Sep 12
Every four years, my extended family gets together in South Carolina for a week long reunion. Synced to both the presidential election (something to argue about) and the summer Olympics (something to look forward to), we always know when it’s coming. This time I carved out a few extra days to visit nearby Savannah – a city I’ve had a crush on for a very long time. Read more
Most people referred to last weekend as the “official” end of summer. I did too though I talked myself into believing it was just the beginning of the inevitable fade-out, and there would still be a few more weeks of bursting markets and warm days. That’s why it was a shock when I woke up on Monday to a complete costume change – outside it was still hot and humid but skies were grey and the leaves were orange. Read more
Aug 29
Lately, in my heat-addled mind, the most satisfying meals can be summed up in two words – cold and simple. Though gazpacho meets both criteria, I’d yet to make it this summer. Looking for a new variation, I tried this popular recipe for gazpacho al estilo de Patricia by Spanish chef José Andrés. Having experimented with pale ajo blanco, deep pink gazpacho with strawberry and fennel, and classic red with tropezones, it was time to go green. Read more
Aug 22
A few weeks ago, I interviewed Fany Gerson for The Latin Kitchen about La Newyorkina on New York’s High Line which has become my favorite stand at one of my favorite city spots over two seasons. I love the way the park cuts into the sky line, but I hadn’t appreciated what the expanding line-up of food stands brings to the space until Fany described seeing her incandescent pops walking along the railway paths. Read more
Aug 15
The London Olympics are over, and, though it was rocky, I officially miss them. Frustrated as everyone else with the time delay, I’d stay away from any social media that might ruin my enjoyment of suspense filled, high-performance pixie gymnastics. Waiting it out until evening, I was inevitably disappointed by the interminable beach volleyball coverage taking up all the prime-time real estate. I was ready to give up on it altogether when track and field began and Jamaica started running. Read more
Aug 5
Every time I sit down to write my catch-up posts, the more practical how-to/technique links get pushed down the list or drop off altogether. I thought the last one of the summer was as good a time to finally get them in. With the markets bursting, it’s easy to over-buy, so this post from the Kitchn on small batch canning will help you keep it in a jar. I also love their quick guide to ingredient substitutions for near kitchen emergencies. This low-tech ice cream post from Saveur will get you through the worst of the heat, with out without the gadgets. For basics, Food Republic offers a 5 Crucial Kitchen Techniques, and How To Use Them and a general Word of the Day Guide. If you want to put it all together for the perfect dinner party, the Cooking from Every Angle section on Food 52 gets it down. Finally, for awhile I’ve been flagging Tar-Tyrin’ post with plans to make polka dot utensil jars, copper dipped flatware, cake stands, and even stenciled area rugs. Full disclosure, it hasn’t happened yet but there are still a few weeks left of summer to get to it.
Jul 20
A few weeks ago, I set out to find shaved ice vendors on the Lower East Side for Edible Manhattan. Not only was it early spring, but it felt like years since I’d come across the kind of traditional, wooden slat push cart I was hoping to find. When I did set out to look for them one Saturday, it was the kind of hot where the pavement trembles in front of you, so it was a very real relief when I met Andres Fabré on the corner of Clinton & Essex. Last week I filmed this Edible segment for NY1 with Rachel Wharton of Edible Manhattan featuring Andres – all the assurance I needed that it was more than a mirage.
Jul 11
I always hope that someone will see a recipe on my site and decide to try it out for themselves. In the case of these porotos granados, I absolutely understand if they wait for the cooler days of summer. I came across the Chilean recipe months ago when fresh cranberry beans seemed very far away. With origins going back to the pre-Columbian Mapuche Indians, it brings together my summer favorites- fresh beans, tomatoes, and corn. Available year around as dry Roman beans, I could have made the dish with frozen corn, and canned tomatoes but decided to wait. Finally, last week the cranberry beans made their appearance at my Sunday farmer’s market, right around the time someone turned the heat up to a 100 degrees. Read more
I went for a run this morning when I decided to go left to the Brooklyn Promenade instead of my usual route over the bridge. Because of the day, I stopped to take a few pictures of the Statue of Liberty but couldn’t get close enough with my iPhone. Heading into Brooklyn Heights, I found this Lady Liberty in tree grate and loved her Patti Smith slouch as she holds up the torch – a little tarnished perhaps but very much who she is. Have a happy fourth of July wherever you find yourselves!
Jun 26
It’s been coming for awhile, but instagrams are now everywhere. Nostalgia for the present makes sense in the summer and that seems to be the app for it. While I love the effects, there’s something unearned about tapping an icon and adding a 1977 filter to a 2012 happening. As someone who already has a seventies-circa filter coloring their earliest memories, it can be disorienting, erasing the line between then and now. Read more
Finalist for the 2015 James Beard Foundation Award in the International Cookbook Category for The Cuban Table
hungry sofia 