New York Times | hungry sofia

Feb 25

Catching Up in February

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve talked about what I was reading, but I didn’t want to let February go by without pointing to some really interesting articles. Of course, the El Bulli story has continued to develop with the announcement that it would close permanently in 2012 and re-open as a non-profit foundation 2014. There were two interesting pieces in the New York Times Diner’s Journal by Grant Achatz and Frank Bruni about the very different emotions the restaurant inspired. Read more

Jan 18

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Catching Up in January

I took advantage of a rainy Sunday to catch up on some reading though, instead of newspaper stacks, I had bookmarked pages and Google alerts filling up my inbox. For the New York Times, Jonathan Miles visited Roneria Caracas, a new Brooklyn bar specializing in rum drinks, in The Choices? Rum or Rum and doesn’t miss the whisky while Paola Singer went to western Spain to sample the Dom Pérignon of Iberian ham for In Spain, A Delicacy Rooted in Earth and Tradition. Meanwhile, Read more

Dec 29

Lucky Lentils

I was surprised when I read Martha Rose Shulman’s New Year’s Dishes for Prosperity and Longevity, in the New York Times. Though she writes that Italians consider lentils good luck at the beginning of the New Year, she doesn’t mention that they’re also popular in Latin America and Spain. I know because I’ve been forcing them down New Year’s lentils for years. Not my favorite bean, I’m purely in it for the prosperity. So if you’re Italian, Hispanic, or need a little luck, here’s a recipe to start the New Year.

Oct 30

New Map

I’ve been going through this week’s New York Times travel section featuring Latin America, specifically an awakened Chile, colonial Colombia, 36 Hours in Montevideo, Rio hot spots, Peruvian restaurants, and rejuvenated Mazatlán. Travel exhausts me but its a fun read.

Oct 1

Keeping It Simple

Reading Melissa Clark column in this week’s New York Times Dining & Wine section, “It’s Autumn’s Hearth”, reminded me that I had just a couple of more weeks to take advantage of the few tomatoes and late summer vegetables left. I started looking at recipes for pisto manchego, a Spanish version of ratatouille. Just onions, tomatoes, and green peppers, sauteed in olive oil then cooked slowly till soft, it’s maybe served with a fried egg, maybe over bread, maybe both. I was tempted to play with the dozen variations I found online but contented myself to throw in zucchini but leave the eggplant, chorizo and ham for another day. So simple, it was exactly what I wanted.

Sep 25

Disappearing Gauchos

I have to admit that like most people, I’ve always had a romantic view of the gaucho’s life in the Argentinian plains. Naturally, I was very interested in this article by Juan Forero, “Day of the Gaucho Waning in Argentina”, for the Washington Post, about how traditional grass fed beef was giving way to U.S.-style feedlots. I was surprised at how pragmatic the people interviewed were about the changes: Read more

Aug 28

Universo Venezuela

I was happy to hear that Miss Venezuela had won the Miss Universe title for a historical second year in a row. Though I don’t follow the pageant and can’t speak for the universe, they do seem to want it more than any other country. I think it was seeing this in the news that reminded me of a Venezuelan restaurant I had wanted to try for a few weeks. When I read in the New York Times about the patacón Maracucho served in El Cocotero, I felt deprived. Having grown up on fried plantains, Read more

Aug 4

Venezuelan Treasure

While I often hear about Venezuela’s petroleum industry, it’s less common to read about their cacao plantations. That’s why I was so interested in this New York Times article by Simon Romero, In Venezuela, Plantations of Cacao Stir Bitterness. I was fascinated by how cacao like oil becomes a mixed blessing.

Jul 22

New Arrival

A few weeks ago, I went on a search for fresh masa through the Mexican owned grocery stores in Sunset Park. I was surprised that despite the growing Mexican population in New York, it wasn’t sold anywhere. Settling instead for masa de harina, the dried corn flour that can be reconstituted to make fresh tortillas at home, I actually thought of taking a closer look at corn grinders instead. If I couldn’t find fresh masa, how hard could it be to have my own corn nixtamalization set up at home? Was it a slippery slope? If I ground my own corn would end up churning my own butter? When I read this article in today’s New York Times about Tortillería Nixtamal which now offers fresh masa, I knew I had been rescued from a bad and expensive idea (for now).

Jul 13

Argentinian Spotlight

It seems I’m not the only one pre-occupied with Argentina these days…by far. After posting about my weekend stab at matambra, I saw this New York Times article, “Buenos Aires Spotlights Its Cafes” in yesterday’s travel section. A brief sampling, it highlights interesting cafes throughout the city from the famous ones like Las Violetas to a small bistro operating out of a building where they’d made coffins named Café Nostalgia. Here’s a clip of Carlos Gardel to test the saying that he “every day sings a little better”: