luzzos, my all time absolute favorite pizza restaurant ever (in nyc), has added square pie to the menu.
that is all.
Entered on 02.06.2010 at 21:53
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my wife was given 9 eggplants by a neighbor the other day, and did some poking around about what to do with the beasts (serving them to a church gathering is the goal). after considering roasted vegetables, thai style, she settled on waffled eggplant, which consists of breading the eggplant and cooking it on the waffle iron.
as for myself, i've been told that i'm allergic to eggplant since my early childhood, and have faithfully shied away from it since (assuming it to be some form of squash, which i have an allergy that has proven somewhat less severe in my adulthood). however, in the course of waffling the eggplant, my wife announced that it is a member of the nightshade family, and is therefore not a squash at all, but more of a tomato. i promptly tried a piece of the waffled eggplant and am happy to report that no ill-effects have ensued so far (though zyrtec may be to thank); i'm also happy to say that the eggplant was delicious.
Entered on 02.06.2010 at 17:09
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chowhound lists some superbowl snack ideas, including one for texas queso dip that doesn't include velveeta. the comments explode in debate on whether it's authentic texas queso if it's not velveeta (which is why i'm posting this).
i realize it's traditional perfection for folks to have velveeta and rotel, but for the life of me, i can't see how people love it. the processed cheese fails me on both taste and texture counts.
Entered on 02.04.2010 at 13:27
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as if momofuku needed more exposure... but the nytimes style blog had this bit on an oxtail-amaro broth that seems creative. i haven't personally thought about amaro (or whisky) in broths before, but it seems worth playing around with at least. the hardest part for my palate will be keeping the sweetness out of the way...
Entered on 02.02.2010 at 10:39
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only relevant for those of you who might be wanting to hit the east austin scene, but we did a visit to east side king, the little food trailer behind liberty bar on east sixth that has been garnering accolades everywhere.
first, be prepared that the liberty bar is a beer and whisky shots kind of place; we were thrown off by the profusion of bottles behind the bar, so my wife ordered a sidecar. after a few minutes of searching, the bartender let us know that unfortunately there was no brandy in the house. so keep it simple, and go straight to beer (we ended up with a victory double ipa, so at least you aren't stuck with shiner).
the trailer is out back and is cash only; they have a little atm that charges a $2.95 fee if you're truly stuck. the trailer is apparently headed by the sous chef at uchi, and the menu reflects the asian bent, though they seem to be poaching more momofuku than uchi. we ordered the brussels sprout salad, beet fries, and the pork buns. the brussels sprouts salad was skippable - the sprouts were great, but were paired with a cole slaw that was too sugary for my wife and i, and left us with far too much cabbage and not enough brussels.
(more inside)
Entered on 02.02.2010 at 9:53
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the nytimes style section reviews unaged whiskys. they're clear, and have floral/fruit notes instead of the body, color, and acids imparted by wood aging.
Entered on 01.28.2010 at 13:19
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fried chicken the thomas keller way. or you can just buy the kit, if that's your style.
Entered on 01.20.2010 at 12:14
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as noted by the guardian way back in november, there is an acute shortage of angostura bitters in the world. this potential lack of angostura could mean the death (or at least significant change) of many cocktails, including the old fashioned, manhattan, and many more. the plant is back online, but it'll take a while to get bitters back in stock for a while.
the shortage is bearing out here as well - spec's (the local booze superstore) has been out for months. i found some at out of the way heb a few days ago (and bought 4 bottles), and apparently cocktail kingdom still has some around.
Entered on 01.16.2010 at 22:23
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most people have had enough bad experiences with chicken breasts to be a little shy on them; who hasn't suffered a tough, dry slab of breast meat that originated in a giant ziploc bag from someones freezer? melissa clark of the nytimes calls on some professional help to cook them back to a bit of glory, pulling advice out of eric ripert, alain sailhac, and more.
on the pro chicken side, one of my favorite meals ever was of free range chicken breast at a restaurant in pleasanton, ca.
Entered on 01.16.2010 at 21:59
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maraschino cherries aren't supposed to be like the glowing bioluminescent spheres you usually see; originally they were marasca cherries perserved in maraschino liquor. if you're really curious, you can buy a 12 lb can of true maraschino cherries on amazon for $150 + $20 shipping, but they may not be worth the money.
personally, i buy the bionic red ones at the store, then drain the syrup and replace it with some cheapish brandy, though you can pursue fancier routes.
credit goes to meester jeff for most of this content...
Entered on 01.15.2010 at 9:43
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another restaurant.com sale...80% off. code this time is INDULGE.
Entered on 01.13.2010 at 16:31
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the handpresso allows you to make espresso from anywhere with hot water; you supply up to 9 bars of pressure via the built in pump (like a bicycle pump).
the competition, the mypressi twist, uses a gas cartridge to save you from pumping, but to my mind that might make travel a bit difficult. plus, the handpress can be picked up in a slick picnic case that combines the press, some cups, and a thermos in a pretty leather case.
check coffeegeeks take on the handpress and the twist if you're curious.
Entered on 01.08.2010 at 11:37
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the head intoxocologist at chicago's the violet hour, toby maloney, dropped in on a thread discussing how to make their drinks at home and provided the actual recipes.
you might want to try the 'juliet and romeo', which is third in gq's 20 best american cocktails list (worth browsing). to create...
Juliet & Romeo
2 oz Beefeater
.75 oz Fresh Lime Juice
.75 oz Simple Syrup
3 drops Rose Water
3 drops Angostura
3 slices Cucumber
3 sprigs Mint
Tiny pinch of salt
Glass: Coupe
Garnish: Mint leaf and 1 drop rose water/3 drops of Angostura Bitters.
Ice: None
Muddle cucumber, mint and pinch of salt. Add rest of ingredients. Let sit for 30 seconds (time allowing). Shake. Strain. Garnish with 1 floating mint leaf and 1 drop rose water on top of leaf, and 3 more drops of angostura on the surface of the drink.
via metafilter
Entered on 01.07.2010 at 15:22
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nymag deconstructs the spotted pig's fancy deviled eggs, complete with a recipe.
i do like a deviled egg, though it's easy to eat too many. however, as my wife has a mortal feud with eggs, i rarely eat them.
Entered on 01.05.2010 at 9:12
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i had risotto balls at some unremembered point in my past - i can't recall when or where i ate them, but i do remember loving the texture of the crisp outside and the creamy rice inside. this recipe has me thinking it's time to make them at home...
Entered on 12.29.2009 at 15:12
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grasp the relationships between milk products using the milk products master chart.
our lubbock correspondent sent this over with a practical use for it, as he had used it to "get whole milk from half-n-half and skim milk".
Entered on 12.15.2009 at 10:44
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these cheese puffs look like a delicious friend of the lee brothers cheese straws.
Entered on 12.04.2009 at 15:08
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alan richman of gq on black truffles, grown in tennessee. i believe i've read that some folks are growing them in oregon as well.
Entered on 12.01.2009 at 9:44
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my son recently did a school report on nepal and bhutan, and as part of his presentation, made (with some coordination from his mom) some momo, aka himalayan dumplings. they look rather identical to georgian khinkali, probably my personal favorite georgian food. in georgia, you eat them with lots of beer and brandy, never letting any of the juice drip and counting how many you've eaten by saving the tops in a little pile. good winter food...
and, on the topic of georgian food, no discussion would be complete without khachapuri, georgian cheese bread (served with almost every meal).
Entered on 11.30.2009 at 14:05
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more on momofuku...the chicken wing recipe looks pretty hot, and chow posted it so you can try it even if you don't have das buch.
Entered on 11.23.2009 at 10:52
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thanks to englishrussia.com we have a russian food porn gallery. you may spot a bit of a theme...
Entered on 11.18.2009 at 22:36
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the new yorker eats with a michelin inspector and provides some insight on just what goes into a three star rating.
i'm not sure i'm sold on the michelin system, but i'd sure take it over yelp.
Entered on 11.18.2009 at 15:34
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bittman has another of his 101 lists, this time of 101 things to prepare before the turkey goes in the oven. which is to say, thanksgiving foods that you can tackle ahead of time. special mention for tomato pinwheels (crackers made with sundried tomatoes, number 81) and brussels sprouts sliders (roasted halved brussels sprouts, already delicious, used as buns in a bacon sandwhich. number 42).
worth reading through for the volume of ideas alone; you're bound to shake something loose in your brain that will be an idea worth eating.
Entered on 11.18.2009 at 8:10
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we've been reading through the momofuku cookbook lately, and a number of the recipes have had me pretty hungry... his take on fried chicken was pretty fascinating, as it starts with steaming the chicken. i hope to try it soon, but in case any of you have chicken around, maybe someone will beat me to it.
the recipe is available here, though it's missing the octo vinaigrette, which i will provide for you here.
octo vinaigrette:
2 tbsp finely chopped garlic.
2 tbsp chopped/peeled (ed. note: is that like chopped/screwed?) fresh ginger
1/4 tsp finally chopped pickled chiles, or fresh birds eye chile
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup usukuchi (light soy sauce)
2 tbsp grapeseed oil (or other neutral oil)
1/4 tsp asian sesame oil
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
fresh pepper
combine and shake.
Entered on 11.12.2009 at 22:39
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in prep for a trip to ethiopia, we've been dabbling in making some new cuisine in la casa. worked with the wife yesterday, and made some injera (kind of an african crepe) and lentil stew, both of which came out very well (last nights dinner).
pretty simple, though you'll need to start the day before to make injera. if you want to try your hand at ethiopian cuisine, here's a few recipes to get you started.
doro wat: 1 , 2 , and 3
 
berbere: 1
 
finally, a bunch of recipes: 1, 2, 3, and 4
Entered on 11.11.2009 at 11:13
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well, this bread baking event seems to be taking second place to finishing the adoption of an ethiopian daughter. excuses aside, though, i keep baking, it just isn't quite as consistent and on schedule as i would like.
these breads are all riffs on a theme in peter reinhart's book, the bread baker's apprentice. and though i am at this point the slacker apprentice that would have been let go in the middle ages, i'm still baking. each bread is a basic yeast, multi-stage fermentation bread, meaning they have few additives and are meant to show off the simplicity of good plain bread. pane a l'ancienne is pictured at the top - a modified french bread recipe with a cold (read refrigerated) fermentation to allow sugars to develop more slowly, layered the next day with new dough to add another layer of flavor. very good, but i rue the home oven and its lack of steam.
pain de campagne, country bread, was the next bread, and it was easier to disguise our lack of steam with beautiful loaf shapes. the loaves shown are epis - sheaves of wheat. they were good, but a little dry (my baking, i'm sure), and still just riffs on rustic breads. the greatest thing about this bread was its beautiful oven puff. baking french-like breads, every little breath of air seems to take rise out of the loaf, but here, even after cutting (with a serrated tomato knife) and moving the 'wheat' pieces, into the oven they went and rose gorgeously.
the last bread was pane siciliano, which you can see is an unusual loaf shape - a spiral S. i made both it's dough and pain de campagne the same afternoon, but this bread has an overnight rise in the shape of the loaves, pictured here, and then a next-day baking. we topped the loaves with caraway seeds, which i doubt anybody ever does on sicily, but some of our eaters are allergic to poppy, the tradicionale topping. finished product: toothsome, flavorful, with good wheat flavor and nice fat touch because the loaves were sprayed with oil at the end. full disclosure: i looked at my bread, and then i looked at peter's bread in the picture, and i was a little disheartened. my bread looked ashy. but hey, what's lotion for bread but oil?
and on that note, happy baking.

Entered on 11.05.2009 at 21:41
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riffing on an old nytimes article on cooking steak with alain ducasse (a great article), egullet provides a nice pictoral argument for lowering the temperature on your steak cooking.
via metafilter
Entered on 10.28.2009 at 16:20
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the wall street journal writes about recent cookbook trends, with a special focus on thomas keller. interesting-ish lite read, including gems about how these high end cookbooks are too difficult for home cooks such as:
"One particularly challenging recipe comes with a deceptively comforting title: Chicken Soup with Dumplings. The picture of a thick broth poured over bright green celery and carrots and perfectly shaped dumplings is motivating. But the recipe takes about two hours of active labor and dirties about 10 pans and bowls. It involves such diverse skills as making a parchment lid for a pot, thickening broth with a roux, and making cream puff dough (for the dumplings). That celery is bright green because it is separately cooked in boiling water, then quickly chilled in ice water and later incorporated into the soup. Also, using two spoons to form the torpedo-shaped dumplings known as quenelles might be a challenge for novices."
heaven help us; a roux.
Entered on 10.28.2009 at 9:32
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the thomas keller/tapioca link i just posted had me thinking about carol blymire's blogging a bit; she blogged her journey through the french laundry cookbook, and is currently working through the alinea cookbook. both cookbooks are great, and though i confess that i'm still not onboard with the alinea philosophy ("lets take put everything into a paste/gelatin/goo by adding glycerin/glucose/ddt"), it is interesting. but she writes engagingly about cooking, and reading through her posts you can't help but get interesting ideas about what you might try yourself.
Entered on 10.28.2009 at 8:06
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recently, after wandering through an asian grocery store (always fun), i found myself at home with a package of tapioca (as well as a case of shin ramen and 25 lbs of new crop jasmine rice). since i only know a few things to do with tapioca, yesterday i prepared some for bubble tea, and prepped some for pudding.
normally in bubble tea, they have these giant pearls of tapioca; but they also have straws to match those giant pearls, whereas i just have itty bitty straws. so, unless you have giant straws, make sure you have small pearl tapioca. to prep the tapioca, boil 7 cups of water and add 1 cup of tapioca. let it boil (covered) for about 15 minutes, then turn it off and leave it for another 15. drop it into a strainer and rinse it in warm water, then put it into a tupperware with some simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, mixed into a syrup). you'll end up with about 2-3 cups of tapioca pearls, ready to drop into the bottom of your iced tea with condensed milk or whatever kind of bubble tea you want. these will also be sneaking their way into the bottom of cocktail glasses for the next few days.
for the tapioca pudding, i soaked the tapioca overnight; that's as far as i've gotten on the recipe i'm trying (courtesy of mr alton brown). we'll see how it turns out...
if you'd like to see someone do something genuinely interesting with tapioca, then i suggest you check thomas keller's oysters and pearls.
Entered on 10.27.2009 at 7:56
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the style/food/design blog of the nytimes just shouted out some french fries made at a sichuan restaurant. the kicker is that they're ore-ida potatoes, fried up in some delicious chili-sauce (sriracha) and chinese spices. sounds like a delicious quick snack to me.
this has me thinking that it's about time to have a fry fest; make a few dozen pounds of fries, do some with oil and parmesan (as one of the comments on the times article suggests), some sichuan style, and some as poutine.
update: also, alain ducasse tried a bunch of fry places in nyc with nymag. i haven't had most of the ones covered, but his second favorite, pommes frites, is delicious.
Entered on 10.22.2009 at 12:13
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a number of disclaimers on this:
1, i've never tried it.
2, i'm not sure i like where this is headed.
with that out of the way, the idea of putting a dash of salt in your coffee to remove the bitterness (when the coffee is terrible) is something i may try the next time i'm traveling and stuck.
thanks to jason...
Entered on 10.21.2009 at 14:26
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eating foreign cuisine can be a daunting task, unless of course you have a guide or know enough about the food/language to be sure just what you're getting ("what exactly is a chalupa?"). this is especially true for me with my allergies, as i have to ask about fish and nuts repeatedly.
one potential solution...the folks over at evil mad scientist have gone to the trouble of creating a wallet decoder card for south indian cuisine to help avoid mixing up your paneer and your saag.
Entered on 10.15.2009 at 11:55
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chow is pushing home granola making with an article titled don't pay for toasted oats, which pretty well sums up the situation. we started making granola a while ago because of my allergy to nuts and all things wholesome (our recipe), and have pretty continuously maintained a stash of granola for quick breakfasts (served with yogurt).
Entered on 10.13.2009 at 11:16
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the nytimes has a breakdown of the top 10 food risks, by the numbers. number one? leafy greens. almost 1 in 4 of all outbreaks are the fault of leafy greens.
Entered on 10.06.2009 at 13:07
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man...the tarte tatin on bitten is looking super delicious on this rainy day. i think i was pretty much hooked by the time i read, "the amazing thing about tarte tatin is how the caramelized apples are somehow transformed into something entirely new but at the same time remain intensely apple-y."
mmmm...carmelized apples.
Entered on 10.03.2009 at 17:53
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chow has an article on making bitters with a few recipes; also, there are some recipes for digestifs, which would be fun to make.
Entered on 10.03.2009 at 14:28
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lipton tea. we know tea. we just don't use any of that knowledge in it's manufacture.
Entered on 10.02.2009 at 14:07
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fisher and paykel (appliance makers) have a food blog, including this hunger inducing recipe for beef, tomato, olive, and rosemary pies. every year, the onset of cold weather (in texas, we settle for 'less hot') has me start wanting pot pies and meat pies. the capers in this recipe seem like the perfect touch; i'd be tempted to decrease the tomato paste down to 1 tbsp and up the olives/capers accordingly.
Entered on 10.02.2009 at 8:46
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cocktail folks are really into old cocktail books; the cocktail world was a bit more advanced in the early part of the 20th century then it is today, and the old books are kind of cool.
if you don't feel like digging around in old book stores for classics like the savoy cocktail book or embury's the fine art of mixing drinks, you can hit up archive.org for some old copy.
beverages de luxe. copyright 1911; link goes right to the cocktail section, which has a recipe for the ramos gin fizz on the front page).
the 20th century guide for mixing fancy drinks. copyright 1900; compare the list of drinks to what you're used to.
the flowing bowl: when and what to drink. 1892.
even more on the site, push any great finds into the comments.
Entered on 09.28.2009 at 17:16
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