December 2011
1 post
Meringue Cookies and How to get your eggs room...
Other meringue cookie recipes are waaaaaay too sweet for me. I played with it a bit and like this version best - though, I think I’ll tinker with taking the sugar down even more for my next batch. Room temp egg whites were best - doesn’t have to be completely room temp, just needs to have the chill off.
• 2 ROOM TEMPERATURE Egg whites* • 1/8 tsp Cream of Tartar • 1/4 Cup Granulated...
November 2011
1 post
Pecan and Pumpkin Pie - crust
PIE CRUST A mixture of Ina’s Perfect Pie Crust and Smitten Kitchen’s Pie Crust 102. Tastes amazing and flakey and light. I know I said Ina’s was the best, but I think this is better) Makes 2 crusts. 3 C. All purpose flour 2 Sticks butter, cubed and cold 1/3 C. Vegetable shortening, cubed and cold 1 tsp Salt 1 1/2 T. Confectioners sugar (omit for a savory...
September 2011
1 post
Tiny Apple Pies
A couple weekends ago, a friend and I decided to go apple picking. In my mind I saw myself gathering half a bushel of apples in my skirt, walking through the orchard, stopping to let a horse nibble on a sweet treat then strolling along my merry way, apples in tow. I mean, what’s half a bushel anyway? 10 apples? Actually, it’s 21lbs. One bushel is 42lbs. and the orchard gives you a...
July 2010
2 posts
When the French Stormed my stomach, or my first...
Bonjour! It was Bastille day last week and I celebrated the French by making moules marinieres and being smug. Disdainfully delicious!
Since this was my first time preparing mussels, I wanted the easiest recipe I could find. Turns out, they’re all pretty easy and varied only slightly (butter v. olive oil, more herbs v. less herbs). So, factoring in the variables and cross-referencing web...
June 2010
2 posts
Salted (yes) Brown Butter (yes) Rice Krispies...
I love butter. It’s the base of everything delicious. It’s the topping that make everything even more delicious. Popcorn? Yum. Popcorn with extra butter? Delicious! Fresh, steamed lobster? YUM. Fresh, steamed lobster drenched in clarified butter? EXTRA DELICIOUS. If you ever find that something is missing in your recipe, add a little butter. But don’t go getting all obese on my...
February 2010
2 posts
Butternut Squash, Sage, and Chicken Risotto,...
Well, well, would you look at that? Months have gone by since my last post, a new year has rolled around and I haven’t actually done a whole lot of cooking in a while. I skipped Thanksgiving last year in lieu of travels to London, Paris, Toronto, and home to Los Angeles through Christmas. I wish I was better about taking photos of food, but honestly, who can think about composing a photo...
November 2009
2 posts
Kale Chips: Super Food. Super Delicious.
Have I mentioned that I love kale? Well, I do. And it is my extreme pleasure to discover all sorts of ways to eat it. Usually, I’ll throw it in some pasta or just saute it in some butter, olive oil and garlic and have it as a side. I’ll take this moment to mention that I also don’t have much of a sweet tooth. I have more of a fried-crunchy-salty tooth. Fry it up. Make it crunch....
October 2009
3 posts
White Truffle Oil, my new favorite thing.
(Yes, yes. Another crappy iPhone photo)
Food items quickly jump up on my list of favorite things when it strikes me that I really should have tried this wonder-of-my-taste buds sooner. Currently, I am in love with white truffle oil. Why has it taken me so long to buy a bottle? I know why. Because when you’re fresh out of college, making about a nickle an hour and you’ve had the...
Brunch...I mean really, it's lunch, but on the...
When I moved to New York for college, brunch was easily at 3pm (hey…it’s a Friday or Saturday night. YOU know what I’m talking about). As I’m getting older, and I seem to need less sleep - though, all I crave is more sleep, I find that brunch happens a bit earlier, closer to noon (pending, of course, what has gone on the night before). And even though nothing in life makes...
September 2009
2 posts
sloppy joe - 20 years after the fact
Every so often I’ll get a craving for something completely outside of my normal food tastes. But there are usually outside factors involved - I guess in this case, it was a very inside factor - because I was hung over (don’t judge me. I can see judgement in those hungry eyes) and was craving something comforting but not in the mood for my usual hung over fare. This is probably a good...
August 2009
3 posts
cold food for hot days: recipes
All in all, I’d say dinner was a success. Since everything was served cold, I made a bunch of the dishes the day before. I have to say, I was disappointed with the pesto potato salad and won’t be making it again. But it’s pesto! And potatoes! It should be a no-brainer and yet with each bite I found myself thinking about why this doesn’t taste very good. It may just be that...
Dinner Menu: Cold food for Hot days
It’s finally started getting hot outside. Like summertime hot. Like, I just took a shower, decided to go for a walk and came back a sweaty mess. And I sweat like a 400lb. man reaching for a Dorito on the other end of the couch. It ain’t pretty and I’ll stop with the unappetizing visuals now.
You’re welcome.
I think New York’s had the short end of the summer stick so...
July 2009
3 posts
Current: olive oil & balsamic vinegar from O&Co
A few years ago, a good friend of mine bought me one of my most favorite birthday presents ever: really good olive oil and balsamic vinegar from well-known Di Palo located in New York’s Littly Italy (Grand and Mott). Actually, that same year, another good friend of mine bought me a delicious Spanish olive oil from another NYC institution, Despaña (Broome between Lafayette/Centre). These are...
appetizer: white bean and roasted garlic dip
A few months ago, I moved into my own place. One of the conditions of the apartments I chose was that I had to be able to fit in a dining table, no matter how small. 8 years in NYC and I’ve spent the majority of them eating on my desk, lap, coffee table or even standing sometimes. I dunno, maybe it’s just me getting older and my tastes becoming ever so refined, but I can’t help...
June 2009
6 posts
Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs And A Really Basic, But...
Most of my food tastes I inherited from my dad. I know this because every time my mom cooks and I make a request for something to be made a particular way she says to me, “Your taste buds are just like your father’s.” But this is said in Korean and directly translates into, “You match your father’s mouth (tastes) exactly.” I lead you on because you’re...
Healthy Fish Tacos w/Corn-Avocado Salsa, Pickled...
Fish tacos haven’t quite hit the east coast yet as a summer time must-eat. I wish I could say that it was my days as an avid SoCal surfer that led me to love fish tacos…needing to eat them after riding some killer waves from dawn to dusk, but unfortunately, I’m not so cool.
I have gone surfing (albeit poorly), and I am from Southern California and I do love fish tacos, but...
1 tag
Tabouli-like Greek-ish Salad
A couple years ago, I was working all weekend at my office in midtown. There’s not a lot of food choices in the area unless you’re willing to shell out the bones for something prim and proper. Um, not so much my cup of tea. I find it hard to enjoy a nice meal when there’s a ton of work waiting for me.
At the office.
On a weekend.
One of my co-workers who was working on the...
1 tag
Appetizer: Black Olive Spread
When I first moved to New York, I lived in the dorms in the financial district just a couple blocks from the WTC. Across the street from the dorm was this wonderful Turkish market called Zey Tuna which, I believe is no longer there. This is where I discovered Olive spread. They had so many different varieties made fresh and also a large selection of olive oils with tasting samples always...
2 tags
Orecchiette w/ Spicy Italian Sausage & Kale
I first had a version of this made with wild spinach at Lupa (Thompson between Bleecker and Houston). It’s so simple and so delicious and I can’t thank Mario Batali enough for having it at his restaurant as a special the night I was there almost 3 years ago. I’ve since tried to recreate my own version. I think this is a pretty classic Italian dish often made with broccoli rabe -...
1 tag
Baby's first blog
So I decided to start up one of these bad boy blogs because I like to cook and am starting to lose track of my recipes. I have sheets of prints outs stashed in various places at home or on my desktop at work and even though I’m fully aware of having one of the worst memories ever, I still think I’ll remember modifications like, “ok, next time, I’ll use half a cup plus 2...