More Fun Playing with Dim and Den Sum

I have been fortunate enough to catch the Dim and Den Sum truck a few more times since my last post about Cleveland's first food truck. The food just keeps getting better and better, despite flat tires, short bread supplies, empty propane tanks, and any other number of things that just seem to happen when you are trying to feed a lot of people honest, freshly made food from a converted box truck. Dim and Den Sum rocks!

My second visit with Dim and Den Sum was again at the parking lot of 24865 Emery Road. This time, I took advantage of the picnic tables.

Tater Tots with Spicy Sauce and Truffle Pepper

I don't know how they get these basic tater tots to have such perfect crunch and taste, but they do! Perhaps it's the special sauce?

Chicken Nachos with Asparagus Slaw

Loved this lunch selection. I would have liked a little more of the exquisitely fresh  and celery-free chicken salad, but I did not leave hungry.

The asparagus slaw captured the essence of spring, in a way I'd have never expected. Fresh, crunchy, yet also a creamy texture when eaten with the beans. Worked for me.

By my next visit with DDS, the venue had moved to the main street outside of the Progressive Insurance campus, between the corporate office buildings and the lovely park (300 N. Commons Blvd Mayfield OH - hopefully to be the "regular" Thursday lunch spot). And the menu had improved from a xeroxed sheet taped to the truck to this cool "chalkboard paint." The only thing missing was a place to sit, but hey, this is street food after all!

Cheesesteak Steam Bun: Shaved beef, pickled red onions, cheese, & "horsey sauce", BBQ

This wasn't exactly the format I was expecting - I expected a char sui type item, fully encased in pastry. This version, an almost pancake-like fresh bread circle topped with savory beef, incredibly tasty pickled onion, horseradishy sauce and cheese whiz, was a little messy to eat, but fabulous in tastes and textures. 

Pulled Pork Taco

This creation featured succulent pulled pork, fiji apple creme fraiche, kimchi slaw, and hot sauce. Yum!

Jjang Dawg: Local dog, pulled pork, kimchi slaw, smashed tots, Bourbon soy bbq sauce

Wow. This may be the best thing I've had from DDS (though that Cheesesteak Bun is a darn close second) - an amazing locally-sourced hotdog, perfectly grilled, which went "snap" when I bit in and which  further rewarded me with juiciness in every bite. This dog was served on the "home-made" bun the DDS boys are sourcing from a pal at Fire Restaurant, topped with tender pulled pork, crunchy kimchi slaw, smashed tots, and Bourbon BBQ sauce - I almost wished I'd hadn't eaten anything else, so I  would have room to enjoy a second  one of these, it was that good. Almost wished, because the other items were truly delicious also. But this dog left me feeling happy for the rest of the day!

 

A lone tater tot that got away. How sad!

The next week at the same locale - here was the menu:

Both Chefs, Jeremy Esterly and Chris Hodgson, were "in the house," so to speak, this gorgeously sunny day.

Sarah's Jalapeno Tots

As described on the menu, except no bacon. The bacon was not missed at all - the flavors and textures were delicious, though a little messy for finger food.

Meatloaf Melt: Beef and Veal Meatloaf, Duck Confit, Sweet Soy Ketchup, Green Onion Cheese

 

Thought this sandwich "suffered" from not having the wonderful homemade bread (the supply had gotten stale, and the Chefs decided that packaged bread was the better choice) - the fillings more than made up for it! The duck confit tasted wonderfully ducky, and the meatloaf was moist and flavorful. The cheese was an interesting and different product - it all worked together beautifully.

I haven't mentioned the beverages because I've mostly stuck to water, but Dim and Den Sum offers a small variety of unusual libations to accompany the eats - so far, I've seen an Apple Soda from China, an Apple Soda from Mexico (all cane sugar and no high fructose corn syrup), and a Coconut Soda.

And so, another three Dim and Den Sum lunches delivered a pause from the workday that truly refreshed. Please check out their website, twitter (I understand that they are about to launch an IPhone app that makes them easier to find) and Facebook page, so that you can have some fun playing with Dim and Den Sum's made-from-scratch, tasty food. It is definitely worth the the sticky fingers!

Fun Playing With Comfort Food For A Crowd

This past weekend, we traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio to "guest chef" for the annual Cincinnati Area Mensa Regional Gathering. We've been doing this for the last few years, and it is always great fun. We prepared to serve about 150 people a Winter Wonderland, "Comfort Food Cafe."

We prepped and froze most of the food in advance. Thursday morning, we packed up the car and headed to Cincy. We arrived at the event hotel and unpacked. Volunteers arrived to "slice and dice" various produce and snack items, and other volunteers to wash the dishes, which are packed up clean, but stored in a garage all year.

It was during this latter process that we encountered a truly "Dinner Impossible" scenario. As noted, all of the group's Hospitality supplies are stored in a member's garage - well, apparently raccoons got into the garage this year, because their pawprints were everywhere. Items stored in plastic boxes were still pristine, but all of the cardboard storage boxes (for chafing dishes and roasters) had to be pitched, and the contents thoroughly sanitized; the group bought some new Rubbermaid storage boxes to re-store those items in after the event. It made for a more stressful start to the event than any of us was really prepared for. Thanks to a couple of terrific volunteers, though, we got everything ready to go by Friday morning, when Bob and I would begin to prep Friday's dinner.

We made two soups in advance and reheated them on butane cookers. The recipe for Bean and Barley soup came from Steve Sando's wonderful new cookbook, Heirloom Beans.


Rancho Gordo's Bean & Barley Soup



The second soup was Split Pea Soup, as made by my mother for her wedding anniversary every year while she was able-bodied. You'll see the secret ingredient in a moment.


Pea Soup With . . . Slices of Hebrew National Frankfurter!

This is how a Jewish cook solves the dilemma of wanting meaty smokiness in pea soup without using pork. As a kid, I remember picking at the soup - and picking out all of the hotdog slices, which were of course the best part!

I made the third soup on site. Since it required a lot of dairy, I was concerned that it wouldn't freeze well.


Creamy Pecan Soup



We made three entrees. First - Cheesy Corn Bake, a recipe posted on the Cleveland.com Food & Wine Forum by cookbook author Linda Griffith, and a variation on a recipe from her wonderful book, The Best of the Midwest.





We offered two meat choices.


Mom's Meatloaf

My mom, of course, made the best meatloaf. Very simple - seasoned with salt, pepper, sweet paprika, garlic powder and onion powder, with egg and matzoh meal. She topped it with Ragu sauce (I used Hunt's for this project), and baked it covered. It received rave reviews.

Unfortunately, I failed to snap a photo of the Chicken Paprikash. A real shame - it was the first time I ever made this, and it came out perfectly. All 18 pounds were consumed.

We served these mains with noodles.



And a salad bar, which I also neglected to photograph.

For desserts, we offered two crockpots of "Chocolate Mess":


Chocolate Cake Mix, Eggs, Oil, Sour Cream, Chocolate Pudding, Chocolate Chips

We offered vanilla ice cream and butterscotch toppings to accompany the Mess.

And, it wouldn't have been a Winter Wonderland without some Snowballs!


Peanut Butter Snowballs



All in all, a warm and cozy repast.

I also photographed some of the other food offered over the weekend. Saturday's lunch was Katie's first time as a Hospitality Meal Manager, and with a little help from Virginia, she pulled off a lovely meal.


Virginia's Creamed Spinach Soup


Virginia's Mild Chili Soup


Vegetarian Refried Beans


Shredded Chicken with Taco Seasoning


Ground Beef With Taco Seasoning


Fixins




Virginia's Cucumber-Egg Salad

I was too tired to photograph Virginia's Saturday dinner - Creamy Chicken Soup, Wild Rice & Mushroom Soup, and three entrees: Pulled Pork with Apricot Sauce, Rice, Beef Stew and Mac & Cheese. Virginia also made a beet and egg salad, and provided a salad bar. Death by Dessert followed a few hours after dinner.

I also slept through both breakfasts catered by Ernie & Nita, who served about 160 made-to -order omelette's.

A fun and filling weekend was had by all!