Musings on Starters, Mains, Desserts and Second-Helpings…
Posted in avocado, ceviche, chile, cilantro, easy, fish, juice, lime, lower fat, olives, orange juice, shrimp on Nov 16th, 2011
Since parenthood came into my life, so has weight gain. It hasn’t been all that bad but I think I weigh a bit more now than I did in the days after I pushed that child out. Why? Because the gym is now a long-distant memory. Since we clearly like to eat, the gym was […]
Posted in almond, anchovies, anise, bucatini, culture, fennel, Garlic, history, Italian, Italy, Olive Oil, Pasta, saffron, Sicilian, tradition, wine on Apr 5th, 2011
Greeks, Romans, Moors, Normans, Spaniards, Garibaldi and his thousand, and finally hordes of tourists have visited Sicily over the milennia. Some stayed for centuries, some only for generations, but even those whose sojourn was comparatively brief played a role in the island’s blending of cultures and traditions. If this human concoction can be distilled into […]
Posted in alcohol, appetizer, Autumn, baking, duck, Fall, France, French, game, gherkins, ground meat, liver, madeira, Meat, mustard, pastry, pork, rabbit, tradition, travel on Oct 26th, 2010
Every now and then I’ll sit through one of those “secrets of the ancient world” shows on the History Channel. You know, the ones in which they have modern experts try to “decode” how the pyramids or the hanging gardens of Babylon were constructed using graphics that make you feel like you’re watching B-roll from […]
Posted in cornichons, game, gherkins, grilled, grilling, Italian, Italy, pine nuts, Sicilian, sour, sweet, vinegar on Jul 30th, 2009
One of the most familiar (and enjoyable) flavor combinations to many cultures – sour and sweet or, as the Italians call it, agrodolce. There is something about tartness and sweetness that just makes you want more. Think Sour Patch Kids, Pisco or Whiskey Sours or your favorite Chinese take-out order. Yes, sweet and sour is […]
Posted in America, Argentina, Atlantic City, beef, bread, breadcrumbs, Buenos Aires, fried, hearty, history, Italian, Italian-American, Italy, Meat, Napoli, obesity on Jul 24th, 2009
“In Argentina, a vegetarian is someone who orders a salad with their steak…” –Unknown Those with even a basic understanding of food history probably know that the hamburger as we know it today is an American adaptation of the “Hamburger-style steak” which originated in the now-German city of Hamburg, and was brought to this country […]
The heavens have cleared here in NYC, finally. After over twenty straight days of clouds and/or rain, we celebrated the welcoming warm and sunny weather with something light and bright. Before this week, bathing suit season seemed very, very far away – then the heat and sun came and getting into a bathing suit began […]
Posted in Italian on Jan 29th, 2009
So, class, welcome to your first day of Cooking 101. Today’s lesson is sauces. First sauce, velouté. What is a velouté you ask? Well, don’t ask a Frenchman because they’re likely to laugh in your face, spit on you for your ignorance and then leave you without any pride or dignity (or answers either). Velouté […]
Posted in America, chops, gravy, Italian, Italian-American, Meat, New Jersey, offal, Pasta, Philadelphia, pigs, Recipe, Recipes, sauce, sausage, slow cooking, trotter, unhealthy on Jan 19th, 2009
They (we) call it a Sunday Gravy because it really suits a Sunday best. The long simmering, the wine drinking, the letting-it-sit-on-the-stove-till-the-family-arrives kind of gravy. Thanks to the Sopranos, people all over the world have heard of Sunday Gravy. Some scratch their heads in wonder as to why some call it sauce and others call […]
Posted in beans, beef, cabbage, chicharron, Chorizo, cilantro, Colombian, cornmeal, crispy, diversity, egg, fried, grilled, indulgent meal, lunch, masa, morcilla, peppers, pinto beans, pork, Recipe, Recipes, red beans, spicy, Steak, tourism, tradition, yucca on Oct 1st, 2008
We are fortunate enough to live in a city with a ridiculous amount of diversity when it comes to restaurants, and one place we frequent often is a ‘hip’ Colombian restaurant (what the hell, it is Brooklyn). When we go there it’s because of two things: 1) We’re friggin starving and are ready to eat […]
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