Gotham Gal

Keeping in touch

This past weekend, I have come to realize, as it hit me right between the eyes, what life is going to be like as the nest continues to empty out. 

First of all, I really wanted to get out of town on Friday morning.  I need it.  The kids staged a coup and I lost.  Serious drag.  We ended up staying in town and running a variety of errands that needed to get done, that would be getting Jessica a car for school.

On Saturday, Fred and I decided to do a double header at the movies.  We saw The Fantastic Mr. Fox which is genius.  Funny, clever, different and absolutely worth seeing.  Our second flick was The Messenger which is intense.  Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster play 2 army officers who are the messengers to families that they have lost their loved ones in the war.  Unbelievable performances all around.  After, Fred and I made our way over to Pylos and sat at the bar to have dinner.  Good Greek food -  always crowded.

So, let's get back to keeping in touch.  Truth is, if Jessica was in college, I wouldn't know where she was at anyway at so I didn't feel I needed to know where she was last night although we were texting during the day.  Josh was on the town from hanging with friends at our house to going to the movies to getting more friends and eventually making his way back to our house for a group sleepover.  Our home seems to be one endless party.  It was all about texting, talking and just knowing where he was all night long.  I trust him, I just want to know where he is.  Emily also had a day.  She was out with friends, eventually having dinner with Jessica and hanging out with friends at a bar downtown.  Totally cool but her phone was out of range.  I called her friend looking for her and ended up calling Jessica and found out she was with her.  Emily talked to me and I said, I totally trust you, I just want to know where you are at, and I have not talked to you since 4pm and it is now 1030, so not cool.  It is all about keeping in touch.  With the cell phones, it is easy to do.  In the city, everyone is doing their own thing, as they should be at this age, we just all need to know where we are.  It actually makes for a good connection.  No excuse not to send a message.

On another keeping in touch moment.  Fred and I came back from dinner and saw that our friend checked in on Four Square at a bar right near our house so we walked in and ended up hanging out with him and some other friends for a while.  Love that.  The beauty of Four Square and social networking. 

At the end of the night, Fred and I called it quits and of course, I heard the party continuing at our house around 1am when it woke me up as Emily rolled in with a few pals and hung out with Josh and his pals.  The endless party, perhaps, but at least I know where everybody is.

Spicy Squid Lentil Stew

I have been off the blogging grid for the past few days as I managed to drop my camera with all my Thanksgiving pictures on it.  Good news, new camera comes tomorrow so I will be back on the grid.  This particular picture here comes from my blackberry.

Jessica is still home, until tomorrow, and seafood had to be part of dinner and I felt like we needed something hearty.  God knows why, we have eaten more food than necessary over the past few days.  I made this up and I got the nod from everyone, even Josh.

2 1/2 lbs. squid, cut in 1/2" pieces plus tentacles
2 cans (12 oz) crushed tomatoes
2 large carrots chopped into small pieces
1 vidallia onion chopped
3 stalks of celery chopped
8 ounces (roughly) of chorizo cut into small pieces
1 cup red wine
2 cups french lentils (or other lentils)
4 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf, 1 tbsp. dried thyme, 1 few peppercorns (all this should be in a cheesecloth or a spice bag)

In a large stock pot, cover the bottom with olive oil.  Once it get hot, put in the carrots, onions and celery.  Turn the heat down to medium and saute until soft (about 5 or so minutes).  Add the chopped chorizo and continue to saute until the chorizo gets crispy.  Add the red wine and crank up the heat to high and boil this down until there is very little wine left.  Add the lentils and mix until completely combined with everything else.  Pour in the 2 cans of crushed tomatoes, spice bag and chicken broth.  Bring to boil and then down to simmer.

I put a folded piece of parchment paper on the top with a tiny hole in the middle.  I let the stew hang out for about 30 minutes or so. The lentils should still be a tad crunchy.  At this point, I added a few pinches of kosher salt.

In a separate frying pan, cover the bottom with olive oil.  Once it gets really hot, add the pieces of squid in separate bunches.  You don't want to crowd the pan.  Stir and after about 1-2 minutes, take out and put in a separate bowl.  Continue to fill the boil until all the squid has all been flash fried.  I seasoned it with a little salt before frying the squid.

Once the 30 minutes is over with the first round of the stew, pour in the flash fried squid and continue to let the stew cook, with the parchment paper back on top, for about 30 more minutes. 

The lentils should be done, the squid should be soft before serving.  If it takes another 15 minutes, then let it be.  I served this with a baguette and oozing burrata.  A nice Sunday dinner. 

Oh...Thanksgiving is a family affair

 
This is my friends card.  HIlarious. 

Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodle Bars

I saw these on Tastespotting and then after spending minimal time realized that this recipe had been passed around, obviously a hit.  I tweaked the pumpkin pie part a bit so here is my version.  BTW, my mother-in-law would love these...she is the snicker doodle queen.

Snickerdoodle:
3 cups flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature if you remembered
1 tbsp. vanilla

Pumpkin Pie:
1 cup flour
1 cup white sugar
1 stick butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ginger
2 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin

Topping:
2 tbsp. white sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a 9 x 13 pan and lay a piece of parchment paper across the bottom.  It really does help.

Snickerdoodle:
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and then set aside.  In a mixmaster, beat together the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth.  Mix in the flour over a course of 3 separate times until completely mixed in.  Spread evenly in the pan...it will be thick, like cookie dough.

Pumpkin:
In a mixmaster ( use the same bowl after wiping it down ) mix together butter and sugar.  Add the rest until combined.  Make sure it is really mixed together.  Pour over the snickerdoodle layer.

Sprinkle sugar/cinnamon over the top evenly.

Bake for 35 minutes or until done.  Insert a toothpick to make sure it is done in the middle.  I probably could have let mine go another 5 minutes.  Got a little mushy but it is okay.  Let the pan cool completely, like an hour, before cutting.

I am wrapping them up in tin boil on a plate for the next 2 days...hopefully they will last til Thursday.  I took one pic with my camera, the other with my blackberry.  I can't seem to figure out how to get the camera to take a clear close-up.  Alas.

Travel Agent anyone?

We do a fare amount of traveling.  I certainly do some serious research before going anywhere and believe it or not, I always use American Express to book my tickets.

There are a few reasons.  One, if Amex books your tickets, regardless of the color of your card, they are happy to provide you with help if you need to change your flights.  Flights canceled at the airport, being somewhere that you need to go at the last minute and they have access to all the airlines which is a huge bonus.  I have also found it helpful for figuring out how to use the accumulated miles which you never seem to be able to use when you want to.  BTW, I do check the flights and prices before calling/emailing AMEX because I want to be informed but I pull the trigger through AMEX.

One caveat is not everyone on the other end of the phone is knowledgeable.  I have been using the same guy for years.  He is the best.  I just shoot him and email and he is on top of it, always.  I have sent people his way. Today he did something that was beyond the call of duty which is why I had to write this post.

His name is Wayne Bolton and if you have an AMEX card, and want to use the travel department, ask for Wayne.  He is fantastic, knowledgeable, knows the system, crosses his t's and dots his i's.  Best part, he is free.

Chocolate Thumbprints

Emily and my niece made these on Saturday night.  They were gone by Sunday.  I barely caught the few left to take a pic.  A Martha Stewart recipe from her Cookie cookbook.  A great addition to any kitchen. 

2 sticks unsalted butter, plus 6 tbsp. at room temperature
1 cup confectioners sugar
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
6 ounces semisweet chocolate
2 tsp. corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper (parchment is key)

In an electric mixing bowl with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, confectioners sugar, salt and vanilla on a medium speed until smooth.  About 2 minutes.  Beat in the flour. 

Form balls using about 2 tsps of dough for each ball.  Place them about 1 inch apartment on the baking sheets.  Bake for 10 minutes, remove from the oven, press a thumb into cookies to make deep wide indentations.  Rotate the pan, put the cookies back in and bake for another 7-9 minutes or until done.  If the indentations start to lose definition, take the cookies out and try again.

Combine the chocolate and remaining 6 tbsp. butter and corn syrup in a small sauce pan and heat over a very low heat.  Stir until melted and smooth.  You can also do this in a double boiler but I find if you use a really heavy duty sauce pan over a low heat, it works just fine. 

Allow the mixture to cool just a little bit until slightly thick.  Fill the thumbprints with the chocolate mixture and let cool until they firm up.  Really really good. 

Beef Bourguignon

My niece loves to cook.  This summer, she made a special request that when she came to NYC for Thanksgiving that we would make Beef Bourguignon together like Julia Child.  How could I resist?

I am not a huge fan of Beef stew but this turned out fantastic.  Beef Bourguignon is basically Coq Au Vin with beef.  I prefer Coq Au Vin but beef was the request.  I believe it had to do with the movie when the blogger Julia makes the Beef Bourguignon for the food writer and she ends up burning it, staying home the day next to make it again and in the end the writer doesn't show.  I can tell you, it doesn't take much effort to get this right.

This is what we did for 10 people and there wasn't a drop left.   

Chunk of bacon cut into small sticks - 8 ounces.  ( I used a smoked ham hock and a few slices of bacon instead )
4 lbs. of stewing beef cut into 2 inch cubes
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into small pieces
1 sweet onion thinly sliced
2 1/2 tbsp. flour
3 cups of a full-bodies red wine.  ( I finally bought a case of inexpensive wine for cooking - I used a Malbec but a Chianti would be great too )
2 - 3 cups of beef broth
1 Bay leaf
1/2 tsp. thyme
2 tbsp. tomato paste
2 bags of pearl onions
1 1/2 lbs of cremini mushrooms, quartered

Preheat the oven to 450.

In a nice sized Dutch Oven ( I prefer the Le Cruset pots ), cover the bottom thinly with olive oil or vegetable oil over a high heat.  Add the bacon/ham hock and turn the heat down to medium low.  I let this saute for about 5-6 minutes or until the fat started to render in the pot.  Once that has happened, take the bacon/ham hock or whatever you used out and set aside.

Season the meat with salt and pepper.  Turn the heat up to medium high.  Put about 8 cubes of meat in at a time, leaving space in between each of them, and brown.  At one point, I poured in a little more olive oil because the pan was getting burnt so keep olive oil on hand.  When each piece gets browned, take each out and set in a bowl. 

Once all the meat is browned, add in the vegetables.  Saute on a medium heat until browned.  I had very little fat in the pot so I didn't pour anything out after this.  If the vegetables are sitting in fat, although browned, take a slotted spoon, take out the vegetables and set in a bowl.  Then pour the fat out of the pot, use a paper bowl to wipe it down and continue.

At this point, the vegetables are back in the pot ( or they never left ).  Add in the meat and bacon.  I took out the thin bacon which I used just for flavor but did put back in the ham hocks because they are substantial in terms of heft.  Then sprinkle the flour over the meats and mix.  Once the flour is completely incorporated, put the pot, uncovered, in the oven and set a timer for 4 minutes.  When the timer is up, take the pot out of the oven, mix again and then put back in the oven again for another 4 minutes.  The meat should get a little crispy and the sauce, actually oil and meat drippings, will have thickened.  Turn the oven down to 325.

Now, back on the stove, pour in the 3 cups of wine.  Gauge how far up the meat is covered.   You want the meat barely covered.  I poured in 2 cups of beef broth after that and was fine.  Go with your gut.  Add in the tomato paste and the bay leaf and thyme.  I put the bay leaf and thyme in a small cheese cloth satchel so it didn't mix into the sauce.  Makes life easier in the long run. 

Pour this back in the oven, and let cook for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until the meat can easily be pierced with a fork.

While the beef is cooking, do the onions and mushrooms.  The key to the pearl onions is putting them in boiling water for 2 minutes, then strain and cool down with cold water.  You can cut the end of each onion and then using your fingers, pinch the onion and the skin should easily slip off.  Josh mastered this by the end.  Once you have finished all the onions, put them in a small saute pan and almost cover them with beef broth.  Bring to boil and then down to a simmer, cover and let braise for about 40 minutes.  Once done, drain the broth, put the onions back in the pan and let them hang out on the stove until later ( no heat ).

The mushrooms, once quartered, should be browned in 2-3 tbsp. butter and possibly a little olive oil as an extra bonus.  Once they have browned, just turn off the stove and let them hang out.

When the stew is ready to come out of the oven, pour the mixture into a strainer ( sieve ) over a saucepan.  Put the meat mixture back into the pot (minus the sachet of thyme and bay leaf).  Skim the fat off the sauce and simmer for a few minutes.  The sauce should be relatively thick.  If it isn't, boil it down a bit regardless boil it down for at least a minute or 2.  Worse case scenario, take equal measurements of butter to flour ( 1 tsp of each ) and mix into a paste.  Put that into the sauce and whisk until the sauce gets thick.  I can't imagine that might happen but you never know.  The sauce should be pretty thick coming out of the oven. 

Mix the mushrooms and onions with the beef and bacon.  I took the ham hock pieces that I could find out at this point because some had a bone on it.  Once this is all mixed up, pour the sauce back over the meat and serve.  I served rice on the side and a simple salad but egg noodles is more classic. 

This can easily be made earlier in the day.  Once you strain the sauce, let that sit separate from everything including the onions and mushrooms and put everything back together ( warm the sauce ) before serving. 

The Noodle Bar

Last night we went to the Noodle Bar for dinner.  As I have said before, and I will say again, there is a reason that David Chang is such a successful restaurateur...the food is innovative, delicious and like nothing else out there.

The place was jammed.  We decided to literally taste everything.  We began with a pickled scallop served in a deep spoon with nori, braised onions and cilantro.  It was a one bite treat to kick off the meal.  That loaded with tons of sakes, you really couldn't go wrong. 

The next out was the Fluke.  Thinly sliced fluke rolled standing up right over an apple puree, thinly sliced celery and an olive oil.  SImple and fresh tasting.  Quickly the next thing that came out was a pear salad.  3 types of pears, all poaches served with chopped hazelnuts and a Greek yogurt.  Different and not something I was expecting at the Noodle Bar.  One of the specials last night was an Escarole salad.  Honeycrisp apples, sliced thin, with thinly sliced radishes and a mustard vinaigrette.  Nice and light.  Very fall like salad.

Then things started to come quicker.  Of course, we had to split a pork bun.  Honestly, they are so good that you want to have more and always regret not ordering more.  It is not easy to make the actual bun part.  I have tried.  Many steps and there is something to it.  Steam buns that are sliced half way through stuffed with pork belly that has been braised forever so that it is falling apart and a dollop of hoisin sauce and some scallions.  Simple , sublime and not easy to make.

We then started hitting up some sides.  Roasted brussel sprouts with bacon, kimchi and sliced carrots.  So good and when did brussel sprouts become so big.  Didn't we all hate them growing up?  With that came out the Kale.  This one was of my faves.  Chopped sauteed kale that was still crispy and very dark green with thinly sliced fennel, pickled something and cooked in a pork broth.  It was excellent.  We also had the Tokyo turnips.  Very small turnips almost the size of a pearl onion braised in miso butter with pearl onions in the dish and chopped chives on top. 

We had an order of chicken wings which at the Noodle bar are made with pickled chili, garlic and scallions.  The other dish which was a special last night was the striped bass.  A nice size piece of Striped Bass, roasted with crispy skin and tiny pieces of cauliflower mixed in a salsa verde sitting in a beet jus.  Quite good and different. 

Next out, one of my faves at the Noodle Bar was the rice cakes.  Roasted rice cakes that are tossed in a red chili pepper sauce with sesame.  Signature. 

The last special was the duck breast.  Thinly sliced, crispy skin with roasted cipollinin onions, chopped celery in a spicy carrot puree.  Quite good.  With that came the one bowl of Ramen which is essential.  Big bowl of soup with ramen, pork belly, pork shoulder and the most perfectly cooked soft poached egg that you have ever seen.  Crack the egg and mix it up.  Sooo good. 

Special of the night was they had brought over a big bowl of the fried chicken from Momofuko for us.  If I had known that was coming, I would have not ordered the wings.  Momofuko was closed for a private party last night which how we ended up at the Noodle Bar.  There is nothing quite like their fried chicken.  Pieces with a crispy Old Bay crust and the other type comes with a spicy chili glaze.  Oh wow. 

We were so stuffed but they brought us out a small bowl of sweet potato pie crust soft ice cream twist.  It tasted like Thanksgiving dinner.  Of course, we polished that off too.

All and all, an incredibly experience.  I have yet to go to Ko and really need to get there.  I have never ever had anything but a fantastic food experience at everyone of Changs restaurants.  A serious food genius. 

New Amsterdam Market

 

The New Amsterdam Market only takes place four times this year.  There is one left on December 20th.  It is a really cool market place that is reminiscent of what markets must have been like 200 years ago.  The Greenmarket with the twist of local purveyors selling their goods.  Cheese-mongers, bread bakers, farmers, wine makers, etc.  It was a foodies dream.

My brother came in this weekend with his family for Thanksgiving.  His kids have the week off.  My niece, who is 8, is totally into cooking and food.  This past summer, right after she saw Julia and Julia, she asked me if we can make Beef Bourguignon together like Julia Child when she comes at Thanksgiving.  So, today, not only did we make our stew, we also did all the shopping before hand.  It was seriously memorable. 

We had parking karma too.  We drove down to the market which is located on South Street between Peck Slip and Beekman Place.  We got a space, legally, right across from the market the second we got there.  We took out our cart and began.  I knew this was going to be good because the first stall I saw was fresh oysters being shucked.  Love that.

Our first stop was the braised brisket from Jimmy's.  Delicious flavorful pulled brisket over a crispy thin cracker and a thin layer of spicy mustard.  Our first taste of the day and a good one to kick the day off with. 

After that, we made our way stall by stall and attempted to try everything that was being given away and make some purchases too.  Zone 7 was one of the stalls with vegetables and fruits.  We picked up some onions, brussel sprouts and apples for our meals this week.  After that we saw Rick at Ricks Picks and Ruby was thrilled to get a pickle on a stick.  I don't think there was a kid at the market place without a pickle on a stick. 

We continued onward and stopped by Saxelby's cheese.  Anne was there and not only is she incredibly sweet but her cheeses are incredible.  My niece tasted a variety of cheeses and ended up picking 3 for pre-Thanksgiving festivities.

We continued to taste.  I loved that my niece would wiggle her way to the front, grab one of the tastes that were being given away and if she liked it, she'd ask me if she wanted one too because she really didn't want to share.  She realized very quickly that she liked every taste and starting just getting 2 each time. 

There was another vendor with cheese and pates.  The pates were fantastic, didn't buy but we did taste figuring too heavy for the week of eating ahead.  We found McEnroe Organic farm and got a mixture of beefs for our stew and some ham hocks to substitute for the bacon.  We also saw wonderful organic cranberries. 

After we wanted something more substantial and found Porchetta which had a booth and for the $5 sandwich, you really can not go wrong.  Rosemary slathered pork that has probably been cooking for 12 hours, literally falling apart between a small roll.  I know my niece was hesitant about sharing because it was so damn good. 

Finally found our way to Sullivan Street Bakery where we bought a baguette for dinner tonight.  They didn't have everything we needed at the market place so ended up at Citarella on the way home but we spent easily over an hour plus there and it was fantastic.  Bumped into a bunch of people, all food people, and just loved it.  Worth making the trip on December 20th but bundle up!

The Upholstery Store

It has been a grueling week.  I seriously need some R and R and possibly sun?  I got movie tickets for tonight but honestly, that was too much.  Both Fred and I crawled down the street to have a few glasses of wine, cheese, pickled veggies and some sausages.  It was the perfect meal and so low key.  They actually have landjager on the menu which is a sausage I grew up with.  My father used to take us to the local deli in Los Angeles, the German ones and get us landjager sausages which we gnawed on.  To me, it is still the ultimate sausage.  Served with horseradish and mustard.  I was in heaven.  Great wine bar too...part of Wallse.  Super smart addition to their umbrella.  The bartender serves the wines, by the glass or bottle, and serves up your appetizers behind the bar.  Low cost and lots of pleasure.