North Little Rock Restaurant Month

Recipe: Chuy’s Tres Leches Cake

This amazing Tres Leches Cake recipe from Chuy’s Tex-Mex in North Little Rock is for those who enjoy a bit more of a challenge. Note: Before getting started, make sure you have ingredients for the cake, cream fraiche and the plate presentation.

Cake

INGREDIENTS

Eggs – 12 ea

Salt – ¼ tablespoon

Sugar – 3 cups

Flour – 3 cups

Baking Powder – 1 tablespoon + 1 ½ teaspoon

Vanilla – 1 tablespoon + 1 ½ teaspoon

Whole Milk – 1 ½ cups

Margarine – 1 ½ tablespoons

Evaporated Milk – 3 (three) 12 oz. cans

Condensed Milk – 1 ½ (one and one-half) 14 oz. cans

Heavy Cream – 3 cups

Vanilla – 1 tablespoon

Preheat oven to 350°.
Crack open the eggs and separate the whites from yolks. Hold whites in the fridge for later.
Add the sugar to the yolks and beat with the hand mixer until smooth.
Add flour, baking powder, vanilla and milk and mix well.
In a new bowl whip the egg whites and salt until they form peaks.
With a rubber spatula GENTLY fold egg whites into cake batter.
Grease the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan with the margarine.
Pour cake batter in prepared pan and bake at 350° for approximately 30 min. Check doneness by inserting a toothpick into the cake and seeing if it comes out clean.
After taking cake out of the oven, poke holes every 1” with a straw or make small slits with a butter knife throughout the cake.
Combine all remaining ingredients and mix well.
Pour the milk mixture over the cake.
Cut cake into 12 pieces and cool.

Cream Fraiche (pronounced Fresh)

INGREDIENTS

Heavy Cream – 4 cups (1 quart)

Buttermilk – ½ cup

Sugar – 1 ½ cups

Vanilla – 2 tablespoons

Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl or stand mixer bowl. Whip with hand mixer or in stand mixer for 30 seconds.

Plate Presentation

INGREDIENTS

Strawberries – Washed, capped and sliced

Caramel sauce

Once the cake has cooled, apply to the top of the cake and garnish with caramel and strawberries.

Chuy’s Tex-Mex is located at 5105 Warden Road in North Little Rock and is open Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Call (501) 771-2440, visit their website or find them on Chef Shuttle.

Local Spotlight: Rozchea Butler, Whole Hog Cafe

whole-hog-rozchea-butler — Pitmaster Rozchea Butler, Whole Hog Cafe

Pitmaster Rozchea Butler is truly one-of-a-kind. When you bite into your next buttery beef rib at Whole Hog Cafe in North Little Rock, he’s the guy to thank. For that matter, when you dig into your share of the 3 ½ tons of meat per week for which he oversees the preparation and cooking – whether it’s Pulled Pork, Chicken, Ribs, Sausage, Brisket or Pork Loin – you can thank Rozchea.

Three months ago, Ro decided he wanted to try his hand at Beef Ribs. He started with Pitmaster supreme Aaron Franklin’s recipe (good call!). After six test-cooks and some tweaking he was finally satisfied with the outcome. Now, we sell out every Tuesday, the only day they’re available. These babies are Fred-Flinstone-size, roughly a pound to a pound and a half, and, well, phenomenal.

But wait, that’s not all: Rozchea has other interests as well. A former professional wrestler, he is a gifted freestyle rapper, poet and singer. Laid-back, genial and reticent by nature, his eyes light up with passion when he delivers his lines, holding forth on social issues and busting cultural memes.

Ask for him next time you come in. He’ll be glad to talk barbecue, or anything else for that matter.

By Rich Cosgrove, Owner of Whole Hog Cafe North Little Rock

Whole Hog Cafe North Little Rock is located at 5107 Warden Road in North Little Rock and is open Monday through Saturday, 10:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. Call (501) 753-9227, visit their website and follow them on Facebook.

Recipe: Chuy’s Fresh Guacamole

It really doesn’t get much easier than this. Whether you need a last-minute addition to the football watch party spread or want a healthier option to appease that late-night cheese dip craving, this guacamole recipe from Chuy’s Tex-Mex in North Little Rock takes no time at all.

INGREDIENTS

Fresh Avocados – 6

Salt – 1/2 tbsp

Chuy’s Salsa Fresca – 1/2 cup

1. Wash fresh avocados, remove stem, cut in half and remove seeds

2. Scoop out avocado pulp with spoon and place in mixing bowl

3. Add salt and mash avocados with wisk until chunky

4. Fold Salsa Fresca into bowl and mix thoroughly

Date night made easy with Chef Shuttle

Baby, it’s cold outside. Ready to bundle up and brave those arctic temperatures for this week’s date night? Perhaps not. Instead, why not curl up on the couch, turn on a movie and enjoy a delicious meal from the comfort of your very own (warm) home?

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Well, good news! Chef Shuttle is helping your dream date night come true. For the month of January, it’s waiving its standard $4.95 delivery fee for North Little Rock Restaurant Month. All you have to do is enter the discount code NLRRest2017 at checkout. You can place your order early in the workweek or the day-of through chefshuttle.com and a fresh, hot meal will be waiting for you when you get home. Then all you have to do is pair it with your favorite glass of wine (or two).

Before you place your order, check out this quick guide of all the North Little Rock restaurants available for delivery through Chef Shuttle:

Good ole’ American (with a twist): Arkansas Ale House by Diamond Bear Brewing Co., Firehouse Subs, Garden Bistro, Old Chicago, The Original Scoop Dog, The Rusty Putter and Tropical Smoothie Café
Southern cookin’: BJ’s Market Café, Ceci’s Chicken-n-Waffles, Chicken Wangs III and Micks BBQ
Hola Mexico!: Blue Coast Burrito, Chuy’s Cilantro’s Grill, Las Palmas, Mexico Chiquito, Santo Coyote and Senor Tequila
Delizioso Italian: American Pie Pizza, Cici’s and Larry’s Pizza
Asian, Irish, Greek, oh my!: Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe, Cregeen’s Irish Pub, Hong Kong Inn, Kirin Garden, Mama’s Gyros Grill and Mr. Cheng’s

And you can forget the flowers. Show your sweetheart some love with a Chef Shuttle gift card that you can use for many more date nights to come.

Don’t wait, place your order today at chefshuttle.com today. Same menu. Same price.

Win Tickets to TobyMac and a Whole Hog Cafe Gift Card

tobymac You have two more weeks to really show North Little Rock restaurants some love, and Verizon Arena and Whole Hog Cafe in North Little Rock are giving you an extra incentive. Starting today through midnight January 31, you can enter to win:

Four (4) tickets to TobyMac’s “Hits Deep Tour” coming to Verizon Arena February 23, 2017
$50 Whole Hog Cafe Gift Card

All you have to do is use the hashtag #EatNLR on Twitter or Instagram when eating out and posting about North Little Rock restaurants. Full contest rules here.

Recipe: Chuy’s Chicka-Chicka Boom-Boom Enchiladas

Make your own Chicka-Chicka Boom-Boom Enchiladas, courtesy of Chuy’s Tex-Mex in North Little Rock! But if you don’t feel like cooking, be sure to stop by and try the “original” – these enchiladas are a huge favorite.

INGREDIENTS

Corn Tortillas – 10 each
Cooked, Roasted Chicken – 1 ¼ lb
Mixed Cheese – As needed

For Boom-Boom Sauce:

Vegetable Broth – ½ cup
Water – ¼ cup
Spices – ¼ tbsp
Roasted Green Chiles – ¾ lb
Tomatillos – 2 oz
Cilantro – 1 ½ oz
Green Onions – 1 oz
Serranos, minced – ¾ oz
Lime Juice – ½ oz
Cheese – 1 ¼ lb

1. In a saucepan, add vegetable broth, water and spices and place over a medium to high flame.

2. Using a food processor, puree roasted green chiles, tomatillos, cilantro, green onions, serranos and lime juice.

3. Add to a large pot, stirring well. Bring mixture to a slow boil.

4. Lower flame and slowly add cheese, whipping as needed to remove clumps and make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom. When the cheese is melted and mixed, remove from heat.

To make enchiladas, fill a corn tortilla with 2 ounces of cooked, roasted chicken. Roll up and place in a baking pan. Top with mixed cheese, as needed. Warm in a hot oven for 4 minutes, until cheese is melted. Top with Boom-Boom Sauce.

Win a Whole Hog Cafe Gift Card and Arkansas Travelers Family Four Pack

whole-hog-patio To kick off North Little Rock Restaurant Month, Whole Hog Cafe in North Little Rock and the Arkansas Travelers are teaming up to reward you for supporting local restaurants this January. You could enter to win:

$50 Whole Hog Cafe Gift Card
Arkansas Travelers Family Four Pack: includes four (4) reserved level tickets, four (4) hot dogs and four (4) medium drink coupons

And all you have to do is use the hashtag #EatNLR on Twitter or Instagram when eating out at any North Little Rock restaurant starting today through midnight on Sunday, January 15. That’s a pretty sweet deal! Full guidelines available here.

Recipe: New Mexican Martini

We’re kicking off the New Year – and North Little Rock Restaurant Month! – with this easy New Mexican Martini from Chuy’s Tex-Mex in North Little Rock.

GLASSWARE

Martini and Shaker

INGREDIENTS

2 oz. Green Chile infused El Jimador tequila

1 oz. Cointreau

1 1/2 oz. lime juice

1 1/2 oz. sugar water

GARNISH

Salted martini glass, lime wedge, two jalapeno-stuffed olives with a sword pick.

Started thinking about 2017 yet?

We have! North Little Rock Restaurant Month starts January 1, meaning lots of sweet deals for you to kick off 2017.

Returning this year is our popular partnership with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s basketball team in which you can receive free tickets to see #LittleRocksTeam by showing us a January receipt from a North Little Rock restaurant.

Share your restaurant experiences with us on Twitter and Instagram to automatically be entered to win cool prizes every week in January, and in the running for an “ultimate” prize the last week.

Some of our restaurant partners have put together even more giveaways for you, like Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe’s #TazikisTuesday and Chef Shuttle’s special Restaurant Month promo code.

So get out, try a restaurant you’ve never tried before and mark one thing off your New Year’s Resolution list.

5 ideas for Valentine’s Day weekend in North Little Rock

The countdown to Valentine’s Day has begun: reservations are already being made, romantic gestures planned, flowers ordered. No worries, we’ve put together five ideas for restaurants and activities in North Little Rock that still have openings for you and your loved one.

Couple a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner with a fun outing, such as Brigadoon at the Argenta Community Theater. Opening February 10 with a special 3 p.m. show on Valentine’s Day, the musical features local talent and follows the romantic story of a couple brought together by a mythical Scottish village that only appears every 100 years.
If you’re idea of romantic is sharing a plate of spaghetti à la Lady and the Tramp, consider Ristorante Capeo. The fine dining restaurant on Main Street, known for its fried sage leaves, Italian-inspired seafood dishes, local honey and saffron panna cotta and extensive wine list, will be open specially for dinner on Sunday, February 14.
Challenge your creativity during a Valentine’s Day painting session at Painting with a Twist in North Little Rock. Don’t worry if you aren’t Picasso. The fun staff at Painting with a Twist will walk you through every brushstroke. The option to bring your own wine doesn’t hurt either. Before or after painting, enjoy dinner at Benihana, Carino’s or Outback Steakhouse, all of which will be open for lunch and dinner (for a full list of North Little Rock restaurants, go HERE).
For those who don’t want a late Sunday night, consider a Friday or Saturday evening with The Main Thing comedy troupe in their latest show, Little Rock and a Hard Place, at The Joint Theater & Coffeehouse. Pair it with a dinner at Ira’s Park Hill Grill, which is open for lunch, dinner, Sunday brunch and a special Valentine’s Day dinner on Sunday, February 14.
Lastly, don’t forget to enter our #EatNLR Foodie Contest this week for the chance to win a night’s stay at Candlewood Suites and dinner for two at Riverfront Steakhouse.

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