Nigel Slater is not a fan of trick-or-treating. In fact, he says that he’d “happily see the intrusion of trick-or-treating outlawed.” Anyone who disapproves of this tooth-rotting ritual is almost immediately out in my book. However, I think Slater may have the only passable excuse: he likes the actual food—the hearty, heavy, Halloween meal—too much to wait for all the kiddies to return from their candy-chase.
In Kitchen Diaries, Slater deems October 31st a day of bangers and brownies. “Piping-hot casseroles and deep pots of beans…sausages and steaming piles of potato and…dense, chocolatey cakes” are his ideal food groups on the ghoulish day. And, after reading through his recipes, I am happy to skirt around the candy corn and Reese’s cups to get to the good stuff as well.
Slater fries up a few sausages until they are golden brown. He boils about a pound of potatoes in salty water. He drains and mashes them up, and adds parsley, butter, and salt. He then heats cream and two types of mustard together before incorporating them into the taters. I’d fry some garlic and onions alongside the sausages to add an extra zing to the mash, and also, because vampires have an aversion to garlic.
Lay a solid bed of potatoes onto two plates, pile the garlic and onions atop, and then ladle on the fried sausages. This will make for a warm and filling first course on the spooky eve. There won’t be many ghosts or goblins coming near your breath if you cleaned your plate.
Slater recommends finishing off the meal with a simple (no nuts, no flavorings) brownie. I like his preliminary idea of rich, dark fudgey chocolate, but I’d add espresso and cinnamon to my recipe and serve up the squares with steamed milk spiked with a shot of frangelico, the tasty Italian hazelnut liqueur.
Slater is right: a meal like this will leave anyone considering candy-craving kids at the door an outlandish interruption. Of course, it IS tradition; so double or triple your brownie recipe and leave a plate of them outside. Then, kick back and enjoy the feast that will have all epicureans rising from the dead to steal a bite.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Treats Truck
The Treats Truck—that magical candy-on-wheels concept that started parking all over the city this summer—will be working hard to sate our sweet teeth on the sugariest day of the year.
Candy Corn Crispies—crispy squares with candy corn and chocolate—and Sugar Cookies in the shape of Halloween cats & bats will be a few of the Treats Truck offerings tomorrow.
There’ll be no escaping the clutches of candy this Halloween so you might as well devour the best. If you’re getting a toothache from all the sugar, rest assured that 10% of Treats Truck profits go to a good cause—this month it’s Chefs For Humanity.
Sweet genius, Kim Ima will most likely be doling out treats like usual. Check the website for the truck’s exact whereabouts.
Candy Corn Crispies—crispy squares with candy corn and chocolate—and Sugar Cookies in the shape of Halloween cats & bats will be a few of the Treats Truck offerings tomorrow.
There’ll be no escaping the clutches of candy this Halloween so you might as well devour the best. If you’re getting a toothache from all the sugar, rest assured that 10% of Treats Truck profits go to a good cause—this month it’s Chefs For Humanity.
Sweet genius, Kim Ima will most likely be doling out treats like usual. Check the website for the truck’s exact whereabouts.
Madeleine Halloween Macarons
When chef pâtissier Pascal Goupil opened Madeleine on 23rd Street during the summer, the Dish girls at our headquarters couldn’t get enough of the myriad flavors of macarons. After owning and operating the French Oven in Chelsea Market for so long, Goupil is a macaron pro. In his stand-alone, adorable pâtisserie, inventive varieties like red wine, salted caramel, and currant saddle up next to traditional chocolate, pistachio, and vanilla.
This month, Goupil introduces a few seasonal flavors. Celebrate Halloween with pumpkin, cranberry, and fig forms of the Parisian treat.
They’re a bit pricey at $2.50 a pop, but one—with its sugar domes encasing an ample slathering of buttercream—is rich enough that it’s all you’ll need.
If you are having a fête to honor the ghosts and goblins, picking up a few dozen macs will surely make your party a hit for the sugar-inclined set.
This month, Goupil introduces a few seasonal flavors. Celebrate Halloween with pumpkin, cranberry, and fig forms of the Parisian treat.
They’re a bit pricey at $2.50 a pop, but one—with its sugar domes encasing an ample slathering of buttercream—is rich enough that it’s all you’ll need.
If you are having a fête to honor the ghosts and goblins, picking up a few dozen macs will surely make your party a hit for the sugar-inclined set.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Kampuchea
For whatever reason (perhaps its proximity to a whole slew of bars where a dramatic set of hipsters get ripped nearly every night of the week) I had been avoiding Kampuchea Noodle Bar on Allen and Rivington. The scene, with its communal tables and scattered menu (Share plates! Sandwiches! Noodles in Soup! Curry! Stew! Or Cold form!) seemed to be too much of a labyrinth to navigate.
However, a dear friend invited me along for dinner. I didn’t want to be antisocial as a result of my disapproval of the restaurant choice, so I went along, choosing to write off the place entirely before I even arrived and not worry about what would be going down my gullet. It was a Friday night towards the end of summer, just when the whether was beginning to cool off in the evenings.
When I arrived, I noticed all of Kampuchea’s windows were thrown open. I know I had said that I wouldn’t evaluate the place, but the window situation gave me some foreshadowing hope!
The menu was only hard to choose from because of the myriad of enticing choices! There were six diners, so we took the liberty to order many dishes.
What I liked most about Kampuchea’s cuisine was the unabashed usage of spice. Nearly every dish had an element of heat to it that made the dish exciting to eat. Moreover, to compliment the heat of many dishes, a bowl of delicious toasted garlicky bread arrived plate-side.
The dish that I couldn’t help but wolf down was the skirt steak sandwich. Served with toasted coriander and sambal chili paste, the tender steak came with a kick; the spices invigorated my mouth, and the bread cracked and yielded at exactly the right points. Other stand out dishes included the mussels with pancetta bits and okra with grilled shrimp, which are best eaten with your hands and with the exoskeleton. Even simple dishes like the pea salad were refreshingly vibrant. Delicacies like pea shoots and Chinese sausage are found cheap in Chinatown and re-appear on the menu.
Perhaps I should have looked beyond the hipsters and welcomed Kampuchea as a refuge in the neighborhood.
However, a dear friend invited me along for dinner. I didn’t want to be antisocial as a result of my disapproval of the restaurant choice, so I went along, choosing to write off the place entirely before I even arrived and not worry about what would be going down my gullet. It was a Friday night towards the end of summer, just when the whether was beginning to cool off in the evenings.
When I arrived, I noticed all of Kampuchea’s windows were thrown open. I know I had said that I wouldn’t evaluate the place, but the window situation gave me some foreshadowing hope!
The menu was only hard to choose from because of the myriad of enticing choices! There were six diners, so we took the liberty to order many dishes.
What I liked most about Kampuchea’s cuisine was the unabashed usage of spice. Nearly every dish had an element of heat to it that made the dish exciting to eat. Moreover, to compliment the heat of many dishes, a bowl of delicious toasted garlicky bread arrived plate-side.
The dish that I couldn’t help but wolf down was the skirt steak sandwich. Served with toasted coriander and sambal chili paste, the tender steak came with a kick; the spices invigorated my mouth, and the bread cracked and yielded at exactly the right points. Other stand out dishes included the mussels with pancetta bits and okra with grilled shrimp, which are best eaten with your hands and with the exoskeleton. Even simple dishes like the pea salad were refreshingly vibrant. Delicacies like pea shoots and Chinese sausage are found cheap in Chinatown and re-appear on the menu.
Perhaps I should have looked beyond the hipsters and welcomed Kampuchea as a refuge in the neighborhood.
Educated Vinaigrette
School House Kitchen makes a Balsamic Vinaigrette Basico, now stocked at Dean & Deluca, that will be the answer to most of your last-minute culinary quandaries.
The peppery taste and velvety texture make it perfect for just about anything. In the passed week, I’ve tossed a cucumber and carrot salad with it. I’ve also marinated chicken breasts with it. I used it to finish off a grilled skirt steak—making my quick version of a steak au poivre.
If I had any left, I would have made grilled vegetable sandwiches on ciabatta bread and used the dressing as a sauce.
School House Kitchen profits go to all sorts of child education and healthcare centers. In fact, the company was founded specifically for the purpose of raising money for early education!
The peppery taste and velvety texture make it perfect for just about anything. In the passed week, I’ve tossed a cucumber and carrot salad with it. I’ve also marinated chicken breasts with it. I used it to finish off a grilled skirt steak—making my quick version of a steak au poivre.
If I had any left, I would have made grilled vegetable sandwiches on ciabatta bread and used the dressing as a sauce.
School House Kitchen profits go to all sorts of child education and healthcare centers. In fact, the company was founded specifically for the purpose of raising money for early education!
Capogiro Gelato
I wandered into Murray’s Cheese a few weeks ago to get some inspiration, and I was delighted when that inspiration came in a rich, creamy, white form. Capogiro Gelato is an artisan gelato purveyor hailing from Philadelphia, but with roots steeped in Italian tradition. The exceptional frozen dessert (or breakfast if its your birthday…) is family-made by John and Stephanie Reitano using top quality ingredients and a time-honored Italian method of gelato production.
The couple uses dairy from Pennsylvania farms and only fresh ingredients in each small batch that they make. They rotate the flavors extremely often. On the fateful day of my Capogiro discovery, I sampled the Rosemary Honey Goat’s Milk and was instantly hooked. The flavors are well balanced—not exceedingly powerful but more subtly all-encompassing. The consistency is exceptionally smooth and creamy without being cloyingly heavy or sweet. Truly inspiring!
The couple uses dairy from Pennsylvania farms and only fresh ingredients in each small batch that they make. They rotate the flavors extremely often. On the fateful day of my Capogiro discovery, I sampled the Rosemary Honey Goat’s Milk and was instantly hooked. The flavors are well balanced—not exceedingly powerful but more subtly all-encompassing. The consistency is exceptionally smooth and creamy without being cloyingly heavy or sweet. Truly inspiring!
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Beechwood House Barbeque
This past summer, my contribution to a friend’s festivities included five flavors of Beechwood House Originals—barbeque sauces with a depth of flavors that provided the perfect accoutrements for grilled poultry, pork, and veggies. A fortuitous discovery at the Fancy Food Show, Beechwood House’s friendly fellows sell their product only at a few limited locations, mostly gourmet country shops in upstate New York.
We were thrilled to get our hands on each of the flavors, and were bowled over by the results. Their “extra-hot” and “ginger-wasabi” sauces were perfect on barbequed chicken, and the “original” sauce dressed up a whole onion to make for a tasty vegetable side. Yours truly enjoyed it so much that it easily became my entrée.
Although barbeque season has passed, autumn days hearken autumn oven roasts, and Beechwood House’s sauces rise to the occasion yet again. The “ginger-wasabi” sauce goes wonderfully on a roast duck with a side of Sichuan-style vegetables and brown rice. The garlic sauce works perfectly with salmon and is wonderful served with broccoli that have been tossed in it as well.
To get that same divine summer onion that I devoured at the barbeque, glaze a whole, peeled yellow onion with the “original” sauce. Wrap it in foil, and bake in a 400-degree oven for half an hour. Serve several of the sticky sweet and sour onions for dinner to accompany roast pork (glazed with the same sauce!), baked fingerlings or squash, and cinnamon apples!
Developed from family recipes of Lynn Fabian (Founder of Beechwood), the Beechwood name comes from her family’s summer home in the Catskills, where the majority of the recipes first came into existence and were then taste-tested via many barbeques each summer.
The involvement of the second and third generations of the Beechwood legacy will surely keep these sauces circulating for seasons to come.
Indeed, the sauces’ shelf lives extend past summer and well into fall, but after just one finger-licking taste of these versatile sauces, you may discover that they’ll be long gone come winter!
We were thrilled to get our hands on each of the flavors, and were bowled over by the results. Their “extra-hot” and “ginger-wasabi” sauces were perfect on barbequed chicken, and the “original” sauce dressed up a whole onion to make for a tasty vegetable side. Yours truly enjoyed it so much that it easily became my entrée.
Although barbeque season has passed, autumn days hearken autumn oven roasts, and Beechwood House’s sauces rise to the occasion yet again. The “ginger-wasabi” sauce goes wonderfully on a roast duck with a side of Sichuan-style vegetables and brown rice. The garlic sauce works perfectly with salmon and is wonderful served with broccoli that have been tossed in it as well.
To get that same divine summer onion that I devoured at the barbeque, glaze a whole, peeled yellow onion with the “original” sauce. Wrap it in foil, and bake in a 400-degree oven for half an hour. Serve several of the sticky sweet and sour onions for dinner to accompany roast pork (glazed with the same sauce!), baked fingerlings or squash, and cinnamon apples!
Developed from family recipes of Lynn Fabian (Founder of Beechwood), the Beechwood name comes from her family’s summer home in the Catskills, where the majority of the recipes first came into existence and were then taste-tested via many barbeques each summer.
The involvement of the second and third generations of the Beechwood legacy will surely keep these sauces circulating for seasons to come.
Indeed, the sauces’ shelf lives extend past summer and well into fall, but after just one finger-licking taste of these versatile sauces, you may discover that they’ll be long gone come winter!
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