GASTRONORMOUS

I received this book as a Christmas gift from the Predicate. Incredibly, she hadn’t even seen my post waxing nostalgic about my one and only visit to Shopsin’s General Store (i.e., restaurant) and my determination that the book was worth buying if only to get the recipe for the caramel pecan coconut bread pudding french toast. I guess that is just how tuned in to my taste!

Eat Me is sort of half-memoir, half-cookbook, and equal parts raunch and sweet nostalgia. It is a thoroughly enjoyable read, even if you have never had the pleasure or endured the disdain (experience determined by whether Kenny Shopsin liked you on sight) of eating at Shopsins. He discusses the origins of the restaurant (it started as a general store, which explains the name of the place) in the colorful West Village, made even more colorful by the decade (the ’70s). He relates tales of his customers, his friends, and his family, who all play a large part in the running of his restaurant. He also talks about the evolution of his menu, which though enormous, is much smaller than it once was (it peaked at 900 or so items). He also explains his rules, such as no parties larger than four (and, if there are six of you, don’t even try to come in as an unrelated party of four and a party of two. He will catch on and he will kick you out), no copying other people’s orders (he believes everyone should be able to make up their own mind), and no cellphones (this should be a rule in all restaurants).

As to the recipes, I have tried one and it wasn’t terribly successful (more to come on that). But I am sure the fault is all my own, and not Kenny Shopsin’s. Or that is what I would tell him, in case he knew who I was or cared about my opinion, which I assure you he doesn’t. There are a bunch of great-looking egg recipes that I look forward to trying, though. (Alas, there is no recipe for the bread pudding french toast!)

All-in-all, if you are interested in food, in uniquely New York voices, or into hearing the stories and smart individuals who have lived unconventionally, Eat Me is worth buying.

Whenever I go to a Korean restaurant, I inevitably get hot bibimbop, which I am drawn to mostly for the crispy and delicious crust of rice that forms on the bottom of the stone pot the dish is served in. Bitten offers a different region’s (the middle east’s) tasty variation on this way of cooking rice. I think I might make it this weekend!

I had never thought of making a polenta-and-beans dish, but this one over at the Kitchn looks great.

Smitten Kitchen‘s take on mushroom bourguignon looks like a hearty and satisfying meal for a day such as today in New York—with highs in the teens!

I love Midtown Lunch‘s magnum opus on Cafe Zaiya. It is a lengthy and sweet portrait of an apparently quite popular midtown breakfast and lunch spot. The food does look great…if only I worked in midtown.

I am leery of fat-free cookies. Usually, whatever calories lost from cutting the fat are more than made up for with extra sugars. So what’s the point of losing out on all the richness imparted by fat? But when David Lebovitz says about a nonfat ginger cookie “this was one of the best things I have ever put in my mouth,” you sort of have to listen. I am a BIG ginger cookie fan, so though I am not much of a baker, I just might need to try this recipe.

If you are going to leave coffee stains on your good linen, they might as well be cute stains. These mugs have “stamps” as bases—one has a floral pattern, the other a sort of wave—so that when your coffee overfloweth, you will leave a pretty design on the table rather than a wearisome ring. What is really cool is that if you put some thought into placement, you can actually create a recurring pattern with the cups. [$56 at Greener Grass Design]

One of the unintended outcomes of this blog has been that restaurants and other companies have contacted me to offer free meals or products, I assume in exchange for a review/plug on my blog (This condition hasn’t been explicitly stated in any of the offers). Such propositions don’t exactly pour in, but I have been surprised to receive the offers that I have. Thus far, I have not taken anyone up on it. In fact, the first time someone emailed me to ask them to be their guest at their restaurant, I deleted the email, thinking it fishy. I have since learned that this sort of thing is pretty commonplace in the food blogging community.

When I review a restaurant, bar, or product on this blog, I have paid for it with my own money, received nothing in return, and the review should be considered as true and pristine as freshly fallen snow on the butt of a newborn baby. Or something like that. (I should also mention when I blog about cool products that I don’t actually own, I am not doing it at another party’s behest–these are just products I happen to come across on various websites.)

I must say, if I were ever to accept one of these invitations for free products or meals, I would still review the product in an honest, warts-and-all, manner, if I even chose to review the product at all. I would, of course, also disclose the fact that this was a freebie in my review.

I lean toward continuing to not accept such offers, but what do you think? Would this sully your opinion of my reviews? Or am I crazy to refuse, as long as I adhere to the tenets of disclosure and honesty?

Please let us know what you think by commenting below (comments are working now, btw).

After all the indulgence over the holidays, you can imagine that I wanted some healthy food after returning to post-holiday normalcy. But, as it is winter, we still wanted a satisfying meal. Am I alone in feeling mid-winter salads just don’t satisfy for dinner?

So, with some Brussels sprouts we had in the fridge, and a bunch of staples from my cupboard, I created a meal of whole wheat pasta with a chickpea and tomato sauce and Brussels sprouts on the side. I slightly browned the chickpeas, which enhances the nuttiness of this legume, and helps lend a richer flavor to the sauce without adding extra fat. To go with the pasta I made these breadcrumb-coated Broasted (c) Brussels sprouts. I say “broasted” because they are half-braised and half-roasted. It was an idea I came up with that had surprisingly tasty results! Ok, there is some butter in the recipe too—maybe I wasn’t quite ready turn to an ascetic lifestyle!

Chick Pea and Tomato Pasta

c. 8 oz. of pasta, preferably whole wheat

splash of olive oil
I medium onion, chopped
1 can of chick peas, drained
2 cloves of garlic, minced (or more, to taste)
2 T tomato paste (or paste made from tomato powder)
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp hot pepper flakes (optional)
2 cans of diced tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste

Get water boiling for the pasta. And in the mean time:

Heat up a splash of olive oil in a pot over medium-high heat, add onions, sauté until soft. Dump in the chick peas and garlic and keep sauteing until the pan is pretty dry and the chick peas are browning in spots, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and spices and stir around until the chick peas and onions are well coated. Add the canned tomatoes and stir. Let cook, uncovered, on low for 20-30 minutes (about ten minutes out, get your pasta started cooking). The sauce should be pretty thick. If still thin, crank up the heat a bit and cook a little longer. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Add pasta and give it a stir. You can add a little olive oil at this point if you want to richen it up a bit.

Garnish with a dusting of parmesean.

Serves 3-ish.

Broasted Brussels Sprouts

1 pint of Brussels sprouts, cleaned and halved lengthwise
2 cloves garlic, very finely sliced, or shaved
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 T white wine vinegar (or dry white wine)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup bread crumbs (whole wheat or white)
2 T Parmesan cheese
1 T butter, cubed into bits

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat olive oil in an oven safe sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the Brussels sprouts, cut side down. Let sit for a few minutes, add the garlic, salt, and pepper, then give it a stir (don’t worry if some of the sprouts halves flip over–they’ll get their turn). Stir intermittently a few minutes more until most of the sprouts are browned on the cut side. Deglaze the pan with the vinegar (or wine) and water, and give the Brussels sprouts a stir, scraping any browned bits of the bottom of the pan. Cook over medium for about 10 minutes until most, but not all (there should be a couple tablespoons left), of the liquid is burned off. Turn off heat.

Sprinkle breadcrumbs and cheese over the top and  dot with butter. Cook, uncovered, in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until breadcrumbs and cheese are lightly browned.

I have stood and gazed into the window of One Girl Cookies in Brooklyn many times, admiring the sweet creations that are made with the precision of Martha Stewart and the fancifulness of a cookie fairy (you know about cookie fairies, don’t you?). But I have never gone in. The place just looks too fancy, and maybe too expensive, for me. But after Eat It: Brooklyn‘s rave review, I might have to force my way in, if just for a single peanut butter coconut cookie….

Miso is one of those ingredients that irrationally intimidates me. Like yeast. Or fava beans. I don’t know what it is. It seems to exotic for my simple refrigerator to hold. And if I buy it, will I use it? And in what? Well, how about Mark Bittman‘s great-looking green beans with walnuts and miso? As usual, his recipe looks easy, elegant, and delicious.

Holy huitlacoche! If only I had known about the theater-district restaurant Toloache before I last ate in the area. NYC Nosh gives it a mostly positive review. The quesadilla with corn and huitlacoche looks totally scrumptious.

Penne alla vodka is one of my favorite pasta dishes. I often order it when I see it on a menu, but I have never actually cooked it. It just seemed like something so delicious must be really complicated. But who knew penne alla vodka is actually quite easy to make? The Amateur Gourmet did, that’s who.

In case you haven’t had the daily recommended dose of cute yet today, you simply must check out this adorable five-year-old’s cooking show. The recipe? Yummy Yummy Citrus Boys. The kid is just precious, and actually mostly seems to know what he doing (in some cases the finer motor skills aren’t tuned enough, and he makes a couple “Is this right?” glances to his off-camera parents, but hey, he’s five!). Among the pearls of wisdom he dispenses: “In order to make a batter, you must mix it.” Adorb! [via boingboing via Grub Street]

I received a gift certificate from Sur la Table for Christmas, and can’t decide how to use it. Here are some of the many options I found on their website:

I don’t have a a proper sauté pan, and really want one (I do all my sautéing in a, gasp!, skillet! How gastronomically gauche!). Most of our cookware is by Bodum, and we love it, but unfortunately, Bodum has discontinued their line of stove-top cookware.  So, it sounds simple: buy a sauté pan. But gumming up the works is the Hubs specifications as to handle form and placement in all our future cookware purchases—one of the few things about which he is a bit persnickity. The handles on Caphalon pans are too curved and too high. All-Clad handles aren’t substantial enough. But this sauté pan by Demeyere might just fill the bill, although it will also exceed the amount of the gift certificate!

I was also thinking I could get a mandoline, which would require valiantly brushing past fears that I might not actually use it. Most of the less expensive plastic models available at SLT received bad reviews on Amazon, so I’ll avoid those. Then there is the $400 Japanese number. I am sure it works like a charm—like the Germans, the Japanese know their blades—but I would just as soon risk slicing off my fingertips at a lower price point. In between is all-stainless French model, which looks sturdier, and more serious, than the plastic mandolines available. Downside: it might be heavy, so heavy as to discourage actual use, ya know.

Though I dislike one-use tools, I equally dislike unevenly sliced mozzarella in my caprese salad. I mean, don’t you? That is where this Mario Batali mozzarella slicer comes in. I am totally not kidding. Actually, come to think of it, this might be a multiple-use tool after all. I could replace my egg slicer with this, which I also use to slice mushrooms. And hey, I wonder if you could slice tomatoes with this mozarella jobby? Just imagine what a rapturously uniform caprese that would be!

I had an electric juicer once, but I almost never used it because I didn’t have the counter space to leave it out, and only had storage space for it above the refrigerator, a/k/a the small appliance graveyard. But this little hand juicer is compact enough for a respectable place among the Tupperware in an accessible cupboard. But the question is: can it possibly work? It almost looks too cute to actually work.

Or perhaps I could get a cornichon slicer. You know, just so I can say I have one.

Any other suggestions?

The Hubs and I stole away from the family events in California to have a quiet meal together just before his early departure to Alaska for work. Several restaurants in the Walnut Creek/Lafayette area were recommended to us, but we decided on Chow, mostly because it involved no driving to get to there from our starting point, but also because I went to the Chow in San Francisco once, years and years ago, and remembered really enjoying the food. The Lafayette branch is known for being a family-friendly place with more sophisticated food than your average “family” restaurant.

There was a long wait for a table at this popular place. As we stood outside debating whether we even wanted to eat in the clamorous interior, let alone wait for table there, we realized that a couple patrons seemed to be getting service at one of the outdoor tables, where there were more than enough heating lamps to ward off the chill (indeed, the people eating out there were in their shirt sleeves). After asking the hostess, she cheerily informed me that it was no problem to eat outside. And so that we did, in quiet, warm contentment.

We started off with the roasted Brussels sprouts appetizer, which was especially recommended by my brother. Boy, he couldn’t have been more right-on in his advice. It was prepared with roasted apples, which added a nice sweet foil to the sulfurous sprouts. The dish looks really greasy in the photo (actually, all the food in these pics do—it must have been the lighting), but it didn’t taste it. It was an interesting and delicious combination of flavors. The beet salad, featuring red and golden beets, along with mixed greens (though the menu stated endive), orange, hazelnuts, a simple vinaigrette, and a couple slices of toasted schmeared with goat cheese was also quite tasty. Not more remarkable than many a beet salad I have had, but tasty.

When I was taking this picture of this pizza, a patron was walking by; she looked at what I was doing, paused, opened her mouth, hesitated, then asked, “Why are you taking pictures of your food?” Oh! Those charming Californians, so unused to the food-blogging so commonplace in New York. It isn’t unusual for me to see someone else taking pictures of their food at a restaurant I am reviewing, so plentiful we are in number here. But in Lafayette food blogs seem to be a novelty. How refreshing! In any case, the wild mushroom pizza with red onions, and of course cheese and tomato sauce, was also quite good, though a bit underseasoned for my taste (but I have a salt-loving palate). The toppings were nice and gooey and the crust was crackery and thin enough to satisfy even a true New Yorker (as I understand, after living here nearly fifteen years, I can now be considered.)

All in all it was good meal. The service was pleasant, the prices were right, and the ambiance, well outdoors, anyway, was quiet, comfortable, and relaxing. Chow is definitely worth a visit if you happen to be in Lafayette, CA some day.

Chow
53 Lafayette Circle
Lafayette, CA 94549
925-962-2469

I spent Christmas Eve through New Year’s Eve in California, visiting my family. The family company was warm, the kids were equal parts sweet and fun, and the food was duly indulgent. For Christmas Eve we ate the now-traditional meal of New Mexican enchiladas made by the Hubs. He has always been well-loved by my family, but I daresay their hearts grew even fonder for him the first time he made enchiladas, with his from-scratch sauce. He also made posole, and my dad made some refried beans (also from scratch). It was quite a feast. So much so that I was too distracted by the tastiness to take pictures. The next time the Hubs graces my plate with his enchiladas, I promise to document it appropriately.

Christmas was at my Brother and Sister-in-law’s house. It was sort of a potluck affair. Appetizers were provided by me and my mom, who brought along some homemade green tomato chutney and pepper jelly (see left. Yum!), both of which she served with crackers and cream cheese, she also brought along some smoked salmon with capers. I made a family favorite, my Grammy’s cheeseball.

To go with the main course, I made a salad (nothing fancy, just some mixed greens with tomatoes, carrots, and scallions, with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette, but some mandoline-sliced carrots and tomatoes upped the aesthetics of it, which made it seem fancier than it was). My mom made some delicious green beans and my Sis and BIL brought the mashed potatoes (made with sour cream, butter, etc., as Christmas potatoes should be!). The main attractions—standing rib roast and a unusual and fabulous porcini-mushroom, spinach, and sausage stuffing—were provided by Bro and SIL. They also made an incredible from-scratch pumpkin pie using Maxine’s pie dough and filling not out of a can, but out of a pumpkin! Great! In addition we had for dessert some of mt Granny’s famous cookies. And, no I do not many one type of cookie, pluralized because of the dozens she makes. She is famous family-wide for many types of cookies, which she makes every Christmas (chocolate-mint-walnut, icebox, chocolate crinkle, and date-swirl cookies among them).

All in all, it was as delicious and satisfying as Christmas dinner should be.

Apologies for the lack of posts of late. I was out of town for most of the holidays, and when I got home my site crashed as I was trying to upgrade it.

Please tune in later today for more…

By the way, the comments are now working, so please comment away!