Gotham Gal

Sunday dinner

 Fred promised I would blog tonight's dinner.  Just a note, I am getting all new plates that will be white.  Not making the change until we move but it should be a huge plus for the food pics.

Tonight was a mixture due to a few things.  One, Josh is still getting used to the braces and needs soft food.  Two, Jessica doesn't do risotto so I needed a salad as an addition to suit her.  Three, it had to be fish because Jessica really doesn't do veal ( I considered veal ) and Emily doesn't dig it either.  Sound annoying?  Believe me it is.  Trying to be creative nightly is not my favorite job.  Speaking for every Mom I know, it is a drag.

Tonight's menu was English pea asparagus risotto with browned scallops, rock shrimp and grilled Sea Trout with a side of arugula, strawberry, roasted pine nut salad. 

Risotto:
3 large shallots chopped
3/4 cup white wine
4 cups chicken broth - warmed
1 1/2 cups aborrio rice
1 bunk of asparagus, slice off the tops and then slice one more round  down ( about 1/2" each )
1 pound of English peas shelled (you can easily do frozen peas here but they were at the market)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 tsp. kosher salt - if needed, cheese can be salty

In a large sauce pan, cover the bottom with olive oil, when hot, add the shallots.  Saute until soft.  Add the rice, continue to stir.  Add the wine, and boil down until there is very little left.  Add 2 1/2 cups of chicken broth, turn down to medium and let the broth continue to boil down.  Stir every couple of minutes.  You really do not need to stand over risotto.  Just make sure you pay attention every few minutes and stir.  Once this starts to boil down, add the rest of the chicken broth and do the same.  When you can see the rice starting to come through but there is still a lot of liquid, toss in the peas and asparagus.  Then let the mixture continue to boil down.  Right at the very end, add in the cheese.  This is when you think the risotto is done but it isn't.  Let it cook for about 5 more minutes.  Make sure to taste to see that the rice is done to your liking.  This takes about 20 minutes or so.

Scallops and rock shrimp:

I took a frying pan and 2 tbsp. butter and some olive oil and let it melt until browned.  Then put the scallops in and let them hang out on one side until completely browned, then flip.  For the rock shrimp, just quickly fry up.

Trout:

Fire up the grill, douse the fish with olive oil and kosher salt and put the fish on the grill, skin side down and let it hang out until done. 

Salad:

baby arugula
8 sliced strawberries
4 tbsp. pine nuts ( put them in a frying pan with a little olive oil, heat up and shake for a few seconds )

Dressing:

1 tbsp. dijon vinegar
3 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp. soy sauce
 9 tbsp. olive oil

That's it.  Lots happening but it appears that everyone had their needs filled.  They might not have got what they wanted but at least they got what they needed. 

                    

Ollie

I literally spent Saturday not moving from the couch.   I was hit with a bronchial infection.  Love the Z pack as I am finally feeling normal again.  In my boredom, between movies and reading, I took a few pics of Ollie.  He is getting bigger and is definitely become a part of the family. 

Barbuto

Barbuto is literally a block from where I live so I have been there many times.  In all honesty, I have never been wowed by the food but there are a few things they do really well.  First of all, more than anything, the space is fantastic.  Glass windows that are rolled up during the summer to create a garage feel.  It is pretty great. 

There are 2 private rooms.  One in the front, where you don't get the vibe or feel of the restaurant.  The other one is in the kitchen where you can basically seat 12.  The pros are that you are in the kitchen and the place is rocking, the cons are that you can't hear a thing.  I was in the kitchen last night for a private party.  Also, Jonathan Waxman (owner and chef) was in the kitchen early in the evening too.  First time I have actually seen him there.  This restaurant has been a huge success for him. 

The menu was made for the party so it was family style of a variety of their dishes.  A nice way to taste everything.  We began with the Antipasti course.  Prosciutto, salty thin bread sticks and pieces of rosemary focaccia.  Didn't taste the focaccia but the prosciutto was excellent.  They have a fine looking prosciutto slicer in the kitchen.  We also have grilled ciabatta that had been rubbed with garlic and then a thin layer of ricotta lathered over the top with some ramps.  A nice start.  The other plate was a large salad of baby arugula, sliced artichokes, pine nuts and shaved ricotta salata.  Not that interesting and was in desperate need of dressing or something to connect the flavors.

Next out was pasta.  Josh and Fred rave over the pasta at Barbuto.  It is their spot, at the bar, when nobody is home for dinner by the two of them.  Small pan fried gnocci with sliced asparagus, english peas and some pancetta.  It was garlicky so I passed but people raved.  The thick pasta Bolognese was really good.  A ragu of pork, veal and prosciutto.  Full of flavor and really rich.

For the next course we had a taste of all their top main courses.  The chicken is roasted in the brick burning oven and topped with a salsa verde.  The chicken is always a hit here and just cooked to perfection.  We also have the thinly sliced rare skirt steak with slabs of grilled onions and a chili salsa.  The meat and onions had the same marinade.  Really good steak, lots of flavor too.  The other was the whole roasted black bass served with pickled ramps.  They do a great job with the ramps.  The fish was filleted and then served.  It was well cooked but a tad bland.  We also had some grilled asparagus on the side, tis the season.  The best of the veggies was the small carrots and sugar snap peas which were cooked in something that made them taste almost sweet and savory at the same time.  Really yummy.

Dessert was cupcakes for the crew.  They came from Barbuto.  I don't know if the pastry chef made them or they brought them in from another place but they were excellent.  The cupcakes were moist with a super dense milk chocolate frosting.

It was a really nice evening, a celebration of someone's bday.  The place was hopping.  The food was good but the biggest issue was the noise.  When I went to the bathroom, the sound dropped off immediately when I left the kitchen.  Just something to keep in mind for parties there in the future.

Five Napkin Burger

After leaving the theater at the civilized hour of 9pm last night, we went to find a place for a light meal.  Theater started at 7 last night which is music to my ears.  8pm means you have to eat at 6 and ending at 10 or later means eating too late.  So, theater on Tuesday is a favorite.

We strolled over to Esca first.  The four bar seats were taken.  There were definitely some seats available, it was 915, and we would have sat down and ordered perhaps a few appetizers or more but unless we committed to ordering 2 courses, they wouldn't seat us.  I get the rule but it is a Tuesday night, in the theater district at 915 and we are in the midst of a not so great economy.  Whatever.  We left.

Wasn't in the mood but there were 2 seats at the bar at Five Napkin Burger.  Once you walk into the place, your senses take over and you gotta have a burger.  We sat at the bar and split the Original Five Napkin burger.  A 10 ounce burger with comte cheese, caramelized onions on a soft white roll.  We took the rosemary aioli on the side.  Of course, fries come with that.  BTW, the picture above is right off their website and this is exactly what the burger looked like.

If it wasn't for the seriously bad hard rock music, which I attempted to tune out, this is a great little spot.  The burger was really good.  Juicy, flavorful, soft bun, just the right amount of cheese and onions.  Fries were really crispy too.  When all else fails in the theater district ( most of it is always failing ), this is a winner. 

Accent on Youth

Maybe it is the economy or maybe theaters are advertising more but I have seen an ad for Accent on Youth daily.  It is a MTC production where we are patrons.  I had to reschedule 2 times but we finally go made it last night.  It got pretty good reviews. 

The play is performed at the Biltmore Theater on West 47th street and that is a bonus right there.  This particular venue was renovated a few years ago and there is actually real room between you and the seat in front of you.  You can move around and stretch your legs.  What a concept. 

The production is starring David Hyde Pierce who is absolutely the star of the show.  I am not sure the show would have been as good without him.  It is a 1934 revival which is about the age old question, can a man in his early 60's find love with a woman in her late 20's. 

This particular piece revolves around a very successful absorbed playwright and his young secretary who has been adoring him in the wings for the past 3 years.  The play is funny with some clever lines.

 As Fred put it, an entertaining 2 hours and Pierce makes the show.  I couldn't have said it better myself. 

Life needs to be flexible

Perhaps it is my age, perhaps I have always rolled with the punches but as a rule, I believe that life needs to be flexible.

Jessica and I had a conversation last week about goals that she is setting for herself.  She is incredibly driven and desires to achieve many things.  No surprises, she really tilts toward a more entrepreneurial life style.  One where you have more control over your life from decisions to vacations. 

We went on to talk about family and kids.  She asked me if I knew of any woman who is successful ( successful is a broad term but she said that meant running a large company, preferably their own ) who was able to have kids and a happy marriage.  She felt that something had to be compromised in order to achieve her own personal goals and have the happy marriage and kids.  Pretty smart for 18 years old. 

The more I thought about it, the more I think Jessica might be right.  I consider myself successful but for many years I didn't feel that way.  I had always envisioned myself running a big company or having my own business but in the end, life needed to be flexible.  I had a few of those opportunities over the years but I turned them down to be home and be a support system for our lives ( that would include sending my husband to medical school - just a term but you get the gist ). 

As I explained to Jessica, life needs to be flexible.  Goals you set out for yourself might be achieved and they might not.  Many times over the years, at certain forks in the road, we ( Fred and I ) made decisions that made sense for our life and our kids.  I probably was a little more flexible on the stay at home path for a time being because I was able to create something unique for myself so I didn't completely leave the work life.  I also didn't want to be a disconnected parent and my fear was that if I took that "big job" that I would become that.  Doesn't mean I would but I thought I might. 

I was talking this weekend about the concept of how life can't be set in stone.  My friend told me about his father who had started a computer company in 1966, way before its time, but his brother got cancer and everything changed.  His motivation changed and he went down a different path.  Women, who are on a path of taking over the world, all of a  sudden have a kid and they make a big U turn and want to be home.  A tragedy, a miracle, a shift in one's partners career can set your life down a new road.

Bravo to being 18 and having a path that you want to follow.  I am still thinking about that woman who has it all.  I am not sure it is possible.  Maybe if your husband stays home and deals with all the other stuff.  Obviously if you don't have a choice and you have to work, you can attempt to have it all but it is tough.  I look at many successful women who are divorced.  Their relationships with their children appear to be good but maybe the marriage is where they chose to not work as hard.  Relationships are hard work just as work is hard work. 

This is a topic I have written about before but maybe this is just a tad different.  I am happy with the choices that I have made and I made them for a reason.  Maybe the next generation, like my girls, will make other decisions based on the decisions that I made which did or didn't work for them.  I am sure I made many decisions because of the decisions my mother made.  Either the same or the complete opposite. I am not sure it is getting easier, it is just changing. 

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

On Sunday, I drove the kids to Montauk for their respective activities.  Made me think about what life would have been living in the suburbs.  I remember as a kid driving my bike everywhere until I got a car.  When did the world shift to parents becoming chauffeurs until their kids can drive?  Maybe it was always like that but my parents didn't get with that program.  Anyway, after dropping Josh off at Putt-Putt with his friend and taking Emily and her crew to Joni's for lunch, I went to the book store and searched for a cup of coffee. 

The book store in Montauk is quite pathetic as I believe they are going out of business.  But there was one long table with about 15/20 paperbacks on it.  I had read most of them and I took that as a sign that the few that I had not read must be good as I basically enjoyed the rest of them.  I picked up Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay.

I started the book in the car waiting for the kids and finished it today.  The book is based on a piece of French history.  In July 1942, the French police rounded up thousands of Jewish families.  The French separated the men, shipped them off to the Auschwitz, then did the same with the women.  The children were left for days before the word came down to ship them off to Auschwitz too.  It is a nasty piece of history.

The book goes back and forth from present to past.  A journalist, Julia, an American who has lived in Paris for 25 years with her French husband and young daughter, is researching a story about this time for a magazine.  As Julia begins to learn about that part of history, the reader learns about a young girl Sarah, and what happened to her and her family in July 1942.  That part of history is called Vel' dHiv' (Velodrome d'Hiver which is the location the Jews were housed before being shipped off to Auschwitz).

We also follow a young girl, Sarah, who is deported with her parents and leaves her brother behind locked in their secret hiding place assuming she will return the next day for him.  As the story unfolds, the lives of Sarah and Julia's French family intertwines with a dark family secret.  The moving from past to present really helps the reader understand people's thoughts on that part of history today. 

Not only does the novel focus on a tragic story, it focuses on what happens when circumstances change.  I honestly could not put the book down.  I found myself weeping as the book came to some closure.  I don't think I have wept reading a book since I read Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. 

I am sure this book will stay with me for a very long time. 

The meal we wanted all weekend..

We rolled out of the east end early due to forgotten homework in the city.  It is always a sweet thing when there is no traffic.  I made it back, including 2 pits stops, in a little over 2 1/2 hours.  Love that. 

Unpacked and went grocery shopping to fill up for the week ahead.  I got the chance to make the dinner we had all been craving all weekend. 

Grilled yellow peppers, radicchio, asparagus, zucchini and a thinly sliced burrato on the side.  All tossed with some olive oil and sea salt before hitting up the grill.  The main course, grilled Sea Bream.  I stuffed each fish with sliced lemons, chopped shallots and a handful of basil.  Wrapped each with a little bit of twine and stuffed a sliced lemon underneath after dousing the fish with basil oil, olive oil and salt. 

I kept thinking about the shitty food in the Hamptons this weekend and am looking forward to some serious cooking this summer.

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day is a kick off to summer.  It is the first journey to the beach.  Cold but warm weather is around the corner. 

I find that when we come out east that I spend more time hanging at home then the city which is a nice change.  I am far from social out here.  Going out for dinner is something I try to avoid for good reason.  On one hand, there are a variety of supposed great restaurants that are such scenes that I try to avoid at all cost and truth be told, the food is just mediocre.  Then there are the local spots which can be good and low key or just god awful.  Somehow there are very few in between.  I guess I could name the few that might fit the bill but all questionable.

Last summer, we went to a local spot in Montauk called Inlet on East Lake Drive.  The food was actually quite good and fresh.  Montauk is very low key, no attitude out there.  Someone sent me an email about checking out the place next door called Fishbar so I figured why not.  I hate to say it but I believe it was the new owners that sent me the email.  New ownership, new chef, etc. 

Fishbar sort of sums up why I prefer to stay home. I won’t even go into detail about the food we ate but nothing was good.  Over peppered tuna tacos, over done fish, heavy handed on everything with nothing tasting that good.  Not the best choice to kick off the summer.  Also, the music was unbearably bad.  But a good reminder which is nothing out here is great but the beaches and the sky are magnificent and so is a home cooked meal. 

Demy

The Demy arrived at my house at the end of March and I finally got around to really playing around with it this past week.  The Demy is gadget/device (sort of looks like an old school Sonos player) that holds all of your recipes in it.  Instead of on paper, you can store everything in the Demy.  A kindle for recipes.

I plugged it in immediately, charged it up and checked out the recipes and information that had already been loaded in.  Pretty user friendly and a variety of nice additions for cooking.  A conversion table, a timer, cookbook features, categories and more.  A quick scan through the recipes and then I let it hang out in the kitchen for a while.  Every day I looked it and felt guilty about not being able to find the time to play. 

Last week, I finally got around to really playing with the Demy.  First of all, the device sits nicely on your kitchen counter.  Although everything these days seems to be built on an ipod, I am not sure I’d want that for the kitchen.  First of all, the Demy stands up, is water proof and is a better size for kitchen use.  At least I think so. 

I connected the Demy to Key Ingredient and downloaded the software on to my laptop.  A nice feature is that the recipes available through Demy can be edited so if I play around with a recipe for my tastebuds, I can make the changes permanently where on a paper recipe I just make notes with a pen.

As a whole, I like the concept.  I am sure many people will buy the device and just use the recipes provided.  For me, I have collections of recipes that I have pulled out over the years in a huge binder.  I also own many cookbooks which as time goes on, I rarely use.   I would probably prefer a Demy to come complete blank and let me slowly fill in my recipes.  Pull recipes off of Amazon, Tastespotting or even Key Ingredient.  Perhaps in the future, as people write cookbooks, like music, you can just buy a page (like a song) to download on to your device.  I know that the people at Demy are working on that with a few companies now. That would be fantastic.

One thing that I noticed with my cooking habits, is that they have changed over the years.  I used to pour over my cookbooks and I never do that anymore.  I definitely pull recipes off the different sites to make.  I still love when Food and Wine, Gourmet, Bon Appetit or Saveur shows up in my mailbox.  Based on the size of ads in these magazines ( and others ), I am becoming a shrinking audience.  More than likely I will make one thing out of the magazine or at least it will provide some inspiration.  As much as I applaud the Demy, and I can see it being a great tool for so many people and certainly a tool for now, I wonder how much I will use it.  I could send them all of my pages and pages of recipes to scan and download for my own use but the cost would be exhorbitant.  If there was a way to do it on my own, I might spend a few days on a large project.  Only time will tell.  Conceptually I love the idea of all of my recipes on my Demy.  I'd rather go through Gourmet once a month and pull the recipes I want and store them in my Demy vs my exploding 3 ring binder.   It would certainly be easier.

I do know, thanks to the owner of Demy, who gets a huge thank you for sending me one to play with, that they are starting to get reorders for larger quantities and take off.  I applaud their efforts.  Making a device with software is not a cheap start-up.  All the of the things that I want from the device is being worked on.  It might be worth creating different applications for different consumers.  One person might want all the recipes that comes with the product, others might not or others ( like myself ) might want the ability to pick and choose before the device is delivered to my door.  You buy the Demy empty and once you make the connection to Key Ingredient, you get to choose what you want in your device and that comes with the purchase.  If I could go online and go to Amazon or Gourmet.com and download my favorite stuff to create a base to layer on top of, that might be even more interesting and certainly fun and interactive to get me started. 

An interesting product.  I just want it to be filled with my stuff sooner than later.