Posted in France, French, Garlic, Meat, chicken, fried, herbs, offal, poultry, shallots, thyme, tradition, travel on Feb 20th, 2010
Do you ever wish you had a secret power? I don’t mean like some stupid superhero who can fly, make it rain, or look great in a unitard. I mean like a gerbil’s ability to store tasty bits in its cheeks for later, or a tiger’s ability to eat 30lbs of wild boar at a [...]
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Posted in Clams, Gallego, Garlic, Jose Andres, Olive Oil, Paul Bocuse, Recipe, Spain, culture, fish, healthy, history, parsley, sauce, seafood, sustainable, tapas, tradition, travel, white fish on Feb 3rd, 2010
It is no coincidence that, in the 30 years since Franco’s death, Spanish creativity in the arts, architecture, business, and gastronomy has blossomed. It is also no coincidence that it has been, predominantly, though not exclusively, Spain’s sub-national and regional groups — who were repressed most viciously by the Fascist dictator — that have led [...]
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Posted in Arezzo, Florence, Garlic, Italian, Italy, Meat, Montalcino, Montepulciano, Olive Oil, Pasta, Recipes, Tuscan, bolognese, carrots, celery, chicken stock, duck, flour, game, guanciale, hearty, herbs, indulgent meal, mushroom, mushrooms, noodles, philosophy, porcini, sauce, tomato, tradition, travel, tuscany, wine on Jan 23rd, 2010
It might be generational, or, perhaps, philosophical, but there are, on the one hand, those who enjoy and appreciate handmade things, and the art and craft they require to make, and, on the other, those who prefer their things machine-made, reliable, and standard. The ‘things’ here could be quite literally anything. My father, who, to [...]
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Posted in Argentina, Meat, Potato, Recipe, Steak, Uruguay, bacon, beef, cheese, goat, ham, jamon, olives, pepper, tomato, tourism, travel, unhealthy on Jan 7th, 2010
Made during the horrid, self-reflective, and, frequently, gassy hours aboard a trans-Atlantic flight this past weekend, our New Year’s resolutions swore us to no less than three weeks of Spartan, monkish grazing on whole grains, green vegetables and lean protein in order to trim ourselves of burgeoning, lumpy mid-sections brought on by the combined Holiday [...]
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Posted in Argentina, Chorizo, Meat, Recipe, culture, empanadas, history, offal, sauce, sausage, spices, stew, travel, tripe on Nov 20th, 2009
La Cupertina, at the corner of Cabrera and Godoy Cruz in the charming Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo Viejo, is reputed to have the best traditional Tucuman empanadas in the city. And, certainly, they are rather good. So tasty, in fact, that we bought a dozen for carry-out the day we left Argentina and nursed [...]
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***WE INTERRUPT THIS POST TO GIVE YOU HORRIBLE, SAD, SAD NEWS. GOURMET MAGAZINE, A FOODIE INSTITUTION SINCE 1941, IS FOLDING BECAUSE OF SLUMPING AD REVENUE. Jonny and I are completely disheartened and very pissed off. Our beloved , intelligently-written and interesting Gourmet has died. I really hope someone comes with a fat check and keeps it [...]
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Posted in America, Argentina, Buenos Aires, England, Italian-American, Meat, New Jersey, brandy, butter, chives, cream, grilled, grilling, indulgent meal, mushroom, mushrooms, porcini, restaurant, rosemary, sauce, travel, turnip, vegetables on Sep 24th, 2009
New Jersey, it’s like a cross-section of the entire United States stuffed into a very small area — fenced-in by heavy industry, ugly sub-divisions, peaceful tidal bays and relaxing shore towns — but with its own very distinct character. And, if you drive around it long enough, you’re bound to see some pretty interesting stuff. This goes [...]
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Posted in Bologna, Emilia Romagna, Italian, Italy, Meat, Modena, Pasta, balsamico, cream, ground meat, pork, ravioli, sandwiches, sausage, travel on Sep 16th, 2009
At Via Clavature 18, hidden in the back streets of Bologna, is the comparatively charmless little Ristorante da Gianni. It’s dimly lit, almost to the point of stumbling darkness — especially if you enter, as we did, from the sharp rays of a late midsummers’ afternoon nursing a fierce hangover brought on by a handful of Negronis the night [...]
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