tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49717688683278322262024-02-07T00:09:43.753-05:00The Eatinist B***hFood and recipes from a stomach that doesn't know any better.EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-76879169819857627212023-02-24T18:17:00.000-05:002023-02-24T18:17:16.163-05:00<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Hello, hello, hello!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Thanks so much for visiting my old blog here on Blogspot! I don't update here any more, but I'm keeping it up for nostalgia purposes. Make sure you visit my current website here: www.theeatinistbitch.com - sign up for my <a href="https://www.theeatinistbitch.com/newsletter" target="_blank">newsletter</a> while you're there!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Make sure you visit my other social media pages as well:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/eatinistbitch/" target="_blank">Instagram</a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@eatinistbitch?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc" target="_blank">Tik Tok</a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://twitter.com/EatinistBitch" target="_blank">Twitter</a></span></p>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-87031902870564354112013-02-25T12:00:00.000-05:002013-02-25T12:33:22.430-05:00Hangover Helper: Thai Chicken Curry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwAOEeI-JQ0CQOF2cikMdTJejU0Ip-qB85GXsqqL3FD0toorFuSkEqGD4z6_jxE3DizrxaGsv2BD4AaEc-eiY7xd41ckuLvYkqbX0HHUYNrI-p3LlKD4x2W0bpYeE48dqqdOdaCXO0juY/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwAOEeI-JQ0CQOF2cikMdTJejU0Ip-qB85GXsqqL3FD0toorFuSkEqGD4z6_jxE3DizrxaGsv2BD4AaEc-eiY7xd41ckuLvYkqbX0HHUYNrI-p3LlKD4x2W0bpYeE48dqqdOdaCXO0juY/s400/photo.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The headache, that piercing tunnel vision, the crippling pain that punctuates a night of bacchanalian revelry -- yes, I had a hangover. I love to drink, but as I've gotten older, my hangovers have only gotten more annoying and long lasting. <br />
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My friend Tana and I had gone out the night before with our friend Matt, and we really ripped it up. We'd made it to our respective homes safely, albeit a little worse for wear. After convalescing at home all day, I craved something to soothe my tortured tummy. I flipped through my latest issues of <a href="http://www.bonappetit.com/">Bon Appetit</a> for a little inspiration, and then I finally saw the recipe for <a href="http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/quick-recipes/2013/01/thai-chicken-curry">Thai Chicken Curry</a>: the jackpot. Loaded with vegetables, juicy chicken, and potatoes, this was just what I needed. I decided to ask Tana to join in on the delicious healing powers of curry as well.<br />
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This recipe was insanely easy. It only uses one pot, and the only time consuming part was prepping the vegetables and simmering the curry. I substituted sweet potatoes for the Yukon Golds, both for nutrition and flavor. I also swapped chicken breasts for the chicken thighs because I couldn't find boneless skinless ones at Tana's supermarket. If you want to do the same, I'd suggest simmering the curry without the meat first for about 10 minutes to give it a head start, then throwing in the chicken breast. No one likes a dry breast.<br />
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<div class="ingredient-set"><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">2</span> <span class="unit">teaspoons</span> <span class="name">vegetable oil</span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">1</span> <span class="name">4-ounce can or jar yellow curry paste</span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">3/4</span> <span class="unit">pound</span> <span class="name">carrots, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds </span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">1</span> <span class="name">medium onion, chopped</span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">1</span> <span class="name">red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces</span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">1</span> <span class="unit">pound</span> <span class="name">Yukon Gold potatoes (about 3), peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces</span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">1</span> <span class="unit">pound</span> <span class="name">skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces </span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="quantity">1</span> <span class="name">13.5-ounce or 15-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk </span> </span><br />
<span class="ingredient"> <span class="name">Chopped fresh basil and cilantro</span> </span></div><br />
<div class="preparation instructions"><br />
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<span class="instructions"> </span><br />
<div class="text">Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add curry paste and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add carrots, onion, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. </div><span class="instructions"> </span><br />
<div class="text"><span class="instructions">Add potatoes, chicken, coconut milk, and 1 1/2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Divide curry among bowls and top with herbs. </span></div><span class="instructions"></span><br />
<div class="prep-steps"><br />
</div><div class="prep-steps"><br />
</div><div class="prep-steps">As a garnish, I used cilantro, just roughly torn, and sliced almonds for a bit of crunch. Served up with some toasted and buttered garlic naan on the side, this was exactly what our hungover bellies needed. This would be super crazy good with some brown rice or quinoa too! </div></div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-89531995074101867052013-02-13T18:51:00.000-05:002013-02-13T18:51:10.811-05:00Early Valentine's Day Dinner @ Prune<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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First of all, Happy New Year! I know I've been neglecting all of your minds and bellies, but the past couple of months have just been a whirlwind of work and progress. I've taken on another job making candy with a wonderful candy <a href="https://www.liddabitsweets.com/">company</a> and I've gotten a promotion at my <a href="http://www.robicellis.com/">bakery</a>. Not to mention, writing for a kick ass local online <a href="http://www.latencymag.com/">magazine</a>.<br />
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But, I know I need to get back to the place that started it all. So, over the next few weeks, I will slowly (but surely), be revamping the site. There will be new recipes, recipe testing, and new reviews on places I love. I only ask you this: comment! Even if it's just to say hello, or even if it's just to rant. I'd love to hear it. <br />
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Usually I'm pretty blasé about Valentine's Day, but this was especially exciting for two reasons: I was FINALLY going to <a href="http://www.prunerestaurant.com/">Prune</a>, Gabrielle Hamilton's critically lauded restaurant, but, more importantly, I went with Mr.K. <br />
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Mr. K and I are basically those folks in movies who take their slow ass time figuring out what everyone else knows: hey, "you guys are perfect for each other...stop being silly". After years of will-they-or-won't-they type tension, the gears clicked, and now we're happy. I know I'm Cliff Note-ing this story for you, but this blog is about food.<br />
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We didn't go to Prune on Valentine's Day proper, because I have to work on that same night. Believe me when I say, I DO NOT LIKE DINING OUT ON VALENTINE'S DAY. The menu is usually not at its best, the meal feels rushed, the servers are stressed because the place is crowded; it's just not a good move. Monday ended up being a great choice. <br />
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When we walked into Prune, what really struck me about it was its size. It's incredibly tiny; a nook of a restaurant. There were marble topped tables, comfy wooden chairs, and the dining room radiated with a brightness that made me feel like it was the middle of a warm afternoon. <br />
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It didn't take me long to figure out what to order, because I've been dreaming about most of this meal ever since I first read about Gabrielle in an article written by Anthony Bourdain. Basically, everything on the menu is influenced by things she grew up eating and certain time periods in her life. Food, working as memoir. It's a selfish way to develop your menu, and I really admired her for that. <br />
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The first things placed on our table were two glasses of Cava (to toast our V-Day dinner) and a metal wine bucket of pappdums, the crunchy Indian cracker. Each sheet was crisp and subtly spiced. It was really easy to get lost in munching away, but I made sure to keep myself from getting over-zealous. <br />
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We started with the Radishes with Kosher Salt and Sweet Butter and the Roasted Marrow Bones with Grey Salt and Parsley Salad. The radishes were a childhood snack, and the marrow bones were a dish that her parents would serve for dinner; simple food memories dictated to table. <br />
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Mr.K ate his like this: he took a sliver of butter upon his knife, dipped it in the salt, then smeared it on his radish. Seemed pretty efficient to me, so I followed suit.<br />
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I have never eaten radishes this way before, and I will never eat them any other way again. Cold, crisp, spicy radishes, tempered by the sweet, creamy butter, everything elevated by the salt....perfection. Simple. <br />
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The three hulking marrow bones were served with a parsley salad slicked with vinaigrette, and sprinkled with shallots, capers, and slices of cornichons (little gherkin pickles). A bucket filled with grilled crusty bread was set alongside. <br />
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Tiny spoons speared the surface of each bone's marrow, and we used them to spread our bread spears with the meaty marrow. Then, a sprinkle of grey sea salt, and a bit of salad. Unbelievable. Bitter. Salty. Crunchy. Sweet. Sour. Mouths, awakened. <br />
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We didn't have to ask for more bread.<br />
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I'd been steering the course of this dinner, so Mr.K encouraged me to order the rest of our meal. I chose for myself: the Crispy Duck with Cabbage. For him, the special: Braised Rabbit Legs with a Vinegar Sauce and Cornichons. <br />
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My duck was delicious. Crispy and savory skin; the meat dark and rich, with an almost mineral edge. This kitchen knew their way around a duck. But, let me talk to you about that cabbage.<br />
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When I see cabbage on a menu, it's usually St.Patricks Day, and it's usually boiled ad infinitum. I know cabbage in a different way, though. My mom would cook it by steaming it a bit, then sautéing it with olive oil, garlic, and tons of kosher salt and pepper. It was so sweet, tender, and fresh. I could tell that this probably used a lot more butter, but, my God, I took a bite of that cabbage and it felt like I was 8 years old and waiting for a second helping. The juices and fat running from my duck were an added plus. <br />
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Mr.K politely shared some of his rabbit with me, but after I tried it, I was surprised that he could even be that nice. The meat was falling off the bone, lazily draping itself in that buttery broth laced with vinegar tang. Our sweet server deftly placed more bread on our table before we could say a word; she knew what was coming. She knew we were tired of being nice to our food. Sometimes you have to put the knife and fork down and use the utensils that lie on the ends of your arms. <br />
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Gleefully, we used our hands to gnaw our respective dishes' bones to the quick, then made short work of sopping up the gravies with our bread. Soon, my face and hands were shiny, slicked in delicious fat. Embarrassing? Yes. Satisfying? Yes. <br />
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After cleaning ourselves up, we braced ourselves for dessert. The two older ladies sitting next to us had ordered the Breton Butter Cake and the Chocolate Walnut Tart with Salted Caramel. They looked so good, I ordered them for us too. Mr.K took a tawny port with his, I chose to go digestif-less. <br />
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"Whenever someone orders the Breton, we always place this alongside," said our server, placing our desserts before us. A tiny glass of Muscat appeared beside my plate. I cut a piece of my cake, ate it, then sipped at the wine. <br />
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The cake was a study in dichotomy. The top was flaky, like a croissant or puff pastry, its layers shattering into brown butter shards. But, the inside was dense and sweet, balanced with salt. How could this even happen? How could what looked to be a regularslice of cake taste like this? <br />
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Mr.K's dessert was great too, not as transcendent as mine, but still delicious. A tart shell, lined thinly in dark chocolate ganache, crowned with salted caramel tossed walnuts, and teased with few flakes of Maldon sea salt. <br />
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None of these dishes were particularly flashy in any way. Yes, they were presented nicely on their plates, but there were no fancy squirt bottle sauces or instructions on how to eat it. The food made its own statement, and shouldn't that speak volumes? Prune's menu mirrored the evolution of mine and Mr.K's relationship. As we grew closer and grew older, all the complexity we'd established led us to a simple conclusion: love. And that is what really made us full. EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-13351562712928737212012-10-02T10:18:00.000-04:002012-10-11T11:18:43.158-04:00Legends Bar and Grill: Jackson Heights's Diamond in the Rough<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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"<i>Queens is so</i> farrrrr<i>!"</i><br />
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<i>"There can't be anything to eat out there...past Astoria, anyway</i>."<br />
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"<i>Barbecue is so expensive, and the good places are only in Manhattan</i>."<br />
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I hear this sort of yammering all the time, and you know what? DON'T COME TO QUEENS. Because if this place gets super popular or something, and I can't come here anymore, I will be PISSED.<br />
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I was introduced to Legends by my friend John, who was born and raised in Jackson Heights, where this amazing place resides. And, over time, it's become my absolute favorite barbecue spot in all of New York City.<br />
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A couple of weeks ago, a group of friends and I went to the <a href="http://www.nychoneyfest.com/">NYC Honey Festival </a> over at Rockaway Beach. We spent pretty much the whole day there, tasting various honeys and working up a serious appetite. We weren't sure what to do for dinner, so John suggested that we trek up to Legends for a savory barbecued feast. The Manhattanites in our crew exchanged some dubious looks.<br />
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Suggesting Queens as somewhere to go to for dinner, will definitely get you some side eye. It was hard enough to get these folks all the way down to Rockaway, and now they were being asked to go even further into this big ass borough. Since I hadn't been to Legends in months, I lobbied hard. I knew that if they just gave this place a chance, they'd love it. Of course, I wasn't wrong.<br />
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The kitchen is basically run by Marilyn, a vivacious middle aged Dominican woman. As soon as you sit down, you hear her trill: "Mi Amoorrrr!" I think some of my crew were taken aback, but I was used to it. That siren's song means there's a good meal ahead.<br />
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As we waited for our meal, I looked over at the counter and saw that beautiful hunk of brisket that you see in the picture above. Being the creeper that I am, I skipped over to take a picture. Marilyn motioned over to me before I went back to my seat. "Come, come!" she said. She pointed to behind the counter.<br />
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SAY WHAT! With my head covered, of course (I know how to behave inside a professional kitchen, after all, I work in one), she led me behind the cover so I could take an even closer look at the brisket. The look, the smell, everything about that piece of meat made me want to grab it and run out the door. Thankfully, I refrained. Then, when I was about to sit down again, she tapped me on the arm.<br />
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"No sitting! The smoker is back here."<br />
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DOUBLE SAY WHAT!! She was taking me to the holiest of holies, the most precious place in a barbecue joint. The pit smoker.<br />
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The huge smoker is fed with logs of mesquite wood....<br />
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Pork shoulder!<br />
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More brisket!<br />
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Even short ribs are thrown in this thing, and smoked low and slow all day long.<br />
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I'd never been that close to a pit smoker before, and I was so happy to get a peek. But, alas, my stomach was calling something fierce, so I went back to my table to eat.<br />
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We shared some wings. I tried very hard to eat only two....but I snatched a third because I couldn't resist. Imagine the best buffalo wings you could ever eat, lightly dressed in barbecue sauce. Crunchy, savory, spicy, sweet.<br />
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And then...the best part, and pretty much the ONLY thing I order when I come to Legends: The Jimmy's Junk platter.<br />
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Pulled pork, smoked kielbasa, brisket, and pork shoulder. Nary a vegetable in sight. I mean, there were outrageously good sweet potato fries and onion rings...but the meat took precedence.<br />
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Everyone can keep their Hill Country and Fatty Cue! Stay away from my Legends. Well, you can come and have some food, but that's it.EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-78448368528324935482012-09-19T11:26:00.000-04:002012-09-19T11:28:08.899-04:00Tres Leches Cake - Three Times The Delicious-ness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sometimes my sister asks me to hook her up with baked goods for her and her daughter's church. Cupcakes, cookies, cakes: she asks for it, and I try my best to make it happen. Seeing as that I haven't been to church in eons, I figure my goodwill will help me out later down the line, if you know what I mean.<br />
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Anyway, my sister remembered a really great Tres Leches cake that she'd had back in the day, and she asked if I could make that. Tres Leches is a Latin sponge cake soaked in 3 different types of milk: heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk. I told her that I would keep my eye out for a good recipe. On my way to work later that day, I bought the August issue of Bon Appetit before I hopped on the train. What did I find in the first few pages? A recipe for <a href="http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/07/tres-leches-cake">Tres Leches</a>! It must have been fate.<br />
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I did use a different sized for the recipe though. I used a 12 x 9 pan, which gives you a really puffy cake, with a lot more surface to soak.<br />
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I preheated my oven to 350, then used baking spray to grease the pan. Since that stuff's been invented, I haven't buttered and floured a pan in years.<br />
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I whisked a 1 1/2 cup of flour, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, and a 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon in a medium bowl. Then, I busted out my lovely red Kitchen Aid, and used my whisk attachment to whip the heck out of 6 egg whites for 8 minutes. I started out on the lowest level, to get some bubbles going. Then, I hiked up the speed. You basically want firm peaks to form. You'll know when you get there because if you stop the machine, take off the whisk, and turn it upside down, the egg foam will stand up and not collapse.<br />
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Next, I added a 1 1/2 cup of sugar to the egg foam, with the machine running on medium speed. Then, one at a time, I dropped in 3 egg yolks, leaving some time time between each addition. This way, the eggs could get really mixed in. I added 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract (next time, I'm definitely going to experiment with different extracts), and then lowered the mixer speed again so I could throw in the flour mixture without getting it all over my kitchen.<br />
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I added in the flour in 3 installments and 1/2 cup of whole milk in 2 (Flour, milk, flour, milk, and ending with flour). With a final blast of high speed, the batter was ready to be baked. I poured the batter into the pan, smoothed it out on the top, and popped it in the oven. I baked the cake for 20 minutes at 350, then dropped the temp to 325 for another 20 minutes. The initial high heat helps the cake to rise nice and tall, and then baking it at a lower temperature cooks it the rest of the way through.<br />
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After it revealed itself to be golden brown and delicious, I let it cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. While the cake cooled, I made the milk soak. I used 1 cup each of skim evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream, mixing it up in a small bowl. To flavor it, I added 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. The recipe also called for dark rum, but I decided to refrain because after all, this would be served to some God fearing children.<br />
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Okay....now for the fun part.<br />
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I poked the cake all over; the recipe called for a skewer, but I had a fork. Just do don't use your thumbs or anything. Then, I poured half the milk over the cake, making sure I got the mixture all over. I paused for a second to let the milk soak in, and then I poured the rest of it over the cake.<br />
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If you have the time, make this cake the night before you want to serve it. The flavors meld and just infuse the cake with other-worldly milky goodness. And since it's a sponge cake, and not a butter based cake, it won't get soggy! Even with all of the milk in it. I call it, a food miracle.EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-65939542799802715362012-09-17T11:00:00.000-04:002012-09-19T11:25:22.769-04:00What I Ate This Summer - A Love Story in 5 DishesAnother sweltering summer in New York City has come and gone, leaving a sticky trail of humidity in its wake. As a huge fan of the summer months, I'm pretty sad to see the season go. But, I can take comfort in knowing that I ate and drank all that the summer had to offer.<br />
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Remember in elementary school, when you'd go back to school for the fall, and your teacher made you write an essay about what you did over the summer? Well, here are some of the highlights of what I ate this summer.<br />
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<a href="http://williamhallet.com/index.php">William Hallet</a> - Salmon with Long Island corn, lima beans, Holland peppers, butter nage<br />
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I don't order fish often in restaurants, and I'm not exactly sure why. I grew up eating tons of seafood, and I love this stuff; I guess I'm scared of someone messing it up. I had this early in the summer on my first trip to Astoria's William Hallet, and it was so nice to have something light, but really substantial and delicious. The salmon was simply seasoned, and served with a light butter nage (sauce) that highlighted its meatiness. The veggies were at their peak, and weren't overcooked. I really enjoyed this.<br />
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<a href="http://traifny.com/">Traif</a> - Strawberry Cinnamon Baby Back Pork Ribs<br />
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Even saying the name of this dish makes me squirm with delight in the most lovely way. Sticky, just sweet enough with a whisper of warm cinnamon. JUST LOOK AT THE PICTURE.<br />
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I went here for my good friend Rae's birthday, and we proceeded to have one of the best meals I've ever had. A lot of the meals here are pork based, and it was exciting to have ribs that were a little out of the ordinary.<br />
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<a href="http://fort-reno.us/index.html">Fort Reno</a> - The Hot Mess<br />
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Oh, baby. The.Hot.Mess.<br />
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So, whenever my coworker and I come here for after-work vittles, I without fail, get this. A savory parfait of pickled vegetables, cornbread, baked beans, pulled pork, and on the bottom: macaroni and cheese. Crunchy, meaty, creamy, salty, sharp. It doesn't look too pretty, but it tastes beautiful to me. And, it's only seven bucks! Seven bucks for a glass of pretty much everything on the menu. Layered lovingly, just for you.<br />
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<a href="http://www.bonchovie.com/">BonChovie</a> - Fried Anchovies (Heads off)<br />
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Anchovies. Such a little fish, yet it inspires so much hatred! I usually think of them as the scraggly little things on crappy take out pizza. So, I stay away from them at all costs.<br />
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Enter BonChovie. BonChovie has been a stalwart vendor of both Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg. I'd been hearing so many great reviews about their fried anchovies, that I couldn't resist giving them a try.<br />
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Thank God I did. So crunchy, so flavorful.... Unbelievable. Nothing like the stinky fish that I'd always feared. Dunk these in the smoked paprika mayo, and you have seafood heaven. <br />
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And last....but never least....<br />
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ARE YOU READY FOR THE FIFTH ONE!?<br />
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<a href="http://momofuku.com/new-york/noodle-bar/">Momofuku Noodle Bar</a> - Fried Chicken Dinner<br />
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Two whole chickens.<br />
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Two styles: Old Bay Southern Style and Spicy Korean Glazed.<br />
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I'd been trying to make the reservation for this dinner for almost a year. This summer, I struck paydirt. Happy Damn Birthday to me!<br />
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This bountiful feast of fowl came wish mu shu pancakes, four different sauces ranging from a fiery chili sauce to a savory hoisin, and a bowl of fresh veggies. The idea is, you can either eat the chicken straight up, or make it into tasty wraps.<br />
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I think you can imagine how I ate mine.<br />
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What did YOU guys eat this summer that blew your minds? Leave a comment and tell me about it.<br />
<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-26168126438490671072012-08-15T15:59:00.001-04:002012-08-15T16:16:56.448-04:00Happy Birthday, Julia.Julia.<br />
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Tall, loud, hungry, intelligent, beautiful, Julia.<br />
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Julia was basically my first babysitter. Her show would come on right after Sesame Street, and I would sacrifice the last five to then minutes of the credits to make a kitchen run so I would be fully snack equipped. <br />
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She was so freaking HUGE, as tall her California redwoods. And so funny, with her unusual voice and the way she ruled her kitchen. So fearless.<br />
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I remember thinking that she seemed so friendly. Like, if I'd ever meet her in person, that she would be so nice to me. And feed me delicious things, of course.<br />
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During an episode of "In the Kitchen with Julia", she talks about sweetbreads, and I thought, "That sounds so good, I've always wanted to learn more about sweetbreads!" Only to learn by the end of the episode, that they're actually a nice name for the thymus gland. What a nasty trick, Julia! So, I didn't watch her show for a couple of weeks. <br />
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Isn't that nuts? To feel momentarily betrayed by someone on tv that you've never met? But I soon went back to her, because I knew I could never stay mad at her for very long. <br />
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Her cooking, confidence, even the sound of her voice made me feel comfortable, warm, less lonely. I've always been an emotional eater and everything that she made, even though I couldn't reach into the tv and grab it, made me feel full and safe inside. And isn't that what good food is supposed to do?<br />
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Thanks for being larger than life, Julia. And thanks for the sweetbreads.<br />
EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-40729753138884970322012-06-13T13:30:00.000-04:002012-06-13T13:30:46.153-04:00Mile End...Sandwich.Mile End Delicatessen in Brooklyn, home of smoked meat poutine and some of the tastiest matzoh ball soup I've ever had, has recently opened up an outpost in NoHo. The new location's focus? Delicious, delicious sandwiches. <br />
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This ain't your mama's pastrami on rye, for sure. The entire menu takes traditional Jewish cuisine and really turns it on its head with some really stunning sandwich combinations. My friend John decided to get the Beef on Weck and I took a chance and got the Chicken Salad. We split an order of smoked meat poutine, because you cannot go to Mile End and not order it. It's a personal rule.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wagyu roast beef, horseradish, weck roll</td></tr>
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This sandwich was beefy and savory, and extremely moist from the top of the caraway and salt seasoned roll being dipped in the meat's jus (natural stock/juices). The meat was meltingly tender, and the fresh horseradish added a mild burn. If you like straight up beef, you will love this sandwich. John tore through it so quick, I'm surprised I even got a bite.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gribenes, new pickles, pickled peppers, schmaltz toasted challah<br /><br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br /></span></span></span></td></tr>
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I did not expect to love this sandwich. It combines two things that I dislike: traditional chicken salad (usually gloppy with cheap mayo and studded with huge chunks of celery and raw onion) and pickles. Yet, there were two things about this sandwich that made me want to be brave. The schmaltz (CHICKEN FAT!) toasted challah bread and the gribenes. Gribenes is yiddish for cracklings, or rendered pieces of chicken skin. After a quick moment of self reflection, I decided that none of this could possibly be bad.<br />
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Take a journey with me.<br />
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Tender chicken, a light mayo dressing, tiny bits of celery, crunchy cucumber that's only been kissed by brine, sweet pickled peppers, salty/crisp gribenes, and a buttery challah lightly toasted with schmaltz.<br />
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Such delightful confusion of the tongue, a whirlwind unsion of of richness and briny tang!<br />
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The sandwich pretty much rendered me stupid. In a good way.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">SMOKED.MEAT.POUTINE.</td></tr>
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And of course, the poutine. Why would anyone throw a mess of of smoked meat on an already indulgent pile of french fries, creamy gravy, and cheese curds?<br />
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Um...why NOT?<br />
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Do yourself a solid, and get yourself over to Mile End Sandwich. Great service, exciting sandwiches.<br />
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<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-78609575409095954252012-05-21T13:22:00.000-04:002012-05-21T13:22:02.392-04:00Googa Mooga: I Came, I Saw....I Ate Horse.Yes, ladies and gentlemen...I ate horse this weekend.<br />
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But that's getting ahead of myself.<br />
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This past weekend was Prospect Park's <a href="http://www.googamooga.com/">Great Googa Mooga Festival </a>. Organized by the same folks who put on Outside Lands and Bonnaroo, Googa was billed as "an amusement park of food and drink" featuring food loves such as Big Gay Ice Cream, Do or Dine, Calexico, Luke's Lobster and others. There was music too...but we're just gonna talk about the food because that's the exciting part!<br />
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Most of the restaurants and food vendors at the festival, I enjoy on a pretty regular basis, so I tried to limit my consumption to foods and restaurants I'd never tried before.<br />
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Since I pretty much fail at life, of course I would forget to bring more batteries for my camera....but I did manage to squeeze off some shots of the foods I really liked.<br />
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1. M.Wells - (Horse) Bologna and Foie Gras Grilled Cheese<br />
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So nice, I had to take the picture twice. Please note that in their sign, they don't mention the horse part. That's a pretty smart idea, because I'm not sure how many people would have tried it if it was up there.<br />
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I trust anything M.Wells does, so I didn't hesitate to try it. I'd only gotten to go to its Long Island City location once before it closed its doors, but it was an unforgettable experience. So was this sandwich. <div>
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The bread was hearty, perfectly crisp and buttery. The bologna and foie worked together in gamey/salty/creamy harmony; the cheese was only there to glue the two together. Mustard kept everything in check with a vinegary tang to cut through all the fat. I was pretty sad when I finished it, and I'm sure this was the best and most original thing I had all day. It was as adventurous as a comfort food could become, using two unorthodox meat products to transcend a dish from simple to sublime. </div>
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2.<a href="http://www.thelandhaus.com/"> Landhaus</a> - BLT by Landhaus</div>
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Landhaus's specialty is their thick cut grilled bacon which they serve maple cured and spiced on a stick, and in a BLT with lettuce, tomato, and herb mayo. They were serving the latter at Googa. </div>
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I know the dude who runs Landhaus because he works in the communal kitchen that my bakery operates out of, but I've never once tried any of his pork based delights. I knew I had to remedy that. </div>
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Cool, crispy lettuce layered with the juiciest tomato I've ever eaten, a huge slab of delicious bacon, all lightly dressed with creamy herbed mayonnaise. The roll itself was perfect, soft and pillowy inside, and chewy outside. It was served with potato chips and pickled veggies, but I don't remember eating those because the sandwich was so good. </div>
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3. Cookin' With Coolio - Soul Rolls</div>
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I'm a huge fan of Coolio's web show, <a href="http://www.mydamnchannel.com/Cookin_with_Coolio/Cookin_with_Coolio/1CapreseSalad_530.aspx">Cookin' With Coolio</a>, and when I first saw the list of restaurant/food vendors appearing at Googa, and saw his name...I knew damn well I was gonna hightail it over to his booth. If you have never seen an episode of his show, please, make your way over to the link above. Not only are the episodes funny, but he also makes some tasty looking dishes. Plus, he portions his seasonings into dime bags. DIME BAGS, PEOPLE. </div>
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Coolio (who was actually AT Googa, but I missed him) offered up his Soul Rolls: fried spring rolls stuffed with a mix of seasoned turkey and beef, cheese, and shredded cabbage. They came with either a peach or pineapple BBQ sauce. I requested both because I'm greedy. </div>
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These were damn good. Savory, cheesy, crunchy, and made even better with the fruity BBQ sauces. If egg rolls were more like these, I'd be more inclined to eat them. Gotta give you some props, Coolio!</div>
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I also had a strawberry rhubarb ice pop from People's Pops that was refreshing and delish, plus an absurdly expensive coconut water from a company that I can't remember. I could have just went to the fresh fruit cart near my house and picked up a fresh coconut for about 2-3 bucks that would have been better. Bah humbug. Aside from that one hiccup, I had an awesome time, and I'd definitely go again next year. </div>
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Did any of you guys go to either day of Googa? What did you love and what did you hate? Also did anyone get to try the Foie Gras Doughnuts from Do or Dine??? I'm still pissed I missed out on that.<br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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</div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-77456332537688696462012-04-12T14:34:00.002-04:002012-04-12T14:34:53.216-04:00The Power of Potlucks and Bitchin' Kitchen - Mediterranean Chickpea Stew with Feta<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Every couple of months, a group of my closest buds and I get together to share our love of gossip, each other, and of course, food. The spread is always gorgeous and diverse with our goals being to bridge our different tastes, reflect our cultures, and celebrate our traditions. Sometimes the gathering is themed - for a Valentine's Day potluck we had to make foods in varying shades of red, white, and/or pink (I made a pomegranate-rose ice cream for that one that came out rather nicely). In any case, the food is always delicious and results in hours of holding our tummies and whining about how full we are. </div>
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This most recent potluck was to celebrate our friend Adam's new apartment, and I knew that I wanted to do something special. At first, I was going to attempt my mom's brown stew chicken, but she wasn't able to help me out with it. Also, I found out there was going to be a baked yogurt chicken dish at the potluck, so choosing something else would be smart. I started to look through my newest cookbooks to see if I could get any ideas. After nearly getting a cramp in my hands from turning so many pages, I decided on a <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.ca/recipes/recipe.html?dishid=10941">Mediterranean Chickpea Stew</a> from Nadia G. of the Cooking Channel show Bitchin' Kitchen:</div>
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Nadia's show has brought up a lot of debate in the cooking tv world; people either love it or hate it vehemently. I love the way that she mixes cooking and comedy. You can tell that she was brought up with a strong appreciation for food, and I can't help be attracted to her repertoire. Her incredible wardrobe can't be denied either. The girl can <i>dress</i>. </div>
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The recipe seemed easy enough and was filled with healthy, tasty veggies. I know I've been lacking in the healthy food department, and I thought this was a good way to get myself back on track. </div>
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Note: I doubled the stew for the potluck, but these are the original numbers for the <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.ca/recipes/recipe.html?dishid=10941">recipe</a>. </div>
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I started by roasting some garlic: I peeled off the papery skin off a garlic head, but left the cloves intact. Slice off the top of it, lay it on some foil, and drizzle it with olive oil. Grind on a bit of black pepper and seal up the foil. I roasted my parcel in a preheated 400 degree oven for 35-40 minutes, until the garlic was soft and buttery. My kitchen smelled like the happiest place in the world. </div>
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In a large saucepan, I heated up some olive oil over medium heat until it was nice and toasty. Then, I added 2 cups of seeded, sliced bell peppers, 3 thinly sliced scallions, and a small hot chile pepper, also seeded. If you're not a fan of heat (or a WIMP), you can leave it out. After sprinkling on salt, black pepper, paprika, and cumin, I sauteed everything for 8-10 minutes. The veggies needed to get some color, release their flavors, and soften a bit. </div>
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While the veggies were going on the stove, I took 2 cans of whole peeled tomatoes, and crushed them with my hands to break them up into smaller pieces. The tomatoes went into the saucepan with the veg, along with 4 mashed cloves of the roasted garlic, a half a lemon's worth of zest, and a pinch of brown sugar. </div>
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Okay, let's pause for a minute. The ONE thing I have issue with Nadia and her recipes, is that she adds brown sugar to EVERYTHING. I mean, I know it's to bring out the sweetness of the tomatoes, but damn! What if you were lucky enough to get some really nice canned tomatoes, and they didn't need help? What did I have on hand that would blend well and lend some savoriness to the stew? A quick rifle through my spice rack uncovered some dried oregano and bay leaf. Perfect. I added about a teaspoon of oregano and 1 bay leaf to the stew and let it simmer on low heat, covered, for 30 minutes. </div>
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After 30 minutes, I uncovered the pot and was greeted by the smell of victory. The oregano and bay were perfect in the dish, toning down the sweetness of the brown sugar and melding with the tomatoes and peppers. Now, for the chickpeas. </div>
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I took two cans of chickpeas, rinsed and drained, and added them to the stew. The recipe only says to leave the stew on the stove until the chickpeas are "heated through", but canned chickpeas can be annoying hard to me. I figured that the stew wouldn't be hurt if I left it alone for a while, so I let it simmer on low for another 20 minutes. I was rewarded with creamy chickpeas and a very tasty stew. </div>
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To garnish my cornucopia of vegetables, I chopped up a handful of fresh mint and parsley, and sprinkled it over the stew. I also spritzed a half a lemon over it for some brightness and acidity, and to keep with the Mediterranean vibe, I crumbled some fresh feta over the top. Gorgeous!</div>
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I was really proud of this dish. It's hearty enough that you don't miss any meat, healthy, and it tastes great. It was a smash at the potluck, and I know I'll be making it again soon. If you can help it, try making it the night before you serve it, and let it chill in the fridge. The flavors will get even more intense, and it'll taste even better. </div>
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If you and your friends aren't already in the habit of having potlucks together, start! Bring together your cultures, traditions, and get in the game. Even if the act of sharing the foods that you love doesn't bring you closer, you can always share a nap. Everyone loves a good nap. </div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-59698254440660379512012-03-19T15:26:00.000-04:002012-03-19T15:26:11.632-04:00Put Your Money Where the Pork Is: Astoria's Butcher Bar<div>
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I was pretty hungover a few Sundays ago. That, combined with a long day of working in the kitchen with nothing but water, Gatorade, and prayers as fuel, will make a girl very hungry. I knew exactly what I wanted for dinner that evening: comfort food. Greasy, creamy, crunchy, salty....anything that would put my tender tummy at ease. I met up with two of my Astoria friends, Mr. Blue and his roommate, Chris, and we tried to create a game plan. </div>
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First, we decided to go to to <a href="http://queenscomfort.blogspot.com/">Queens Comfort</a>, a ridiculous spot over near 30th Avenue that has a very delicious Chicken and Waffles, but they had closed up their kitchen for the night. Failboat. Then, Mr. Blue's roommate suggested that we go to <a href="http://www.butcherbar.com/">Butcher Bar</a>, since he had to pick up some pulled pork that he'd ordered for a dinner party they were throwing the following night. I'd never been, or even heard of the spot, so I was pretty excited to try it out. </div>
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When I walked in, I was greeted with Al Green, thick wooden dining tables, and a shiny glass display case teeming with thick sausages, massive pork shoulders, and ribeye steaks, rippled with fatty marbling. Butcher Bar isn't just a restaurant, it's also a butcher. Chris was actually picking up pork shoulder that he would be turning into pulled pork tomorrow. All of the meat sold there is either local, grass-fed or organic, and they cook all the meats that they sell. But behind all the buzz words, was it any good? We were fitting to find out.<br />
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After a detailed study of the menu, I decided to get corncakes for the table, and a burnt ends sandwich for myself (my favorite part of barbecue).<br />
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The cakes were served nice and hot, with a little cup of honey butter to slather on them. Light, cake-y, and not too dry. Nice to start the meal with. I wished they were a little bigger, but it was probably better than they weren't so I couldn't spoil my dinner.<br />
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My burnt ends sandwich was supposed to come with coleslaw and pickle, but because I'm not a fan of either of those things, I declined them for fear of wasting them. The owner, Matt, then came over to check on us and asked if I wanted to try either their mac and cheese or sweet potatoes on the house, so I wouldn't miss out on a side. I thought that was really sweet of him, so I chose the mac and cheese.<br />
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The burnt ends were a great balance of smoky crispness, juicy meat, and melting fat. With every bite, a hangover-curing elixir of meat juices and fat flooded my mouth.<br />
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The macaroni and cheese, though, was a bland. I like mac and cheese when it's made with a mix of really sharp and mild cheeses for contrast and flavor. I also like a crispy top on my mac for an extra hit of texture. It did win some points with me for its creaminess and the smoky paprika on the top.<br />
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Mr. Blue and Chris both had pulled pork and rib platters, with potato salad and baked beans, respectively. I didn't get to try their ribs, but the pulled pork was excellent. The right balance between smoke, sweetness, and spice. Only too often do I eat pulled pork that's drenched in some sickly saccharine red barbecue glop.<br />
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I snuck a bite of Mr. Blue's potato salad, which was a real winner. Creamy, but not drenched in mayo, with hints of tarragon and lemon. I'm strictly a German potato salad person (I have a love/hate relationship with mayonnaise), but for this one, I could convert. <br />
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You know we couldn't end dinner without a sweet treat. For dessert: apple pie!<br />
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Flaky crust, filled with spiced, almost caramelized apples...yeah, I made very short work of this pie.<br />
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Overall, I loved the food, the service was top notch, PLUS, I got to have some of the pulled pork at the boys' dinner party the next day, and that was bangin' too! Butcher Bar is a win all around. </div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-38752714423929486422012-03-08T03:08:00.000-05:002012-03-08T05:01:00.758-05:00The Sisterhood of the Flat Hamantaschen - Cookies for Purim!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yesterday marked the start to the Jewish holiday of Purim, and for me that's always meant Hamantachen. The jam-filled tri-cornered cookies would always make an appearance in my neighborhood bakery around this time when I was little, and I'd clamor for my mother to get them for me. They were made pretty big, the cookies were about the size of a small fist, and set out while they were still warm. The cookies themselves were buttery and tender, and the jam (or poppy seed) filling was so gooey and tasty. </div>
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My family isn't Jewish, so we didn't celebrate the actual holiday, but I had read about the history of Purim via one of the bastions of my childhood knowledge: Highlights for Kids magazine. Basically, Haman, the advisor to King Ahasuerus, tried to knock off the all the Jews, but was thwarted by Queen Esther and her cousin Mordecai. Obviously, this is something to celebrate, and much drinking and feasting ensues. Hamantash (the singular, of course) either refers to Haman's three-cornered hat or the shape of his ears, depending on who is retelling the tale. </div>
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I'd always wanted to make some of my own, and I figured that now was a good a time as any. I enlisted my friend Rachael, one of my favorite Jews, to help me and share in the cookie goodness. After looking through a bunch of recipes, I decided to use one from <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/03/hamantaschen/">Smitten Kitchen</a> because it used cream cheese in the dough...and that made me curious. The recipe for the dough is also super easy. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I am...the Hamantaschen whisperer. </td></tr>
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Ugh, I shouldn't take photos sometimes. I'm such a creeper. </div>
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ANYWAY. The dough only needs cream cheese and butter, one egg, sugar, orange zest, flour, and salt. It was pretty sticky, so I used a couple of pinches of flour to get it into a ball. The recipe said to let the dough hydrate and chill in the fridge at least an hour....I think we left it alone for 45 minutes before we got impatient and set to rolling it out. </div>
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Look at those flecks of orange zest and little chunks of butter! We knew this dough was gonna be GOOD. I rolled it out to about a 1/4 inch thickness, and used a drinking glass to cut out circles. We didn't have circular cutters on hand, so unless we wanted to have pumpkin-shaped cookies, we had to improvise. </div>
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To fill our cookies, we decided to use two different types of preserves: apricot and strawberry-blackberry. For each cookie, we used a little less than a teaspoon of preserves. Place the preserves directly in the middle of the dough circle, then pinch your circle to create three points. You can use a little water or an egg wash (one beaten egg + a little water) brushed around the edge to make sure the points stick together easier.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rach is wearing orange nail polish in honor of the Syracuse Orange basketball team. She loves 'em. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She used the apricot preserves, and I was in charge of the strawberry-blackberry. </td></tr>
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The cookies baked in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes, until the dough was golden and the preserves were bubbly.</div>
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Our first tray of hamantaschen:</div>
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Maybe we should have let that dough stay in the fridge a while longer?</div>
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Oh dear. </div>
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But wait!</div>
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There was a cutie to be found in the bunch. </div>
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We let them cool, and then dug in heartily. The cream cheese added a lovely tenderness to the cookies, almost like another Jewish favorite, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rugelach">ruglelach</a>. I loved the inclusion of the orange zest, which gave a little zip to the dough, without overwhelming the filling. </div>
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We had some dough left over, and after a brief sojourn in the fridge, we rolled it out for more hamantaschen....</div>
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Flat as damn pancakes. I think only one (on the far right), was the only one that came close to looking sort of normal, and not like a gaping maw. </div>
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Whatever. With a glass of milk, they were still crazy delicious and we had a blast making them. Happy Purim, everyone!</div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-10180984464113604252012-03-01T12:22:00.002-05:002012-03-29T13:40:50.174-04:00Supplemented Cravings: Ghetto Ramen with Shredded Chicken and Poached Egg<br />
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I am going to confess something.<br />
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Before yesterday, I had never poached an egg in my entire life. Poached eggs were something you just had in restaurants, or had cooked to rubber in greasy spoons. I had visions of beautiful eggs being lowered to their deaths in vats of steaming, murky water rank with vinegar.<br />
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Scary, baby. Just SCARY.<br />
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ANYWAY. Yesterday was one of those dreary, rain soaked days where if you're at home, you're lucky to be there. I was also lucky enough to have nothing to do all day, and when I'm bored, I get very hungry. I started to think about how long it had been since I had any delicious ramen in my life. Springy noodles, rich, meat-laden broth, and the best part: a single slow boiled/poached egg laid lovingly upon the top. Then, when you poke the surface of that soft egg, the golden yolk mixes itself with the broth and it gets all creamy and savory....then, I decided to stop thinking about it, because I was exciting myself.<br />
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Instead of lamenting about my lack of food, I decided to investigate my pantry. Behold! A pack of cheap chicken flavor ramen! Just waiting for me to class it up a bit. I knew I had some leftover brown stew chicken in the fridge that was sitting in its own juices and gravy, just waiting to be shredded. And I had plenty of eggs...if I could muster up the courage to poach one.<br />
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Now, I know y'all are looking for a step by step on this one....but Serious Eats already covered it. They have an awesome and extremely easy tutorial on poached eggs on their <a href="http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/04/how-to-poach-an-egg-instructions-breakfast.html">site</a>. Honestly, I just followed it to the letter.<br />
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Basically, you're just simmering a raw egg in a couple of inches of water that has a dash of vinegar and a bit of salt. You want to use really fresh eggs, because the fresher they are, the more stable the whites will be. My eggs weren't super old, but not as fresh as would be ideal. I think the vinegar helped to tighten them up. Easy way to tell if your eggs are past their prime? Crack the egg into a small bowl and a look at the egg white. Does it look a little watery? If it does, you're dealing with an older egg. Fresh eggs have firm whites (or albumens), and their yolks are bright yellow and perky.<br />
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My first egg came out great except for the fact that I should have put an inch or two more water in the pan. I toasted up a slice of grainy wheat bread and decided to eat that one, then try again. I schmeared some bacon fat on the bread, and plenty of salt and pepper too. Just marvelous! The yolk was nice and runny, and the whites were so tender. The second time, I aced it. I set the poached beauty on a paper towel lined plate so it could drain and prepared the ramen according to the package's instructions.<br />
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When the noodles were ready, I poured them and the hot water into a warmed bowl, added half the seasoning packet (that stuff is SALTY), and then threw in the chicken to warm up and give off its flavor. Ever so carefully, I used a slotted spoon to take the poached egg off of the towel and laid it gently upon the broth. The sight brought a tear to my eye.<br />
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And then I remembered that I was starving, so I stabbed the egg with my fork so the yolk could run and flavor the broth. Oh, so good. Obviously not the kind that I could get at a restaurant, but who cares! This was quick, easy, and soothing to my soul.<br />
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I got to learn something new, AND I got rewarded for doing it. Talk about positive reinforcement.<br />
<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-33876482165999542242012-02-27T04:57:00.000-05:002012-02-27T04:57:15.858-05:00A Kitchen Adventure - Kale Salad with Walnuts, Tomato, Cucumber, and Smoked Salmon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After a jaunt through Astoria's beautiful Socrates Sculpture Park with my friends Rick and Victoria one afternoon, I'd worked up quite an appetite. Victoria was kind enough to volunteer her kitchen so I could go and get my grub on. She gave me a little tour of the pantry and fridge to let me see what I had to work with. There was a bunch of cleaned, fresh kale, some walnuts, half of an seedless cucumber, and some cherry tomatoes, which all looked great. Then, she brought out some beautiful herbed smoked salmon. Now, it was about to get real. Victoria threw an apron on me, and then joined Rick to watch me put on a show.<br />
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Creating dishes off the top of my head helps me develop my flavor palate and helps me with my recipe development skills. I was eager to make something that would be accessible, tasty, and let's not lie: impressive. I started by toasting the walnuts on the stove in a dry skillet, over medium heat until I could just smell, well, nuts. I took them right off the heat so they wouldn't burn to a crisp, and tipped them onto a cutting board where I gave them a rough chop. I put the chopped walnuts in a bowl to cool, and then sliced the cucumbers rather thin, and halved the tomatoes. I set those aside too.<br />
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Next, I finely chopped 3 cloves of garlic. I wiped out the skillet that I used to toast the walnuts, poured in 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil and set it over medium heat. When I saw the oil starting to ripple, I threw in the garlic and listened to that sexy sizzle. I took the pan over to an unlit burner and just let the garlic pop and blister in the oil. I kind of wanted it to steep in the oil and not burn, just really infuse the oil with the garlic flavor. After a a minute or two, I started putting the kale into the hot skillet, a handful at a time. Kale wilts just like spinach or collard greens, so even though you think you're crowding the pan, you're really not. I placed the burner back onto the fire, and tossed the greens around in the oil until the leaves were wilted, but not soggy. I turned off the burner and added a last hit of flavor to the garlicky greens: balsamic vinegar. Just a couple of shakes. Then, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. I popped a kale leaf into my mouth; oh yes. The balsamic caramelized a tiny bit, and the zing of it went really well with the garlic and intense greens.<br />
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Time to plate this baby.<br />
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I took a particularly adorable "The Little Mermaid" plate and piled on a mound of kale. Then, I added some tomatoes and a couple of slices of cukes. Nestled on the side of all this goodness, a few slices of the tender smoked salmon. And for the finish, a hearty sprinkle of the chopped walnuts.<br />
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First bite: yowza. It all just worked. The kale had just enough garlic and wasn't overcooked, the raw veggies added a fresh taste and crunch, and the toasted walnuts added warmth to the whole damn thing. The smoked salmon, well, you can add smoked salmon to almost anything and it'll taste delicious. If I had some soft crumbled chevre (goat cheese), that would have been nice too, but I wasn't sweating it, and I knew Rick and Victoria weren't either. Their plates were just as clean as mine when they finished eating.<br />
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Mission? I'd say it was accomplished...and how.<br />
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<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-41767101647600855972012-01-25T13:53:00.000-05:002012-01-25T11:58:59.276-05:00Bacon Cheddar Quiche with Caramelized OnionsHonestly, quiche is the best dish to take along to dinner parties and potlucks. You can serve it warm or at room temperature, it's quick to make, and you can make it as trashy or as fancy as you want! Quiche doesn't discriminate between the rich or the broke: it is delicious for all.<br />
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Anyway, for a friend's party, I wanted to make something savory and cheesy. So, a quiche with some of my favorite ingredients was obviously in order. I used the base recipe in this <a href="http://theeatinistbitch.blogspot.com/2010/12/oneshot-refrigerator-pie-okay-okay-its.html">post</a>, and improvised the rest. I also made 3 of these, so just <i>adjust accordingly to make <b>one </b>quiche</i>. </div>
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I started by roasting a pack of <a href="http://www.brooklyncured.com/">Brooklyn Cured</a> bacon (you can use whatever kind you like) in a 400 degree oven.<br />
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Just lay the strips on a foil/parchment/silpat covered baking sheet, and let it roast til it's nice and crisp. Make sure you keep an eye on it, it'll happen faster than you think.<br />
Of course, I drained the delicious bacon fat that remained, and it'll be put to use somewhere else (biscuits and gravy, perhaps?).<br />
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While that was going on, I diced up a huge Spanish onion, and a medium red onion. It was what I had on hand, and I also love the extra sweetness that red onions have when they're caramelized.<br />
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I put the onion in a wide skillet over medium heat with two pats of butter, a swirl of olive oil, and began saute-ing. After about 5 minutes, I sprinkled a hearty pinch of sea salt to draw out a lot of the onion's natural water. Then, I turned the heat to medium low, and let the caramelization begin.<br />
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As you're using your spatula to turn the onions, you'll notice that they will start to turn translucent. Then, after about 5 minutes, they'll start to turn a little golden at the edges. I obviously don't walk away from the stove, but I don't go crazy agitating them. Once I noticed the bottom of the pan getting too dry, I stir the onions around and then I added a little bit of water to loosen the onions from the pan. I did this about every 5-10 minutes as I prepared the other ingredients. <br />
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The whole point of this is to brown all of those natural sugars in the onion and intensify their sweet flavor. This may take more or less time depending on what type of onions you're using because they all have different amounts of sugar. My batch took about 45 minutes. Once the onions were deep brown and soft, I added freshly cracked black pepper, a tiny bit of sea salt, and about two teaspoons of dried thyme, for a herbal note. Oh! I added a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar, too....because it makes the onions even more brown and delicious...and because I'm extra.<br />
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For the actual quiche bases, I beat 6 eggs with pepper, salt, and some nutmeg (freshly grated, if you please).<br />
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Then, I poured in three cups of half and half. If you're feeling more indulgent, you can totally use heavy cream. <br />
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To complete the trio of fillings, I grated about 2 and a half cups of sharp cheddar cheese. The kind I used happened to be on sale, and from Wisconsin. I hear that's where happy cows really come from.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clockwise, from left to right: Caramelized Onions, egg and cream mixture, cheddar cheese, crispy bacon</td></tr>
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Now, I didn't have time to make my own crusts, so I just used ones from my grocery's freezer section. I like the Pilsbury-Pet Ritz brand. 3 crusts, for three lovely quiches.<br />
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Start by putting down a layer of the caramelized onions. Just make sure they evenly cover the bottom of the crust, because you want there to be onions in every bite. Then, crumble up the bacon with your hands, and put down a layer of that.<br />
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And finally, a good handful of the cheese. Reserve about a half cup of cheese to put on top on the quiche toward the end of its baking. Give the egg mixture a final whisking, just to make sure everything is combined, and pour it into the crust.<br />
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Make sure the eggs are settled evenly around the filling, because the mixture will expand as it bakes. Bake the quiches in a 350 degree for 40 minutes...pull them out at this point and sprinkle on the remaining cheese. Return them to the oven and bake until the cheese on top gets bubbly and brown (2-3 minutes). Let it cool for 10 minutes before serving. You can eat it warm, or cold.<br />
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I am a simple girl with simple needs....bacon, caramelized onions, and cheese. Get on this quiche, folks!<br />
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<br /></div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-10116913323101680482012-01-18T14:30:00.000-05:002012-01-18T14:30:25.418-05:00BabyCakes's Madeleines<br />
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Instead of normal Christmas gifts, I had thought it would be nice to give my friends some tummy warming baked goods. For my friend Tana, I had decided to make her something out of the latest BabyCakes cookbook: <i>BabyCakes Covers the Classics </i>by Erin McKenna. We've really taken to this adorable little bakery, which happens to feature a lot of gluten-free and (GASP!) vegan delicacies. I got this cookbook a couple of months ago, and I've been itching to make something tasty from it. After many hours of page turning, I finally decided upon the adorable looking madeleines.<br />
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Madeleines are basically little plump cookie cakes. Most recipes are usually flavored with lemon or vanilla, but when I worked at Balthazar Bakery, they rotated pistachio and chocolate too. All of them were incredibly moist and delicious. And who could resist its cute scallop shell shape? Just waiting to be dunked into a hot cup of chocolate or tea.<br />
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Now, the ingredients list did look a little daunting, but you can find all of this stuff at Whole Foods or any well stocked supermarket/health food store. Personally, I used all three resources, and got everything I needed at a reasonable price.<br />
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<i>Makes 24 Madeleines.</i><br />
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1/2 cup melted refined coconut oil or canola oil (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">I used canola oil because it's less pricey. I used a great coconut baking/cooking spray to grease the pans. You can use the canola to do that too. Refined coconut oil doesn't have a strong coconut flavor, so don't worry if you're not a fan.</span>)<br />
1 1/4 cups white or brown rice flour<br />
1 cup vegan sugar<br />
1/2 cup potato starch (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">NOT POTATO FLOUR</span>)<br />
1/4 cup arrowroot<br />
2 1/2 tsp baking powder<br />
1 tsp salt<br />
1/2 tsp xanthan gum<br />
1/4 tsp baking soda<br />
6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce<br />
3 tablespoons vanilla extract<br />
1/2 cup hot water<br />
1/2 cup vegan powdered sugar (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">I couldn't find this for the life of me. So I didn't use it.</span>)<br />
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Preheat the oven to 325 F. Brush 2 madeleine trays with coconut oil (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">or you can use the canola oil, or in my case, your trusty coconut oil spray</span>) and set aside. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.<br />
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, vegan sugar, potato starch, arrowroot, baking power, salt, xanthan gum, and baking soda. Add the 1/2 cup coconut oil (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">or canola)</span>, applesauce, and vanilla and stir with a rubber spatula until the batter is smooth. Gradually add the hot water, stirring constantly, until incorporated.<br />
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Drop a rounded tablespoon of the batter into each mold, gently spreading it to fill the mold (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">make sure you fill them so they'll rise up nice and plump</span>). Bake for 12 minutes, rotate the trays, and bake for 6 minutes more, or until the tops of the madeleines are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let stand in the trays for 15 minutes. Place the cooled madeleines on the prepared baking sheet and dust the tops with the powdered sugar.<br />
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Look at how beautiful and brown they came out! The coconut oil gives the cookie a beautiful, crunchy, buttery crust. Next time, I'll use coconut oil in the batter, too. Inside, the cookie was moist and fluffy, with a fragrant vanilla aroma.<br />
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A dozen of these were nicely packed away in a holiday box for Tana...and the other dozen? Well, those stayed right at home with me. And they were delicious dunked into a big cup of hot cocoa. Try them!EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-91857350044563240372012-01-03T13:43:00.000-05:002012-01-03T13:43:17.139-05:00A New Year's Day Treat: Pioneer Woman's Blackberry Cobbler w/Honeyed Greek Yogurt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After a night filled with drunken New Year's Eve revelry, my friend Tana and I decided to spend New Year's Day in the most lazy and relaxing way possible. We slept in, made a super tasty brunch of Biscuits and Sausage Gravy, ate pita chips with huumus and black pepper Boursin, and watched a lot of television. We watched Anthony Bourdain's The Layover, which is pretty damn awesome, and The Pioneer Woman's cooking show on Food Network. Most of you know of my love and affection for all things PW, so I was excited to finally watch the show. It was just as adorable as I'd hoped it would be, and one of the recipes in particular was piquing my interest. </div>
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The finale after their scrumptious looking pot roast sunday dinner was a buttery <a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/08/the_great_cobbl/">blackberry cobbler</a>. It was golden and cake-y, probably closer to a buckle (made with fresh fruit and a cake batter) than a traditional cobbler. But since she made it, she can call it whatever she likes! Tana and I had bought Greek yogurt and blackberries to make little parfaits....but I figured that the fruit would be better put to use making a delectable dessert instead. </div>
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The recipe is so easy, you could probably make this blindfolded, but you probably shouldn't. </div>
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Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and while that's heating up, butter a baking dish. We used a 9 inch cake pan, and that seemed to work fine. Then, take a cup of self rising flour (Now I know most of you don't have this in your kitchen...I know we didn't. Thanks to the interwebs, I found a recipe to slap together your <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/self-rising-flour/">own</a>.) and mix it with a cup of sugar in a medium sized bowl. Whisk in a cup of milk and 1/2 a stick of melted, unsalted butter until it's all combined. Pour the batter into the baking dish, and then scatter 2 cups of blackberries all over the top. Sprinkle another 1/4 cup of sugar over the top for a little sparkle and crunch. Pop it in the oven for an hour, until it's golden and puffy.</div>
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We used raw brown sugar because it was what we had on hand the result was even more delicious. It was a deep golden brown with a chewy/crunchy crust, and I think it went well with the blackberries. </div>
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We didn't forget the Greek yogurt though! I mixed some of it with a little bit of honey, and dolloped its creamy deliciousness right alongside the cobbler. See? HEALTHY. And just in time for the new year. </div>
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<br /></div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-8243687877195732011-12-06T12:31:00.001-05:002011-12-12T16:29:28.751-05:00Frozen Yogurt Adventure/Experiment: Lemon Ginger Fro Yo<br />
When I was a kid, I was in love with Dannon's Lemon flavor yogurt. There was something about its tangy, yet sweet, flavor that drove me wild. My mom would buy tons of it because I'd go through it so quick. She would jokingly say that there was something unnatural about a kid liking yogurt this much, and that she'd soon have to hook me up to a yogurt IV drip. Which come to think of it...sounds kind of gross.<br />
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Damn, Mom.<br />
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Anyway, they stopped making it at some point during my grammar school years, and I was all sorts of heartbroken. Fast forward to the present....<br />
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I'm a baker for a <a href="http://robicellis.tumblr.com/">very lovely cupcake company</a>, and sometimes we have by-products of things left in the kitchen. We were making Hot Toddy cupcakes, and those are topped with our hand-candied lemon peels. We had a ton of lemon syrup leftover from the peels we'd candied, and I volunteered to give it a home. But what the hell would I do with it??<br />
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Then, across the sands of time, my 7 year old self reached forth, and her little hands tugged at my apron...she turned her big brown eyes up and me and said:<br />
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"Lemon yogurt, please?"<br />
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How could anyone say no to a 7 year old version of themselves?<br />
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I remembered that Alton Brown had a tasty looking recipe for <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/good-eats/lemon-ginger-frozen-yogurt-recipe/index.html">Lemon Ginger Frozen Yogurt</a> from the Good Eats episode "Good Milk Gone Bad", which was all about yogurt making and yogurt recipes. It didn't use lemon syrup....but I thought I could maybe change that. I planned to stick to the recipe, but make some changes along the way.<br />
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My cast of characters:<br />
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That brown bottle right there? That's Ginger Syrup, made by a delightful little company called <a href="http://www.morriskitchen.com/">Morris Kitchen</a>. They're from Brooklyn, and their syrups are made in small batches. I was lucky enough to pick up a bottle of their Ginger Syrup and their Boiled Apple Cider Syrup at a market. I honestly haven't used them much, aside from making some kick ass ginger ale, and a really good bourbon apple cocktail. I really wanted to see what the Ginger Syrup could do for this recipe.<br />
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Instead of using regular yogurt and straining it overnight, I decided to use my favorite Greek yogurt. It's already strained! Use 32 oz of it and put it in a large bowl.<br />
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Next, zest and squeeze two lemons to get 2 tsp of zest and 3 tbsp of juice. My lemons were pretty large, so I think I got a little more than that, which was fine with me. I wanted the yogurt to be bright and full of lemony goodness. Instead of the 3/4th cup of granulated sugar, I substituted the same amount of lemon sugar syrup.<br />
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I know it looks curdle-y now...but just whisk it it, and it'll look fine and homogenized.<br />
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I started adding the ginger syrup a tablespoonful at a time. After two, I was pretty satisfied with the taste. Always taste when you're cooking or baking! It helps to develop your palate, and it lets you know if you have to add more or less of something.<br />
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Whisk it in, and then grate in your fresh ginger. The recipe also calls for crystallized ginger, but 1. I didn't have any in the house, and I didn't feel like candying my own and 2. I wanted the ginger to add a slight fresh bite, but keep the lemon as the star.<br />
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After more whisking and tasting, it was exactly where I wanted it. I put it into a clean container, covered it, and let the flavors marry overnight.<br />
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Before throwing it in the ice cream machine the next day, I gave it one more stir and taste. Mmm, yes, I was ready to roll.<br />
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I turned on my ice cream maker, and poured the yogurt mixture in.<br />
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I let it churn away for about 25 minutes. When the yogurt is thick, frozen and smooth, you're done!<br />
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Now, you're supposed to let this freeze up solid...but, we're all friends here. You know I have no patience whatsoever. So, I dished up a pretty little parfait glass for myself.<br />
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I know it's melting...but it's still lovely. I even drizzled a wee bit of ginger syrup on tops just for kicks. And the taste, oh the taste! Tart, sweet, a warm bit of heat from the ginger, but still distinctly lemony. I think my 7 year old self would be quite pleased.EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-87506445789484572352011-11-07T14:03:00.000-05:002011-11-07T14:09:55.085-05:00Food Therapy<br />
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The first time Tana and I ever cooked together, we were huddled together in her small, hot as Hades, Brooklyn apartment at 3 in the morning, making the biggest batches of mac and cheese and spinach artichoke dip we'd ever seen in person. Sweaty, tired from working at our day jobs, we toiled over her demonic stove top that only had two working burners and an oven that was over-enthusiastic in its heating capabilities. Little did we know that in between me falling asleep at the stove and her wilting into the dip, that we were fostering an even deeper level to our friendship.</div>
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We rarely have days off in tandem, so when we do, we try to fill them with as much food as possible. Tana had suggested two yummy recipes from the website <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/">Smitten Kitchen</a> for us to make: <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/09/roasted-tomato-soup-with-broiled-cheddar/">Roasted Tomato Soup</a> and <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/09/red-wine-chocolate-cake/">Red Wine Chocolate Cake with Mascarpone Cream</a>. Oh yes, this was happening. </div>
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We started by slicing up some lovely Roma tomatoes for the soup. A little olive oil, salt/pepper, and crushed dried rosemary for good measure, all tossed around on a baking sheet. We set it in the oven for about an hour at 400. </div>
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Tana had also nestled a little aluminum foil packed of olive oil drizzled garlic cloves in the middle of the red melee so it could also roast and get delicious. </div>
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I made sure to scrape the seeds from the tomatoes lest they get bitter on their roasty-toasty journey..but instead of throwing them away, I drained them of their clinging liquid, and reduced it in a small saucepan over a low flame. I stirred it constantly so it wouldn't burn. I let it reduce it by half, and it got thicker, and its smell got more...tomato-y and rich.</div>
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After an hour, look at these ruby beauts:</div>
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I will neither confirm nor deny that I sneaked a few bites. </div>
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Take the tomatoes, the garlic (after you've separated and peeled the cloves of course) and your tomato juice reduction, and plop it in a food processor. Pulse until you get a mix of chunky and smooth (or you can make it all the way smooth if you like). </div>
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Combine the puree with 4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock (we used water and half a veggie bullion cube - yay for substitutions) and crushed red pepper in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and then drop the heat to a nice simmer, and let it cook for 25 minutes. Of course, add salt and pepper to your liking. </div>
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Now, in the recipe, a little cap of delicious bread and cheddar cheese is placed on top of the soup (which is in an oven safe mug), and broiled almost like a french onion soup. Tana chose to do hers up that way. </div>
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But hell, I wanted a full sandwich! And I love savory and sweet, so I made a cheddar grilled sandwich on sourdough...with this spread on it. </div>
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Caramelized apple preserves from <a href="http://maidenpreserves.com/">Maiden Preserves</a>. Apples and cheddar cheese are a really classic combo, and the tart, caramel sweetness from the apples go great with the sharp salty cheddar. This was bliss. </div>
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And for dessert, a simple, but creative cake made with red wine and cocoa powder. It's just flour, brown/white sugar, cinnamon, salt, cocoa powder and some other requisite cake essentials...with the boozy, tannin-rich hit of red wine. I love that you can use which ever kind you have on hand (except for cooking wine of course...yuck) because it makes the dish super flexible. </div>
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The batter goes into a lined & greased 9 inch round cake pan and bakes at 325 for 25-30 minutes. To make it pretty, it got a dusting of powder sugar and a dollop of mascarpone cream. Mascarpone, vanilla, heavy cream and sugar...that's it! I really love simple recipes that come out this stunning. </div>
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Tana and I cook together to experiment with new recipes, to play with our food, and to comfort each other. Is there a more tangible way to show your love for your friends than with a fine meal? I think not.</div>EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-69060956472497001822011-10-20T14:06:00.000-04:002011-10-20T14:06:31.378-04:00A Guest Post, M'dears....Seeing as that I've been VERY busy making my transition from wage slave to baker (I work for these fine folks right <a href="http://robicellis.tumblr.com/">here</a>), I've not been paying my attention to you guys...FEAR NOT. I will soon get some posts up here. But in the meantime, enjoy this pumpkin-centric guest post that I did for Shawn over at <a href="http://eatdrinksnack.com/index/2011/10/20/a-tale-of-two-pumpkin-drinks.html">eat!drink!snack! </a><br />
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Enjoy, kids!EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-68524467679717590282011-09-28T16:48:00.000-04:002011-09-28T16:48:01.626-04:00NYC Honey Festival Part 2 - The DinnerEven though the <a href="http://www.nychoneyfest.com/">honey festival</a> itself had ended, the main event was just beginning. <br />
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Motorboat and the Big Banana, Sharon Is Karen, and Caracas Arepas Rockaway (three vendors on the <a href="http://www.rockawaybeachclub.com/">Rockaway boardwalk</a>) came together to offer a delicious honey themed dinner at the sweet price of 20 bucks a plate. Kira and I stuck around to take part in this pretty righteous bounty. <br />
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There was fried chicken with spicy honey butter sauce (the chicken was soaking in a big buttermilk bath and was fried fresh), collard greens with bacon, honey baked beans, and blue cornbread. I'd never eaten baked beans made with white beans before, but they still tasted delicious. The cornbread? Well...I can be rather picky with cornbread, and this was a little dry. So, I just slathered it in the <a href="http://www.mikeshothoney.com/Home.html">Mike's Hot Honey</a> I had bought earlier. Kira did the same, and soon it was all gone.<br />
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And for dessert, a beautiful honey tres leches cake, with raspberry coulis and walnuts:<br />
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Perfectly moist and sweet. The raspberry coulis added some lovely tartness and the walnuts lent their toasty crunch. I think this was all 20 smackers well spent, don't you?<br />
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And best of all, we got to eat with this beautiful view:<br />
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<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-3605860110122954622011-09-23T11:06:00.000-04:002011-09-23T11:10:31.843-04:00NYC Honey Festival 2011 - Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL5MTYu2J9HOF-ptfAackWZZ4ChdGHleOcuKQ52WvXDpAecqvXqDnQrmRQQt5J64sewhh2-ew5tVM-eue1uR-N3pCQg6WXM8h-hT-XEE3_pfVAn0eCYYq4YoQpTg4OmJdvYRuFPlR2_44/s1600/Pics+025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL5MTYu2J9HOF-ptfAackWZZ4ChdGHleOcuKQ52WvXDpAecqvXqDnQrmRQQt5J64sewhh2-ew5tVM-eue1uR-N3pCQg6WXM8h-hT-XEE3_pfVAn0eCYYq4YoQpTg4OmJdvYRuFPlR2_44/s320/Pics+025.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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An incredibly sweet way to spend the day, yes? The Rockaway Beach
Boardwalk in Queens played host to the first <a href="http://www.nychoneyfest.com/">New York City Honey Festival</a> (hosted by the Queens based <a href="http://www.brooklyngrangefarm.com/">Brooklyn Grange</a>) this past weekend, and two of my friends and I decided to check
it out.There was no better way to celebrate the first year of legal NYC beekeeping.<br />
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It was a gorgeous fall morning/afternoon....really glad that the weather was behaving itself.<br />
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This tempting delight was our first stop:<br />
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Why hello there, <a href="http://www.mikeshothoney.com/Home.html">Mike's Hot Honey</a>! This spicy blend of honey, vinegar, and chilies has long been on my wish list. Mike's assistant was slicing up chunks of Manchengo cheese and crusty bread for samples, and of course we pounced upon it like hungry mice.<br />
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The burn of the honey is warm and complex, rather than astringent. Sweet, but ends with a tingly bite. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibLNDzRZ1c7ImN08uVCgOcaq1bwSUwhabfbLJvP_hfcjkzWWmbIeK0KCbeahKGquFKe4WqQ_SJ1So_uxn9PlEZmdv-RAiUth_H1lyU7WfweoRW3iy5ydVtmdSm3jOJNmRNGEXXzDmycXs/s1600/IMG_4888.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibLNDzRZ1c7ImN08uVCgOcaq1bwSUwhabfbLJvP_hfcjkzWWmbIeK0KCbeahKGquFKe4WqQ_SJ1So_uxn9PlEZmdv-RAiUth_H1lyU7WfweoRW3iy5ydVtmdSm3jOJNmRNGEXXzDmycXs/s320/IMG_4888.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Commerce! And a happy customer.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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As we walked through the tables we spotted:<br />
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And silk-screening, courtesey of the Bushwick Print Lab<span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"></span>:<br />
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And:<br />
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I was this close to getting a little bee painted on my cheek, but I held off because I thought I'd look silly.<br />
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We then ran into the Backwards Beekeepers NYC table:<br />
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which was covered in:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK89Vz3F2SbFX5K4FiU5tNcn6Hr-yww2_HIdYwC77qNMbXeYHG914XpbrpEsW4MZKNbiVTueo26bsreSavB31K31_D7dZbnvLSzDxmXTGC2o8VyckV7jg9szf0nU1xAWvIR1DcGUsYp0Y/s1600/Pics+033.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK89Vz3F2SbFX5K4FiU5tNcn6Hr-yww2_HIdYwC77qNMbXeYHG914XpbrpEsW4MZKNbiVTueo26bsreSavB31K31_D7dZbnvLSzDxmXTGC2o8VyckV7jg9szf0nU1xAWvIR1DcGUsYp0Y/s320/Pics+033.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BEES!!!!</td></tr>
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Nothing to fear though, for they were all under glass. It was crazy how busy they looked. <br />
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Behind the boardwalk concessions, local beekeepers were demonstrating how they extracted honey from their hives throughout the day.. Tim O'Neal of <a href="http://www.boroughbees.com/">Borough Bees</a> talked about his hives and explained how the bees made the honey. <br />
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After the hives were uncapped (the bees seal the combs with wax when they're full) , they were ready to be spun in a honey centrifuge (the hand crank kind was in attendance, so you had to use some elbow grease to spin it):<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH11_GOZK9UKx_EVCwvIeMLvgek4BlaYBsWTd2zSFXJhtf_aufxXp0RwbvwzzE7gfKZAuR0iz2CnLnScxvfuhsZYHza2f7RiKgXMBTUlqXgex-IMCt2Ifhhi5uXF2LLSNmNJNjfw7nI94/s1600/Pics+039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH11_GOZK9UKx_EVCwvIeMLvgek4BlaYBsWTd2zSFXJhtf_aufxXp0RwbvwzzE7gfKZAuR0iz2CnLnScxvfuhsZYHza2f7RiKgXMBTUlqXgex-IMCt2Ifhhi5uXF2LLSNmNJNjfw7nI94/s320/Pics+039.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And there's the honey coming out of the spout. From there it can be strained to get out stray pieces of wax, or just bottled as is. <br />
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I also bought a wee bear of Summer honey from Seward Trail Honey, which has liquid gold from various parts of the year.<br />
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<a href="http://sixpoint.com/">Sixpoint Brewery</a> was also on hand to quench our thirst with some honey brewed beers. I chose the pale ale, Little Buzz. It was smooth drinking with just a kiss of sweetness. There was another brew, I think it was called Medium Dark? But I think Little Buzz won my vote. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTDlxoRCuqX3cMMzw705FHwELUJKhLOmB4Gf55EDPvRX_Taf_1PGqLcbMEaL1ZMX3tNWwaDDAo4Xpu8yWLhT-eoqvARGt0jGIx8MtxYCoBb0qDpyk57TFqdjWmBGR_QrxKz5eM8OiAuBo/s1600/Pics+057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTDlxoRCuqX3cMMzw705FHwELUJKhLOmB4Gf55EDPvRX_Taf_1PGqLcbMEaL1ZMX3tNWwaDDAo4Xpu8yWLhT-eoqvARGt0jGIx8MtxYCoBb0qDpyk57TFqdjWmBGR_QrxKz5eM8OiAuBo/s320/Pics+057.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kira and I, all smiles. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSaJYCBcsQu47kvCgcmqIfN9u0QJZKNt97Nt1QdUKfDEprrG-kr6zNMFlMk8GlismYinv564tAQvcg5VuXD2Up4AWmlG5-kLpKf0xX3VfoaEssH9HQszDjswhjVH6OOubXgnA1erRMpbI/s1600/Pics+058.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSaJYCBcsQu47kvCgcmqIfN9u0QJZKNt97Nt1QdUKfDEprrG-kr6zNMFlMk8GlismYinv564tAQvcg5VuXD2Up4AWmlG5-kLpKf0xX3VfoaEssH9HQszDjswhjVH6OOubXgnA1erRMpbI/s320/Pics+058.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">John, taking a sip. </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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But, I think the COOLEST part of the day, was helping beekeeper Ralph Gaeta of Buck and Billie's Honey get some honey out of some particularly stubborn combs. Kira and I really got our hands dirty; She held down the centrifuge, and I used my very long arm to scrape every drop of honey towards the spout. Nary a drop was wasted!!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDRxTXMmifMzNAEDAKF4_5hIfbV2fGSr3KnDTV7si7AzdL4zT5V2pokqsr-H-n8JKhbELjNJg6fC6y_7sEMn1CPN4CFgiQBi3EkziiKpzPUVc0CfZ_xAZg8vwaV22dSZB_BgwmByV_CkA/s1600/Pics+067.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDRxTXMmifMzNAEDAKF4_5hIfbV2fGSr3KnDTV7si7AzdL4zT5V2pokqsr-H-n8JKhbELjNJg6fC6y_7sEMn1CPN4CFgiQBi3EkziiKpzPUVc0CfZ_xAZg8vwaV22dSZB_BgwmByV_CkA/s320/Pics+067.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Let it begin!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVfPgZy0AP5JeOfbx7nR0KptLPWextgHr2ChGyc3yw01Bi7ouv78kMwBbVV8fPwxaU0PqX4Y4VP7fN7tox55gMhDqeJdutN90sNhuIuXq8Ntvs_8LxehSuK0ys_jN4UVpnUbuIGm-wQjI/s1600/Pics+063.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVfPgZy0AP5JeOfbx7nR0KptLPWextgHr2ChGyc3yw01Bi7ouv78kMwBbVV8fPwxaU0PqX4Y4VP7fN7tox55gMhDqeJdutN90sNhuIuXq8Ntvs_8LxehSuK0ys_jN4UVpnUbuIGm-wQjI/s320/Pics+063.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teamwork! On the left, Kira. On the right, Ralph.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidU9TZV8CgNCGqprSFXOX7C_HjrJVMc7tp6Ob3ehi4-620yc-P3UheToGuH0uuI5pS3tdWhpCi0dNnh5hdpeVhP4An8kO_BMy0WCn40_CJdycROi5qprcI_YSzVQX6re2FhTvw5zhBFh8/s1600/Pics+064.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidU9TZV8CgNCGqprSFXOX7C_HjrJVMc7tp6Ob3ehi4-620yc-P3UheToGuH0uuI5pS3tdWhpCi0dNnh5hdpeVhP4An8kO_BMy0WCn40_CJdycROi5qprcI_YSzVQX6re2FhTvw5zhBFh8/s320/Pics+064.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Straining the liquid gold. The wax bits left over, Ralph will use to make candles.</td></tr>
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And here are some humorous photos of me not wasting any of the honey that had stuck to my arm:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiscZFM1Kzob9hsDF94YeKG2_2cETJp4ZQeo8ombazF_aKsymVTv6G4wb8UnH3f5-yr-ccXbVA0IDXDzSmjq8ZaZCxHu7SHqviq2xlLS6xa72YzVRwsuM5ucfRONeG9dVAUA8o3Trf-8a4/s1600/Pics+070.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiscZFM1Kzob9hsDF94YeKG2_2cETJp4ZQeo8ombazF_aKsymVTv6G4wb8UnH3f5-yr-ccXbVA0IDXDzSmjq8ZaZCxHu7SHqviq2xlLS6xa72YzVRwsuM5ucfRONeG9dVAUA8o3Trf-8a4/s320/Pics+070.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXMjBJ9JpjQY_9VImgXXdyW1DEwzOBc0sG-KE80RrRpKA2VDUw9G91sq85JOql0sNbRBHaTg1wHiND-3yzBU_Vevn8hfjenfYwY-rymy-MDgKHUyVD1zkJYghj9aYOOn12NJt1EO1Wc48/s1600/Pics+072.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXMjBJ9JpjQY_9VImgXXdyW1DEwzOBc0sG-KE80RrRpKA2VDUw9G91sq85JOql0sNbRBHaTg1wHiND-3yzBU_Vevn8hfjenfYwY-rymy-MDgKHUyVD1zkJYghj9aYOOn12NJt1EO1Wc48/s320/Pics+072.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You really can't take me anywhere.</td></tr>
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Since we were so helpful, Ralph reserved two jars of his amazing honey for us before he sold out and it was definitely money well spent. <br />
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Here is a little bee enjoying some honey from the Honey Tasting, where Ralph got second place!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4-ekdzAU9_-lAlsgVKAaVqTqFhFy_msoGV18ECQDK9T1E8Iav_YvJMwB8GgH0F7i-YNl9jmvbjyfcE_6oQAMkh1abSz5XBtRCtg5VZv9DETufoX1EhbS4tYPoXTVDeIPt_MB-gckdXbY/s1600/Pics+078.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4-ekdzAU9_-lAlsgVKAaVqTqFhFy_msoGV18ECQDK9T1E8Iav_YvJMwB8GgH0F7i-YNl9jmvbjyfcE_6oQAMkh1abSz5XBtRCtg5VZv9DETufoX1EhbS4tYPoXTVDeIPt_MB-gckdXbY/s320/Pics+078.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Please don't sting me.</td></tr>
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After all of this carousing, it was time to take a relaxing walk on the beach, and catch a bit of the sunset. <br />
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But after all of this honey and other treats from the Rockaway Boardwalk, we were still hungry. Thank goodness there was a honey themed dinner in store for us.....stay tuned for the thrilling and belly filling conclusion in my next post! EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-27642149065955096582011-09-21T16:14:00.000-04:002011-09-22T15:48:51.313-04:00New York Craft Beer Week Dinner - BLT BurgerOh yes, that time has rolled around again, guys....<a href="http://www.nycbeerweek.com/">New York Craft Beer Week</a>! I haven't been able to be as active as I'd like to be this year (my beer passport is being woefully underused), but I knew when I saw the special NYCBW <a href="http://www.e2hospitality.com/blt-burger-new-york/2011/09/07/ny-craft-beer-week/">menu</a> at <a href="http://www.e2hospitality.com/blt-burger-new-york/">BLT Burger</a>, that I couldn't possibly pass it up. <br />
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Three courses (I had 2 choices per course) were paired with three beers from <a href="http://www.breckenridgebrewery.com/">Breckenridge</a>, a microbrewery out in Denver, Colorado. I love finding new beers to try, so the fact that this was from a brewery I didn't know made this all the more exciting. <br />
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First Course: <br />
Fried Green Tomatoes w/Buttermilk Ranch Dipping Sauce served with Breckenridge Agave Wheat<br />
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This was the first time I'd been served batter-dipped dipped tomatoes, I'm more used to the breadcrumb/cornmeal variety...and I dare say that I enjoy the latter more. The hot batter coating kept slipping off the tomatoes! In spite of that, the green beauties were tangy and very tasty. The Ranch dressing provided some kick. <br />
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So, this beer right here? I need to find out where I can get it here in NYC, because it is just fantastic. Between the hint of lingering sweetness from the agave and the smoothness of the wheat, I could have drunk this all night long. A great pre-dinner beer and a nice introduction to this brewery.<br />
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Second Course:<br />
Mac and Cheese Burger - Fried Mac and cheese patty, caramelized onions, beer cheese, bacon, and BBQ sauce served with Breckenridge Ball Park Brown<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjoyG9Co7g41bJpzE806adzRtHvcm-JuA1mFyWXIq7fNTIPzscJu47DyLHarORqxatizvho4-cG1jHpQ99tQdzeDki4MKYWiY82h1DiCXLLmzyXBeXjqZeGiTz3ruO3UCMNAYP66b_11c/s1600/2011-09-16+22.36.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjoyG9Co7g41bJpzE806adzRtHvcm-JuA1mFyWXIq7fNTIPzscJu47DyLHarORqxatizvho4-cG1jHpQ99tQdzeDki4MKYWiY82h1DiCXLLmzyXBeXjqZeGiTz3ruO3UCMNAYP66b_11c/s320/2011-09-16+22.36.22.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Oh yeah baby. Read that description again if you don't believe me. This burger could have been an outright disaster; it has way too many components to be structurally sound, and delicious. But...it was exactly that. The mac and cheese patty was crispy and flavorful...and the cheese was GOOEY. I'm very particular about mac and cheese, and this was delicious. The bun, perfectly toasted. Ordering the burger medium, instead of medium well made a difference, too. The juiciness of the burger ran into the other condiments, combining to make this dish really pop. It did a great job of turning something gimmicky into a burger that I wish that BLT would put on their menu permanently. <br />
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The slightly smoky flavor of the Ball Park Brown complimented the burger, but also let it shine; there were a lot of strong flavors going on here, and it was just assertive enough. Again, a very smooth drinking beer. The taste almost reminded me of a slightly bolder Newcastle. <br />
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Dessert:<br />
Breckenridge Float - Vanilla Porter, Vanilla Ice Cream, Graham Cracker crumbs<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhvBj1LKyPQvnC8OGC2-eeTWzwdqdhB3aH8PqndqXGESFx6i7HygujsymgJrV2g7QjI_g-Xr_DRjGjX96uVZHs3uoAWrBUQlj7Adb8Nr42ZfHtU3rPNXpvIbEQOWN1ZSgv7_HKj_pcBBU/s1600/2011-09-16+22.45.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhvBj1LKyPQvnC8OGC2-eeTWzwdqdhB3aH8PqndqXGESFx6i7HygujsymgJrV2g7QjI_g-Xr_DRjGjX96uVZHs3uoAWrBUQlj7Adb8Nr42ZfHtU3rPNXpvIbEQOWN1ZSgv7_HKj_pcBBU/s320/2011-09-16+22.45.07.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Yum, yum, and more yum. So many flavors going on here: sweet, bitter, creamy, and spicy. The porter was divine, very rich with deep vanilla tones but never delving into a syrupy treacle. I would have liked some whipped cream and salted caramel...but that was only an afterthought. <br />
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This menu is only good until September 25th, so if you liked what you saw here, make sure you get down to BLT Burger. New York Craft Beer Week seems to just bring out the best in restaurants. <br />
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<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-67806419205935534482011-09-02T12:00:00.000-04:002011-09-02T12:02:46.267-04:00Eating My Words: Chocolate Crumb Cake From BabyCakesOkay, so does this look gluten-free, sugar-free, and vegan?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAuPafXcCodqIpIjg80cbLaTgwMVhyphenhypheng83IqeMA-QxLACe0-fIQJqeWCp6QZi9ukCbJyZ76z6OoFuwViov1hs9A-cxcYk9SQbxABZRlmI8KYMKE6JeQRWpNQIMDGRm7oXdhJ1yROZJRR6Y/s1600/IMG_0076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAuPafXcCodqIpIjg80cbLaTgwMVhyphenhypheng83IqeMA-QxLACe0-fIQJqeWCp6QZi9ukCbJyZ76z6OoFuwViov1hs9A-cxcYk9SQbxABZRlmI8KYMKE6JeQRWpNQIMDGRm7oXdhJ1yROZJRR6Y/s320/IMG_0076.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It doesn't taste like it either. <br />
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<a href="http://babycakesnyc.com/">BabyCakes</a> in the Lower East Side is pretty much the place in the city to get your snack on if you have certain dietary restrictions. They carry cupcakes, scones, donuts (!), and other delights that are either vegan, dairy-free, sugar-free, soy-free, kosher....you name it, they have it.<br />
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Now....I don't usually like vegan baked goods; let's be real, I loathe them. Greasy with oil, very heavy, off tasting...give me butter, sugar, and eggs any day of the week, please. But after I had tried their mini donuts at their boardwalk location on Rockaway Beach, I decided to relent a bit, and expand my horizons. Because those donuts were really damn good. Moist, cakey, and light, with gooey icing. You really can't go wrong with that.<br />
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This <a href="http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/2011/08/dish_no_64_baby.php">Village Voice review</a> encouraged me to do just that, and I picked up a slice of this cake. First thought: this is thing is HUGE. When I opened the clamshell case, all I could smell is chocolate. A good sign. <br />
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My first bite: oh dear Jesus. Gooey, dense chocolate goodness. The chocolate sauce drizzled over the top was delightfully sticky, the crumb topping, slightly crunchy. It's sweetened with agave nectar and pears, but you can't really taste them very much. I'm gonna guess that they use a really intense cocoa powder, because this was as rich and complex as any chocolate cake I've ever had. I ate half and saved the other piece to have with my lunch the next day, and it was still pristine.<br />
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So, don't worry, I'm not abandoning my precious eggs, milk, and sugar. No way, no how. But it's nice to know there are tasty, quality options for folks that want them. EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4971768868327832226.post-23223910397580303932011-09-01T15:16:00.000-04:002011-09-01T15:27:11.351-04:00What's a cure to the End of Summer Blues? Brooklyn Cured.On Tuesday, I had the pleasure of going to <a href="http://trophybar.blogspot.com/">Trophy Bar</a> in Brooklyn to go to the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp6Gsp3vAeh-q6bggHIT6h2BmXb1nSS-jch5eHopUiWc7qHI1mcMxdsq5rZ2fdQfLrSbi3mMNGh8aoSAC6Ktc-IQSyQagyyiaLu4sXfc06sRLb3OqKxHxv0szOn-Ik6dsiZWAGXhgUGqoG/s1600/summer_8_30.jpg"></a><a href="http://www.brooklyncured.com/index.htm">Brooklyn Cured </a>Cookout. What can complete a summer night better than the aroma of grilled meats wafting in the twilight air?<br />
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Brooklyn Cured was started by Bensonhurst native, Scott Bridi, as an antidote to the lack of imaginative charcuterie on New Yorkers plates. Everything he makes, from the sausages, the bacon, to the smoked pork rillets (a sort of spreadable pulled pork) is done small batch style to ensure its deliciousness. The cookout was a great way to be introduced to his product line in an intimate, super relaxed setting. <br />
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My favorite dish of the evening? The Chicken Chorizo Slider, with a cilantro and grilled scallion pesto and a vinegar red cabbage slaw. <br />
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So usually, when you think slider, you think of a thimble-sized sandwich/burger/whatever that barely has any flavor and doesn't stick around long enough even if it had any. Not this one. The sausage patty was thick, juicy, and smelled fantastic. I loved how vibrantly colored the condiments were.The taste, even better. Incredibly succulent because of the dark meat, and very flavorful without being too salty. I never imagined applying the flavors of chorizo to chicken before, but now I definitely won't count it out. You can make a satisfying sausage with chicken!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A closer look at this thing of beauty. </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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The tangy crunch of the vinegar-based slaw and the pungency of the pesto kept the sandwich from seeming too rich. I think the only additional thing I would have liked from this sandwich was if the brioche roll was toasted, just a little bit. Toasting bread just adds another textural component for me that I really enjoy...but it was only a minor point off. I also had another sandwich, the Hot Italian Sausage with Provolone Fonduta, which was very tasty...but I think this little gem stole my heart. <br />
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<br />EatinistBitchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03371745493609635118noreply@blogger.com0