Chinese New Year – Nom Wah Tea Parlor
Happy Year of the Dragon, everyone. Enjoy these photos from Chinatown and a very cool chinese place called Nom Wah. They actually make an eggroll from scratch that is unlike any other eggroll ever. Its an crepe-like egg omelette wrapped around vegetables and then battered and deep fried. Best Eggroll ever!
Nom Wah
13 Doyers St
New York, NY 10013-5104
(212) 962-6047
nomwah.com
Best of 2011
So here we are, already ankle-deep into 2012, and I have yet to post another blog post. So rather than going out there and hunting down the next big thing, I think I will relax here with my cup of Keurig Coffee (Christmas Gift) and compile a best of list, because lets face it, my blog is ahead of its time and deep within the pages of it IS the next big thing 
Best Meal of 2011
Well, you had to know this was coming. My favorite meal of the year was the one I created myself. Of course, it wasn't just because of that, it had more to do with spending time with my family - My brother-in-law and sister-in-law and their two boys, my mother-in-law, my cousin who was away from his kid and girlfriend and spent Thanksgiving with us, and my girlfriend, who is the best partner I could ever ask for. There is no one more motivating and supportive as her, and this day would have never happened if it wasn't for her. Blog post here and here and here.
Best Sandwich of 2011
The Godfather from Melt Bar and Grilled in Cleveland, Ohio - 3 cheese lasagna, fresh fennel-oregano pasta sheets, spicy red sauce, provolone, garlic spiked bread. My girlfriend calls this sandwich "life-changing". We had this the day we left Cleveland which is a great way to end a visit to this city. The sandwiches were so big that we had to take them to go and carry them on our flight, much to the envy of our fellow passengers on the plane. Blog post here.
Best Dish of 2011
I stumbled upon The Daily Catch in Boston on my last trip up there and I'm so glad that I did. The Black Pasta Aglio Oglio (Squid Ink Pasta) was so amazing and I still haven't forgotten it. The black pasta was a tender al dente and the sauce was layered with a strong and pleasant garlic sauce that was unforgettable. The place is small and quaint, super busy on most days and emphasizes fresh fish. There are several locations throughout Boston. This is my favorite spot. Check out the blog post here.
Best Brunch of 2011
Our favorite brunch of the year (and keep in mind that we really don't brunch that often) is Home/Made in Red Hook Brooklyn, the spacious backyard is awesome in the spring and summer and they have these homefries with whole garlic that are incomparable to anything else. The aroma of the restaurant alone when you walk in the door is enough to make you feel right at home. Blog Post here.
Favorite Personality of 2011
Diana Hardeman of MilkMade - she's this sweet girl in the East Village that makes amazing ice cream. I got to sit down with her for an hour or so, shoot some photos of her and her ice cream and then sample it. Wow, it was good. A few friends of mine here and there get her ice cream, which is how I first heard about her. She handmakes and delivers the ice cream in NYC only. Blog post here.
Favorite Post of 2011
My personal favorite post of 2011 was M. Wells Diner in Long Island City. There are a few reasons for this. First and foremost, I feel like the photos in this story best represent what I am trying to do with this blog - Showcase a story about a restaurant or a person that tells a story and evokes a feeling. This is something that I don't often feel I am successful in accomplishing. The second reason is that when I went to go photograph this place, I found Anthony Bourdain standing out front, having just done a piece on the restaurant for No Reservations and felt the need to introduce myself to him, if only to tell him I'm a huge fan and that his show amuses me. That was a fun moment and also made me realize that sometimes I do have some good ideas as to what is cool and useful in this city of food. Blog post here.
Viewer's Choice - Most Popular Post
S'mac, aka Sarita's Mac & Cheese, was a place I had visited several times throughout 2010 and in 2011 thought it would be an awesome addition to the blog as it's still my favorite mac & cheese restaurant in NYC. You all thought it was amazing as well, to the tune of over 400 likes on facebook and countless hits all over the web-o-sphere and by far the most popular blog post on my site. I'd be happy with 20-30 "Likes", but this takes the cak...er...mac & cheese. Blog post here.
Viewer's Choice - Best Photo
I know for a fact that I've taken far better photos than this photo, but for some reason, whenever you add bacon to anything, the foodies swoon. Spawned by a little boredom with my typical peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which I eat often, I decided to try a little something different with bacon and banana added. I did love this sandwich, but I can honestly say I still stick to my traditional smooth peanut butter and either grape or strawberry jelly. This post has been liked over 200 times on Facebook and this photo has been reposted on tumblr over 1 million times (yeah, i'm exaggerating, but it was a lot!). Blog post here.
My Favorite Cupcake: Robicelli’s
(clockwise from front):The Blatt: Vanilla cake filled with raspberry jam, cheesecake buttercream, jam topping, fried cookie bits, powdered sugar / Port Poached Pear: Pear cake, vanilla buttercream, port poached pear, port reduction / The Hansel: Gingerbread cake, white chocolate pudding, speculoos buttercream, white chocolate dipped gingerbread cookie / Eggnog: Eggnog cake and buttercream, freshly grated nutmeg
You know that trend that you have going on in the midwest right now? The one that everyone is raving about and you can't wait to be a part of? It's over already in NYC. It came and went. For a while that trend was cupcakes, started by the annoying women from Sex and The City and the horrid cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery - they taste like oil people...they aren't good and if you've ever walked through the West Village and watched some tourist act out their Carrie Bradshaw fantasy, you'd be just as disgusted as me.
So the moment passed, but it doesn't mean cupcakes are out. They are just less talked about now. Probably because our mouths are still full with frosting. And besides this is a trend, not a fad - these are not SKIDZ we are talking about here. Its food. We all need food, even if it comes in the form of flour, sugar and butter - lots and lots of butter by the way. I mean, there are entire BLOGS dedicated to the cupcake. And there are cupcake companies out there that push the culinary boundaries. One company in particular, Robicelli's in Brooklyn is a prime example. For me, Matt Robicelli redefined the cupcake when he put a piece of fried chicken on top of it. These cupcakes will never fall out of fashion or favor. Recently they've branched out into brownies, hot chocolate and whoopie pies - The cupcakes and the whoopie pies are the best I've every had, hands down! Here is a look at their operation and the wonderful things they do.
Robicelli’s at DeKalb Market
332 Flatbush Avenue Extension
Corner of Flatbush & Willoughby
Downtown Brooklyn
Leek and Spinach Quiche
I decided to make a little Sunday brunch quiche with some extras I had around the kitchen. We had some leeks leftover from Thanksgiving so I added that and the extra spinach from another dish I am making to put together a quick quiche, with grana padano, ricotta and mozzarella cheese. I could have used a slightly more cooked crust, but it was still pretty damn good. Recipe below.
Spinach and Leek Quiche
2 tbsp butter
2 leeks chopped width-wise (soak in water and mix around a bit to loosen up the dirt, drain and rinse)
2 cups of spinach
1 tsp nutmeg
Salt and Pepper
5 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 cup grated grana padano
1 cup grated mozzarella
1 cup ricotta
1 pie crust (recipe below)
Preheat oven to 350.
In a skillet, saute leeks, nutmeg, salt and pepper in 2 tbsp of butter for about 5-6 minutes (until soft), then add spinach for another minute or two until the spinach just begins to wilt. Remove from heat.
In a large bowl mix eggs, milk, and cheeses until well blended. Add the leek/spinach mixture. Mix well then empty into the pie crust.
Loosely cover pie with foil. Bake for 75 minutes or until the pie is just a little wobbly in the center. Remove and let sit for 20 minutes while the rest of the pie sets.
Pie Crust Recipe
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp of salt
2/3 cup of butter divided unto 1/4 inch slices
2-3 tbsp cold water
Preheat the oven to 475F. In a food processor combine flour and salt, pulse a few times to mix. Turn processor on and mix in butter one slice at a time until dough forms course pebbles. I often have to open up the processor and mix by hand to catch the flour on the edges. Add water 1 tbsp at a time until dough just comes together. Remove from processor and form unto a ball and pat down flat. Cut into two equal pieces (each piece is one pie crust). Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until firm again. Roll out on lightly floured surface to fit a 9-inch deep dish pie crust with a little overhang. Fold the overhang onto the edge. Bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly browned.
Pumpkin Ravioli
Last night Emily made a wonderful Pumpkin Ravioli with toasted pumpkin seeds. It was wonderful. Luckily we have extra filling so I'm hoping she'll make it again soon.
Chili Verde & Cornbread with Chili-Lime Butter
Getting back into the swing of things. Dining room is broken down, studio is back up. Did a little grocery shopping today. Decided that is finally chili season and wanted to start off light with a little more tang than usual. So here is Chili Verde, Cornbread and a Homemade Chili-Lime butter.
recipe from Giada De Laurentiis
Chili Verde - potatoes, yams, onion, hominy, tomatillo / Cornbread and Chili-Lime Butter
Chili Verde - potatoes, yams, onion, hominy, tomatillo
Cornbread and chili-lime butter
Chili-Lime Butter, Sriracha, Lime Zest and Butter
Thanksgiving Preparations and the Feast – Day 3
this is part 3 of a 3 part blog post on my thanksgiving meal - click here for part 1 and part 2.
The Thanksgiving feast came and went. It was highly successful and everyone left stuffed and happy. The bird turned out perfect. The 48-hour brine, reducing the salt to 3/4 cup did the trick. It was not dry; it was not mushy; it was just right. I understand the bird could just be done in a 24-hour brine with 2 cups of salt, but I wanted to do the 2-day brine, more out of convenience than anything else. I will say that it did eat up a lot of valuable refrigerator space. Keeping the refrigerator organized and accommodating all the pre-prepped dishes, was probably the single hardest task of the whole meal.
Also, while I did a lot of research on the preparation of the bird, I will say that I should have dedicated a little more time to how to carve a bird. I was a bit at a loss. Now we are in the leftover stage and should probably be eating it over the next few days, with the help of 5 others who are our guests for the weekend
The turkey coated with rosemary, lemon, and garlic butter, ready for the oven
Rosemary, Lemon and Garlic Butter
Mashed Potatoes with Dill and Chives
Roasted Butternut Squash and Kale Gratin topped with Panko and Parmesan
The Bird with gravy
Green Bean Casserole
Corn Casserole (a recipe from my Aunt Alice Berarducci)
Brioche Stuffing with Kale and Pears - there was also one with bacon, but this dish was prettier
The Bird again
My Plate with a little bit of everything
Caramel Apple Pie
Sous Vide Dark Chocolate and Bacon Ice Cream
Sous Vide Salted Caramel Ice Cream
Thanksgiving Preparations Part 2
this is part 2 of a 3 part blog post on my thanksgiving meal - click here for part 1 and part 3.
Progress is being made. And a guest chef stopped by in his PJ's for some late night Ice Cream making
Buttermilk Biscuits from Flour by Joanne Chang
Sous Vide Dark Chocolate and Candied Bacon Ice Cream (My Own Recipe)
Chef Eli stopped by last night to help with the Ice Cream making.
Chef Eli stopped by last night to help with the Ice Cream making.
Chef Eli prepares the Ice Cream for ripening
The Stuffing is Brioche Bread, Pears, Kale and Bacon
Close up of the vegetarian stuffing for the lone vegetarian in the house. All of the sides are veggie-friendly, except a stuffing with bacon.
Caramel Apple Pie is ready for the oven.
The Pie just out of the oven.
Thanksgiving Preparations Part 1
this is part 1 of a 3 part blog post on my thanksgiving meal - click here for part 2 and part 3.
Preparations actually started on Monday, although I just did a little vegetable chopping that day. Tuesday was the day that I started the brine on the Turkey. Most recipes call for a 12-hour brine, I'm going for the full 48-hour brine. Of course, the amount of salt has to be adjusted from the 12-hour brine. I adjusted it from 2 cups down to 3/4 cup to avoid too much saltiness in the meat and to avoid the mushiness that comes from a long brine with a high salt content - Everything else will remain the same. I used the Thanksgiving issue of Food Networks Magazine as a guide for my turkey making as this is the first time I will be cooking a whole turkey myself. I did once deep fry a turkey many years ago, but roasting is a lot different. The brine is an Orange-Tea-Bourbon Brine, that smells amazing.
14lb Turkey in an Orange-Tea-Bourbon Brining Bag
The bacon up front is for the Dark Chocolate and Bacon Ice Cream. The bacon in the back is unseasoned bacon for the Brioche Stuffing with Kale and Pears
Two dishes have kale - The Brioche stuffing with Pears, Kale and Bacon and the Butternut Squash and Kale Gratin
Autumn Vegetable Pie
I've been a bit preoccupied lately with Thanksgiving plans, visits from friends and family and also making my own cat food. I'd photograph it but it isn't pretty, nor does it smell good either. The cats seem to be enjoying it though.
Instead I have a recipe to share albiet not my own. This summer we discovered a Food Networks recipe for Heirloom Tomato Pie, which we all loved. I wanted to try something different (and didn't want to pay $6 a pound for Heirloom Tomatos, so I came up with an alternative using some fall veggies. You can interchange the vegetables as you see fit. I've used Yellow Squash, Golden Beets, Red Beets, Leeks, Red Onion and whole garlic. I like to roast the vegetables for about 30 mins before I put it in the pie, which gets them that nice brown color.
Recent Articles
- Chinese New Year – Nom Wah Tea Parlor
- Best of 2011
- My Favorite Cupcake: Robicelli’s
- Leek and Spinach Quiche
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