Father’s Day
Whether he’s cooking for you or you’re cooking for him, happy father’s day to everyone spending the day in the kitchen! Read more
Jun 20
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Jun 18
Grilled Tuna Steak with Roasted Tomatoes
I wish I had the ability to just stroll over to the farmer’s market, grab a couple of beets, some Swiss chard, and an apricot and turn it into a feast by finding inspiration in the season laid out under tents and weighing down tables. But that would mean giving up the planning, the list, and the check off which I also love, especially the list. Read more
Jun 15
Food is Art
I’ve written about the Red Hook Food Vendors before (click here) but it’s wasn’t until this past Saturday that I visited them on their home field for a tour led by Chef Aaron Sanchez, part of the Food is Art culinary program, a series of lectures, classes and special events curated by Zarela Martinez in conjunction with the Mexican Cultural Institute of New York. Read more
Jun 12
So Far, Yet So Near
I am always looking for the best ingredients, but there are some things I just can’t find nearby and some I probably shouldn’t be able to find nearby. I try to stay local but the temptations of a jet-setting Prosciutto di Parma or a well traveled Chinatown dragon fruit can be difficult to resist. Still, it’s hard not to wonder what your missing when someone else does the picking and packing. The subtle differences between varieties and vendors that you can only discern when it’s close to home. That’s why, when trying a new cuisine, dessert can be the best place to start. I may not find the right Peruvian pepper or Argentinian zapallo, but milk, grains and sugar are universal and need little translation (or transatlantic travel). I’d been looking for a Chilean recipes to try and found several I wanted to include but kept circling back to this custard made with semolina and wine syrup (wine being the exception that was meant to travel the earth). Read more
Jun 9
Vaca Frita
I’ve wanted to make vaca frita for awhile. Literally translated as “Fried Cow”, I hesitate to order it at Cuban restaurants. While I love the combination of crispy beef and caramelized onions sprinkled with lime, too often it’s more fry than cow. Read more
Jun 8
Gourmet Latino Festival
This past Sunday I was invited to “Feel the Spirit of Brazil” at the Gourmet Latino Festival’s cachaça tasting seminar led by The Brazilian Kitchen’s Leticia Moreinos Schwartz and Olie Berlic. I have to admit that I was mostly looking forward to the petiscos: pão de queijo (cheese rolls), biscoito povilho (yucca sticks), croquette de carne (meat croquettes), and brigadeiros (chocolate fudge truffles) but there was more. Read more
Jun 5
Shaking It Up
Today I took my first steps in what I hope will end with the triumphant crossing New York City marathon finish line and not sleeping through the Staten Island start, crying on the 59th Street bridge, or passing out in Central Park’s closing stretch. Looking ahead the long Saturday training runs I have planned between now and November, I decided to play around with fresh fruit batidos (also known licuados or preparados depending on the accent). Read more
Jun 2
Hungry on the Cooking Channel
I first read that the Food Network would be launching a second cable channel on Memorial Day in February, when summer seemed a long time away. A few weeks later, a friend recommended me to a production company that was looking for food people to talk on camera about their interest, love, passion for food to promote the new channel. After years in film production, I’d been content to stay behind the camera. If they’d asked me to “audition”, I may have backed down, but they called it a “screen test” instead. Actors “audition” but at a “screen test” you can just be yourself (or Lana Turner). That’s a how I find myself, a week later, getting wired for sound in a New Jersey produce market (very unlike Lana). Read more
Catching Up in May
I collect links and articles for my monthly catching up posts every day so it’s not until I sit down to go through them all that a theme emerges. The New York Times City Room covered the struggles of two neighborhood restaurants. Due in part to the efforts of community leaders and a last minute fundraiser, Coqui Mexicano was able to temporarily stave off eviction from their South Bronx location but Manhattanville’s La Floridita, one of the last Cuban restaurants left in the area, was forced to close for repairs and faces an uncertain future. The Village Voice interview with Fernando Ruiz of the Tortilleria Nixtamal, which is doing well, was about mistakes, misconceptions, and underappreciated ingredients — a more interesting read but still. Even news that Rick Bayless would be preparing the state dinner President Felipe Calderón of Mexico stirred up some controversy both before and after. On a brighter note, Carolina González wrote for the Daily News about the prominence of women chefs and restaurateurs like Zarela Martínez and Sue Torres in high-end Mexican cuisine. I thought May would farmer’s markets and spring blossoms but there were some shadows too.
May 29
Ricotta Gnocchi with Pea Puree and Jamón Serrano
I’d been waiting for spring to try these ricotta gnocchis with pea puree and jamón serrano. The ñoquis del 29 are meant to attract prosperity, so a little extra green can’t hurt. Read more
hungry sofia 