Food, fun, drinks, more food at Cooking Expo

Thousands of people swirled wine, nibbled on barbecue pork sandwiches and ostrich, noshed on gourmet dips, learned cooking tips from top chefs and tasted seasonal beers during the Great American Cooking Expo at Harper College in Palatine. If you weren't among the spirited crowds at the foodie extravaganza, you certainly missed a fantastic time.

Between meeting readers and demonstrating recipes (recipes demoted at the Daily Herald booth are available at dailyherald.com/food) I did my best over the three-day event to visit all the booths - all the food booths that is. Even over the course of three days I don't think I could have tried the more than 150 wines and 30-odd beers and remained standing.

Some of the items showcased make good gifts, some make holiday entertaining more fun, some make everyday less stressful. So here, in no particular order, is my Best of the Expo list.

Iced maple walnut bread, Breadsmith, 121 N. Second St., St. Charles. Even through the bag you can smell the sweet maple and cinnamon. Imagine this toasted with a smear of butter or served french-toast style on Christmas morning. $6.50 loaf. Also stores in Lombard, Highland Park and Skokie.

Smoked pheasant, MacFarlane Pheasants Inc., Janesville, Wis. Served cold or warm, smoked pheasant embraces the flavors of the season. Try it as an appetizer on crisp bread with cranberry chutney and Gouda, or chop it into wild rice pilaf. $24.95 (plus shipping); pheasant.com. Whole pheasants available at Whole Foods Markets if you want to cook or smoke your own.

Grandma's Country Chicken and Rice, Slow Cooker Dinner, Delicae Pantry. Add this dry mix, chicken and cream of chicken soup to a slow cooker in the morning and when you get home from a long day of work or shopping, dinner's ready. Made from all-natural ingredients; more than dinners and soups in the line. Available at delicasgourmet.com or Haybecks Meat Market and Caputo's & Sons in Palatine, The Little Traveler in Geneva, Millrose Country Store in South Barrington and Butcher on the Block in Lake in the Hills.

Peach Spice Jam, Darn Hot Peppers, Cobden, Ill. A gentle spice kicks up this peach jam. I'd spread it on cornbread, mix it with cream cheese for a cracker spread or use it to glaze chicken. The downstate company uses locally grown fruit and peppers in all of its hot pepper jams, jellies and salsas. Individual jars $7.95 to $8.95; sampler packs available too. darnhotpeppers.com.

"Market Fresh Mixology: Cocktails for Every Season" If your hosting a cocktail party this season, this book is a must. Award-winning mixologist Bridget Albert from southwest suburban Shorewood has crafted wintry cocktails like Hot Banana Buttered Rum and Kiwi Champagne. Great for the party hostess as well. $17.95 at book stores.

Mullen's Apple Sauce, Niles, Ill. Yes, applesauce made the best-of list. The label reads "like apple pie without the crust" and it doesn't lie. It would make a hearty addition to the holiday table, or bake it into a free-form tart. The family recipe honors disabled police officer Jim Mullens who was shot and paralyzed on duty; a portion of the proceeds benefit the Chicago Police Memorial. 16-ounce jar costs $5. At Morning Fields and Treasure Island stores and online at mullenfoods.com.

Spinach LeanDip

1 package (10 ounces) frozen spinach thawed and squeezed dry

11/2 cups nonfat sour cream

1 cup nonfat mayonnaise

1 package (1.4 ounces) dry vegetable soup mix

1 can (8 ounces) water chestnuts, drained and chopped

3 green onions chopped

Squeeze the thawed spinach until drained of as much liquid as possible.

To a medium mixing bowl add the sour cream, mayonnaise, vegetable soup mix, water chestnuts, onions and spinach. Stir to combine. Cover and chill for 2 hours.

Makes 4 cups.

@Recipe nutrition:Nutrition vales per tablespoon: 14 calories (2.9 percent from fat), 0.4 g fat (trace of saturated fat), 1.9 g carbohydrate, 0.4 g protein, trace amount cholesterol, 106 mg sodium.

Don Mauer, Lean & Lovin' it

Caesar-Style Salad Dressing

2 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise (2 fat grams per tablespoon) or fat-free mayonnaise dressing

11/2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, or use oil from anchovy fillets can

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 cup slightly thickened chicken broth (see note)

2 small garlic cloves, mashed to paste

1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice

11/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

10 anchovy fillets, packed in oil, drained, chopped and mashed

1/4 cup (about 1 ounce) fresh-grated Parmesan cheese

Add the mayonnaise and mustard to a medium mixing bowl. Whisk together until combined. Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the mayonnaise while whisking continuously until all of the oil is incorporated.

Add each of the remaining ingredients, in the listed order, one at a time; whisking until combined. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour, or over night.

Leannote: To make Slightly Thickened Chicken Broth, put 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons fat-free, reduced sodium chicken broth in small saucepan and bring to a boil. Put the 2 tablespoons broth in a small bowl and whisk in 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Gradually whisk the cornstarch mixture into the boiling broth; boil until the broth is slightly thickened, about 30 seconds. Cool to 80 degrees before using.

@Recipe nutrition:Nutrition values per 2 tablespoons: 37 calories (60.3 percent from fat), 2.5 g fat, 2 g carbohydrate, trace amount fiber, 1.7 g protein, 3.3 mg cholesterol, 265 mg sodium.

Don Mauer, Lean & Lovin' it

Double Chocolate Chip Fudge Brownies

1 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 medium whole egg

3 medium egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup drained applesauce (from 3/4 cup undrained)

2 cups granulated sugar

2 ounces mini-morsel semisweet chocolate chips

Place oven rack in the center position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray the bottom and sides of a nonstick 11-by-7-by-11/2-inch baking pan with butter-flavored vegetable oil. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk or stir the flour, cocoa and salt together until combined, about 15 seconds. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl whisk the egg and egg whites until combined and bubbles begin forming, about 10 seconds. Add the vanilla and applesauce and whisk until combined, about 20 seconds. Add the sugar and whisk until the sugar dissolves, about 20 seconds. Add the flour/cocoa mixture and chocolate chips and with a kitchen spoon or large rubber spatula stir and fold until the dry ingredients are just moistened, about 25-30 seconds. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes. Cool on rack and cut into 15 2-by-2-inch squares.

Serves about 20.

@Recipe nutrition:Nutrition values per serving: 155 calories (11.9 percent from fat), 2 g fat (1.1 g. saturated), 35.1 g carbohydrate, 2.6 g protein, 14 mg cholesterol, 84 mg sodium.

LeanTip: Want to be really decadent? Add 4 ounces of chips instead of 2 ounces. This will raise the calories per serving to 178 and the fat to 3.1 grams.

Don Mauer, Lean & Lovin' it

Cozy Pomegranate Cider

2 cups apple cider

1 cup red wine

1/2 cup pomegranate juice

2 cinnamon sticks

10-15 whole cloves

4-5 pomegranate seeds

Rim garnish

4 bar spoons super fine sugar

1/4 bar spoon cinnamon

Lime wedge

To rim the glass: On a small plate, stir together sugar and cinnamon. Rim the outside top of a mug with lime wedge; roll rim of mug in sugar mixture; set aside.

For the cider: Add apple cider, wine, pomegranate juice, cinnamon sticks and cloves to a saucepan. Bring to a simmer on low heat. Strain cider through a sieve into sugar rimmed mug. Garnish with; seeds will gently float to bottom of the glass.

Serves two.

"Market-Fresh Mixology: Cocktails for Every Season," by Bridget Albert with Mary Barranco (2008 Surrey, $17.95)