From the Farm: Chef-turned-food columnist Barbara Rolek dead at age 75

Chicago Tribune

2 days ago

In my 35 years (and plus) writing about recipes, I've shared the same newspaper page as a number of various food columnists, some of whom were desk neighbors beside me in the newsroom.
Barbara Rolek, a trained and certified chef, worked as a columnist for The Post-Tribune and a three-year history timeline from 2004 to 2007 as the 'Restaurant Scene' columnist and food writer for The Times of Northwest Indiana.
Barb, a longtime resident of Crown Point, died earlier this month on May 14 at age 75.
She was born in Chicago and attended Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, and was a graduate of Chicago's Washburne Culinary Institute. She worked as an executive chef and pastry chef for more than 15 years at fine dining restaurants and even some time at the commissary of a grocery store chain where she developed a customized home meal replacement program.
She won awards as a food writer for the Chicago Tribune Media Company and her tenure at The Times of Northwest Indiana, including a 2007 win from the Hoosier State Press Association Award for a story on the Ketogenic diet in the treatment of childhood epilepsy.
In 2008, as newspapers began one of the lagging economy-inspired downsizing chapters, Barb shifted to writing as a guide for About.com, heading her own website covering Eastern European foods and showcasing recipes, photos and cultural information connected with highlighted countries.
She pivoted and accepted a new adventure as the lead writer and head creative force with an upscale online company 'Ann's Fabulous Finds.'
'Beyond her ace writing skills, Barb was an exceptional colleague and friend. She was compassionate, kind and always ready to offer support,' said the company's owner Troy Babcock and echoed by co-owner Ann Wzacny.
Barb co-authored 'Tell Me How Long You Want to Live and I'll Tell You What to Eat to Get There' with writer Dr. William D. Stimack (2002 Authorhouse $19.95). Like myself, Barb was one of the food personalities to host cooking classes, including her homemade pastas and 'how to build a gingerbread house' at La Cucina Cooking School in Highland owned by Susan Dedelow.
Barb, like so many chefs, was a hard worker and kitchen competitive, the latter of which fired her spirit and a heart of gold always willing to help others. I first met Barb long before we shared a newspaper page and newsroom desk landscape. For two brief years in 1998 and 1999, when I began working for the features section of The Times of Northwest Indiana, I rented a newly built duplex home in Crown Point where Barb and her mother Mary happened to live on the other side of the shared wall in the adjoining unit.
Barb would often bring elaborate recipe sampling spreads to the newsroom for all to enjoy. Her recipe for 'Beer and Cheese Potato Soup' was so scrumptious, I was able to persuade her to allow me to publish her recipe in my second cookbook 'More From the Farm' (2007 Pediment Press $29.95).
While we were neighbors, Barb and her mom would often compliment or fuss over our family's pet purebred Maine Coon cat Tracker, especially if he was spotted on our paired patios in the back of the homes.
One funny story that I never revealed to Barb (or her mom) has to do with the front yard of our adjoined homes. The landscaping included a rather wide stretch of green lawn which served as the divide of the driveways to our attached garages. We each mowed, watered and manicured our own half using an imaginary 'line border' to represent each renter's grassy half.
In the summer of 1998, I was leaving my home to attend a picnic, and my menu carry-in contribution was a large bowl of vinegar-based three-bean salad, a recipe specialty of a previous food editor, Sharon Rocchio, and also published in my 2007 cookbook.
The large round bowl slipped from my hands, the plastic wrap blew off, and the contents fell into the middle of this aforementioned grassy knoll strip, landing face down with the salad submerged into the grass. I scooped up the mess and hosed away the strong scent of vinegar. The next day, I discovered (as did Barb and her mom) a large yellow nearly perfect circle shape burned into the grass from the strength of the acidic vinegar.
I felt silly about my clumsiness so when Barb suggested I must have spilled fertilizer to cause the marred lawn, I simply agreed, and she insisted I buy a square of sod grass to cut to size and patch the gaffe.
Barb was preceded in death by both her parents Walter Rolek and Mary Durski Rolek; and brother Wally Rolek. She is survived by her sister Janet Rolek, sister-in-law Camille Podalski Rolek, and many cousins in the area.
Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Thursday, June 12, 2025, at St Mary's Catholic Church, 321 E. Joliet St, Crown Point with Rev. Peter Muha officiating. Burial is private at Holy Cross Cemetery, Calumet City. Barb also adored her cats Stella, Ruby and Maggie, a trio she would refer to as 'her primary recipe tasters.' In lieu of flowers, Barb's wishes are for donations to be made to any favorite charity, with funeral arrangements being led by Burns Funeral Home.
One of Barb's most recent planned projects was a German recipe cookbook, a project which never came to be as she explained in her social media post in September 2022.
'The publishing industry has really taken a hit over the past 10 years,' Barb wrote.
'As reading materials increasingly become digitized and more reliance is placed on trends, the printed word, i.e., books and newspapers, is feeling the death knell. And, in its infinite wisdom, my publisher has decided to put a hold on my German baking book because computer data show it's 'not the right time.' Fifty of my recipes will disappear into the ether (contractually, I can't publish on my own even though they are my intellectual property), but I would like to share my recipe for German Black Forest cake with you. By the way, I still get paid, so I know you will be delighted to hear I'm crying all the way to the bank. The real pity of it is the phenomenal tasting experiences and touchstones to their omas (grandmas) so many people could have had. I can't let that happen.'
One of Barb's prized Polish recipes is her kolaczki.
'There is some debate as to who invented kolaczki (plural for kolaczek),' Barb wrote in 2008.
'Poles claim it and call it 'kolachy,' but the Croatians claim it too, as do Czechs and others. Kolaczki can be round, square or diamond shaped, and the dough can be flaky or yeast-risen, and the spelling varies widely. My family always preferred the flaky kind made with a cream cheese dough, and apricot, raspberry, prune and sweet cheese were our fillings of choice. Nowadays, anything goes — almond, poppyseed, strawberry, blueberry, even pineapple. This is a great kids project.'
1 (8-ounce) cream cheese, softened
2 ounces (3 sticks) butter, softened
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 (14-ounce) cans fillings of choice (apricot, prune, raspberry, etc.)
Confectioners' sugar
Directions:
Mix cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add flour 1 cup at a time and mix well. Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough 1/4-inch on a surface that has been dusted with equal parts confectioners' and granulated sugars (not flour). Cut into 2-inch squares. Place 1/2 to 1 teaspoon filling on center of each square. Overlap opposite corners of dough to the center over filling.
Bake for 15 minutes or when corners start to brown. Cool and dust with confectioners' sugar. These tend to become soggy if held for several days, so store them tightly covered (or freeze) without the confectioners' sugar. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.