Ingredients matter

Louann Zundel's kitchen is so well stocked with high-end ingredients that even the celebrity chefs who inspire her couldn't complain.

On the shelves: Nielsen-Massey vanilla, Scharffen Berger cocoa nibs, Pernigotti and Ghiradelli cocoa, Penzeys Spices, (online or from the Oak Park store), extra-fine granulated sugar, vanilla beans and European butter.

Vinegar is a particular weakness of Zundel's, with orange Muscat, raspberry, white and dark balsamics and sherries varieties on the shelf.

"It makes the salads different every night. If I'm making citrus chicken I use the orange Muscat," and she sprinkles on some cocoa nibs for crunch.

Louann defends her addiction to the best ingredients.

"That's what makes everything tastes good," says the Des Plaines resident. "When you go to the grocery store to buy vanilla and nutmeg, and then you go to Penzeys and smell it, there is a world of difference. Unbelievable."

Louann has one advantage over most of us. As co-owner with her husband, Kurt, of Mr. Beef & Pizza in Mount Prospect and Arlington Heights she can purchase most of her ingredients in bulk at a discount.

"I stock up on chicken breast for stir-fries and pastas. I always have butter and whipping cream, you can make a lot from those."

Garlic, onion, pasta and her homemade stocks are all within easy reach. Louann cooks five to six nights a week, but baking is what really warms her oven.

"If I could I would do it every day," she says. "When I lived at home I drove my mother crazy. She had a large kitchen, and I would take up every inch of it with dirty dishes."

Every Sunday, for all the holidays and family birthdays you can count on her to be in the kitchen.

Her nephews, who live on the block and know Aunt Louann's Sunday schedule, "come sniffing around about noon" to see what she has prepared. They might find her signature chocolate chip cookies, made with Callebaut semisweet chips and Peters-Gibralter bittersweet chocolate; the latter available only to food services.

There might be a blueberry or strawberry rhubarb pie, brownies, chocolate cake, cheese cake or coffee cake.

Louann likes to fiddle around with recipes, adding ingredients like fresh lemon or orange juice and zest to give it her signature touch.

In a recipe for Toffee Crunch Cookies she removed the coconut and added chocolate chips. She introduced lemon extract and zest to a recipe for Blueberry Crumb Cake Squares.

"This is like a picnic cake, the pieces are firm."

For a main course she rubs orange juice, balsamic vinegar, sun-dried tomatoes and chipotle onto pork tenderloin for a zesty main course.

Chipotle-Orange Pork Tenderloin

½ cup oil-packed, sun-dried tomatoes

1 chipotle chile from can of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

1 teaspoon orange zest

3 tablespoons fresh orange juice

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1½ teaspoons sugar

½ teaspoon salt

2 pork tenderloins (about 1½ pounds total)

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Put sun-dried tomatoes, chipotle chile, orange zest, orange juice, balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, sugar and salt in blender. Process to coarse puree.

Put tenderloin in baking pan; smear all over with about 4 tablespoons of the chipotle mixture; roast for 30-40 minutes.

Transfer tenderloins to a cutting board, let rest about 10 minutes. Thinly slice; scrape up any drippings and pour over slices. Serve with rice.

Serves four.

Cook's note: Leftover rub can be refrigerated up to 2 weeks and used on chicken breasts.

Nutrition values per serving: 270 calories, 8 g fat (2.5 g saturated), 12 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 37 g protein, 110 mg cholesterol, 460 mg sodium.

Toffee Crunch Cookies

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed, light brown sugar

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup vegetable oil

1 large egg

3½ cups flour

1 cup crispy rice cereal

1 cup oats, old-fashioned or quick-cooking

1 cup toffee chips

1 cup mini-chocolate chips

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon cream of tartar

½ cup toasted pecan chips, optional

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease baking sheets or cover them with parchment paper.

In an electric mixer, beat granulated sugar, brown sugar and butter until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add oil and egg, mix until smooth. Scrape bowl; add flour, rice cereal, oats, toffee, chocolate chips, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar. Mix until combined.

Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets and bake about 14 minutes or until golden brown. Let set on cookie sheet about 5 minutes before removing to a rack.

Makes 60 cookies.

Nutrition values per serving: 161 calories, 9 g fat (4 g saturated), 18 g carbohydrates, 0 fiber, 1 g protein, 11 mg cholesterol, 85 mg sodium.

Blueberry Crumb Cake Squares

½ pound unsalted butter, softened

1½ cups granulated sugar

3 whole eggs

3 egg yolks

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract

¼ cup milk or buttermilk

2½ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons lemon zest

½ teaspoon salt

1 quart blueberries

Crumb topping

2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup brown sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Optional glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

Dash of nutmeg

Set rack to middle of oven, heat to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until soft and light. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and lemon extracts.

In a separate bowl stir together the yolks and milk.

In another bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt and add to butter-sugar mixture in three additions alternating with the yolks and milk and beginning and ending with flour. Spread batter into prepared pan; scatter blueberries over batter and press in gently.

For topping: Combine flour, salt, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in melted butter and toss with fork until crumbly. Scatter crumbs over berries evenly; bake 50-60 minutes until firm and crumbs are golden. Cool in pan on rack.

For glaze: Put powdered sugar, milk and nutmeg in a bowl and stir to a smooth consistency. Drizzle glaze over cooled cake.

Serves 15.

Nutrition values per serving: 450 calories, 23 g fat (16 g saturated), 56 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 6 g protein, 140 mg cholesterol, 210 mg sodium.