Monday, August 31, 2009
If you LOVE yogurt, and I know you do...
Scones? Yes please.
When we were in Paris, my favorite place we went to was a small restaurant and bakery called Rose Bakery. It is owned by Rose Carrarini and her husband, who are from England, but moved to Paris to open this wonderful place. They have a big white counter to the right, just as you enter the door. It has the day's pastries, bowls of salads, pizzettes, and other stuff, all piled and stacked to choose from. Lots of people carried it out or ordered and ate there. They also have a menu to order from in the restaurant with things like pancakes, granola, toast, pastries, yogurt, smoothies...etc. for brunch, plus lunch items as well. The design was simple, clean, modern, but so cozy and warm too. We had breakfast there. It was delicious, and since it looked so good, we also had a piece of carrot cake to share, which was AWESOME. They cut them into cylinders with about a half inch layer of cream cheese frosting on top. Absolutely perfect.
fritTADA!
I was inspired by an article in the NY Times by Mark Bittman, The Minimilist, to make some frittatas emphasizing veggies rather than eggs. Although I did plan to do that with my egg dishes, I'm not really sure if there was a higher vegetable to egg content. Oh well, they were both delicious, and still very vegetable-y.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
BAKIN BREAD.
Last night I baked a batch of wheat pita breads up - just for kicks. It was the recipe out of The New Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. They are TASTY. I'm very excited about my new forays in baking. They were chewy, puffy, golden brown, and tasted a lot like the pillow-y breads I had in NYC at Taim. Homemade bread is hard to beat. I just filled it with Hummus and had some crudite on the side for dinner. Awesome.
Summer Dinner Party
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Dinner Lately
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Good new summer recipes
PIE
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Beans: It's What's For Dinner Tonight
Friday, April 24, 2009
Lentil lunch recipe
Homemade Lentil Burgers: Lunch experiment for April 7, 2009.
bell pepper-1/4 cup finely chopped
onion-1/4 cup finely chopped
carrot-1/2 grated
zucchini- 1 grated
garlic- 1 clove minced
lentils-about 1 cup cooked
egg-1
whole wheat flour (enough to bind, not wet, but sticky burgers)
seasoning salt-pinch
pepper-4/5 grinds
paprika- ½ t
cumin-1/2 t
rosemary-pinch
thyme- pinch
parsley-pinch
lemon juice- ½ lemon
salt to taste
Combine all ingredients, except egg, taste for seasoning. Add more or less of any veggies and spices as desired.
Add egg, then more flour if necessary to reduce wetness of mixture and bind.
Form into medium sized patties-I found the best way was to form into a ball, like a large meatball, then press lightly on the plate to form a round patty.
Refrigerate for later or Heat nonstick skillet with olive oil spray to medium.
Cook 2 at a time in small skillet, reduce heat to medium low and cover. Cook for about 5-6 minutes on first side, then flip, cook 4 or more minutes to desired color-brownish gold and hot.
Spread with tomato chutney or other salsa and add slice of buffalo mozzarella (this can be done while cooking to melt cheese). Eat on a bun or toast with desired accoutrements or alone with a side salad.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Sippin' Strawberries in Seattle
Monday, March 23, 2009
calexiville taverna
Three restaurants/ food places on my radar for the last bit of time here in NYC, and some additional places of note:
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Peanut butter and more.
Greetings Readers,
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
So 'snice, I've tried it twice
As promised in my previous post, my last culinary adventure took me to the little west village veg spot, 'snice. I had a terrible time deciding what to eat because everything sounded so good. This is a recurring struggle for me, especially at Vegetarian friendly restaurants.
Friday, February 13, 2009
hummus hummus hummus hummus hummus
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Oh, Whole Foods.
(I really enjoy Alton Brown, and at the same time, I just don't understand him. His knowledge of food is RIDICULOUS.)
Friday, January 30, 2009
TAIM
The restaurant: Taim.
How I discovered it: Once again, The food network taught me a valuable lesson. I look to the food network for recipe inspiration, entertainment, and general food faq's. Whenever I have access to cable television, I choose food network over almost any other show. Except perhaps top chef.
The main point is, I saw Taim on the Bobby Flay show Throwdown. The theme of the show was falafel, so Bobby went to the place that is deemed to have the best in America. I actually have not tried a very wide variety of falafel places, but in my experience, this was the best, by a mile.
Taim is located in Greenwich Village, in the heart of a foodie paradise. It's on 222 Waverly Pl, and probably cannot hold more than 7 or 8 people at a time. There is only counter space for about five to eat. I stood up at the counter next to Emily and ate.
The menu is cheap, with a really good sized falafel pita at about $5. There are three flavors of falafel to choose from- harissa (tunisian, mildly spicy), red (roasted red pepper), and green (parsley, cilantro, mint- the traditional). I had green, in a homemade whole wheat pita, which was so fluffy and perfectly chewy. It was definitely the best pita bread I've ever had. It came stuffed with about 6 falafel balls that were lightly crunchy and literally melted in my mouth. The flavor was perfect- not overly garlicky or loaded with tahini, but nicely seasoned and herb-y. It was a bright, round, and full taste...if that makes sense. It's hard to describe, other than just deliciously balanced. With the falafel itself was hummus, Israeli salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley and lemon-mint dressing), green cabbage and tahini sauce. The salad was great too, not big watery chunks of vegetables, but nicely cubed and coated in the tangy dressing. The crunch added a cool contrast to the warm and soft falafel and fluffy pita. The tahini wasn't dripping out of the pita, but it wasn't dry by any means. Once again, this sandwich couldn't have had better proportions of any one element.
The "falafel and smoothie bar" also has, well, smoothies, made with fresh fruits. There's a small selection of other items, such as sabich sandwiches and platters, eggplant salad, moroccan carrot salad, marinated red beets, tobouli, and a soup du jour. The other most enticing item was the side of homemade french fries that came with a saffron aioli. It was a big portion of golden frites for $4. If you're not a falafel person, or want to stay away from fried stuff, you can still get the pita sandwich, but stuffed with hummus and two of the salads and tahini sauce instead.
I highly recommend Taim. And, if you're gonna go, call me. I want to go back ASAP.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
So far...
My restaurant experiences have been great so far. A few stick out as exceptional places. One is Becco, an Italian spot on 46th street, between 8th and 9th. 46th is Restaurant row. I went there for Sylvi's birthday party during my first week working here. Sylvi characterized it as a place that's very swanky, for a price that's better than the usual swanky eatery. What's so unique about Becco is their pre fix dinner option, where you get either a caesar salad or a antipasti tray (AMAZING) and all you can eat of the three pasta specials of the day. seriously. The antipasti was great- an Italian white bean spread, selection of bread, olives (not a fan), fresh mozzarella, marinated tomatoes, some kind of marinated beans, and a few other things. It was really fresh and good. Then the three pastas. The waiters come by your table, each with a huge steaming pan of one of the pastas. I'm normally not a pasta person. I just think it's usually really heavy and not that exciting, but this was incredible. One was a flour-based gnocchi, with a light tomato sauce, one was spaghetti in a tomato sauce, and one was a farfalle with an amazing sauce...I can't remember what it was, and it was my favorite. There were just really great flavors and textures that made this pasta meal really worth it. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Besides Becco, Sylvi has been my go-to guide for some of my favorite restaurants in NYC.
Silver Spurs was a great brunch spot. It was fast, packed full of people, cheap, and simply delicious food. Nothing fancy, just plain good. I had an egg white wrap with mozzarella, spinach, and tomatoes. I could eat that everyday.
Karen's on Astor, right near NYU, was a really cool cafe. They make a lot of vegetarian and vegan stuff- sandwiches, burritos, wraps, soup, baked stuff, salads. It's simple and fresh and cheap. A great veggie spot for a student budget. I originally got a veggie red bean chili, then realized that it had soy in it (allergic), and switched to a shitake mushroom and barley soup (free of charge for the switch- super nice). That was delicious.
The next meal I had with Sylvi...is my favorite one yet. It's funny, because it was just a sandwich. Calling it just a sandwich is hard, because it was SO GOOD. It was Tiny's Giant Sandwich Shop on the lower east side, between Norfold and Essex on Rivington. They maybe had 7 tables. They serve meat sandwiches and salads, but everything can be made veggie to order-with a meat replacement (like chick'n or fake bacon). I don't particularly enjoy fake meat products, plus they're usually soy filled. I ordered a create-your-own sandwich on 7 grain bread (toasted- this was key), sprouts, spinach, tomatoes, cheddar, green herb mayo, and hummus. It was so delicious. I can't get over it. Usually when I make or eat a sandwich with hummus, it's spread on the bread like a condiment, for a little flavor and moisture on the bread. At Tiny's, they PILE on the hummus. It was about 1/2" thick between all the veggies. It made the hummus the focal point. It literally changed how I think of hummus on sandwiches- it is the protein after all, not just an afterthought. The combo of fresh cold veggies, the herb mayo, and a fantastic homemade hummus, with toasted bread, was unbeatable. I encourage anyone to try this one out- just make the sandwich yourself, seriously. If you can go to Tiny's, do that too. I definitely intend on visiting this place again.
The problem with NYC restaurants is, almost everytime I go, I want to go back. At the very same time, I want to try some new place. There's so much to try, but so much that's worth a second trip. Decisions, decisions.
There have been more delicious places, but this post is far too long already, so I won't drag on any more.
Until next time.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Gastroblog: A Foodie in NYC
I have never been a blogger or blog reader, but I've had sudden inspiration from my older brother, Chris, to try it out.
"Why a blog?" you may be wondering.
Well, I'm a student in Seattle, but I've taken a leave from the ordinary routine of classes, clubs, rain, and general college life to work as an intern for a theatre company in New York City.
Although my original reason for coming to the big apple was obviously the internship, the foodie in me is overwhelmed by the utter incredibleness that is the New York City restaurant scene.
This blog is meant to record all the delicious (and not-so-delicious) encounters I may have while on the East coast. Although, I'm not so sure I'll really be paying much attention to non-delicious things, so the latter will probably not appear as frequently. I'll write about the places I eat it, how I found out about them, with whom I attended them, and what I think about them.
What other unique and significant things should you know as an occasional or frequent reader of my blog: I am a vegetarian. So, don't expect any gushing reviews of the filet mignon at Tom Colicchio's Craft Steak or carnitas at Bobby's Mesa Grill. (I don't actually know if these things are on the menus, but I can assure you that I will not be eating them, even if they do exist. I also just wanted to throw in some NYC celebrity chefs to hold your attention and remind you of my excellent reserve of important chef-y knowledge. In theory, this should coerce you into believing my taste is very good, if not highly refined, and my blog, well worth reading.)
So for now, that's all. I must consider my other task while in NYC, working in the morning.
There is much to look forward to, friends. Descriptions of tasty food, including the meals I eat while saving money for restaurants, lists of restaurants I've eaten at, lists of restaurants I can't wait to eat at, and fancy multimedia digital pictures!
I'll leave you all with an amuse busch of what's to come, with a description of my latest meal.
Dinner:
Salad of mixed baby greens and herbs with broccoli slaw, alfalfa sprouts, and rice wine vinegar dressing.
Toaster-oven broiled whole wheat tortilla, spread with Trader Joe's creamy Mediterranean hummus and shredded mozzerella.
Tomorrow, I'll probably eat out, so that little homemade meal will have been completely worthwhile.
p.s. Tasty D-Lite had peanut butter as a flavor of the day, so I definitely had a cup of half dutch chocolate-half PB while I walked to the subway (the long way) on my way home today. Even with all the amazing food around, Froyo is still near and dear to my heart, and will probably always top my list of delicious things. (Plus who can think of anything better than the combination of peanut butter and frozen yogurt? Nobody.)