The Ironic Mullet :: Lee Ann Westover

Bella Panzanella: Eating the Last Traces of Summer

In my New York City, Saturday mornings mean a trip to a Farmer's Market. Although it's hard to imagine while gawking at Times Square, rich farmland surrounds us. It may be even harder to imagine, but once you get past the industrial ring of northern New Jersey, the rest of the New Jersey looks a bit like Ohio - long flat plains bursting with corn and tomatoes all summer long.

NYC Greenmarkets are set up in neighborhoods all over the five boroughs. The biggest and fanciest takes place in Union Square on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. My personal favorite is in McCarren Park - right between Williamsburg and Greenpoint Brooklyn. It's just a few minutes drive from my house in Queens, and it usually works its way into the trajectory of whatever I am up to on a Saturday morning.

I am always sporting a low-level craving for the cool, chewy goodness that is Panzanella - Italian bread salad. To satiate said craving, this Saturday I picked up 5 fresh Jersey roma tomatoes, fresh parsley (both seasonal) anda loaf of olive-semolina Italian bread at the Greenmarket...plus some celery and garlic from the deli.

5 awesome fresh tomatoes
2 stalks celery
1/2 C fresh parsley
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
salt
pepper
Any other herb you like - rosemary, basil are both good candidates

Step the first is to roughly chop the tomatoes, place them in a bowl and toss them with a teaspoon of salt. The salt will start drawing out the tomato juices as you complete the other steps.

Take a moment to look through the fridge for inspiration. This is definitely a dish you can improvise. Panzanella can be made with almost anything, and is an excellent use for leftovers. I often have eaten it with red onions and fresh basil.

While the juice is seeping out of the 'maters, cut the bread into 1" cubes, and spread the cubes out on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven.

To the tomatoes, I added 2 stalks of diced celery, 1/2 cup of chopped parsley and a decimated clove of raw garlic. I also added a few tablespoons of olive oil, the same of balsamic vinegar and a ton of fresh pepper.

After about 10 minutes, the cubes should be about the right consistency - that of day-old bread. The juice in the tomato bowl should be collecting nicely. There should be about 1/2 C of liquid.

Once the bread is dry and almost crunchy on the outside, all that's left to do is toss it with the tomato mixture and help yourself. The bread soaks up the juice, becoming flavorful and decadent. The Jersey tomatoes in my case brought a snap of cold freshness.

Think of it as a sandwich in a bowl!!

Matchy Best Friends and Macarons

Not 45 minutes after I posted the first "Matchy Best Friends" photo, I ended up one myself! A friend needed some computer help, so I stopped in her shop on my way to town...and voila'!

Hee Heeee! Green backed flowers and Birkenstocks! We must be trying to stave off autumn...

To keep to the theme of all that bright color, I popped into The Macaron Cafe yesterday afternoon. I was out tooling around on my bike and running errands all day, so it was no big thing to go visit another girlfriend at her first day on the job. She's new to NYC from Paris, and found the cutest, Frenchiest place to spend her afternoons. 

The Macaron Cafe is no bigger than a large closet, but is overflowing with delicious sandwiches, fresh lemonade, fragrant espresso...and a rainbow of Macaron cookies, of course! If you haven't had a French Macaron, it's related to a merengue filled with flavored marzipan. Crispy and delicate, they are suprisingly saturated with flavor. My choice? Honey Lavender.

If you pop in about 6 o'clock you stand a chance of being able to watch the Macarons being made!

Macaron Cafe
161 West 36th Street
New York, NY 10018
T/F (212) 564-3525

http://macaroncafe.com/

Open Monday to Friday 7:00 am to 8 pm and Saturday 11 am to 6 pm

Crunchy Kale is Bangin: Jacques Pépin & Yum Sugar

I didn't know that October is Nation Vegetarian Month...YumSugar told me so. Good thing they don't celebrate that in Italy, where I will be spending 12 (decidedly un-vegetarian) days WHEEEEE

The other day I saw Jacques Pépin make Crunchy Kale on PBS. At home, I make far too much kale - always the same way - so I was psyched to see a new way to prepare it simply. I tried out his method and was so impressed by how delicious it was!

 YumSugar's recipe is just as simple as Jacques', and comes with a pretty photo besides.

Jacques' version is included in the episode below (and here). It's worth watching the whole episode to hear the way he says "Chile con Carne."  Heeeeeeee!

I ate an entire bunch of Kale. All. By. My. Self. Crunchy Kale is nutty, chewy, crunchy, olive-oily and salty. All good things.

I Made Mayonaisse! Tofu 'Egg' Salad

I am not one to think of tofu as a meat replacement, but rather as an end in itself. I love it's funky flava, and when I know I will have an evening alone in which to off-gas, I love to make tofu 'egg' salad. It is cool and light with crackers...a favorite dinner over old episodes of Buffy.

2 bricks of extra firm tofu, crumbled
2 scallions, chopped
1 tbsp Curry Powder
1/2 C (or to taste) mayonnaise (my eureka moment-->)
Salt
Pepper
1/4-1/2 C (to taste) Mustard

Before mixing the ingredients, you need to press much of the water out of the tofu. I have heard of a hand e-z press you can use to do this, but I prefer a method that doesn't require an extra appliance - ye olde flour sack towel.

I used to wrap the tofu in the towel and weigh it down with a skillet ofr awhile, but that's not violent enough for me anymore. I prefer now to wrap it in the center of a towel, then twist the towel over the sink. You can almost hear the trapped tofu whimper as it lets its water drip out over the dirty dishes. Twist and twist and twist til you can twist no more (without breaking the towel). Crumble the remains into your mixing bowl with everything else, mix and stuff face.

You may remember me telling you about the book Ratio by Michael Ruhlman. Well, he came through for me again with his instructions on how to make mayonnaise. Gougères seemed like a small miracle - when I watched the butter and flour melting into a glossy, fluffy, cheesy ball of yum. The making of mayonnaise has had a similar effect on me.

I now know that homemade mayonnaise is a bit excessive for use in a tofu egg salad, but I will remember this recipe next time I make sweet potato fries.

In a bowl anchored to the counter by a rolled up towel, I placed one egg yolk, a tiny bit of water, 1/4 tsp salt and 1 tbsp lemon juice. I put 1 C of olive oil into a plastic squirt bottle (not unlike the picnic specimen used to dispense mustard). As I let the oil flow into the bowl, I whisked and whisked and whisked - til I thought my soft lady arm would fall off. After just a few moments (my lady arms are very soft) I went in for a taste...voilà! Mayonnaise!!

So as your take-away lesson of the day: sometimes it only takes a little coaxing to turn a nasty pile of goop into something delicious and decadent. Take it as you will.

Happy Beef Burgundy Birthday

Like I said in my previous post, we had a meat market and a produce stand within just a few miles of our rental cabin. Each day included a trip to both, so we could stock up on whatever was fresh.

Mary K spent her birthday at the cabin with us. For her celebratory dinner, we really turned it out:

-- Beef Burgundy with local chuck steak

-- Local Kale

-- Local grits with imported parmesan *slap on wrist*

-- Local Rice Krispie Treat Cake (best idea I have ever heard or eaten)

Kale is a cinch, as always. I remove the chewy stems while a couple of chopped garlic cloves soften over low heat in olive oil. Once the garlic is ready, i chop the freshly rinsed kale, and add it to the pot with any water trapped in the leaves. I turn the heat up to medium, add a couple tbsp of soy sauce for an umami kick, and let it steam (covered) until the kale is soft enough to eat happily - stirring occasionally.

For the grits, I used Daniel Boone brand, from a nearby mill. After following the package instructions for 8 servings, I added about 1/2 cup of grated parmesan - not tightly packed.

MK used 2 different sized casserole pans to make a double layer Rice Krispie Treat cake according to the box instructions. Also available online! Incidentally, I think this would be awesome as hell if made with Lucky Charms or Golden Grahams.

The Beef Burgundy was the most time consuming, as it needs several hours to cook. First I patted dry, then cut up the chuck into 1# chunks. (I had about 2.5 lbs of meat). This local stuff was extraordinarily fluffy and tender. After a quick dredge in flour, I browned the meat very well in batches. After the meat was done, I soaked down and browned a chopped Vidalia onion. Everything then goes in the pot to simmer with a bottle of decent red wine (we used Cabernet Sauvignon), a tbsp or two of herbes de provence and a tsp of fancy sea salt to start. Adjust as it gets closer to being done. Usually, you have to let it simmer at least 3 hours. This meat was so fresh and tender-licious, it only needed 2!

Usually, beef burgundy also includes some carrots and potatoes, but by this point in the week we had run out, and were already a little too tipsy to head out to the store for more. Mountain drinking starts about 2pm, you know.

Waltermelon Salsa. People will love you the best.

A couple of weeks ago, while I was out at a buddy's house in Sag Harbor, I decided to make salsa. When I got to the IGA, they had no ripe tomatoes and no cilantro. The avocados were hard, so I couldn't even make guacamole.

I perservered, though, and improvised my new favorite summer condiment! 

Watermelon-Mint Salsa:

*About 4 cups diced sweet watermelon
*One bunch of fresh mint leaves, chiffonade-ed (cut up into tiny strips)
*One jalapeno, ribs and seeds removed, finely diced
*Salt to taste
*Chips or a spoon

Get all that, mix it up.

I don't think it really counts as cooking, but you will freak out about how good it is.

Travel Cooking: what to bring?

Last summer we rented a house in the NC mountains with friends, and we are doing the same thing this July. The M.O. of the entire trip is to eat, drink and nap as much as possible. There isn't much opportunity for anything else.

To eat, you need to cook. Most rental houses come with little more than a crappy frying pan and a Mr. Coffee, so I tend to travel with a few essentials:

-A good knife (rental house knives are always impossibly dull)

-Herbes de Provence

-Sea Salt

-Pepper Grinder
  (those previous three alone can make scrambled eggs a masterwork)

-10" Cast Iron Skillet (if I am driving)

-Whole Bean Coffee, usually Fairway's Habana Decaf ( I can't handle caffeine anymore!)
-Coffee Grinder
-French Press (I am an anti-drip coffee snob)

This year I may need to add driend guajillo peppers and a food mill, just to be ridiculous

What's on your list?

The Kitchn has compiled an excellent list of their own here

Rhubarb-Anise Upside Down Cake Batter....and Cake

The other day at Diner, I had a delicate lil' rhubarb upside-down cake. A few days later, I was due for dinner at a friend's house. I was responsible for dessert and salad.

My father is visiting...as I was eating the batter, I said to him "If this turns out the way I want it to, it's my new favorite thing." It did turn out...deeee-licious!

Epicurious' Rhubarb-Anise Upside-Down Cake

It's a checkerboard!

Before we even had dinner, we had eaten about a quarter of it. After dinner, her husband had a  food-aggressive dog moment. I remember him trying to physically pull the plate out of my hands. He snarled and won.

GOOD ONE EPICIURIOUS

Uptown Delights: The Savoy Bakery

I often have the opportunity to head uptown to Spanish Harlem for my day job. I always get really excited when the day comes, because it means that (A) I will have tacos at Tu Casa for lunch (B) I can stock up on tomatillos and dried chiles at La Costenita Grocery (C) I will probably have a Corona at The Duck and (D) BWAHAHAHA OMFG SPONGE CAKE at the Savoy Bakery.

The neighborhood around the 110th street stop on the 6 train is one of my favorites in Manhattan. The denizens are mostly latino, which comforts my Texan heart. There are a billion dollar stores, a bustling hardware store full of local characters running in and out, and grocery stores full of some serious delicacies.

I can never stroll up 110th without stopping in at the Savoy. It represents to me the best of what is going on up in Spanish Harlem. From the outside, the Savoy is modern and clean - all new NYC. Once inside, though, it's obviously a part of the real neighborhood. The girls behind the counter are always giggling on some sort of sugar high and up for a chat. Work-a-day stiffs come in for their morning coffee, and layabouts trickle in throughout the afternnon. The Savoy bursts with a familial, friendly vibe that is every bit as addictive as the treats they sell within.

One of these days I mean to try the ham and corn danish, but for now, I always get the sponge cake. It's made in a muffin tin, but each cup is first lined with parchment paper, so the cake rises high and golden like an almond topped trumpet. It's light, sweet and egg-i-ly resiliant. Everything I need. 

At $1.50 a pop, I can have 20! It's a good thing I don't live closer.

Good Medicine: The Richardson, Brooklyn

Yesterday I had the first true day off I have had since my birthday. The first half of the day was spent in truly decadent fashion: detailing the kitchen sink, making tortillas and running the occasional quest in World of Warcraft. As evening approached, my friend Carey emailed in hopes that I would join her for happy hour near her house. Now, who am I to disappoint a friend?

We met at 6:30. I love to have a chat with the bartender to figure out what to drink. In this case, we had a conversation about lego candy, which lead to "What on earth could you mix with lego candy?" which led to 'The Violet.' Bartender John created it, and it's not on the menu, but man-oh-man it's good.

It's made of Creme de Violette, fancy gin, lemon and a splash of soda I believe.
Look! It's Lavender! It tastes like medicine-lemonade...in a good way!

 

Along with my drink, I ordered a couple of toasts from the menu. They seem to be pieces of good-quality baguette that have been squashed in a panini press. I don't know about you guys, but I sure love me some chewy baguette with stuff on it. I ate the cannelini bean, lemon and garlic toast, as well as the toast with prosciutto with fig jam. YUM.

Add to the yummy food and inventive drinks, a fabulous view for people watching. We installed ourselves at the bar by the window and made quite a time of it.

The Richardson
451 Graham Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11222
(718) 389-0839

therichardsonnyc.com