Restaurants I's like to try

Sauvage - Williamsburg

Hart's - Clinton hill

Potato, Squash, goat cheese gratin

Next time Eva and Kevin are over

Kaz an nou

West Indian food served in a friendly atmosphere. BYOB.

The pate on croute is deadly but worth sharing. I get the duck every time and love it! The side of coconut rice hits the spot.

Vanessa's

Cheap and delish grub. Best for take out to a nearby bar.

Cauliflower Soup

Nothing fancy but all from scratch this soup was a delish winter treat.

I roasted a chicken. This is crucial as all the remnants will go into the soup.

Make stock from the carcass. Save the fat and aspic. (All of this can be done ahead of time.)

Use the fat and aspic and a dash of salt to coat one chopped cauliflower. I popped it in the oven for an hour (stirring probably twice) at 400. I then added about a half a cup of freshly diced parsley and cooked it for another 15 minutes.

Using my awesome new immersion blender I pureed the roasted cauliflower and stirred in another half cup chopped fresh parsley. From there I just added stock and lemon juice to taste.

I haven't tried it yet but seems like it would be good with a dollop of yogurt if you wanted something a bit creamier.

Healthy? Stuffed Potatoes

Bake potatoes. For this recipe lets say 2. (This can be done ahead of time for convenience.)
Saute about 2 cups vegetables. (I've done onions and mushrooms or broccoli and carrots so far.)
Cut potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out insides leaving a 1/4 of a inch so they don't fall apart.
Mix together diced sauteed veggies and potatoes with a splash of milk and 2 tbsp cheddar or 1 tbsp Parmesan. This should be the consistency of chunky mash potatoes.
Stuff this back into the potato skins. Should be heaping.
Pop back in oven for about 20 minutes at 350 (or in the microwave for 2).

Serves 4 as filling side. 2 as full meal.

Zucchini Pasta

Peel (I like to leave a little on) two zucchini (or summer squash) per person.

Discard peel.

Peel strips of zucchini flesh into ribbons. Stop as soon as you hit seeds.

Heat oil and butter mixture in pan on medium.

Add ribbons of zucchini stirring constantly.

Salt.

Cook to preferred texture. I like mine with a little bit of crunch left about 5 minutes for two but it will take longer for more.

I think of it as a good summer alternative to pasta so it pairs well with most light sauces.

Roberta's

and here

Porchetta

Must try here.

Chocolate Mousse

My moms super easy dessert. -She emailed me a much more detailed recipe but it looks daunting so I simplified it.

1 cup of chocolate chips
4 or 5 eggs depending on size - at room temperature
1 pinch of cream of tartar (if you don't have a copper bowl) (I left this out since I had neither and it seemed to work just fine.)
Juice of orange - tablespoon or two

Melt chocolate with orange juice (in microwave for about a minute) It has got to be whippably soft. Put aside to cool.

Separate eggs

Mix the egg yolks into the cooled chocolate mixture.

Beat the egg whites till you can't feel your arm and you deeply regret having decided to make chocolate mousse when you don't have a egg beater. They should stand up by themselves.

Fold the beaten egg white(FOLD gently as you have to leave the
bubbles as whole as you can) into chocolate a spoon at a time, till both are mixed. (Little
flecks of egg white are fine.)

Add orange zest.

Scrape into serving
container.

Mmm finger in bowl.

Chill for at least two hours. Longer if you can.

Tomato Eggs Brunch

I appear to be making variations on the same brunch. Hmm.

This is kinda like shakshuka but quiet. Caramelized whole onion. Garlic to taste. Add tomatoes and smimmer crushing tomatoes till it's a smoothish sauce. Spices. (I just did salt pepper and fresh and dry basil hence the 'quiet'.) Make little pockets and pop in the eggs. Cover and let sit on low for about 5 minutes.

Plan ahead so you aren't serving tomato breakfast with bloody marys.

saucy shrimp on sharp salad

Image and greens all thanks to naomi zeichner

So easy and shockingly yummy. Shrimp sauteed with tomatoes onions and garlic on a bed of sharp greens, in this case fennel, tomatillos, pear and arugula. Douse in lemon as usual. Does this even count as a recipe?

Perhaps a reminder that sharp greens can make a lovely alternative to pasta or something heavier. Depending on the mood of course.

Not x-mas Appetizers

Not x-mas dinner

Dinner at mine. Image courtesy of Naomi Zeichner.

break down of menu to follow

and...AFTER:

Bobo(urgeois)

But I still want to go here.

Biscuits

Made with the help of Julia's blog I plonked the following in a bowl:

2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 tsp. salt
(feel free to add a cup of cheese and herbs)

Mix together and then slowly stir in:

about 3/4 cup milk (keep adding till all the flour sticks together)

Form into shapes about the size you want the final product to be. Heat at 400 for apx. 20 minutes.

Yummy cheap and apparently hard to bungle.

Roasted Fennel

Super easy veggie side to chuck in when you've already got the oven on.

Quarter bulb of fennel and separate leave.
Brush with olive oil.
Salt and pepper.
Roast for 15 minutes on each side or until lightly browned.

Dress with lemon.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

(Imagine it would be good with gorg or like if chilled.)

Baked Eggs

Brunch at mine. Image courtesy of Naomi Zeichner

Super easy.

1 egg (or two)
splash 1/2 & 1/2
chopped mushroom, bacon or the like
tomato
dash of cheese
spices

place in ramekin with egg on top. Bake at 375 for about 12min

Tomato Soup

This should be far more advanced and if you want something spiffy I'd suggest searching elsewhere. This recipe is made for being broke.

1/2 cup sauteed onion minced as finely as possible (I don't have a blender.)
1 stock cube dissolved in 3 cups water
1 clove garlic minced as finely as possible
1 large can crushed tomatoes
salt pepper herbs to taste

bung it all in a pot and let sit on low for 20 min.

add
1/2 cup gin or vodka
continue on low for 10 min.
dash of 1/2 & 1/2 and sprinkle of parm always makes things yummier.

Make my own lox?!

Apparently it's fairly straight forward.

Franklin Park

I'm pumped to be moving near this beer garden. It has a good selection of local brews, a good chill crowd and a lots of space.

Soggy bread plus veggies and cheese

This seems like an excellent idea for finishing off old bread and serving vegetarians. (Obviously substitute veggie broth.)

Zucchini Latkes

Dinner at my old place. Photo by Julia. Pancakes and tomatoes in the center.
I find 3 regular sized zucchini make enough for 6 as a side. I like them both hot and cold so they make for easy leftovers.

Coarsely grate 3 zucchini (skins on) and half an onion. By the fistful squeeze as much water out as you can. It's important to get as much liquid out as possible otherwise the pancakes won't stay together (and you'll need to add more egg and flour to compensate).

Mix zucchini, onion, 3 eggs (or whites), and 1/4 cup flour in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. I sometimes add basil or mustard depending on my mood.

Oil the pan (I like to use a non-stick so I only add oil once. I find the pancakes have a better color when the oil is low.) Add one heaping tablespoon of zucchini mixture to the pan per pancake. Treat them like regular pancakes and flip when done. Repeat etc. As you go through the batches be sure to keep stirring the mixture or all the egg will end up in one pancake.

That's it! 

I am gross and like everything with ketchup but if I'm feeling fancy I dice tomatoes and basil and serve on the side.

Chicken Marsala (with mushrooms not cream)

This simple recipe serves 6

3 whole boneless chicken breasts with skin (about 2 1/2 pounds),
halved
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, sliced thin
3/4 pound mushrooms, sliced thin
1/2 cup Marsala
1 cup chicken broth

Can add 1/2 & 1/2 if you want something naughtier.

Roasted Garlic

Just a reminder that when there's nothing in the cupboard or fridge this can add something to an otherwise pathetic welcome.

Slice the tops off a whole garlic and drizzle with a touch of olive oil.

Bake at 400 for about 30 minutes.

Caramelized Shallots

This is fatty.

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2 pounds fresh shallots, peeled, with roots intact
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons good red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Best served with something light.

Onion Tart with Mustard

I haven't made this yet.

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (a 1/4-ounce package)
1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115°F)
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
3 pound yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (I use a bit more)
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (I like it coarsely grated for this)

or this variety.

Kuma Inn

Described as Asian tapas, this restaurant is byob. It can still get a little pricey cause I confuse it with dimsum and can't stop stuffing my face.

Food's yummy, space quirky, service fast and friendly.

Pita Bread

The recipe can be found here.

3 cups plus a scant 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (16 oz./454 grams)
2 teaspoons salt (1/2 oz./13.2 grams)
2 teaspoons instant yeast (6.4 grams)
2 tablespoons olive oil (1 oz./27 grams)
1 1/4 cups water, at room temperature (10.4 oz./295 grams)

Moto

Intimate dinner spot (circa 1938) definitely worth the wait. Dinner there is always an occasion worth lingering over. (Brunch not so much.)

I know it's a little weird but I really like the bathroom there.