging too?

Pie Lady wrote:Exchanging too?

No.

Cathy2

Please put me down for eating and chatting only!!!

toria wrote:Please put me down for eating and chatting only!!!

Yay!

All we need is one more person to sign on, then we can get a reservation.

Regards,
Cathy2

Daylight Savings Time to Spring Ahead 2019 is Sunday, March 10 @ 2:00 am

Hi,

I plan to make the South Dakota school favorite: (Wendy's knock-off) chili with a cinnamon roll on the side. From what I understand these are eaten together.

Regards,
Cathy2

Chili?!

Pie Lady wrote:Chili?!

Why does that surprise you?

Cathy2 wrote:

Pie Lady wrote:Chili?!

Why does that surprise you?

I thought you hated chili.

Pie Lady wrote:I thought you hated chili.

I don't like capsaicin heat, but this chili will be relatively mild. I know those who want it HOT will adjust it with a few shakes of hot sauce.

I really want to try the combo of a cinnamon bun with chili since I learned about it a few years ago.

Regards,
Cathy2

I made Beef cheeks with a side of mashed potatoes

moetchandon wrote:I made Beef cheeks with a side of mashed potatoes

I'm pretty excited about these now, after yet another meh pot of beef stew.

I will be number eight for lunch and chat. Commence with the making of reservations!

Ms. Ingie wrote:I will be number eight for lunch and chat. Commence with the making of reservations!

Woo hoo!

Asian inspired instant pot I hope (or equally fine backup plan) to share four servings?

Food Nut wrote:Asian inspired instant pot I hope (or equally fine backup plan) to share four servings?

Yes, four servings. I made my stuff last weekend.

I'm making a pasta/chard/sausage thing with raisins. The raisins intrigued me. Also, if I have time and don't screw them up...brigadieros.

Pie Lady wrote:Also, if I have time and don't screw them up...brigadieros.

Oh, fudge.

Don't forget about the time change on Sunday!!!! Spring forward!

Reservations are all set and are under my real name. Bonus points if you can remember what that is. That's right, I'm going all Rumpelstiltskin on y'all.

Some weird variant of pork stew.