Comfort zone

Chefs share favorite comfort foods

Move over mac and cheese. You’re not the only dish in town when it comes to comfort food. “When I think ‘comfort food,’ everything goes back to when you were a kid,” explained executive chef Scott Howlett of Dino’s Backstage, a supper club in Glenside. “I would like a nice, big bowl of stew or chowder.”

It’s just like mom’s, but in a sourdough bread bowl.

“I’m more of a fan of chicken chowder with corn in it instead of seafood chowder,” he said, “especially since we’re nowhere near the beach.”

At Station Taproom in Downingtown, chef Tim Smith favors “tips on toast.”

“It’s beef tenderloin tips and sautéed mushrooms in a beef-beer gravy,” he described. “We serve that on a piece of sourdough bread and a fried egg on top.”

Smith grew up in England with “a lot of braising of meats and a lot of meat pies.”

“Any kind of braising meat would just say ‘comfort food’ because it’s low and slow,” he said. “Simmering takes time to cook. It can be rich and filling as well.”

When Karen Lewis craves comfort, she makes meatloaf with mashed potatoes and succotash, a combination of corn and lima beans.

“It’s family. It’s settling down. It’s taking a moment,” described the chef at Brandywine Catering in Chadds Ford.

“My mother always put ketchup on the outside of it,” she added. “When it gets a little bit burnt, it has a caramelized flavor. It works with the meatloaf.”

Lewis also likes chicken and dumplings and, of course, that old standby: mac and cheese.

“I go for that carb thing, I guess,” she said with a laugh.

Meatloaf INGREDIENTS

1½ pounds ground beef 1 medium onion, chopped ½ medium bell pepper, chopped ½ cup ketchup, plus extra for glaze 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce 2 eggs 1 cup bread crumbs ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil for easier cleanup. In a medium bowl, mix together ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire and eggs. Add ground beef, chopped onion and peppers, bread crumbs and salt and pepper. Mix well, form into a loaf and put in prepared baking pan. Pour ketchup all over the top and sides. Bake 1 hour or until thermometer reads 160 degrees.

For a fun twist, Grandma Bev would put whole, peeled hard-boiled eggs down the middle before baking. When loaf was sliced there would be a nice slice of egg in the center of each piece. Meatloaf is great leftover cold too! RECIPE COURTESY OF BRANDYWINE CATERING

Chicken Chowder INGREDIENTS

4 ounces butter 4 ounces flour 2 ounces garlic, minced 1 cup onion, small dice 1 cup celery, small dice 1 cup corn, off the cob 2 cups Yukon Gold potatoes, small dice 1 pound chicken breast, medium dice 3 bay leaves 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped 2 cups chicken stock (or enough to cover all ingredients) 1 cup heavy cream Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Sauté garlic, onion and celery in butter till soft. Add flour to make roux. Add rest of ingredients and cover with chicken

stock. Bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for 30 min till potatoes are tender. Stir continuously to avoid scorching. Smoked chicken can also be used for an extra punch of flavor. And I prefer to serve mine in a hollowed-out sourdough boule. Can adjust the amount of liquid according to how thick you like you chowder. RECIPE COURTESY OF DINO’S BACKSTAGE

Tips on Toast INGREDIENTS

1 onion, diced 2 pounds steak tips, finely cut 1 pound mushrooms, sliced 1 tablespoon oil ½ cup flour 1 cup brown ale (optional) 5 to 6 cups beef stock Salt and pepper to taste Sourdough bread 1 egg per serving

INSTRUCTIONS

Sauté onion. Once that starts to get soft, add beef. Sweat that down for about 5 minutes. Drain fat. Put the onion and beef back in the pan and continue to cook with 1 tablespoon of oil. Add mushrooms and flour to form a roux. Add brown ale. (Can substitute beef or vegetable stock, or red wine.) Add beef stock and make a gravy. Bring to a boil on medium heat. Simmer on low for about an hour. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve on toasted sourdough with a fried egg on top. Fry one egg per serving. Yields two or three entrée-size servings or four to six small plates. RECIPE COURTESY OF STATION TAPROOM

PHOTO BY EMILY RYAN According to a Harris Poll, pizza tops the list of Americans’ favorite comfort foods.

PHOTO BY EMILY RYAN Chef Tim Smith fries an egg at Station Taproom in Downingtown.

PHOTO BY EMILY RYAN No mention of comfort food would be complete without mac and cheese.

PHOTO BY EMILY RYAN Chocolate and ice cream tied for second place in a national comfort-food survey.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DINO’S BACKSTAGE Executive chef Scott Howlett prepares dishes at Dino’s Backstage.

PHOTO BY EMILY RYAN Called tips on toast, it features beef tenderloin tips and mushrooms in a beefbeer gravy with toasted sourdough and a fried egg.

PHOTO BY EMILY RYAN Ice cream and chocolate tied for second place in a national comfort-food survey.