GASTRONOMICAL

Num Pang

2011-09-27T12:47:00.000-07:00

Ok so pretty much anyone who knows me knows I'm excited by food; but nothing, and I mean NOTHING has excited me so much (lately) as my visits to Num Pang. I love sandwiches, complete, compact, carry-away meals. All the food groups wrapped up in a little, and sometimes not so little, package. At Num Pang the package is a heavenly roll from Parisi bakery; but it does not end there by any stretch. Cambodian inspired sandwiches which generally feature their delicious chili mayo, pickled carrots, cilantro and cucumber; but some of their combinations add a chimi type sauce, asian pears, pickled apples or cabbage. Between their two locations, midtown at East 41st street and downtown at University place and 12th street I have sampled many of their luscious combinations and will not stop until I have tried them all and have that scrumptious chili mayo running through my veins and arteries! One of my favorites is the Five Spice Glazed Pork Belly sandwich with asian pears...the pork belly melts as sweetly as cotton candy; but I will not confine myself. The Peppercorn Catfish!, the Pulled Pork with spiced honey!! the Ginger BBQ Brisket!!! OMG. The kitchen at the downtown location is practically AT the walk-up window and the smells just pull you right in; and there is a small eat-in space with seating up a circular staircase. The midtown location is standing room only, and you can see the great mural which is posted on their website. Go, go now! and you WILL thank me.

Fave in the hood...NOT! - Osha Thai Kitchen

2011-06-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

i've been told that baby photos of me look, well, like i'm a fat chinese baby. i would not be surprised since there have historically been alot of chinese in cuba, where my family lived. perhaps that is also why i have such a penchant for far eastern cuisine in all its forms. regardless of the reason, it is rare, if not completely unknown, that i don't like an asian restaurant so this one stands out for having the distinct (dis)honor of holding that title. more's the pity since it is close to home and within delivery range; but Osha Thai Kitchen was a big disappointment from beginning to end. because the food was culprit there's absolutely no other reason to go since, as i always say when someone counters "but the place was beautiful"...you can't eat the decor. the long and the short of it, and there really is no reason to be elaborate in my gastronomic displeasure (why bother? there's little pleasure in bile). the j-dumplings were stale and tasteless, the spring rolls were dense and disgustingly peppery, and the calamari was tough (what else can you say once the calamari is tough?); but because i was still hungry, disdain of appetizers will do that, i had the chicken with pineapple and ginger. ...the chicken was tough, the ginger lacking and the pineapple bland (like eating water chestnuts type of bland). i'm sure that pineapple would have preferred to have wound up in the bin than suffer the dis-honor of that dish. it was the sort of gustatory disgust that makes you want to take the cook outside and kick him 'til he bleeds. life is too short to have bad food. go somewhere else...go on, git!

oh mary...

2011-05-31T12:06:00.000-07:00

i know, you're all probably starving, so have i been for a long time. let's try to put it behind us...

it's nice to come back on memorial day when we are all getting memorial about something or someone. i've been catching up on the early nyc history (one of my favorite things), which, anyone who IS anyone will know, is stellar. antebellum manhattan continues to innovate...the highline, governor's island, the trade center of the world. eats is no exception (ARE no exception?). and a-propos the early fishing history of the big apple, mary's fish camp tries. 1840's innovation, and turmoil, are alive and well, and just as frenetic...not its best feature. but lets talk about the oysters. but oysters are as oysters are, and mary, unfortunately, had nothing to do with them...but they were fabulous, raw and fresh and with a mignotte or sauce or h=radish. pre-civil war america was HUGE... mary's fish camp is small in size and achievement. the flavors fresh but incohesive, the seafood fresh and well, if blandly prepared, yet done a miserly misjustice...the experience repulsively compelling. noteworthy lacking in adornment gives the food focus, but doesn't occupy the spotlight the way it could. gottta have seafood now? two blocks away? there are plenty of places for drinks if you gotta queue; if you gotta...go for the oysters. 'nuf said.

notes from a wineaholic/the applewood winery

2009-10-19T09:46:00.000-07:00

i've always enjoyed the annual fall visit to the apple orchards with friends and family. this year more so because applewood orchard is also a winery, and amidst the mayhem in the orchard and the face paining and puppet show for the kids, there was the brief, yet very luscious tasting of fermented and distilled beverages produced there. for a mere five dollars a person can taste five of their 18 blends. i tried their seyval chardonnay reserve (dry, crisp blend aged in american oak), the vidal (semi-dry with fruit and floral notes), the merlot (dry, with distinct peppery finish), the cabernet franc (dry, with berry notes and spicy finish) and the oak barrel reserve (dry, with an earthy, smoky finish). they were all quite yummy and i brought home a bottle of the seyval and the merlot to age a bit. that day we also visited the heaven hill farm where we went on a hayride, picked pumpkins, watched pig races and played tag in the corn maze (which was sooooo much fun, and a little scary!) so often this annual outing is just about the kids; but this year i think the adults found some fun and more age appropriate entertainment too.

Come into my parlor...

2009-10-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

...said the spider to the fly. i had no trouble, though, willingly walking into the Parlor steakhouse on the corner of 90th street and 3rd avenue, and i've been back several times. that's no surprise since i'm known for willingly walking into trouble when cajoled by a spider. there was no trouble here though, and fortunately for me, my folks didn't think so either. my mom, luis and my grandmother joined me and john for a brunch this past sunday and we all walked out happy and full. it's not any small feat to entice my grandmother into public eateries. whereas i'm happy to try anyplace for the sake of the experience, she's of the mind that there can't be anything better than home cooked food and her standards are high. at Parlor the decor is spartan, clean and sleek; but the food and service are lavish, and satisfying; a pleasure to the eyes and the palate. as always with repeat visits to restaurants i like trying something different so this time it was the lobster roll. it could have been a little bigger for the price; but not better for sure. the kumamoto oysters i had for appetizers were the star here though. beautiful, small cupped shells, plump and only slightly briny meat. i'm always fascinated by oysters because they are so beautifully ugly on the outside; and so luscious and opalescent on the inside. highly sculpted, fluted shells, crusted and rough. their insides adorned with gorgeous mother-of-pearl. and the pearls! its so amazing the perfect gem that an irritating grain of sand can produce. its testimony to the fact that bitterness and adversity in life can lead to beautiful, priceless creations. so much lovely art, memorable books, acts of valor and genius are the products of lives of misery and misfortune, strife and toiling against unimaginable odds. so be an oyster babies! take your lemons and make lemonade! if someone leaves a cow in your living room, milk it and sell the milk and cheese! turn your life's irritation into gems!

Wu Liang Ye

2009-07-28T09:49:00.001-07:00

anyone that knows me knows that i would rather eat chinese food more than just about anything else. so here's another "fave in the hood", wu liang ye on 86th street between third and second avenues is the best szechuan you'll ever have, anywhere. one of the hallmarks of a good ethnic restaurant is whether it is frequented by persons of that nationality, and yes if you go to wu liang ye you will certainly see many, many asian patrons. i'm pretty sure that i must have some asian heritage somewhere along the line. there were many chinese in cuba so it is not totally outside the realm of possibility that there could be a bit of a "slant" in my gene pool. interestingly, the chinese in cuba were the butt of many jokes, much the same as the poles seem to have been in many american jokes. when a cuban was plagued by bad luck, it was said that "he was being followed by a chinaman" ("tiene un chino atras"). regardless, all are welcome at wu liang ye; we all know a good thing when we see/eat it. their lunch special is a steal for $7.95. you get choices of appetizer, different types of rice, and many really yummy entrees. i decided my first time there that i was going to make a habit of the lunch special and work my way down the list of entrees. i'm still working on it, and having a great time doing it. some may think that the prices are a little high; but the menu is not your run of the mill chinese food and well worth the visit.

notes from a wineaholic/moscatel

2009-07-25T13:48:00.000-07:00

i figure the best way to come back is with something to drink, and what better way than with some moscatel. while at dinner with john and shivann at one of the best italian restaurants in manhattan, luna piena, the owner, luigi, sent some moscatel to the table and i knew there was a reason why i loved that place so much. a delicate wine with the subtle taste of peaches and apricots, this sparkling more prestigious cousin of the asti is not considered spumante (sparkling) at all, just a bit frizzante (fizzy). delicate, lightly sweet and gorgeously fruity, the moscato is particularly low in alcohol and therefore fairly fragile. generally made in tiny batches and limited quantities it is highly desirable and should be drunk fresh and soon after release. the rest of the dinner was no slouch. grilled shrimp with warm white bean salad, asparagus wrapped in mozzarella and prosciutto, spinach greens with strawberries and toasted almonds. my entree of homemade squid ink fettuccine with clams, mussels, calamari and shrimp in a light red sauce brought to mind the rice with squid in its black ink my grandmother makes. the rice turns out a beautiful black color. make sure you visit luna piena and tell luigi i sent you. have a glass of the moscatel, and enjoy one of the great wonders of wine.

don't be afraid, vegetables don't bite

2009-01-30T13:00:00.000-08:00

the lower east side has long been my favorite area of the great island of manhattan. i love being surprised by the variety of hip and delicious places to eat. at an invitation from melissa king, love ya mel %^*, to a happy hour meet and greet/networking party i was happily introduced to counter. on first ave. between 6th and 7th streets, it is billed as "an organic wine and martini bar and vegetarian bistro". their wine list is extensive and impressive, and their cocktail menu is serious and seriously funny, with drinks named "tie me to the bed post" and "the angry lesbian". their menu of vodkas infused with herbs grown in their own roof-top garden will definitely tempt you and provoke your palate. i had the angry lesbian..."tarragon infused vodka, framboise and orange puree", and as a card carrying member of that group i approve. no really, ask lori barry, i AM lesbian...and chinese, and nigerian, and swedish and indian... the noshes and entrees, some completely vegan, were beautiful to look at, delicious to smell and yummy to eat. the spiced seytan ragout on the hummus royale was sharp, aromatic and delicious; the chickpea fries and corn beignets with remoulade sauce were so good it was impossible to stop eating them. i had the italian farmhouse panini made from walnut-lentil pate, plum tomatoes, greens and slivers of red onion, and rosemary aioli on a crunchy ciabatta served with a generous side of baby greens with a dressing so light it never weighed down the delicate leaves but was sharp and crisp. the bartender was gracious and where else do you know that will actually just BRING you a glass of water when you sit down at the counter? stop by after work, for a lunch or brunch, you'll have to keep going back, as i will, to sample the whole menu.

kittichai

2009-01-20T13:38:00.000-08:00

it is probably a thai word which means "i'm too sexy for you", and rightly so. the soho restaurant by the same name is so cool, its hot; so in it could be impossible to get into and so sexy i think i just came writting this. ok, so i liked it, you get the idea; but really, the place is beautiful and unfortunately trendy. kinda like i describe the hamptons..."love the place, hate the people". stylish alcoves where small to midsize groups can dine in relative seclusion; red, orange and yellow fabric colored walls uplit for drama and style; a ceiling simulating bamboo screens; dim spot lighting on the tables; a large pool with floating candles that tumble against each other and clink lightly together, and a flawless, and beautiful staff that seems to appear and disappear as if from nowhere to make sure your service is perfect. oh, and by the way, the food doesn't suck. if you could eat the presentation it might just taste as wonderful as the food actually does. they are currently participating in restaurant week and have extended this menu to march 31st; but they also have a prix fixe brunch on saturdays AND sundays. take advantage folks!

notes from a wineaholic/eggnog

2008-12-24T12:14:00.000-08:00

the wineaholic is particularly rummy during the holidays for reasons obvious to most; and yes there is a holiday drink with which to pahty, pahty. my aunt's eggnog recipe is the real deal, baby. a no holds barred, send you over the christmas tree, sugar high infused with rum to knock you right out of your holiday stockings. did i say rum "infused"? well, i don't know if that's really the right term considering that its a potent potable one third of which is rum. i'm off tonite to the first of the holiday family get-togethers, and i wouldn't be properly armed (i mean festive, yeah, that's it, festive) if i wasn't packing a bottle of "the nog". we're talking loaded for bear baby, as my sister in in-law kim will tell you while she chugs it (i mean sips it, yeah that's it, sips it) on the day after christmas morning all by herself in her kitchen. this year there is not only christmas eve at my family's, and christmas day at kim and jimmy's, there will also be a post-christmas family melt-down (i mean gathering, yeah that's it, gathering) at karen and wayne's. it's all good, really. and it is after all another occasion for food and drink.
here's the recipe:
one can of sweetened condensed milk,
one can of evaporated milk,
one raw egg (that's right raw, be a man!)
one sweetened condensed milk can full of rum (because it is the bigger can of the two cans)
one cup of sugar

combine the first four ingredients in a blender and mix. put the sugar in a non-stick pan on high heat and caramelize. the heat should be on high in the beginning but be careful once it starts to caramelize that you don't burn the sugar. it will smoke some so turn off the alarms. with the blender running add the caramelized sugar in to the other ingredients and blend. enjoy!!

panna cotta

2008-12-11T06:42:00.000-08:00

when it comes to mealtime i do not usually care so much for the desserts as much as i enjoy the entrees. today, however, i am opening this post about my dinner at alfredo of rome with praise for their panna cotta. literally it means "cooked cream" but that is a misnomer because it is not actually cooked at all. it is a combination of milk, cream, and sugar then mixed with gelatin to set it. most other cream desserts involve eggs, usually cooked over a double boiler, and are more difficult to make because you need to worry about overcooking or undercooking. it is widely accepted that this dessert originated in the piedmont region of italy where it might once have been very simply consumed as a cream mixed with fruits and maybe nuts. just when the addition of the sugar came in, which would have been very expensive and difficult to find, is not exactly known; and some sources say that the gelatin added to make it set may have come from some very unsavory sources, including boiled fish bones. while there are savory as well as sweet versions of panna cotta, somehow the idea of fish panna cotta seems particularly unpleasant to me. at alfredo the panna cotta came in a very traditional berry sauce and it was the perfect ending to a heavy meal of their signature dish, what else? the fettuccine alfredo. that and the grapa of course (this is after all, about food AND drink!) alfredo has a very tony spot off the corner of fifth avenue and 49th street, and has a perfect view of the rockefeller center plaza with all the holiday trimmings. the service was excellent, our waiter jovial and expert, offering to fillet john's branzino (silver sea bass), and, as i mentioned, plying us with grapa. i'm always impressed with comfortable seating, and while there was just a little too much holiday music for my taste, they did manage to play one of my favorites which i offer to you here,
BUONO APPETITO

and yes!!! santa if you can leave johnny for me too i promise to be ohhhh soooo good (wink, wink)
although this is my absolute favorite christmas song and it is NEVER really the holidays until i hear the waitresses sing CHRISTMAS WRAPPING

a bitter pill and yummy chaser

2008-12-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

nhaok so the bitter pill is jury duty. i don't want to hear from all you civically minded soft-heads out there about my responsibility. when i start getting full representation under the law i'll maybe be a little bit more open to sitting in judgement of another human being (MAYBE). considering that when this country was fighting for its independence one of the things that set off that whole party was the fact that americans were not getting representation in parliament across the great pond while still being taxed out the wazzoo, this country has not come along way in the last couple of hundred years or so. maybe i should start a revolution, i'm pretty close to it you can believe me. "no taxation without representation!!!!!", it was a good battle cry then and it is now. the yummy chaser is the opportunity to have lunch at nha trang while in the five points area of nyc. btw, it is one of the most rich historically in the entire city, and very well worth reading about. anyway, back to the food. if you love vietnamese food, and i do, and you love a bargain, and who doesn't?, nha trang is the place. even if you're not complying with your civic duty (fuck that shit), make the trip to 87 baxter street, share a table with someone if you're dining alone, indulge in the delicious spring or summer rolls, the bbq pork chops and the variety of fresh soups.
A LITTLE DINNER MUSIC FOR YOU

stella del mare

2008-12-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

if you missed this terrific find in the murray hill section of manhattan, you'll not have another opportunity. after 30 or so years, this seafood-oriented northern italian with its "old-world feel" and "high qualify" fare is closing its doors. its location made it a treasure for the lunchtime business crowd; but that and the locals could not sustain this out-of-the-way favorite during the toughest of times. the last time i was there i was treated to a "run of the house" dinner courstesy of john's affiliation as a concierge. obviously, the fact that it was free made the food even more delicious :^D but even if you had to pay for it it would have been well worth the price. my favorites were the mussels in white wine sauce and the soft shelled crabs.
restaurants are a difficult business to keep up even in the best of times, its unfortunate that such a long lived one, with such a great, and well deserved, reputation could not survive. as it has been said, "location, location, location" and unfortunately this restaurant's address was too out of the way for the tourist crowd which is only interested in whatever is near the theater district, or whatever is the newest fad.
stella del mare will be sorely missed.

thanksgiving

2008-11-29T17:02:00.000-08:00

although this year thanksgiving took a bit of a beating, things finally turned out very nice. we didn't have to do any running around except to get to my mom's house in hackensack, and nothing after that except back home. at times, thanksgiving for me has meant pace yourself at house #1 so you can eat again at house #2, and digest along the way. i was spared that, and hopefully for all years to come, by deciding that if our families can manage to share the holiday, then so can we. my mom in the past has done a more latin styled thanksgiving by making the guest of honor in a fricassee instead of roasted. frankly i prefer it in the former fashion as opposed to the latter, it's more juicy and infinitely more flavorful. this year it was a more traditional bird with all the trimmings; sweet potatoes, string bean casserole; except for the rice of course. cubans have rice with everything. my grandfather used to have rice with his spaghetti. you read it right. he would just spoon some rice into his pasta with marinara sauce and slurp it up. i never tried it 'cause at that age i was into being grossed out by things like that; but now, who knows. the evening went well though, my brother behaved himself, he and i spent alot of time making fun of my uncle's side of the family (especially melissa my cousin and her daughter victoria) just because they weren't there and it pisses off my mom. don't you just love family dynamics?! we used to spend our holidays all together before my uncle (who is my mom's brother) and his family high-tailed it outta new york for the hurricane-drenched shores of miami. the story was that they were running to a better, more affordable life in warmer weather. my take is that they were running away from my cousin mark's crazy bitch girl friend who fucked him up so bad that he had to go into therapy (she actually came into the apartment one day and stole everything that wasn't nailed down-and i mean EVERYTHING!!), and my other cousin melissa's druggie boyfriend who got her pregnant and is a fucked-up psycho. but that's just my opinion. anyway, all went well right down to finding the perfect parking spot when we got back into the city. i hope you all had a great one, or at least survived it with a minimum of extra sessions with your shrink. just remember, the big one is just around the corner...AAAIIUUUUGGHHHHHH!!!!!
GEORGE WINSTON (to relax some)

cooking school

2008-11-22T17:05:00.000-08:00

a couple of nites ago john, karen (his sister) and i went to a cooking class at the viking cooking school in fairfield new jersey. it was actually a very belated, combined birthday gift for john and me from karen. the recipe theme for the evening was fish. we cooked a tilapia with julienned red pepper, leeks and compound butter en papillot; seared salmon with a citrus vinaigrette; tuna burgers with wasabi slaw, and a fried haddock with avocado salsa. the recipes were all very simple and incredibly delicious. when the class was over the group was able to sit and eat what they cooked. i think my favorite was the tuna burger with the wasabi slaw, although i actually ate EVERYTHING!! i think it's fun to prepare food together when you are will be having dinner together afterwards. it's such a great way to share the experience, and of course an opportunity to drink. we couldn't really drink while we were cooking at the school but they did serve us wine with our meal. i usually drink while i'm cooking, maybe that's why i enjoy it so much!!! well, next week brings an opportunity to do some heavy drinking with cooking during the thanksgiving festivities. don't miss the opportunity, i promise it will make everything better. not perfect, but better.

dutch kitchen

2008-11-14T14:45:00.000-08:00

in plain city ohio (yes, that's right, plain city) there's a rather large amish community well served by a homey restaurant and bakery called the dutch kitchen. it's cute and friendly, and frankly just a little bit scary to a big city mouse such as me; but the menu is full of those comfort foods you would expect from an eatery specializing in "simple, satisfying, home-style meals", such as meat loaf, chicken fried steak, country cured ham, and german potato pancakes. there's even a "barn-raising buffet" sure to please the lumberjack in any of you. i was taken to this place by my uncle jose on my recent visit to this swing state lately turned blue (to quote chrissie hynde "way to go o-hi-o!"). i had the meat loaf, of course, and i would swear the string beans they served me came out of a can. i wouldn't have expected anything less from a place that's been around for about 45 years and was probably founded on the tradition of tv dinners (which i love) and canned vegetables (about which i have very mixed feelings). their pies are homemade and so are their sausages; and the place smells sweet and savory until you get too close to one of the amish kids working there and then it smells more like a barn-raising. i don't care if you are amish, take a fucking bath, it was fucking summer for christ's sake, you're not gonna die from the cold. anyway, it was a slice of americana well worth having. visit if you have the chance, even if it's just for the shits and giggles; but as long as you're there, sit, have something to eat, and let the friendly staff scare the hell out of you. check out the link on the side there, and chrissie hynde right here.
THE PRETENDERS

notes from a wineaholic/ein bier bitte!

2008-11-08T16:58:00.000-08:00

a long, long time ago, when i was just a young wino and only drinking vodka neat, i fell in love with beer. it happens, as it most often does i suppose with beers, on a steamy-hot summer day when someone hands you an icy-cold one and you're hooked for life. there's been alot of beers under the bridge since then, but a delicious bavarian wheat beer i had recently sent my heart aflutter all over again; and i was transported back to that day at lake sebago just off seven lakes drive in bear mountain new york when i had that palate expanding experience. back then it was a canadian brew that took my cherry; but the Weihenstephan, more specifically their Kristall Weissbier, that recently ravaged me was a master. people don't always remember all their "firsts", call me a romantic, what can i say? the bavarian state brewery weihenstephan was, over a thousand years ago they say, the monastery brewery of the benedictine monks. if there's one thing monks know how to produce is food and liquor. and some pretty fantanstic manuscripts. because i live in what is still considered to be a german enclave on the upper east side of manhattan, this, and many other really great beers, are not hard to find. not to mention the german food, and one place on second avenue where you can still see men in liederhosen. i just happen to mention that in case it's your thing (see you there!) prost!

got served

2008-11-06T14:29:00.000-08:00

it's been a very long time since i posted and i'm pretty sure that most of you, if you are indeed still out there, are starved to death. a-political as i am (not), i have decided to use the outcome of the election as a segue into what i hope will be a cornucopia of postings (not of the political persuasion rest assured). going against emily post, and every other etiquette guru, who advises that politics, religion and sex are the three things that should never be discussed in public i will now plunge headlong into the fray. i voted for obama and let's face it, i would have preferred hilary; but a democrat is as a democrat does and so i can only hope for the best. as i explained it to my mother, a staunch republican who this year voted democratic, ("i did it for you" she said) what we've been given is a chance. she warned me that "you won't have bush to blame anymore so let's see what obama will do", and i replied (in an equally accusatory tone, "it'll take longer than one term to clean up what that backwards, %^%#$^#*&, idiotic, &**#$$(^(*)!!!, lying, &#%^$#^!!!^&#, divisive, poor excuse for a leader, waste of human flesh, (*%&%$#^$@!!!!!!, will be leaving us with". for reasons which may be obvious to you we don't usually discuss politics at home. my grandmother, also a lifelong republican who voted party lines this year again, felt like she had to go to bed early when it was clear that the landslide would be, as one senator put it, of tsunami proportions. the electoral vote count AND the majority choice! when i saw indiana, ohio, florida and georgia go blue i almost plotzed; but virginia? hot damn!!!virginia hadn't backed a democrat in over 40 years!!! let's face it, the country showed a unity unparalleled in recent history. the only things we have all agreed upon this way of late have been that the economy is down the shit-tube and bush sucks (anybody see the approval ratings lately? way to go dubbyuh!) well, all history setting rhetoric aside, let's pray that the obama presidency will be the one to keep us as inspired as we seem to be and united as we should be. if the new administration can't get us all to the table to turn things around, then we'll all be served.
HAIL TO THE CHIEF!

GOOD LUCK AND CONGRATULATIONS TO PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA

what's for dinner?

2008-09-20T12:06:00.000-07:00

the political climate surrounding the upcoming election is forcing me to proselytize. and it ain't gonna be pretty. obama or mccain. the choice is horrendous and the choices are completely lacking. we deserve so much more, and all the time we are presented with less and less. inexperience and mis-representation. self-aggrandisement and lies. an appalling lack of respect and responsibility for the public which would be laughable if it wasn't so pitiful. pitiful for us, the american public. who time after time are forced to make choices between bad and worse, the frying pan and the fire. taking matters into our own hands is the only solution left. throughout history, politicians have taken advantage of their constituents and the political machine to further their own careers with little or no regard for those they purport to serve. in the most extreme of situations, the people have revolted. that's right, people. revolution. what i'm here to advocate is nothing less than civil disobedience. at dinner one night john's dad pointed out that when someone invites you to dinner, they generally give you at least a choice of foods which are appealing to you. for too long our choices at the political table have been not only un-appealing but completely un-palatable. we are forced to choose something that will not nourish us, and actually which will ultimately kill us. there are many of us at the table left hungry and starving for want of making that choice. it's time to create our own choices. take matters into our own hands. depose the despots and clear the way for public servants with all our better interests in mind. strength through unity, and unity through a faith in the good of all. become a part of the (r)evolution. set a different table, and eat hearty.

kats's delicatessen

2008-09-11T10:39:00.001-07:00

every once in a while i like to do something typically "touristy" and take in a little more of this great city. on the anniversary of 9/11, something i can't even think about without getting emotional, it seems only fitting to mention an institution in eating. recently i found myself in the lower east side. one of my favourite, if not THE favourite, neighborhoods in NYC. i stopped in to the place where "harry met sally" (yes, that's the place), and had, what else, a pastrami on rye. not just any pastrami on rye; but the tenderest, most savory and perfectly spiced pastrami between two slices of a rye at once delicate and crunchy. katz's delicatessen, which claims to have been around for about 120 years, is the place for all eatables Yiddish and Geshmak (that's "tasty and delicious"). take in the tenement museum while you are in the neighborhood too. i like ethnic, and going to places like this gets me thinking about just how diverse NYC really is, and how incredible that all of us live here, side by side, and have contributed to the glory of this place which some of us are proud and happy to call home. i lost a piece of myself on 9/11. something that i will never get back. i've never been so close to that kind of destruction, and i grieve today for all that loss just as i have since that awful day. it's always pissed me off to hear people bad mouth the US or NYC. so i have only one thing to say..."GET THE FUCK OUT!!!!" you're on dangerous ground when you fuck with that!!! don't come shitting where i live 'cause i will fuck you up!!! so come visit the center of the universe, the big apple, and as they say at katz's "ess, bench, sei a mensch!" (eat, pray, don't act like a jerk!).
A LITTLE MUSIC

A LITTLE HUMOR

A LITTLE NOSH

here's the beef!!

2008-09-03T08:04:00.000-07:00

Benjamin’s Steak House was nothing short of amazing. While the specialty is, of course, beef in all its forms, do not hesitate to sample the seafood, I did. I began my meal with appetizers of stuffed clams and lobster cocktail. These were not just chopped up little bits of clams with stuffing, these were whole, juicy and delicious clams still attached to their shells and surrounded by a filling that did not overpower the seafood. The lobster cocktail was an entire, small lobster, which came already neatly sliced in half, since I was sharing, and with the claws carefully pre-cracked so the guest can easily access the delicious meat inside without a lot of fuss. I also had the fried bacon appetizer. I can never say enough about bacon but this thick-cut slab of perfectly cooked heaven-on-the-hoof was a blue ribbon winner. For an entrée I ordered the porterhouse for two, with sides of mashed potatoes and steamed asparagus. The portions are meant to be shared and there was clearly enough of the porterhouse for more than two but it was so great john and I ate the entire thing. Perfectly cooked filet mignon on one side and sirloin on the other, brought to the table sizzling and pre-slice on a bed of au-jus, so tender it melted in your mouth “like buttah!” The mashed were creamy and the asparagus was trimmed and cooked crisp. We shared a crème Brule, although I don’t know where I found the room, which was both velvety and crisp, with a side of homemade whipped cream that was light and perfectly sweet. The staff was genial from the beginning. We were cordially greeted by the hostess Susan, who escorted us to the bar to wait for our table; the general manager, Victor, welcomed us and seated us, and the meticulous French-service was supervised by our waiter Javier. I watched other satisfied guests that evening who shook hands with their waiters and the GM, as we did, and thanked them for their gracious service and outstanding food. It is a perfect dinning experience which should not be missed in a city which has the best to offer.

no, no and no

2008-08-16T09:46:00.000-07:00

a very straightforward menu of classic bistro fare and an impressive selection of wine is offered up in a tightly packed and tiny space. the floor to ceiling windows, which were mercifully wide open on the night i was there, give the illusion of a large and airy space; but in colder weather when they are shut i can only imagine that it will feel like being in a cacophonous goldfish bowl. while their menu is not as broad as their wine list, the selection of noshes, light salads and filling entrees is just enough of an accompaniment to help you believe you aren’t really a wineaholic there to turn yourself into a grape. for those of you in total denial there is also a nice dessert menu. the service was attentive enough but unfortunately hampered by the close quarters. i had the feeling I might have seen more of my server if he didn’t have to slide his butt across my neighbor’s table in order to speak to me; and the food always came from behind me, or from the side so that all i saw was my server’s arm over my shoulder. considering it is owned and operated by the same person who conceived the gorgeously elegant Campbell Apartment, i expected more. The “out of the way” location would make Madison and Vine a hard sell, compared to places people actually go out of their way to look for and go back to. i’ve heard this place described as upscale, romantic and trendy. it is upscale only in terms of broad definition of bistro food, romantic only if you consider a foursome romantic (the other diners were THAT close), and trendy, well only in so far as wine bars are still considered trendy by those who didn’t catch on to it four years ago when they really were, well, trendy. on the corner of Madison Avenue and 41st streets, Madison and Vine is a wine bar gone wild; the only draw being the fact that it is attached to the fabulous Library Hotel who’s roof-top bar you can then visit to unwind en plein air with a cocktail, the Madison avenue shoppers and eurotrash. BTW don't look for a website here, i couldn't find one. how sad for you mark grossich.

i want it all, and i want it now!!!

2008-08-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

It’s always a choice: (1) Engage in battle and spend time and energy on a situation that will eventually resolve itself. (2) Ignore the tumult and withdraw. (3) Strike a balance between the two and defend your position without exacerbating the already hyper-intense environment. the steak or the fish, the chicken or the pork, the salad or the soup. this or that, one thing or the other. i want it all, AND I WANT IT NOW!!!!. my mother used to tell this story about a child who would cry in front of a table full of food. when asked why it was crying the child would say, "because i can't eat it all". that's me, always fretting because i can't eat it all, do it all, see it all, be it all. i don't want to have to make those choices and who the fuck does?! yeah, i guess some people are perfectly happy with choices, strike a balance, ignore and withdraw, but NOT ME!!!! how 'bout you? get a game plan, shake it to the ground. here's to the future! i'm a man with a one track mind. too much to do in one lifetime, giving it all. living it all, it's not much i'm asking, i want it all, AND I WANT IT NOW!!!!!

animation

2008-07-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

we are always in the midst of change. whether we realize it or not, want it or not, are ready for it or not, we are perpetually in that state of active equilibrium, the difference between what we are truly on the inside and what we want the world to see, what we were today, last minute, yesterday and what we become the next second, tomorrow, in a decade due to the choices we make. in making these choices for ourselves the changes stay within our character and we grow, when we abdicate the power to choose or willingly let others choose for us we are less happy with the choices because they are out of character. my friend odalys calls these "out of character" actions animation. we hate to see out favourite watering holes and eateries change because those changes generally will create a diversion from the nature of these establishments which we have grown to love, appreciate and to which we have become accustomed and familiar. change, in this case, is not always good, and can seriously detract from the experience. at long beach island, on a FABULOUS weekend with John and his sister Karen (compliments of her generosity), i visited two places of which i have previously been a fan that went through "changes". the new incarnation of Bistro 14 suffered in the change. animation. the place never had "a look", not even in a beach town where that sort of thing is not only de rigeur, but usually means nautical; but the food used to be a great representation. somewhere along the change they stopped making the fried seafood basket, including no fried clams (a staple in that type of place), they "fancified" some of the fish dishes (you can have it with this type of sauce or that type of sauce...blah,blah,blah), poussin chicken (really? in a great fish place?), and (gasp!) they stopped offering both types of chowder (yes, clam of course) and now only offer their "award winning manhattan". ok, so they won the '07 LBI chowderfest with their manhattan style chowder; but really? no new england style? that just plain sucks 'cause when i'm in LBI i wanna have them alllllll!!!!! and, hold on to your cocktail glass, they don't have a liquor license anymore. who was the fucking asshole that let THAT happen? and why don't they advertise that it is BYOB, which would have been perfectly fine; but really? i'm sitting at the table and you tell me i can't order liquor? i should really have left at that point. the chowder was good (award-winning? really?, i don't know), the mussels didn't have enough garlic, butter or white wine sauce (although they were deliciously fresh), the fried artichokes were greasy... ok i've said enuf. i hate change. at our dinner at the new Gables Inn (nee Green Gables Inn) i was pleasantly surprised that the drastic renovations which the place had undergone were actually very beautiful, in spite of the fact that it was not as rustic as it used to be. on this point, some people might say that rustic in just a word for run-down, and to be honest the place was looking a little rough around the edges, and the majority of the changes had actually been done to the living quarters and not the food. they still offered their fantastic prix-fixe multi-course dinner complete with amouse-bouche (i highly recommend it), but they extended their menu to include a la carte. as in the past, the service was gracious and expert, and the food was, well, delish. pate de foix gras with figs and a balsamic reduction as an appetizer, and a delicious and huge piece of perfectly cooked butterfish in a broth, over vegetables. the place is even more beautiful than it ever has been in its long history and i am happy to say that i look forward to going back. i actually like change, appreciate change, know that it is good, but...i guess the chef at Bistro 14 was being true to himself, and, well, no-one was really twisting my arm to eat there and i'm just letting you know what i thought. the Gables, well, i wish places like that didn't change at all, but then i have Cancer rising, and for the Crab that takes its home around on its back i have to be eased in to that type of change. having sun in Gemini, a mutable sign and the proverbial purveyor of change, i'm constantly in that state of equilibrium, loving it and hating it. so, "don't change your hair for me, not if you care for me..." anyway, there are the sites there on the side and don't hesitate to visit them both, and all the great places at LBI. and if you have to change, at least stay true to your nature, it'll be less shocking for the rest of us that way.
Changes, gotta love 'em.

bigger, better, faster, more

2008-07-22T17:19:00.000-07:00

this weekend i had tapas and arepas. i love having the basic national foods of countries. so uncomplicated and reflective of the lands from which they come. tapas and arepas have a very long and simple history with their respective cultures that make them classic in a humble and basic way which many describe as "peasant food", and timeless in a way that epicures appreciate. i have wanted to eat at "caracas" arepa bar on the lower east side for a while now, and the wait was well worth it. it is a minuscule restaurant full of the decorative flavor and soul of a south american country who's indigenous people knew how to, not just survive on the bounty of nature, but do justice to that bounty by creating highly flavorful and nourishing fare reflective of their energy and appreciation of life. religious and superstitious, statues of saints and artifacts are evidence of the spirit of the place and the people. it was fantastic. tostones mochimeros, a chicken and chorizo arepa "la surena", and tinto de veranos. complex, flavorful, soulfully nuanced and satisfying. xunta is a tapas bar, also on the lower east side, which i have visited before and to which i wanted to introduce my new friends, magna and jameela (and shout out to their friends ruthie and maritza). we had white sangria, lulas anel y patatas bravas. while the origin of tapas is not strictly certain, and the variety of them is as different as the locale from which they emerge, they surely are as satisfying and fulfilling as the libations and camaraderie which they innevitably accompany. as religious and superstitious as the venezuelans, the spaniards have an equally visceral (no pun intended) connection to their food. the bounty of the land, simple yet complex, a cornucopia both easy and satisfying. tapas, and arepas, have of late become a "fad" in the united states. initial attraction of a fashion is sudden and exciting, but seldom truly "gratifying" and "nourishing". their long-lasting appeal, however, comes from their soul. many things will come and go, the new car, smartphone, lover, jeans. but on further inspection, few things pass the tests of time, foods may have "nouvelle" incarnations, the nuances of the generations; but the heart of a cuisine is evident in its "comida criolla". check out the links to both of these places and then check them out. come to appreciate the people and the harvest, the hearty and the heart-felt. get in touch with and satisfy your basic needs. come to the table to un-hitch, dress down, sit with the one that speaks to your heart, and connect with something that lasts.

the best things in life are free

2008-07-17T11:19:00.000-07:00

normally, i would answer this, and the equally vapid "money can't buy you love" with "then you're obviously not shopping in the right place". but a free new york philharmonic concert, al fresco in central park, is definitely one of the best things in life. every summer the philharmonic stages a variety of these in all the boroughs. this past tuesday the program was tchaikovsky's first piano concerto, beethoven's fourth symphony and sibelius' finlandia. it was a perfect evening of beautiful music with my honey and his niece shivann (love ya %^* ), and of course, food and drink. chicken from PIO PIO, macaroni, bean, and corn salads, some smoked gouda, mango chutney dip and toasted pita chips, delicious rosemary bread and tomato focaccia. we had cold gin and tonics to refresh us from the hot sun (and "the vapors" %^D ), a nice albarino and a cotes du ventou. if you've never tried PIO PIO chicken, you MUST! it is a peruvian place which only does chicken and a few sides. yellow rice, red beans, fried ripe of green plantains, and salad. check out their website on the side there and look for one near you. anyway, it was a beautiful moonlit nite, ending with fireworks. it's great to see people of all ages and nationalities and walks of life out enjoying one thing. there were two elderly women next to us, with big hats and long dresses, sitting on the grass enjoying their noshes and white wine. i hope i will be like that. i like to think that i will be. i'm finally taking time out to enjoy my time off from school, and this will be one of many great memories of summer '08. here's the great van cliburn performing the third movement of tchaikovsky's first piano concerto. have a great summer everybody, and enjoy!!!

%BURP%

2008-07-14T11:32:00.000-07:00

ok, so no sooner do i spout off about light summer eating do i go out and have two of the most food-packed days ever. honestly, i think i ate enough to feed two third-world villages. friday nite was mr. c's surprise birthday party. it was definitely a surprise when you consider his birthday was in may. anyway, it was at the villa amalfi in cliffside park new jersey (link on the side there for those interested) and the food was italian. hors d'ouvres, salad, hot anti-pasta plate, canneloni, entree, and dessert. not to mention that earlier that afternoon john and i had gone for tapas (salpicon de mariscos y buñuelos de bacalao)and sangria. well, i just couldn't even eat the dessert it got to THAT point (although i was able to have a piece later when i found out that karen had saved some, and it was an incredible napolean cake, courtesy of the palisade park bakery-and let me tell you, if you are anywhere near the reach of this blog, RUN, do not walk there). i love italian and i thought they did a nice job, the only thing i didn't really care for was the strawberry zabaglione. mr. c really enjoyed himself. he and i have a really good relationship. although it was rough in the beginning. you know, when you are first trying to carve your own place as a new member of a group/family it can be tough. sometimes it can feel like being at a party where you know you're not really wanted. also, not everyone's expressions of acceptance or affection are the same you know. for some it is all warm and fuzzy and for some not so much. with mr. c when you get a shot of love it may be followed by a piss and vinegar chaser. so the first indication i had that i was getting close to that inner circle was when i told mr. c i was going to have eye surgery and he suggested i ask the surgeon if he would also take the lead out of my ass. THAT'S love.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY (AGAIN) MR. C!

a nice sandwich

2008-07-12T09:17:00.000-07:00

hey foodies! anybody hungry? i'm guessing your palates are now clean enough to eat off of?! maybe we should start off with something light so it's not such a shock to our systems. it is nice to have lighter fare in the summer, when we want to cool off, and relax outdoors in the warmer temps. one of my favorite memories of this type of lavish relaxation, which this weather just seems to make you crave, is a summer jaunt many years ago on The Barrycuda. HI LOR!!! there's alot to be said of spending a weekend with friends on a houseboat and camping on the beach. on a side note here are three things NOT to do when camping on an open beach:
1. do not have a brown tent.
2. do not use down sleeping bags, and
3. do not set the tent up on a slanted dune.
(i've become a much better camper!)
anyway, our idea of cooling off on the houseboat was doing beer rifle-shots on the roof of the Barrycuda and then jumping off into the waters of the bay. we ate on the houseboat, courtesy of the Barrys, simple summer sandwiches. mr. and mrs. barry were great to put up with all of us crowding things up. the prize for best line of that weekend goes to mr. barry, who, very sadly, recently passed (send your good thoughts out to my friend Lori who misses her dad %^* ). mrs. b said to mr. b "would you like a nice sandwich?", to which mr. b replied..."why do i have to have a NICE sandwich, why can't a have a damn LOUSY sandwich?" that was a great weekend, thanks to the b's for that memory. we later camped out overnight at fire island, and spent the next day on the beach entered in a sand castle competition. classic simple summer food and drink, and fun.
the chance to uncomplicate your life during the hotter temps is instinctual. just look at animals lying on their backs with their legs in the air when it gets hot out. listen to your instinct. relax, damn it. keep it simple, keep it cool...no i'm not gonna say "keep it semi-homemade" i could get sued for that couldn't i, sweetie? anyway, how about a little gazpacho? i'm a big fan and i do add a little complexity to the great debate over the appropriate texture and combination of ingredients by including corn in the recipe. i like the color and the sweetness it adds. so here it is,
GAZPACHO
4 large tomatoes blanched, peeled, deseeded, small rough chop, juice reserved
1 cuke, peeled, unless you use the "burpless", deseeded, small rough chop
4 scallions(white and green parts) or 1 small red onion, small rough chop
couple of handfulls of corn kernels
juice of one lime, or lemon if you prefer
splash of red wine vinegar
quarter cup of extra virgin olive oil
about a cup of tomato juice (use as much of the reserved as you have)
a little green pepper very finely chopped, italian, or roasted jalapeno, or a couple of shots of hot sauce
salt to your taste and add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil when you serve.
just combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and let chill abit.

HERE'S MY FAVORITE SPANISH CHEF. JOSE ANDRES

or you could just have a nice sandwich.

palate cleanser

2008-05-23T10:36:00.000-07:00

a palate cleanser is generally considered any food effective in its ability to minimize the carry-over taste from one food to the next. the following have been suggested:
-Plain crackers.
-Raw carrots.
-A glass of icy sparkling water may often be appropriate.
-A light citrus flavored aperitif can do the trick. Keep the drink minimally sweet.
-Lotus or other herb teas are sometimes served between courses to soothe the tongue and slow the pace of the meal.
-If sorbet is served, there are many remarkable delights available. Try sorbets like apple and wasabi, lime and basil, or grapefruit and mint. These are typically not sickeningly sweet or cloying.
-A plain salad made up of ingredients like celery, parsley, mint, with a mild vinaigrette will do the trick.
-Plain herbs like parsley, marjoram, mint, or watercress will perform admirably as flavor neutralizers.

writing this blog for school has been a thirteen week foodanddrink-fest without a single palate cleanser. its a wonder i have a taste bud left. i am offering all of you gluttons who feel their gustatory senses have been raped by my incessant food and drink a bit of a respite for your overwhelmed taste buds. i leave you with this summer theme song, and these words of advice..."JUST EAT IT!"

notes from a wineaholic/absinthe

2008-05-20T12:36:00.000-07:00

also know as "the green fairy" absinthe is the bohemian bad-boy of liquors. made popular during the late 19th early 20th century by nontraditional, marginalized artists, writers, musicians and actors of the unorthodox and anti-establishment set, it was portrayed as dangerously addictive due to the fact that it contained a psychoactive chemical called thujone. By 1915 absinthe had been banned in the United States and in most European countries except the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire; but was revived in the 1990s. when i was in Portugal about 7 years ago i brought back a bottle in my luggage because it was practically impossible to get here in the U.S. that was a great trip, Portugal. two weeks of an amazing amount of partying. the first week we would go out at 11pm and not leave the dance clubs 'til about 9 in the morning. head to the beach to sleep it off, recuperate and start all over again. the second week i punked out and slept on a float in the pool most of the time. i stayed with my friend Marita at her mom's house and it was just a great time. Mari's grandmother, grandfather and aunt came to visit while we were there and her grandmother made the most amazing paella ever. Mari's mom got a little twisted 'cause she thought we were a little out of control and she tried to punish us one day by forcing us to go shopping really early one morning at the Portuguese version of Costco. well, we were still giddy with liquor and what have you, probably had just gotten in when she dragged our asses out of the house, and we made complete idiots out of ourselves in the store by making fun of things and laughing like freaks, practically rolling on the floors while Mari's mom looked on and couldn't wait to get us out of there. she probably regretted that decision for sure. that was a great trip.
this song by Madison Avenue was the soundtrack for those two weeks:
"DON'T CALL ME BABY"

no rhyme or reason

2008-05-20T10:21:00.000-07:00

there once was a man named Tomas
in school he was busting his ass
he studied all day
and never would play
in hopes that good grades he'd amass.

his prof in tech class did declare
"extra points for a blog, if you dare"
Tom waxed gastronomic
all he could stomach
and with flair brought to bear quite a fare.

that technology class Tom was taking
was stressing his will to the breaking
one day while amok,
he said, "what the fuck!"
and stopped all attempts at sense making.

Tom now blogs every day from his cell
which they've padded until he gets well
he drinks to excess
but still cannot suppress
all attempts to excel and rebel.

cotton candy

2008-05-20T06:13:00.000-07:00

also known whimsically as fairy floss, cotton candy is an amazing food. it is nothing but sugar and food coloring heated in the central compartment of a large tub. it solidifies as it is spun and spit out, and wrapped around a traditional paper cone. a sweet which disappears the moment it touches your tongue and leaves nothing behind but a trace of color and a sticky hand and mouth. a tenuous treat which becomes an instant memory, it seems as if you can never get enough as you indulge. an insatiable satisfaction, a gossamer conundrum, a lie on a stick, most certainly demonic. when your mother warned you about candy from strangers she was most certainly thinking about cotton candy. is it any wonder it is popular at carnivals? the beautiful lights and dizzying colors, the hawkers of illusion and the fantastic, the ethereal music and the promises of youth. alot like life. sweet and confusing, a pleasure and a frustration. beware of people that hand you cotton candy, you could get left holding a sticky cone.

DEMON FOOD

herbs

2008-05-17T16:06:00.001-07:00

for several years now we've been keeping an herb garden on the tar beach. we grow some pretty standard things every year and then try something different each year. if it does well and we like it we add it to the annuals, if not we try something different. some of the things we grow are actually perennials which we have been able to keep going for years. for instance the chives.

THE CHIVES the plant we have this year we have had for three years now and it was just this little sprig when we started it. now it has gotten so big that last year at the end of the season we split the plant into three clumps and gave one to each of John's sisters this spring when they had started growing again. we just leave it out all winter and in the spring it comes back. in the first week of summer it grows these pretty little purple flowers that are edible and we like to toss them in salads or pasta dishes. they have a very intense oniony flavor. the thyme and the rosemary we have been able to keep from one year to the next with some success. last year our rosemary seemed to die out and we had to start with a fresh one this year though. in the spring they get these very tiny whitish flowers.

THE ROSEMARY (ALSO GETS HUGE)

THE THYME (ON THE LEFT) AND THE OREGANO (ON THE RIGHT) our thyme has come back from last year and looks like it will be doing well, right now it is in bloom with very small yellow flowers. our purple sage and oregano have also come back from last year and are doing well. i just used some of the oregano in my bolognese sauce tonite. that's one of my favorite italian sauces.

THE PURPLE SAGE

THE BASIL (doesn't look like much now but it gets HUGE) every year we also plant lots of basil with which we make tons of fresh pesto, and also use it fresh in pastas and salads. last year we tried mint for the first time and it did ok but not great. i think it was too exposed on the roof. we've tried cilantro a couple of times and cannot figure out why we have no luck with that one at all. we've done parsley a few times and this year too. our new herb this year is dill. last year we tried tomatoes and they did not really do so well. we had lots of flowers but the fruit just didn't seem to grow well and they kept splitting. maybe it was the type of tomato so this year we have two new different types to try. hopefully these will do well because there is nothing like fresh tomatoes. here's some pictures of our herbs so far.

OUR (VERY LITTLE) TOMATO PLANTS

guacamole

2008-05-16T17:27:00.000-07:00

thank goodness i live with someone or i think these days i would just neglect to eat at all. the workload is at once decreasing and multiplying exponentially. i know it is against the laws of physics; but there it is. i am approaching the end of the semester and yes there is less to do, and yet it seems like more because the days in which to get it all done are decreasing and there is less time in which to do it. i know one of the reasons John is hating school is not just because all he ever gets to see of me is my back as i am facing the computer whenever i am home; but also because i cook less and less, which i actually love to do. tonite, as he is in the kitchen making home-made stock and preparing salmon for dinner he "whipped up" some homemade guacamole. nothin' says lovin' like a mash of avocados, with onions, and tomatoes. yes folks it is as easy as that and yet as difficult to do well. you cannot just pulverize the avocados, there must be lumps, the onions and tomatoes must not be finely minced but roughly chopped. the spices are few and simple, salt, pepper, some lemon or lime juice, and some fresh cilantro if you have it. nothing more and nothing less, and yet it turns into heaven in a molcajete (which is one of those funky mortar and pestles you sometimes see quac served in). and of course, it always reminds me of those beautiful days in puerto vallarta, watching the sunset, eating guacamole with chips and drinking excessively. one of my favorite memories of PV is being there with Shirley (who is now persona non grata) on the 12th floor above the Bay of Banderas drinking margaritas and playing canasta until we were both too drunk to know if we were cheating or not. Shirl was a fun friend who fell out of favor for reasons too sordid to name here and who's christmas card last year spent a month taped to the underside of my toilet bowl lid. what!? you never heard of santeria?! the lesson is "don't fuck with a cuban!" anyway, oh yes, guacamole. another thing we have to thank the mexicans for.

notes from a wineaholic/grappa

2008-05-15T09:53:00.000-07:00

has anyone noticed that as i get closer to the end of this semester, there are more postings by the wineaholic? coincidence? i think not. no alcohol is safe in my apartment at this point, and i can hear clinking of bottles from the liquor cabinet as they all shiver inside in anticipation of who's going to be the next "dead soldier". that's a curious phrase which apparently has a vague, although very old origin. the most common explanation i have heard comes from World War One and is a bit of black humor. the reference to an empty bottle of liquor as a dead soldier being to the fact that the "spirits" have left the bottle. anyway, today we are talking about grappa. it is historically a specialty of northern italy, and it is the clear brandy that results when the pomace of grapes is fermented and distilled. the pomace is actually the pulpy mash of stems, seeds, and skins left over from winemaking, (another reason i love the italians-nothing goes to waste) and depending on the quality of the raw materials and the method of distillation, the final product can taste like a bomb just went off in your mouth or it can be smooth and winey. nevertheless, it will always be powerful. it is one of those liquors which inspires stories, much like tequila. personally i love grappa. especially because when a bottle of grappa comes out you know your hosts don't want you to leave anytime soon, if at all. my last day of classes this semester is in 6 days (yes i am counting it down), and the celebration on that nite, and the ensuing days (yes i like to celebrate hard), may involve some grappa, and some public nudity, and maybe sparklers. definitely grappa inspired. don't try to stop me, just offer me another drink. cheers.

notes from a wineaholic/brunello di montalcino

2008-05-12T14:41:00.000-07:00

Brunello, "the little brown one", from montalcino, is a tuscan dialect name for sangiovese grown in montalcino, south of both Chianti and Siena. In this dryer, hotter, and more Mediterrean climate of southern Tuscany, the limestone and sand soil produce a "muscular" grape capable of making a rich, dark, concentrated red. "Tongue-curling tannins" and "firm acidity" allow these wines to age and this past weekend at John's dad's 80th birthday dinner i was lucky enough to have one from 1999, the Casanova di Neri/Cerretalto and one from 1997, the Poggio Antico, thanks to the generosity of my my brother-in-law Wayne. according to the website, winemerchant.com, which i have linked over there on the side, "As an elite wine, Brunello deserves special attention while aging and when poured. Like all great aged wines, it is often a bit hard and unsociable in its youth. However, Brunello becomes refined and harmonious with time, taking on a velvety texture."
"robust", "muscular", "tongue-curling", "hard", the hell with drinking it, i read these descriptions from that site and i wanted to fuck this wine. personally, the 1997 was better, wwwaaaaayyyy better actually, it is amazing what those two little years can do. it is also amazing that they can tell that only about 18,000 bottles of this wine were produced and they were made from the grapes on the southern slope of such and such a vineyard and were picked on such and such a date. i'm impressed by these things, too bad i can't afford to drink these wines on a regular basis. i thought it was funny that John kept going into Wayne's wine fridge and pulling out one bottle after the other. what did we know?, we're neophyte oenophiles.
well if you get the chance i would definitely go for the Poggio Antico '97. maybe on account at a business dinner or something.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR. C!!! %^*

SIRLOINS FRESH OFF THE BBQ

THE HUNGRY CROWD AT THE CHEESE PLATTER

THE '99 Casanova di Neri

THE '97 Poggio Antico...totally fuckable!

things that make you go hmmm....

2008-05-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

my friend Florence sent me all the information below. i am offering it here for your consideration. i am remimded that Freud is quoted as having said, "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar".

A sliced carrot looks like the human eye .The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye... and YES, science now shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.

A Tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has four chambers.
All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nut just like the neo-cortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys.

Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Eggplant, Avocados and Pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female - they look just like these organs. Today's research shows that when a woman eats 1 avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? .... It takes exactly 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the motility of male sperm and increase the numbers of sperm as well as help overcome male sterility.

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries.

Grapefruits, Oranges, and most Citrus fruits look just like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts.

Onions look like body cells. Today's research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes.

faves in the hood - diner

2008-05-09T16:39:00.000-07:00

diners are great. breakfast, lunch or dinner, anytime of the day or nite. i like to visit local diners whenever i travel because i feel like you can really get a sense of the people who live there. my favorite neighborhood diner is Gracie's Diner on the corner of first avenue and 86th street. you can tell that it has been there for a gazillion years and that all the little old people of the nabe probably lived there when it first opened up, and they all still go there and have the same exact things they've been having forever. the waiters all know them, and they don't even have to ask for what they want because they know already. when i was in Ohio last week i went to a Perkins, which is apparently a chain but probably as close to a diner as you will get in London, Ohio. anyway, this old woman came in and as she was sliding into the bench a waiter walked by and said, "Water with lemon Miss Marie?", and you know that the waiter has been seeing her come in for years and she feels comfortable there and has probably been having the same exact dishes forever too. that's why i love the Gracie Diner. you get that same feeling there. plus they make great meatloaf with mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes. when i lived in Yonkers my favorite diner was the Broadway Diner. there was a waitress there who was as tall as Julia Childe and she had this blazing red hair in this big sort of beehive do. she would call you "honey" and "sweetie" and would say things like "what can mamma get her boy tonite?" i loved her! there's a certain character about a diner that draws characters too. they're a piece of Americana that will hopefully never fade away.

GRACIE'S DINER

sofrito

2008-05-08T18:31:00.000-07:00

its a very basic component of spanish cooking, and combines onions, garlic, tomatoes and peppers cooked in an olive oil to create a base used for cooking many other things. the sofrito can be cooked just before you add all the other main ingredients, or it can also be made in a large batch ahead of time and then refrigerated, or frozen, to be used as the base in the future thus saving time. one of John's co-workers, Santa, is Boricua and when she recently visited her mom in PR she brought back for John some of her mom's homemade sofrito! now THAT, is totally cool!!!! we had it tonite on some barbecued skirt steak and it was beyond delish. homemade, authentic, Boricua sofrito. THAT, is love. i've included a website over there on the side for any of you that would like to try making your own sofrito, and if you cook i think you should.

faves in the hood - pizza

2008-05-08T12:59:00.000-07:00

deep dish, thin crust, cheesy or with the works. even the frozen stuff you get from stouffers. there's nothing like a fresh, hot pie though, and there are a couple of places in my nabe where i have tried a slice or two but i prefer Luigi's on the corner of 88th street and first avenue. they make alot of different types of pizzas and some very good italian dishes too. they have really good calzones, meat rolls and garlic knots. Luigi's is also just a couple of blocks away from my apartment, and right on the way to and from the subway so that makes it very accessible for when you need a quick slice. the price of their slices has just gone up thanks to the inflation; but definitely still worth it. i remember when i was in grade school and living in yonkers and my friends Kenny and Henry and i would sneak to our favorite pizza place downtown to buy slices, which were then 25 cents each. no kidding! i'm really showing my age; but its the truth! the first pizza i ever had was in Cuba when i was about 5 years old. it was a huge thing back then, and there was a place near where i lived with my family in Havana that made deep dish shrimp pizzas! those were my favorite then and i can still taste the sauce and the thick, chewy dough and those delicious shrimp all over it. i love pizza, and the most i've ever eaten is actually an entire pie by myself. well, if you see yourself on the upper east side looking for a slice you can take it from me, Luigi's is the place.

LUIGI'S

table etiquette

2008-05-06T20:32:00.000-07:00

you've heard it all too, i'm sure. "sit up straight, keep you elbows off the table, don't use your thumb to push your food onto your fork, make sure the napkin is on your lap, don't slurp your soup", blah, blah, blah. the one i always used to get from my mother had to do with using my spoon to eat with. one of my favorite dishes is picadillo, which is a ground meat dish, and one of my favorite combinations with this is to have it with white rice and black beans. i put everything into a bowl, mix it all together and eat it with a spoon. my mother always, and still does, rolls her eyes at me when she sees me doing this. trust me, you would love it. i love making picadillo, and actually think i make it better than anyone. but i wouldn't say this to my grandmother. anyway, here's the recipe for my picadillo, just make sure you don't share it with anybody else.

about 4 slices of bacon, chopped,
about 1 and 1 half pounds of ground beef, or beef/veal/pork mix
1 small onion, chopped
half of one red or green bell pepper chopped,
a few garlic cloves chopped,
a teaspoon of ground cumin
a teaspoon of ground coriander or fresh cilantro,
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric,
1 small can of tomato sauce,
about a dozen green olives sliced in half,
a handfull of raisins,
salt and pepper to taste.

cook the bacon and reserve,
use the bacon fat to cook the onions and pepper,
add the meat and cook completely while breaking down,
add the garlic, cumin, coriander or cilantro and turmeric,
add the tomato sauce and cook thoroughly,
add the olives, raisins, and cooked bacon, and salt and pepper.

serve the picadillo with white rice and black beans.

notes from a wineaholic/midnight margaritas

2008-05-05T19:19:00.000-07:00

about 10 years ago or so, in a fit of adulation after reading "practical magic" by Alice Hoffman, i adopted the practice of having margaritas at midnight. this was back when i was doing alot of drinking (wink-wink), and it didn't happen every midnight. just the ones i was awake for and in the company of those willing to imbibe. did i forget to mention that i'm a night owl and most of my friends don't need to have their arms twisted to force a cocktail down their throats, thus all the drinking. i remember my brother Mike, who had been living in florida, had come back to new york and had no place to stay and so was living with me. my apartment looked like a tent city but we were having a good time. midnight margaritas and scrabble. sometimes it was just the margaritas. i like to use a frozen mix (yes i prefer my margaritas frozen) made by Bacardi. you fill the blender with lots of ice, add the full container of the margarita mix, half (more or less, wink-wink) of the container filled with tequila, and a few splashes of cointreau, or the orange flavored liquor of your choice. give the blender a good whir, garnish with a lime and there you are, delish. today being cinco de mayo i was reminded of all those midnight margaritas and the fun i've had sharing my tradition with my friends. it isn't midnight yet, but i figured if i waited 'til midnight then it wouldn't be cinco the mayo anymore and besides i'm not so strict with my rules for drinking. are there rules for drinking? there should definitely be some for tequila. i have alot of respect for the nectar of the agave. my worst hangover story involves tequila shots with beer chasers. i think most people have a "tequila story" too. well, anyway. happy cinco de mayo everyone.

AGAVE

TEQUILA

VIVA MEXICO!

feed the world

2008-05-03T17:11:00.000-07:00

we use food to celebrate our successes, and to ameliorate our sorrows. in 1984, a year made infamous by George Orwell, Band Aid made a song written by Bob Geldof famous and raised a large amount of money to feed the starving. truly, some people may not know where their next meal may come from, or even if there will be a next meal. that we look to feed the hungry of the world shows our sense of global community. sharing food during times of hardship reflects our sense of fellowship, of our need to nurture. it is common practice during times of mourning for the passing of loved ones for friends and neighbors to offer food to the grieving. mostly because we know they will not be thinking of, or even caring about, how to feed themselves; but also because it allows us to sustain those we care about in a moment of crisis, when words may soothe but food and drink will fortify and somehow help to bear the painful and difficult. the act of cooking for someone, to nourish and nurture strikes at the core of our need to provide for those we love. during my grandmother's wake and funeral many friends provided such succor, and it supplied far more than just the act of filling our stomachs. it was the word unspoken, the metaphoric shoulder to lean on, the crutch. in a time of need it means so much. don't wait for that time, for the death, for when it might be too late to say what's in your heart. sustain your loved ones. provide for your family and friends. be the pillar, the stanchion, the strength and foundation of everything that they will be. feed the world, start at home.

maria j garnica (june 8, 1912 - april 27, 2008)

2008-05-02T14:44:00.000-07:00

this week i was present at the ultimate food and drink, the catholic rite of communion. a hapless priest who didn't know my grandmother at all tried to deliver an appropriate homily during her funeral mass which included the sharing of the body and blood of christ the savior, and her assumption to the everlasting flock. while the mass is a celebration of our promise of eternal life, i contemplated my personal transition and transformation; what am i doing in the world of form? how well am i taking care of my body, my resources, my planet? what is the gap between what i say and what i do? what challenges me to be completely honest and accountable? my grandmother was at her crossroads and so was i. she lived a life full of change. she moved far from her birthplace in navarra, spain to ciego de avila, cuba; then lived and died in ohio, usa. along the way she married once for 64 years; had 2 children, 6 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren. she was a strong woman of principles and simple joys. i wonder how she would have answered some of these questions? or if she would have considered them at all. as the societies we live in become more technologically advanced, we have more opportunities to speculate about our lives beyond the mundane. i sat in that pew and knew that in 20 years time i didn't want to be more disappointed by the things i didn't do than by the things i did. in the words of mark twain, i knew i had to "throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in my sails. explore, dream and discover".

MY GRANDMA AND GRANDPA GARNICA
LOVE YOU BOTH, SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS

faves in the hood - liquor store

2008-04-27T17:55:00.000-07:00

Yorkshire liquors on first avenue and 85th street is a great liquor store. they have variety, regular specials as well as normally great prices, and wine tastings. plus you can find some really different things there like cachaca, and absinto. they also deliver and give you discounts if you order by the case. we've gotten to know the people that work there pretty well, research of course. they have a website which you can see i've included over there on the side; but it isn't very good. it is worth the visit if you're in the neighborhood. hmmm, i think its time to give them a call and have something delivered. i need to do a little more research. cheers!

YORKSHIRE WINES AND SPIRITS

faves in the hood - indian

2008-04-26T17:31:00.000-07:00

there are actually quite a few indian restaurants in my neighborhood which i have gone to; but i think my favourite is Mumtaz on third avenue between 84th and 85th streets. there used to be a Kripy Kreme right next door, it was the absolute perfect combination. anyway, Mumtaz is kinda like most indian restaurants, lots of red tapestries on the walls and ceilings, small metal lanterns and the music. there's something about it that always makes me want to start swaying in my seat. we used to go to another place called Simla with Cath and O when they lived in the city. they knew us there pretty well and they would always give us those chese curd balls that have that rosewater syrup for free at dessert; but they tasted kinda flowery. we never wanted to hurt their feelings by not eating them so we tried to get odalys to eat them all. i think we started telling them that we were lactose intollerant or something to get them to stop. there's a Tamarind close by that's pretty good, and Dakshin is just a couple of blocks away. the Great India restaurant, and India grill both closed some time back. that was a shame 'cause India grill had an all you can eat lunch on the weekends. anyway, Mumtaz is now the indian of choice for me. i like pretty much anything on the menu but i love the mullighatawany soup, the samosas, the chicken tikka masala, the chana saag, the aloo palak...oh and those big fluffy poori and the garlic nan, and the paratha. i guess i could just go on and on. whenever we go to any of them though i always think of Cath and O and how i used to start swaying in my seat to the music and say that i was going to get up, stuff some chutney in my navel and start dancing. Mumtaz doesn't have a website but they've gotten some good write-ups on-line, which i've linked over there on the side, and here's a picture i took. i know it looks dumpy on the outside but really, if you're a fan of indian food and you see yourself in this neighborhood it is worth a try.

MUMTAZ

abuela's cooking

2008-04-25T09:12:00.000-07:00

my grandmother is a great cook. she just turned 92 and is usually the cook when there's a dinner at my mom's. yesterday she made some of my favourites, a chickpea aka garbanzo soup, and rice with pork. she used pork ribs for the dish and it was sooooo good! of course, what cuban meal would be complete without homemade flan? it was sweet, and creamy and just the way i like it. as i've mentioned before, after we came to the united states we've always lived in the extended family way. my mother's parents always lived with us. this was until my mom married Luis, and i finally moved out of the house, and everyone had their own living spaces. my mom and grandparents were only living a block away from each other (the umbilical cord could only stretch so far), and then after my grandfather died my grandmother downsized her apartment and wound up moving to the same building, same floor, two doors down from my mom (it was like the umbilical cord just catapulted her back). they were spending so much time together that recently they decided to all move in together into a much larger apartment with more conveniences. they bought a great two bedroom, two bath in an elevator building so they don't have to deal with stairs, and have a dishwasher, and washer and dryer in the apartment.

THE RICE WITH PORK

THE CHICKPEA SOUP

THE FLAN

watch this space...part two

2008-04-24T20:30:00.000-07:00

the second of the taste testings was held this past weekend, hosted by my BFFF Marita. this time the pastas were paired with meat sauces. pizzaoile, ragu and goulash were the sauces and rigatoni was the pasta of choice for all. the pizzaiole sauce had chicken and fresh oregano (very delish), the ragu was a bolognese with a little difference in that the carrots were cut into small chunks rather than grated for a traditional bolognese, and the goulash had beef in small bite size pieces with a slightly sweet red sauce. it was all delish but i'm a big fan of bolognese so the ragu was my favourite. rigatoni was a great choice for these dishes because it is a large tube which catches alot of sauce inside. Nelson and Francesco are still working on many things but they are doing alot to perfect the menu. it was a perfect spring evening so the tasting was done outside on the deck, which was better to accommodate the very large crowd this time (word is getting around and the restauranteurs-to-be are now sought after for what is sure to be the next craze...taste testing parties!, who knew?)

THE GOULASH

NELSON AND FRANCESCO

THE MOTLEY TASTING CREW

EVALUATING THE FOOD

YOURS TRULY AND THE HOSTESS WITH THE MOSTEST

525,600 minutes

2008-04-20T20:43:00.000-07:00

that's how some people would measure a year in a life. in RENT the song "Seasons of Love" counts the different ways in which a year can be measured and asks the question "how about love?". personally, i feel like i've been measuring the past year (or at least the last 8 months of it) in school assignments. very sad. in the past 3 months its been measured in blog posts, which has been ok because i have been enjoying it and the posts have given me cause to reminisce, and to discover some things about myself. i saw the play RENT about 12 years ago when it first opened on broadway, and tonite again, before its scheduled closing sometime in the next few months. it really is a great show, a testament to the indomitable spirit of survival, and creativity, and revolution, and yes, love. there's very little about food and drink in this play, except when the characters are complaining that they haven't eaten much that day, or that week, or are trying to scrounge some food from somewhere. there's alot about drugs though. and personally if i can't have food or drinks then drugs will do. of course that comes from someone who can get food, and isn't homeless. its easy enough for me to talk the talk. this play rips my heart out; but i like it because it doesn't sugar coat the reality. the characters make their own opportunities. they shape their own lives because they know that no-one else will and if they do its only for their own purposes. they don't rely on hope. it isn't faith that keeps them going, its their camaraderie and will to survive and community. homelessness and hunger are real problems; and you can't eat hope, and you can't live in the house of faith, you can only spend the night on the steps. how do you measure YOUR life? Peace.

the papal visit

2008-04-18T16:30:00.001-07:00

today the pope is visiting my neighborhood, yorkville, on manhattan's upper east side. certain restaurants have been making meals with some of the pope's (allegedly) favorite foods to honor him, and probably to get him to stop by for a nosh. i mean, he must get hungry doing all that running around and who wouldn't like a bit of wurst with some pumpernickel and a frosty one? the pope is in the hood because it has german roots, and there are definitely still signs of it. like the heidelberg restaurant on 2nd ave. between 86th and 85th streets, where men in leiderhosen and buxom women in push up bras with their ta-tas hanging out serve you; and schaller and weber, the german deli on the same block. i like german food. when i last visited my family in columbus, ohio, we went to an area called german town. it is a very old, historic neighborhood with beautiful, little homes (all worth a fortune now) and some great german food. i remember i had this huge plate of a variety of wurst and sausage with sauerkraut and potatoes and good hearty bread, all washed down with lots of cold german beer. interestingly, in spanish the word for pope is "el papa", and all you have to do is change the article from masculine to feminine "la papa" and it means potato, which is one of my favorite veggies. boiled, baked, fried, scalloped, creamed, in soup, mashed, OMG!!! spaniards love potatoes, and that's another way i feel my roots. anyway, the pope hopefully got something tasty while in NYC. word has it that he was looking forward to some strawberry shortcake. in any case, no matter what your religious affiliation, i hope you will enjoy some wurst, or some potatoes made just the way you like 'em; and say a prayer for peace.

THE POPE

NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH

AND THE BEST WURST

some like it hot

2008-04-15T12:10:00.000-07:00

i love spicy foods. not the flame-thrower kind of stuff that wipes out your tastebuds upon contact so that you can't taste anything afterwards; but i don't mind shedding a tear for something good. growing up i was not exposed to this type of food, but i have developed a taste for it. most of the time its peppers which create the heat in a dish, and their intensity is measured in something called Scoville units. capsaicin is the compound in peppers which give it its heat and it is measured in Scoville units, after Wilbur Scoville who developed the method of measurement in 1912. originally the method involved human tasters, how would you like having that job? nowadays it is done through High Performance Liquid Chromotography which measures the level of capsaicinoids in the pepper. i've had food made with habaneros and scottish bonnets, and i've tried the indian vindaloo sauce (not for the feint hearted). i love poblanos, cayenne, jalpenos, wasabi (not a pepper but made from horseradish). well you get the point. the koreans are widely known for indulging in some of the spicier cuisines out there. one of my sisters-in-law, Myung, is korean. one day when John and i were making dinner at John's dad's house Myung and Tommy (her husband) came over and when Myung tried the roasted head of garlic her face lit up. now that's mild comparatively speaking; but there are some people who don't do garlic, even in its milder roasted form. Myung introduced me to a korean spa in palisade park which is just great. i stand out like a sore thumb when i go; but its easy to overcome the cultural divide, especially when everyone is walking around naked. i would call nudity the great equalizer; but, well, ok, never mind, i just wont go there. anyway, as i say this place in pal park is called King Sauna. i highly recommend it. there are separate spa floors for the men and women, 'cause everyones naked, and then there are communal floors where there are massages, saunas, big couches and loungers for sleeping or watching the tube or reading. there is also another floor with a restaurant and more rooms. my favorite is the body scrub. you lie naked on this wet table and you get scrubbed head to toe from every side, and i mean everywhere. then they wash you and splash buckets of hot water on you, and they wash your hair and stretch you and massage you. its fantastic. check out the link over there under King Sauna and then check out the place.

THE SCOVILLE HEAT CHART FOR PEPPERS (in scoville units)

Habanero/scotch bonnets 200,000-300,000
Red Amazon 75,000
Pequin 75,000
Chiltecepin 70,000-75,000
Tabasco 30,000-50,000
Cayenne 35,000
Arbol 25,000
Japone 25,000
Smoked Jalepeno (Chipotle) 10,000
Serrano 7,000-25,000
Puya 5,000
Guajillo 5,000
Jalepeno 3,500-4,500
Poblano 2,500-3,000
Pasilla 2,500
TAM Mild Jalepeno-1 1,000-1,500
Anaheim 1,000-1,400
New Mexican 1,000
Ancho 1,000
Bell & Pimento 0

0-5,000: Mild
5,000-20,000: Medium
20,000-70,000: Hot
70,000-300,000: Extremely Hot

eat your heart out

2008-04-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

it's an organ meat i don't have much familiarity with, although i have eaten chicken hearts and they are ok. when i was growing up in cuba my grandmother herrera had chickens in her backyard and sometimes she would just go out there, corner one, grab it by the neck and give a quick yank. the chicken would spend some time flopping around the yard before it just died from a broken neck and then began the plucking and cooking. i can still bring up the smell of the burning feathers. of course every single part of the chicken was eaten, including the heart, and sometimes there would be an egg inside waiting to be laid. nothing is as good as food that fresh. anyway, something made me think of the expression and i found that it is regarded as a re-phrasing of "this will eat your heart out" but generally implies that that you will be missing something essential, from the core. can you eat your own heart out? i guess if you are spitefull enough you could. which brings you to that other expression "cutting off your own nose to spite your face". but would you eat it? i can understand the vindictiveness behind it though. there's alot of guilt and regret being implied here, alot of baggage. some serious "couch time" anyway, the expression is also thought to be an adaptation of a 16th century phrase "eat one's own heart" meaning to suffer from silent grief; and is believed to have biblical roots in the phrase "to eat one's own flesh", used to describe an indolent, or lazy, person. jesus, how lazy could you fucking be you can't get to the fridge so you'd eat your own...what? in any respect, its an interesting phrase. here are some "heartfelt" songs to go with your offal.

JIMMY SOMMERVILLE

JANIS JOPLIN

BLONDIE

TONI BRAXTON

nutrition

2008-04-12T11:13:00.001-07:00

my friend Melissa King is a nutrition counselor and life coach with a real lust for life. i met her because she does some work at a club in manhattan where i rent space for massage, and got to know her because she interviewed me for the club newsletter, which she writes. when you visit her site listed there as "my heart dances" you can see all the things she offers, including group and personal cooking classes, and her page of recommended instructors/doctors/other professionals (where i am also listed).
obesity has become a terrible problem for americans, young and old, leading to higher mortality rates, secondary diseases such as diabetes and many musculo-skeletal problems, and an overall diminishing in quality of life. i realize that the adjustments necessary to begin leading a healthier and more nutritionally sound lifestyle may seem very daunting for many; but they do not have to be. approached in the proper way these things can be manageable and therefore more easily incorporated into our lives so that they can become lifelong changes. changes which you will enjoy, introducing you to foods you may never have enjoyed before and to daily routines which can be lived with and which will get you positive results not just now and in the next few months; but for always.
as an exercise physiologist i can assure you that there is alot to the saying "you are what you eat", and that improper nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle are your worst enemies.
please take a moment to think about this, visit Melissa's website, and others like hers to familiarize yourself with the range of possibilities. there is a right one for everyone.
here's to your fully-lived, healthy life!

cannibalism

2008-04-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

i know, first you thought, "EWWW!"; but then you decided to read the post anyway right? its one of those "repulsively compelling" things that most of us just can't turn away from. like rubbernecking at a car accident on the road. (which is actually one of my pet peeves...what the hell are these people looking for? body parts?) anyway, the french culinary penchant for eating the flesh of humans (it isn't really french i just...well, you know.) on the menu today are movies with that as either a major theme or a subplot thet have made it to the top ten. shall i tell you my "specials":

SILENCE OF THE LAMBS-really the only one that includes a character who thinks about the pairing of wine with his obsession,

EATING RAOUL-opportunistic and entrepreneurial,

THE COOK, THE THIEF, HIS WIFE AND HER LOVER-cannibalism as revenge, my favorite,

ALIVE-as a last resort, everyone asked themselves "could i do it? to survive?" could you? and if so what part would you eat first?

THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW-again, revenge,

SWEENEY TODD-another one as opportunistic and entrepreneurial,

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD-gratuitous munching of humans by zombies.

except for the odd national geographic special of cannibals newly discovered and living a solitary existence in the remote jungles of some country, the theme of cannibalism is usually meant to disgust us. and yet we display it with, shall i say it?, gusto! perverted culinary thrill-seekers aren't we? whatever your preference, just remember that there are others out there eating god-only-knows what, and washing it down with a nice chianti.

you gotta have a gimmick

2008-04-11T19:46:00.000-07:00

last nite i went to see gypsy on broadway, and it was awesome. i've seen it before once with bernadette peters and once with tyne dayley; but with patty lupone it was wonderful. the entire cast was fantastic. there are so many great lines; but when rose says, "i was born too soon and started too late" it just makes you think of everything you've ever wanted. food and drink are alot like that. you come around at just the right time and you make the kind of mark in history that goes down in the record books. tapas, meatloaf, roasted garlic, bearnaise sauce, dates wrapped in bacon, or as rose always fancied, chow mein...anyway, you get the idea. it might just be a comfort food or just something that's unusual or new... a gimmick. just that right twist of flavors. everything that catches on has that, has IT! at least to one other website, this one has it. I'VE BEEN LINKED!!! please visit uramember.com its existentialism served in big heaping spoonfuls, blue plate specials to mull over, and over, and over; and desserts, just and otherwise: but only you can tell. wash it down with your poison of choice. and your own life? well, do something with it, be unique, find your own gimmick, serve it up and remember that the only one that has to enjoy it is you. make it a heaping helping. as auntie mame said, "life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving!" another broadway show, i know; but i am, after all, a card carrying member of the 10%. a cliche? maybe. you don't approve? fuck yourself! this is my dish, and i'm gonna eat it all up with gusto!
YOU GOTTA HAVE A GIMMICK

bibliophagia

2008-04-08T15:38:00.000-07:00

Francis Bacon was quoted as having said “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.” In the Bibliolexicon of A Passion for Books, a Bibliophage is described as “One who eats or devours books”, figuratively speaking. i don't believe anyone was thinking of enjoying books in quite exactly these ways when they planned the International Edible Book Festival which happens around the world on or about April 1st where participants create edible books that are exhibited, documented and then consumed. (April fools day, a coincidence? i think not) April 1st is the birthday of French gastronome Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826), famous for his book Physiologie du goût, a witty meditation on food (witty from the country which worships jerry lewis as a genius). April fools' day is also the perfect day to eat your words and play with them as the "books" are consumed on the day of the event. all very interesting to say the least; but when i think of eating books i am always reminded by a freakishly intense scene in a perfectly psychotic 1989 movie called, "the cook, the thief, his wife and her lover" here's the synopsis "The wife of a barbaric crime boss engages in a secretive romance with a gentle bookseller between meals at her husband's restaurant. Food, colour coding, sex, murder, torture and cannibalism are the exotic fare in this beautifully filmed but brutally uncompromising modern fable". totally awesome right? and here's the scene...after his affair with the wife is discovered, the lover (who is a librarian) is killed by having a book on the french revolution shoved down his throat one page at a time (yet another instance of a gastronomic french faux pas). the scene involving cannibalism is equally fantastic; but i'll leave that for you to see yourself. i've always considered myself a devourer of books, although you wouldn't know it now that i'm back in school, and to be a librarian too. (the studying this semester is just taking so much of my time that i haven't read a single word that has not been text). oh well, that's enough of that riff. but i am looking forward to the semester's end and some time to catch up with reading and movies like this.
HERE'S THE TRAILER

notes from a wineaholic/cava

2008-04-06T14:14:00.000-07:00

ok, so much for the piss and vinegar (don't you love that expression?) now the good stuff. Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia, the Penedes is the most important wine making region there, and the area where Cava, the spanish sparkling wine, is principally made. to be called Cava, a Spanish sparkling wine must be made in the champenoise method, which is that the secondary fermentation which creates the bubbles takes place in the individual bottle. and like champagne, Cavas can range from brut to sweet. Cava, however, is not sparkling wine trying to be champagne (and who likes pretentious wine anyway, except maybe the french) there are numerous things they do not have in common, including the fact that all the grape varieties used in Cava are white, unlike most champagne, which is a marriage of red and white grapes. the length of aging, the number of still wines used in the making of each, and finally, the fact that climatically, the Penedes and Champagne have almost nothing in common. also, while the drinking of champagne is thought to be a luxury, accompanied by the comparable indulgence of caviar, Cava is comfort wine. not being such a "separatist" drink it even seems more politically correct (for those of you that care). much like its italian cousin, prosecco, it is the perfect way to start a summer evening, accompanied by a humble appetizer like pan con tomate, which is a Catalonian specialty of thick slices of warm grilled country bread, rubbed on both sides with the cut side of a juicy ripe tomato and then drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. so enjoy your Cavas; little fuss, it wont break the bank and you don't have to wait for some fish to ovulate to have a nosh with your wine.
CAVA BY THE GLASS

MAKING CAVA

THE PENEDES REGION

asparagus

2008-04-05T20:04:00.000-07:00

i figure as long as i'm in THAT frame of mind i would touch on a subject that i've noticed gets some discussion and that is, why does your pee smell funny after you eat asparagus? first of all i don't mean funny "ha-ha" i mean funny "strange" and apparently it doesn't happen to everyone. i decided to do a little fact checking and found out that about half the population develops an unusual odor in their urine after eating asparagus and it has something to do with asparagus having these sulfur containing amino acids that break down during digestion imparting the "unique" smell to the urine as it is excreted. according to a dietitian, Barbara Hodges, at Boston University's nutrition clinic, it is the same sulfur group of compounds that makes skunks smell the way they do. lovely right? there is apparently another group of thought, according to Dr. David Stollar, chairman of biochemistry at Tufts University Medical School, that believes everyone digests asparagus the same way, but only about half of us have a gene that enables us to smell the specific compounds formed in the digestion of asparagus. some dispute eh? it seems to me that the easiest way to work out the answer would just be to get a couple of thousand people together (that's probably a large enough study group for this), eat some asparagus and then have those people pee into cups and they all have to smell each one of the urine samples. if some of the people can smell the sulfur in a sample and some can't then that obviously means that the odor causing compounds are actually there but some of the people just cannot sense them and then in fact it just has to do with the fact that there are those of us (yes, i am one of those that can definitely smell the sulfur) that CAN smell the presence of the "unique" odor and some people cannot as opposed to the idea that some people will process the asparagus differently than others. on the other hand if all the people that smell the urine can sense the odor and those that cannot agree whether it is there or not then it obviously has nothing to do with some people being able to smell it or not and it just means that some people process the compounds differently than others. its definitely alot to go through for this, and not very pleasant either; but perhaps we could get some of those people that like to eat shit, or maybe some of their friends that like to smell piss, and get them all to do it and get their jollies at the same time! not to mention settling a scientific debate. asparagus also comes in two colors, the green most people are used to and a white variety, somewhat milder in flavor but just as smelly. in any case, asparagus is apparently one of the most nutritionally well-balanced vegetables, plus it is also really delish. so eat your fill, join the debate and do your own test.

eat shit and die

2008-04-04T20:14:00.000-07:00

okay, it seems pretty obvious that if you ate shit, you probably would die, or in the least become really sick. so it is definitely a really great thing to say to someone if you, well, just want them to drop dead and also do something disgusting in the process. (my politically correct apologies to all of you out there who do regularly like to eat shit, but i'm also not going to get into the whole scat thing) the closest i get to eating shit is eating shrimp in chinese food that hasn't been cleaned really well (you've all seen it, i know) as this is a blog about food and drink i feel perfectly justified in posting about this. i'm just in that mood. someone is just yanking my chain, i'm a loaded gun, my nerves are being plucked. (welcome to my cliche festival) and all i want to say is "eat shit and die, goddam you, motherfucking bitch" i feel better already, but not quite over it, so here goes. i don't really get it but the definition of "shit eating grin" is enough to aggravate anyone and i'm in that mood so here it is..."a look of extreme satisfaction on someone's face that is annoying to other people who are less happy". isn't that great?! don't you just wanna have that look and face some one particular person sometimes?! i do!!! right the fuck now!!! here's some more. one of my favorite characters on south park (and i have several) is mr. hanky the christmas poo. it has nothing to do with shit per se; and nobody ever eats mr. hanky (at least not in any episode i've ever seen); but its just the fact that it is a piece of shit that somehow, to the crazed minds of the south park creators, has come to represent something about christmas. well, i'm all for pretty much anything that goes against the status quo and this goes just about as far as you can. ok, so much for toilet humor. please watch this and feel better. poo is all of us.

Pescatore

2008-04-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

pescatore means fisherman in italian, and this restaurant in the turtle bay area of manhattan's east side is a seafood delight. it has gotten some great zagat ratings, the food is delish, the portions are large and the price won't bust your wallet, so what more could you ask for? alfresco dining you say? in the summer they offer sidewalk seating and on a terazzo which overlooks the street. a very unique feature of the restaurant is that it has two entrances leading to two separate dining rooms and bars all connected by a kitchen. there is one side which is original and predates the other, and many customers who have been patrons for years don't even realize there is another section. John and i were recently there for dinner and were treated to a great evening by Charles the general manager, gracious and friendly, like all the staff we met. we shared the mussells in white wine and garlic with scallions and the crab cakes with fresh dill and cream sauce for appetizers. john had one of the daily specials, the tilapia nicoise with artichokes and sun dried tomatoes and i had the grilled monkfish with a caramel soy sauce over basil mashed potatoes. i love monkfish and grilling is a great way to enjoy this meaty white flesh fish. the restaurant has a reputation for its cheesecake which we did try and it was amazing. the combination of mascarpone cheese with ricotta and cream cheese makes it feel so silky its like eating cream cheese flavored cotton candy. everything was great. i'm linking the restaurant website over there on the side for you to check out; but just go. it's comfortable, reasonably priced, and delish.

watch this space...

2008-03-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

my friend Nelson has decided to take his work into a very different direction and is considering going into the food industry. last night he had a group of his friends and family over to his place for a taste testing, which is the first in a series he and his chef partner, Francisco, will be conducting to survey public opinion of some dishes they are considering. when Nelson was first speculating about this Francisco, who is from italy, suggested a sort of "fast-food pasta" style of place which he mentioned are popular where he is from and which they both agreed might be a niche which they could market here. Francisco is a pretty amazing guy who worked in commodities in italy and also when he first came to the united states; but then decided to satisfy his personal drive to be an artist and has been making his living partly from art and partly from house painting for a while now. somewhere along the way he also became a really good cook. anyway last nite it was the vegetarian pasta dishes which were featured and we sampled and critiqued five; a penne with asparagus, ham and calamata olives; a rigatoni with zucchini and a rigatoni with roasted peppers; a thin spaghetti with a puttanesca sauce and a spaghetti with gorgonzola and walnuts. Nelson and Francisco are still working out many of the basics but decided to start on the menu a little at a time. i told him i would be more than happy to lend my palate to his cause, and i will be following their progress and documenting it via this blog so watch this space for new developments and wish them alot of luck.

SOME OF THE TASTE TESTERS, JOHN AND MARITA

THE PENNE WITH ASPARAGUS, HAM AND CALAMATA OLIVES

THE RIGATONI WITH ROASTED PEPPERS

THE TEST KITCHEN

the eyes of the beholder

2008-03-29T08:43:00.000-07:00

the most recent exercise assigned by my professor, Dr. Surprenant, in my technology of information class has to do with color blindness; and it is designed to acquaint the student with the problems created when you consider colorblind people in the design of a web page. apparently about 1 in 20 people may be colorblind (the statistics for men are much higher than women), and when you consider them as a potential audience the numbers can therefore be very large. the assignment included taking a colorblind test as well as using a simulation to see how colorblind people view the world and to experience how palettes change from normal vision through the various ranges of color deficiencies. yes, color blind people DO see color; but their deficiencies are generally grouped around the red/green and yellow/blue spectrums as well as some form of monochromatism. anyway, some of the comparisons i did of course had to do with food and drink. we all pretty much know that food and drink are experienced with many of our senses and the first one that comes into play is usually sight (although me may, of course, become aware of food smells before we even see them). we even speak of "our eyes being bigger than our stomachs" when we refer to overeating because everything looks so appetizing. with this in mind, how appetizing can foods look when viewed through the eyes of someone with color deficiencies? to my eyes, not very. with the vibrancy of reds/greens/yellows and blues gone or muted food will look bland and flat. of course, these are the associations that we have made to food as "normal" color sighted people. we can tell when certain fruits are perfectly ripe by their color, we know that certain meats are done the way we like them because of their color, and our appetites are stimulated by the wide array of colors at a buffet. people with color deficiencies do not have these same frames of reference and it cannot be expected that we can even describe to them the "vibrancy" of the red on a pepper or the "richness" of the purple on a plum. they anticipate their eating experiences from a very different palette perspective, and perhaps more from the associations of smells, and previous experiences with textures. i included the links to a couple of websites over there on the side for you to visit and experience yourself. one of them allows you to choose pictures and web pages to compare in "normal" and color deficient views. if beauty is indeed in the eyes of the beholder then in this case more than any other it is not just based on a de-facto observation but on objective preference.

you are what you eat

2008-03-28T14:01:00.001-07:00

it was bound to come to this and you all knew it. a post about the, um, well, let's just say, "interesting" things we've all eaten. that snail posting got me in the frame of mind to talk about foods (and here i use the term loosely) that seem, and sometimes actually are, less than appetizing.
first let me just say that i love asian cuisine. vietnamese, thai, chinese, japanese, korean, whatever, i love them all. i know where all of you are going with this and the whole "you never know what they really put into chinese food" thing, and all those jokes about missing cats and such; and sometimes asian cuisine can come up with some pretty unusual things. the one that really put the brakes on me happened one day during dim sum. my friend Joan lives in an area of bensonhurst brooklyn that is sometimes corner to corner traditional italian and asian. but just down the block from her is a dim sum place that on the weekends is jam-packed with asians, line out the door, waiting list type of crowd. the food there is really great but every time we go we are the only caucasians there and have to order by basically pointing at things and hoping for the best. one time, during a particularly frenetic saturday dim sum someone at our table pointed to what turned out to be, get ready for this...chicken feet. it is actually kind of shocking to see those little clawed things all sticking up at you from a bowl. we all looked at each other and basically i was the only one even remotely interested in trying them. all i can tell you from the experience is that there really isn't much there, and i hoped that they washed all the chicken shit off their feet before they served them up. i really couldn't figure what to do with them and the idea of sucking on chicken feet, well, you get the picture. i tried chewing gingerly and i could see that all the servers were just looking at me and probably thinking god knows what. i finally gave up, and i can't expect that i missed much. i invite your comments on this one in particular, as i am curious about others experiences on this aspect of food and drink. for those of you interested i have included a link over there on the side to a site that will give you "tips" on cooking chicken feet. bon appetit and as they say, "one man's meat is another man's poison"

ME, JOHN AND JOAN :^*

let them eat...snails?!

2008-03-25T11:14:00.000-07:00

the quote, "let them eat cake" has long been attributed as a response by marie antoinette when she was told that the french people had no bread to eat. in all fairness, the quote may be grossly misrepresented. during the great famine of the early 1300s the french wheat crops suffered greatly at the hands of mother nature and flour became almost non-existent; thus bread, the staff of life, could not be made or bought. at the time french law required bakers to sell loaves of bread at fixed prices and fancy loaves, or brioche, to be sold at the same prices to prevent the bakers from selling just the more profitable expensive products. so the the king's consort's suggestion "qu'ils mangent de la brioche" or "let them eat cake/pastry", as the quote is reported, would not have seemed as cynical as history would make us believe, since it would have been sensible, at least to marie antoinette, that in the face of a flour shortage the poor might have been able to afford to eat what would otherwise have been unaffordable. unfortunately, the sensitivity of the situation and its trivializing by the queen was not lost on the angry populace. it cannot all be blamed on the monarchy, however. it is also recorded that the french king tried to persuade his starving people to make do with the crops of potatoes available at the time. the mobs believed that potatoes were poisonous, however, and preferred to starve and guillotine the royals for treason. i speculated that perhaps it was at this time that the french may have turned to eating snails, or escargot; but it seems that the little creatures are more particular to their environment than one might imagine and the inclement weather that was destroying the wheat crops would not have been to their liking either. who knew?! anyway, history reports many famines in europe and i suppose learning to eat whatever was available is a smart survival instinct; but really people! snails?! and why would THAT particular practice survive after the pantries became full? i admit that pretty much anything covered in garlic and butter would taste great, but leave it to the french to make a flavor of the month out of a common variety garden pest that leaves a trail of slime! or is it maybe just a french attempt at humor? they are a bit twisted those french. regardless, i HAVE eaten snails, i have even cooked snails, and let me just say that, yes, it is probably an acquired taste (but WHY? i mean REALLY!), and no, i don't particularly care for them. i do believe in trying most things even once though so chalk one up for me!

SQUAT

2008-03-23T21:01:00.000-07:00

Squat is a parking angel. if you live in manhattan and you own a car that you park on the streets you know how important it is to keep on Squat's good side. angels and gods/goddesses can be bribed for their blessing and good graces, and its a well known fact that Squat has a penchant for chocolate. many times the bribes are in the form of offerings of food and drink. for instance Oshun, an afro-caribbean goddess is known to prefer, among many things, liquor, specifically rum. anyway, when you want to stay on Squat's good side you must always leave her a piece of chocolate when you ask for her help in finding a parking space. its also important to remember that before you leave her the chocolate by the curb next to your parked car, you must take a bite of the chocolate as well. the legend has it that Squat was almost murdered once by an irate person who left a piece of poisoned chocolate, so now she demands a show of good intention with the offering of chocolate. tonite i invoked Squat's help in finding a place to park as i was coming home late from a long day out and hoped to be able to park quickly. sometimes as i am driving home i begin my little meditation to Squat and promise of chocolate as i am getting close to home, and there are times, like tonite, that i swear i am being specifically directed where to go. i literally drove into my neighborhood and right into the only open spot on the block (which if you know street parking in manhattan you can appreciate that it was not an easy thing).
rituals of many kinds involve food and drink, among other things. it allows us to share in the divine in a way that is familiar to us, and which makes us feel more a part of the cosmic in a relevant way. afro-caribbean religions in particular have a way of bringing us closer to the angels, gods/goddesses and saints which we invoke for help in our daily lives, through the ways that we interact with them via rituals and on a daily basis. sharing food and drink is not specifically typical of only the afro-caribbeans; but it seems to have kept us much more in touch with the divine in a way that makes the pantheon more a part of our family, and therefore more apt to offer them the fruits of our larder in a show of hospitality and in a spirit of grace and reverence.

cuando hay hambre, no hay pan duro

2008-03-22T12:35:00.000-07:00

basically it means, "when you're hungry, there's no such thing as stale bread" its a cuban saying and it gained more relevance with the castro regime and the imposition of food ration cards. i was born in cuba, and my family and i lived through that for many years before we were able to come to the united states, and one of my memories of that day we arrived in miami was all of us at the hotel we were staying at with our family and my mom needing some milk and all we had to do was go into the hotel corridor and there was a vending machine with milk in it. we were not so used to being able to get food so easily and readily. i remember the first BK Whopper i ever had; it seemed so huge to me at the time. because i was born before the revolution, i remember how it used to be and what it became. i also know what it was like for my family. because of all these things i probably became the food obsessive-compulsive that i am today. nothing in my home ever goes to waste.
today i made a batch of vegetable stock. i like to make my own stocks (vegetable as well as chicken or seafood) because i like the freshness and the fact that i can control what i cook with. with the vegetable stock i make use of the parts of all those vegetables that ordinarily would get thrown away. i just keep a freezer bag where i put the broccoli stalks, the ends of onions, carrots, celery, and any other raw veggies that i happen to have cooked with as i go along and would ordinarily wind up in the trash, and then make my own stock when the bag is full.
i often wonder what my life would have been like if my family had not left cuba. i think of what people are going through there now, and food is just one part of their problems. i "feel" my heritage when i cook, i associate my family with the foods and gathering in the kitchen. i'm reminded of where i came from, and what we've done to get to where we are.

VIVA CUBA LIBRE!

home is where the tart is

2008-03-20T20:17:00.000-07:00

as long as i'm talking about tarts i'll mention a sweet one. John really loves this tart book called "tarts, sweet and savory" and another of the last ones he made was a lemon cheese tart. Maxine Clark is the author of this book and she has a long history as a leading food writer and teacher. the hardest thing about this recipe is the "blind baking" of the crust, which is not really all that difficult. it basically entails first cooking the crust without the filling in it, or "blind", so that it stays crisp after the whole tart is cooked WITH the filling. all you do is cover the tart shell with beans or rice or these special marbles, and cook it before pouring in the filling and baking it again. you fill the shell with these beans or whatever so that the tart shell does not bubble up as it is being baked "blind". this usually has to be done with tarts and its an essential step. one of the first tarts he ever made from this book is an apple one and it is absolutely delish; but the book says its a "french" apple tart and i'm like, what the fuck?! the only thing french about it is the fact that the book author called it "tarte aux pommes" which basically means "apple tart" in french but SO WHAT?! i mean, if i called it "tartaleta de manzanas" (which is just "apple tart" in spanish) would i say it was a spanish apple tart?! fuck no! it's still just a damn apple fucking tart!!! when you're in china they don't call the food there "chinese food" it's just FOOD! WHATEVER! anyway, as i said this is a really easy tart recipe so i'm including it below, plus a picture of how ours came out.

THE RECIPE

1 shortcrust pastry and 9 inch false bottom tart pan
1 lemon
1/3 cup sugar
12oz or 1 and 1/2 cup of cream cheese of cottage cheese
1 large egg plus 3 egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

bring the dough to room temperature, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees

roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface and use to line the tart pan. prick the base, then chill or freeze for 15 minutes and bake blind (about 10-12 minutes).
peel the zest from the lemon leaving behind any white pith, and squeeze the juice. put the zest and sugar into a food processor or small blender, and blend until the sugar and zest mixture looks damp.
add the lemon juice and blend again-the lemon zest should be completely dissolved into the sugar. add the cheese, egg yolks, whole egg, and vanilla extract. blend until smooth and pour into the baked crust.
bake for about 25 minutes until just set and lightly browned on top. remove from the oven and let cool.

...and the queen said "off with his head"

2008-03-18T08:28:00.000-07:00

John made a really great tart yesterday, mushrooms with stilton cheese. the apartment had that really pungent smell of the stilton while he was making it and it tasted delish. tart making can be very different depending on whether you're doing sweet or savory. and even among the sweet there are very different methods. the biggest difference between baking and other types of cooking is that with some forms of baking it's all about measuring. sometimes its an exact science, just the right amount of wet to dry ingredients or you could wind up with an inedible mess. with cooking other things it really can be a pinch of this or a dash of that, or leave in one thing or substitute for something else you might prefer; but not with certain forms of baking. people who always follow recipes will argue about my cooking methods but i understand that some people like to follow a recipe every single time so that the dish always comes out the same. they've even quantified the "pinch" and "dash" method! no really, you can find actual measurements in cookbooks that will specify what a "pinch" or a "dash" should actually be! that's a little too OCD even for me. you can check out the measurement conversions over there if your're interested. it is actually a valuable tool for some of those old recipes that someone wrote down for you and will at least give you a starting point from which you can create your own preferences.
ok, so the title, tarts always remind me of alice in wonderland and the part where the jack of hearts steals the tarts and the queen of hearts says "off with his head" which she seemed to say alot. and the recipe, well, it belongs to michael chiarello so the link to his web site is over there under "mushroom tart" and the recipe is below too if you want to try it. i think you should, or it's OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!

HERE'S THE RECIPE

2 lb cleaned, mixedmushrooms, (sliced or quartered depending on variety)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 shallots, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons freshly chopped thyme
2 tablespoons minced parsley
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1 egg-well beaten
8 oz crumbled blue cheese
1 sheet frozen puff pastry-thawed
Flour for dusting work surface

1 lb dry beans for baking crostata shell

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat two large saute pans over high heat. Working in batches divide the olive oilbetween the two pans. When the oil is hot but not quite smoking, add themushrooms, season with gray salt and pepper, add the butter to each pan andallow to caramelize. Once mushrooms havecooked down to half their volume, transfer all mushrroms to one pan. Add the shallots and garlic and cook untilthe light brown and fragrant. Add thethyme until it crackles. Add the cream and bring up to a simmer. Reduce thecream by about half and stir in the grated parmesan, and the lemon juice. Shutoff the flame and quickly stir in the beaten egg. Remove from the stove and letcool to room temperature. Add parsleyand stir.

While mushroom mixture is cooling, roll out the pastry doughon a floured surface. Roll the dough out so that it will line a 10ý removablebottom tart pan. Line the dough with parchment paper and fill with the drybeans. Bake for 10-12 minutes, remove from the oven and let cool to roomtemperature.

Lower oven temperature to 400 degrees F.

When both the filling and shell have cooled to roomtemperature fill the shell with the mushroom mixture and top with the crumbledblue cheese. Arrange the tart mold on a cookie sheet and bake for 20-30minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature beforeserving. Slice in wedges and serve.

AND HERE'S WHAT OURS LOOKS LIKE

notes from a wineaholic/albarino

2008-03-15T06:39:00.000-07:00

i'm a big fan of wine. my family being mostly from spain (ole') and somewhat from france (choke) i don't suppose i'd be otherwise. while i was born in cuba, (second generation) my grandparents and prior come from the iberian peninsula, more specifically from the north and northwestern parts of spain, where the gallegos produce spain's best white wines. typically i prefer reds and only was introduced to this type of wine by a client. i have since sampled several bottles to find that my ancestral roots do run deep. according to the Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil, the whites that come from the Rias Baixas stirred a veritable revolution in the 1990s due to the introduction of modern wine making techniques. she describes the flavors as "ranging from zingy citrus-peach to almond-honeysuckle...supple and lightly creamy...and light as gossamer on the palate" don't she talk pretty? it usually has a beautiful golden color when it's poured out, and many people speak of a hint of kiwi in the flavor due to the fact that kiwis are a major agricultural crop in this area, and years ago many kiwi orchards were pulled out in order to plant more albarino. i'm not a wine snob by any means and i have a very open palate, so i like to try different wines and, of course, some things i like and some things not so much. i try to be "appreciative" of the wine for what it offers and where it came from and i love reading her book for the descriptions of the regions which produce the grapes, the countries and their cultures and food pairing suggestions. this area of spain, unlike all others, is known exclusively for white wines and the major grape produced is the albarino, the name which appears on every bottle regardless of the vintner who produced it. to further accentuate the importance of this grape, by comparison most other spanish wines are referred to by their geographic region. i put a fun link on the side there called the "budometer" where you can take a brief questionnaire and see what they have to say about your palate and wine choices. i found it interesting and somewhat accurate. in any case, enjoy your wine. salud, amor y dinero!

my two favorite drunks

THE RIAS BAIXAS

happy year of the rat

2008-03-14T20:39:00.000-07:00

yeah, i know the chinese new year was like over a month ago; but it's all about how you celebrate it not necessarily when. and this year was really great. for the past several years i've been going to a chinese food banquet to celebrate the new year with a group from the chinese kung-fu wu-su association that is totally cool. the founder, Master Alan Lee, is a qi-cong and martial arts master who i've known for about 10 years or so now because he and i work out of the same place on fifth avenue between 20th and 21st street called fitness results (check out both links on the side there). anyway, master lee gets this huge group of people together to celebrate the chinese new year at this place down on elizabeth street right next to Lin Sisters and, do i have to say it?, there's some awesome food to be had. it's all about the ritual of celebrating together and good fortune, and this year John and i sat with a really cool bunch of people...here's a shout out to Cat, Blake, Maia, Ken and "the Turk". (btw Cat i didn't notice the cougar on your business card when you gave it to me, very cool!) there's like eight different courses of food from pork, to beef, chicken and duck, fried rice and lo-mein. some of the seafood is a little quirky (jellyfish, seaweed, and these tiny fish fried whole) but also shrimp prepared a few different ways, octopus, shark fin soup, and veggies like bok-choi, a couple different kinds of schrooms, and a dish served in a bowl of fried noodles that looks like a big nest. oh yeah, and there's plenty of wine to wash it all down with. of course the meal ends with the requisite fortune cookies and slices of orange. how do they get such good oranges this time of the year is what i want to know. there was so much food left over that it all gets put into these take-out containers for everybody and john and i took a couple of bags and gave some away to a homeless guy that usually camps out on the steps of St. Joseph's church in our hood. he was asleep so we just left it for him. the banquet is in this HUGE place that gets partitioned off and there's such a great feeling to show up and sit with people you never met before and share a meal in celebration of the new year! this year the group i sat with was great fun, that's usually Cat's chopsticks you see in the food shots below. they were all having fun with my photo-taking for the blog and i'm going to send the link out so maybe SOMEBODY will leave a comment here and there. (i mean, c'mon people, i know you're all out there, i see you in class and i can hear you all breathing!) except for you Sandy, thanks for your comment! anyway, i know i said i was going to wait 'till tomorrow to post this but i let my OCD get the best of me when i got home so here it is. enjoy and happy new year everyone!
the banquet hall, there's Lin Sisters on the side there

the group, phoenix and dragon on the rear wall (prosperity and good fortune)

some mushrooms and bok choi

chicken and beef in "the nest"

lemon fish, fried rice and lo mein

camping with "catheno"

2008-03-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

i got to thinking of the great times camping and that led me to go through some old photos. (by now you should be used to these digressions) there was, of course, always food and drink, and dancing. some of the pictures below are from the site at bass river and some are from #31 in newburgh. you can tell we were having a good time. yep, that's me with hugely long hair, and braces too i think. god that sucked so badly! i had those braces on for 25 months, 1 week and 2 days; and it was hell! i can't begin to tell you how many times in the beginning i would sit outside the orthodontist's office and cry after an adjustment it was so painful. there was alot of drinking going on in those days, whiskey usually, rubbed on the gums and then just guzzled. it never helped but it gave me something to do until i could pass out. anyway, those are not such good food and drink memories. the food was awkward and the drinking was excessive. obviously it didn't stop me from having a good time. the girls don't camp anymore now that they have the cabin, i mean, what the fuck they're always in the woods now! we usually try to go once in spring and once in fall. oh yeah, the "catheno" thing. before i met catherine and odalys john would say "you have to meet my friend(s) catheno" well that's what it sounded like to me when he said it, you know, "catheno". i used to think "who the fuck is this person, and what's with the weird name?" anyway, it turned out to be "cath and o (short for odalys)" aka "the girls". well, enjoy the photos.

shrimp on "the barbie"

and the cocktails, of course

bacon really gets you out of your tent in the morning

the girls... :^*

and the boys

thank you for seeing you

2008-03-13T15:35:00.000-07:00

no, that's not a mistake. it's something Odalys says. she said it once at a Halloween party we all went to when she saw this guy there dressed like Elvis, and it's the sort of stupid thing that just never goes away. now we always say it when we are saying good-bye to each other. we visited "the girls" this past weekend up in Bethel, NY and had a great time. as i mentioned we hadn't seen them since last august so there was alot to catch up on, and we had alot of down time by the fireplace (we made alot of trips out to the cord). they've done a little more work in the cabin. the bathroom looks great with a new floor, sink(with cabinet), toilet, mirror and lights; some painting in the master bedroom, and new arrangement of furniture in the guest bedroom and living room. it was hugely cold up there but it didn't keep us from firing up the bbq for our surf and turf dinner. the girls like to cook too and there's always food and drink when we get together. they made some caprese salad and mini pizzas with arugula, prosciutto and fresh parmigiano for appetizers. and we did filet mignons and lobster tails after and it was delish. we used to do alot of camping together and we probably had the only gourmet food on the camping ground. we would bring these pre-marinated pork tenderloins, or shrimp on skewers, or fish steaks, and cook rice or pasta and have appetizers spread out while we were cooking. we'd have some music going and of course that led to dancing. one time at this campground at bass river state park in new jersey the rangers kept passing by our site and they finally came over to us to tell us that while they didn't want to put a damper on our party we were obviously having way too much fun and to make sure that we didn't let it get out of control. that was actually a "dry" campground and the rangers were totally cool. another one of our favorite places to camp is the KAO campground in newburgh, our favorite site there is #31. there's some beautiful hiking around there.
here's some photos of the weekend, bon apetit!
us and them, 8^* love ya!!

the surf...

and the turf.

appetizer anyone?

oh yes, and the drinks! lotsa drinks %^D

one of those days

2008-03-07T15:55:00.000-08:00

you ever have one of those days that you think, "jesus fucking christ! that's it, i've had it" and no amount of food can help, it' just all about the drinks. i like to start out with a vodka gimlet, or as my friend Odalys calls them "airplane fuel". yum! it's actually a somewhat old-fashioned cocktail that i'm doing my best to help make a comeback. or maybe a gin and tonic, and make sure you have limes around for this or you can just forget it. my friend Marita and i are totally into G&Ts. she prefers to call them T&Ts because she also prefers the tangueray gin but i'm not so much of a liquor snob. it's Mari's birthday today and she's picking me up around 7 to do some celebrating. i'm actually taking a little time off this weekend and it's starting tonite. yesterday was John's birthday and we're leaving tomorrow morning to visit our friends Catherine and Odalys. they live in the mountains in Bethel NY and we haven't seen them since august. they used to live just a few blocks from us here in the city and then they bought the cabin a few years ago and winterized it right away. we helped with some of that and man was that alot of work. about a year later Odalys decides that she wants to move up there full time and then Catherine went some months later. it took them some time 'cause they had to find jobs up there and Catherine is a nurse practitioner with and HIV care specialty so that was tough. they finally made it and we miss them alot. i'm bringing some of my schoolwork as a token of sincerity; but you know how that goes. whenever we get together there's always food and drink involved...i think that's mari now, later...ok, so it's now much later and of course there's been food and drink. it was sushi and beers at Dominick and Grant's. my favorite sushi is a place called Yuka on the upper east side, 2nd ave and 81st st. their fish is so fresh and their portions are huge compared to many places. we also got to listen to the debut of their awesome debut recording as Faux Furnishings, "Lydia, Look!". visit them at www.myspace.com/fauxfurnishingsofficial, or just use the link on the side over there. so much luck to them! it was a good time, shout out to Guitar Heroes Lauren, Jacob, Dominick and Guitar "Super"Hero Grant, also Scott, Steven, Izzie, Jennifer, and my BFFF Mari, happy fucking b-day you brick house!

Glaser's Bakery

2008-03-06T14:03:00.000-08:00

today my friend Lisa stopped by to drop off a fresh loaf of irish soda bread made at the local bakery where she works, Glaser's. this place has been a family owned business since 1902 and the current owner, and baker, Herb has already started making them in honor of the upcoming St. Pats. he makes great brownies, apple turnovers, all kinds of muffins and the absolute best cookies. mini linzer tarts, lemon meltaways, italian tricolors, and incredible chocolate and vanilla lace cookies. i'm not the kind of person, like my grandmother, who would rather eat dessert than a main course, but these cookies are like crack. no, seriously! if you're in the neighborhood you've got to stop by and try something. if Lisa, Terry or Rita are there tell them Tom sent you and they'll hook you up. it's amazing that in this day and age a family business like this can keep going. i like the idea of recipes being handed down that way. just like i've gotten from my family, especially my grandmother. although getting a recipe from my grandmother is really like flying by the seat of your pants. she'll tell you to add a "pinch" of this or "dash" of that, or "a few" or "some" or "a little" of whatever. you don't always get exact measurements and sometimes it's best just to watch how she makes something and walk away with a "feel" for the recipe. anyway, take a look at the Glaser's website from the link on this page, and OMG you have GOT to check out Terry's hair from like 10 years ago! Tell her you saw it if you stop by and watch her cringe.

John with Rita (in the middle) and Lisa

also, check out this JibJab video i made with John, Rita and Lisa in it, it's a hoot!

Don't send a lame eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

The Incredible Edible Egg

2008-03-04T11:04:00.000-08:00

i love eggs. they're one of my favourite foods and one thing i love to make with them is a spanish tortilla. the traditional recipe is just onions, potatoes and, of course, the eggs. this is what's usually called a "tortilla espanola" but like so many peasant foods, it just depends on what you have on hand, as long as there are eggs. my grandmother used to make them for dinner with sardines and that was delish! this is my mother's mother who is going to be 93 this year and going strong. she cooks and cleans and reads everything and curses like i sailor. i lived with her, and my grandfather, most of my young adult life. as i said before, i'm latin, and alot of us believe in living in the extended family system. i'm grateful that happened, it really helped me to get to know my mom's parents well. my grandfather, the maternal one, died about 11 years ago at the age of 92. he and my grandmother were inseperable, they couldn't even get dressed without each other. he used to cook too, but not so much. although he did have a specialty, chatinos, also known as tostones, and nobody could make them as crunchy and perfectly fried as he could. anyway, the tortilla can be eaten for breakfast, brunch, dinner whatever. alot of times i just make one so i can have something quick to nuke for breakfast for a couple of days. traditionally they are also supposed to be fried on the stove top, which entails having to flip it somewhere along the way. this step takes a steady hand 'cause you could easily lose the whole thing but it's do-able. you could also just cook it in the oven, especially if your ingredients are leftovers (or as my family calls them "recyclables"), and then avoid the flipping step. i just made one with leftover spinach and potatoes. the recipe and pictures are below.

THE INGREDIENTS:
This was a small one, only 6 eggs; but with a 9 or 10 inch pan you can use 8 eggs.
there's also the wilted, fresh spinach (a leftover)
and the broiled potatoes (also leftover)
just scramble the eggs in a large bowl, add a little milk; but you don't have to (or cream or whatever dairy you like),
then just stir the leftovers into the eggs,
don't forget to salt the eggs, my grandfather used to say that anyone that ate eggs without salt would eat their own mother. nice, right?

put everything into an oiled/buttered/or non-stick pan and put into a pre-heated 350 degree oven. check it after 20 minutes if it's a small one like this, or it may take 30 minutes if it's larger. you can serve it just like this for the rustic feel or slide/flip it out onto a plate. just leave the pretty side up. enjoy!

St. Pats/Easter - Green Eggs and Ham?!

2008-03-03T11:30:00.000-08:00

so i'm working like a slave on all my homework and really just getting batty and John's sister Karen emails me to say that this year she wants to do a joint St.Pats and Easter thing and what day can both John and I make it so the whole family can be together. i'm like, St.Pats AND Easter? i realize they're both really close this year and it would give us all a chance to celebrate both, and all together; but to me this just seems like somebody getting away with only feeding me once. also, i'm latin, and therefore only irish by injection; and easter, well, as i said, an opportunity for food and drink, not to mention chocolate. still, it's an opportunity to do the food and drink thing, you know; and get together with the family, which i love. and i love Karen and Wayne, not to mention that Karen's a good cook and she and Wayne keep a very well stocked wine fridge. and i do love good wine (Todd, Karen and Wayne's son, calls me a wine-aholic) kids say the darnest things don't they? ;-) so i'm down with the whole joint celebration thing and then i start thinking about are we going to have a leprechaun with bunny ears or a green easter rabbit for the egg hunt? and of course the food and drink, and naturally in my state of mind i think dr. seuss and start quoting green eggs and ham to Karen. everything has become blog fodder, what can i say? it's like those ink blot tests, it all looks like food or sex to me. last year John and i were going to miss the St.Pats get-together because we had a flight to Tulum on that day, and then, if any of you remember, we had that freak ice storm and the flight never got off the ground. of course, it wasn't bad enough to keep us from going out and eating and drinking to excess so we all met at a place in jersey called "the crow's nest" which was doing a full blown St.Pats thing complete with bagpipes and the requisite menu. i showed up with green hair and ate corned beef and cabbage like a true irishman. anyway, here's some pics of past St.Pats get-togethers.

Karen, Wayne, Mr. C, Shivann(see you DID make it to my blog) and Todd

Karen and Wayne :-*

Karen, John, Me and Shivann

with Hailey and James

with Kim, Myung and Tommy

LOVE YOU ALL, SEE YOU IN A FEW WEEKS!!!

And of course, Green Eggs and Ham...

(Fred and) Ginger...Rogers that is

2008-03-02T14:14:00.000-08:00

ok, so you get the whole theme thing going on. i promise it won't always be like this but it's just one example of my train of thought getting out of control. it's the whole "joys of life" thing, you know. food and drink, and music and dancing goes right along with it. sometimes a little too much drinking will lead to the dancing, and where there's dancing there's floozies. that's another story completely but you begin to see how my mind works. it's actually a great line from a 1985 movie called Maxie, Ruth Gordon gets to deliver the line. but anyway, i digress, yet again. dancing, ginger rogers and fred astaire. wow, that was something! although he wasn't my favourite hoofer. that credit goes to Gene Kelly. but his name has nothing to do with ginger so the clip you get to see below is from the movie Swing Time. i love to dance and twice entered marathons. my high school friend Chris and i actually won a dance contest during one of those marathons, nothing like fred and ginger though. she was a great person, and actually a great cook too, Chris that is, not Ginger. she used to make food for the whole group of us when we would get together at her house. and we'd hang out and listen to music and dance. we used to have sleepovers at her house and spend the night trying to scare each other. one day she showed us a bunch of cookoo clocks she had put into the attic because she couldn't stand the ticking and while she wasn't looking i set the thing in motion. she cursed the heck out of me that night when she heard the thing going off in the dead quiet. anyway, here's fred and ginger. don't forget to turn the sound off on the music feed before you watch this.

ginger, simple syrup and thighs (chicken thighs that is)

2008-02-29T10:25:00.000-08:00

No, not THAT ginger...

That's right, THAT one!

so one of the other things that Ming does on this one episode is using the ginger simple syrup in a chicken recipe. he uses thighs which are sweeter and juicier than some other parts of the bird; but obviously you use whatever parts you like best, or use a variety of parts or the entire bird. i'm a leg man so i'm good with the thighs. he does alot with the process of starting out with a master recipe and then making alot of things from that. i think it's a great way to develop a menu. invariably when i'm thinking of chicken recipes i'm reminded of that great Julia Child episode where she drops the bird on the floor then just picks it up and sort of dusts it off and says that no-one knows what goes on in the kitchen but you. Julia was an amazing chef and really fun to watch on tv. it's hard to keep from imitating her when you do. check out the link with her name on it my "peeps"!

anybody thirsty besides me at this point? how about that ginger-tini?

Ice
3 ounces vodka, any flavor but i like a citrus flavor for this
1/2 to 1 ounce ginger syrup, recipe follows
1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice
Twist of lemon or lime

Fill a cocktail shaker or small pitcher with ice. Add the vodka, ginger syrup, and lime juice. Cover and shake vigorously, or stir, until combined and chilled, about 30 seconds. (In general, by the time the shaker mists up the drink is ready.) Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add twist and serve.

ginger, simple syrup and cocktails (with florence)

2008-02-27T21:19:00.000-08:00

so last time i mentioned how i had gotten this great idea from watching Simply Ming on tv. Ming Tsai is this really cool chef and you can check him out on the video below giving a "ginger 101" lesson. on this one show he makes the ginger simple syrup and uses that for cocktails. he makes a ginger ale with it, which i've tried and it's really good, but my favorite thing to make with it is a ginger martini. you can also use it for mojitos, which i've also done, and it's a nice twist to add the ginger symple syrup instead of plain when you make them. ginger is a great spice; it has alot of anti-oxidants but because it's very fragrant alot of people don't really care for it. it can also be a bit spicy, like hot spicy; but depending on the cooking process it can mellow out alot. the crystallized ginger is really great for cooking, cocktails and for desserts. my friend Florence ( love you Florence! ) is a really good cook and she's very middle and far eastern inspired in her recipes. she does alot with ginger and i've borrowed alot of techniques and recipes from her, including her ginger cookies. i'll never forget the first time i met her. i was invited to her place for dinner and by the time my partner John and i got there Florence was smashed from drinking boxed wine. halfway through the dinner Florence is having a hard time keeping her eyes open and she's doing this blinking thing and next thing you know she's praying to the porcelain god and we're keeping her from winding up head first in the toilet. anyway, she's a really cool person and i hope i get invited to dinner again soon. she lives on the lower east side of manhattan with a great view of the river and brooklyn from her 21st floor apartment. she's also a great collector of beads, and she has some beautiful african trade beads, and venetian beads.

ps
you can click on the link under Ming Tsai and it leads to another short video of his where you can watch him do more with ginger.
enjoy. or just copy and paste the url from below.

http://simplyming.dreamhosters.com/rss/media/simplyming_3-05.mp4

to make the simple syrup all you have to do is put equal parts water and sugar into a pan and bring to a boil, lower the heat to simmer until the sugar is dissolved and let cool. to make the ginger simple syrup you simply add a whole stem of peeled and thinly sliced ginger to the pan with the sugar and water. you can then make the crystallized ginger by taking the slices of ginger from the simple syrup and coating them with regular sugar and laying them out on a baking sheet. put the slices in a 250 degree for about an hour or until they have dried out. store them in an airtight container and they will keep for months.

carrot soup, snow day, and firemen

2008-02-25T07:43:00.000-08:00

this past friday i was lucky enough to have a day off while the snow fell outside. one of my favourite things to make is soup, especially on a day like that, so i made a cream of carrot soup with ginger that really hit the spot. it's a really simple recipe from one of my oldest cookbooks, the better homes and garden cookbook. this book has been so used and abused that the spine is all cracked and split and there are burn marks on the cover where i've let it get too close to the stove (my current kitchen is really tiny and it takes some creative maneuvering to work in it). anyway, i've changed the recipe a little to accomodate for the ginger, which i add fresh to the soup in the process and then i sprinkle some chopped crystallized ginger over the top when i serve it. you would kill yourself for this soup! really! i make the crystallized ginger myself; it's a process that starts out with making a ginger simple syrup and you go from there. it's this whole synergistic cooking thing that i picked up from watching Ming on tv. you start out with one recipe that leads to all these other things. i'll talk more about that at some other time. anyway, one of the first times i ever made this recipe was about 15 years ago for my friend Colleen ( Hi Col! ) who at the time was strictly vegetarian. i haven't seen her in a while, although we keep in touch, because she's been back in school too and has a new job. she lives in rockville center and hosts a great bbq on her rooftop deck every 4th of july. it's totally cool 'cause the fireworks done by the town of rockville center are set off in a field right next to her building so they literally go off over your head. afterwards the town firemen come on the roof to make sure there are no fires from the falling ash. so you get to see great fireworks and cute firemen too!
well, hope you all enjoyed this entry and touch base again. i invite your comments if you're so inclined.

THE RECIPE

3 cups veg. or chicken stock/
1 cup chopped onion/
4 cups peeled, chopped carrots/
2 tablespoons fresh or 2/3 tablespoon dried parsley/
3 tablespoons fresh or 1 teaspoon dried basil /
1 and 1/2 inch piece peeled, chopped fresh ginger/
4 tablespoons softened butter/
4 tablespoons flour/
2 cups of milk/
1 teaspoon salt or more to taste/
a couple of dashed of white pepper/

in a saucepan combine the first six ingredients and bring to boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or 'til the carrots are tender. while this is happening make a roux by mixing the softened butter and flour together thoroughly, no lumps. when the carrots are tender you can use an immersion blender to puree the mixture or a regular blender. BE CAREFUL WITH THE HOT LIQUID IN THE BLENDER! do not overfill the container of the blender and make sure the lid is secure. the hot contents will expand. add the milk, salt and pepper, and the roux to the blended mixture in the saucepan and simmer, stirring constantly until the roux is completely dissoved and the soup begins to thicken. that's it, your soup is ready to enjoy. if you have some crystallized ginger you can chop some and add to the top of each serving. i recommend it.

tom.

FOOD SHOULD BE BETTER THAN THIS...