Stark tomatoes

I'm a bit of a worshipper when it comes food celebrities. So when I saw these gorgeous bins of heirloom tomatoes at Union Square from Tim Stark, I knew it would be worth it (even at $7 a bin). 

And oh my, it was.  It would be silly to write a recipe for this little salad since all I did was drizzle the sliced tomatoes with olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on top.  Each color had a different texture to the skin, a different tang to the acidity. 

Here's to hoping you have some beautiful tomatoes of your own to enjoy this week.  

Makes my lips tingle

Last night, a wonderful friend came by for dinner. And she even brought flowers and chocolate! I told you she was wonderful.


We drank frozen margertitas (Have you tried these? They're AMAZING.) and got to catch up on gossip and decorating and books. Peter kept us out of the kitchen while he whipped this up. This is a dish he's made for me before, and I absolutely love it. He used a spicier curry in last night's version, and it made my lips tingle a little (in a good way, of course!). And it happens to use a lot of the wonderful things out in the farmers market this time of year -- fresh corn, peppers, jalepeno, and tomatoes.


Curry chicken with yogurt:
Adapted from Food and Wine


You will need:

1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs
Salt and freshly ground pepper
All-purpose flour, for dusting
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 big red bell pepper—cored, seeded and cut into thin strips
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 large tomato, cored and coarsely chopped
2 fresh ears of corn, cut off the core
1/4 cup Greek-style plain low-fat yogurt
1/2 cup water

In a large, deep skillet, heat the oil. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and lightly dust with flour, tapping off the excess. Cook the chicken over high heat, turning once, until lightly browned and then transfer the chicken to a plate.


Add the ginger, garlic, chile, and bell pepper to the skillet and cook over high heat until slightly softened. Stir in the curry powder and then add the tomatoes, corn, yogurt, and water. Season with salt and pepper.

Return the chicken to the skillet and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over very low heat until the chicken is tender and the juices are slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. We served ours over rice to round out the meal, and have the most delicious left-overs covered in this spicy curry.

P.S. I made a version of this for dessert (substituted amaretto for almond tequila and toasted almonds for candied walnuts, but the same basic idea). A stellar finish to a fantastic visit.

They have better homes in Australia

We've done a much better job eating at home this week. I know it's boring, but I love the routine of coming into the apartment after being pushed and sholved on the subway. Sitting on the couch, going over the silly and sometimes irritating items of the day with a glass of wine in hand and Rachel Ray chattering in the background. It's delightful.

It's the night before we skip out of town again, and I'm left making dinner with the odd things left in my fridge. I've got an avocado, a single ear of corn, some pretty purple shallots...and that's about it. I did a quick internet search of "avocado and corn" and came across this for inspiration. Pretty good looking, right? And it even uses the shallots!

Fish with avacodo, corn, and rice

You will need:

2 fillets of fish (I used tilapia because it looked good at the fish market)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large shallots, diced

1 clove fresh garlic

1 ear fresh corn

1 ripe avacodo

1 cup rice

splash of white wine vinegar (or white wine!)

1/4 cup water

Juice from half a lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

Add olive oil to a large frying pan and heat over medium high until the oil is just rippling. Wash and dry the fish. Spinkle with salt and pepper. Add to the pan and sear on each side for a few minutes -- ere on the side of undercooking. Cover fish in foil and place in a low oven to keep warm. Add shallots and corn to the hot pan you cooked the fish in. Cook about two minutes, then add vinegar, water, and avocado. Cook for one more minute, covered. Remove from pan and add lemon juice, butter, and a splash more of vinegar to the pan. Stir.

I served this over rice, so I put a nice scoop of rice in the dish, the avocado, corn, and shallot mixture next, then the fish, and then I drizzled the sauce on top. Light and lemony and creamy.

Here we go again

While making $2 bets last weekend at the Saratoga horse races, Peter and I actually made $42! I know -- I was amazed, too.  We decided to use if for a fun date night back in the city.  The only problem with this plan is that it can be quite difficult to have a fun date in New York City for only $42.

We decided to use it one of my favorite spots, Taim, in the West Village. It's very tiny -- just a counter with six stools -- but it's charming in it's own strange way.  There are large glass windows facing the street, and there are usually some odd conversations taking place inside that are well worth over-hearing. 

While we were making our final decisions, we got a tall glass of the ginger mint lemonade, which is so refreshing and crisp tasting, especially this time of year. We decided to order the mixed falafel platter, which comes with green, red, and harissa flavored mini-falafels sitting on top of a giant mound of creamy hummus sprinkled with smokey paprika. There are piles of Isreali salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions chopped up together), green, tangy tabouli, and three other sauces to pour on top. We got the white pitas (they also have wheat), which come out warm and covered with dried herbs and salt. This time we remembered to order an extra couple of pitas to go along with the platter since it only comes with two and there is more than enough on the platter to make four. 

I should also mention that Tiam has the best french fries in the city. Rather, they have the best french fry accompaniment in the city. It's a thick, yellow saffron aioli that is totally and completely wonderful.  It's the dressing that thin, crispy fries everywhere would cry out for if they could. 

All this was only $20.  Leaving us with $22 to spend on movie tickets to Mama Mia!  

What's too much?

It started with burgers, french fries, and onion rings and P.J. Clarkes. Then it was sausages and a soft, salted pretzel at Shea Stadium. We rounded out the week with pork belly and sweet and sour chicken at Szechuan Gourmet.

Just. Too. Much.

Needless to say, it's salad, rice, and a plain old pork chop for tonight. For the salad, I drew inspiration from the incredible Splendid Table newsletter and added some curry to my dressing.

Simple summer salad

You will need:

1 clove fresh garlic, chopped finely

1 small purple scallion

1 ripe tomato

Nice chunk of cucumber

Small bell pepper (mine was lovely and purple!)

Teaspooon of curry

Splash of balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

Sprinkle of salt and pepper

In the bottom of your salad bowl, whisk together the curry, chopped garlic, chopped shallot, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. Chop nice chunks of tomato, cucumber, and the red bell pepper. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Summer chil(i)

It's sticky in the kitchen tonight, but that's only because I was craving some decidedly un-summery things. We had all the stuff for a great chili (one of Peter's specialities), and cornbread just seemed like the perfect thing to go along with it, but that meant I had to turn on the oven. To four hundred degrees. So it goes when a craving comes along. I rounded out the meal with my favorite summer salad -- sliced cucumbers and tomatoes with basil, oil, salt, and pepper on top.

And then, because it's Peter's favorite and I happened to have a giant peach, I made him some peach ice-cream. I cut the recipe in half, since we only had a small container of sour cream on hand.

Peter's summer chili

You will need:

3 strips of bacon

1/2 pound ground beef

1/2 large onion

2 cloves garlic

1 can pink beans

1 ear fresh corn

2 medium tomatoes

1 can crushed tomatoes

1 red bell pepper

1 jalapeno pepper

ground cumin, cinnamon, and dark chili powder, to taste

Chop your bacon up into bite sized pieces and put at the bottom of your stew pot. Once your bacon has crisped up, take out some of the bacon fat, but not all. Add your chopped onion, red pepper, and jalapeno. After a few minutes, add the ground beef and cook until the meat is brown. Season with chili powder, cumin, and a little shake of cinnamon. Cut your fresh corn off the ear and saute in a dry pan a few minutes. Add your corn, chopped fresh tomatoes, can of drained beans, and your can of crushed tomatoes, with the juice. Fill up the tomato can with water and add it to the pot. Let it cook down about 30 minutes. Serve with corn bread, sour cream, and cheese.

Peach ice cream

Recipe adapted from The Perfect Scoop:

You will need:

1 giant peach (or 2 regular sized peaches)

1/4 cup water

Just under 1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

Handful of mini chocolate chips

Peel and dice your peach, and put over medium heat with water. Cook about 10 minutes, until the peaches are soft and mushy. Stir in the sugar and let cool about 30 minutes. In a blender or food processor, mix together the cooled peaches and any liquid they have along with the sour cream, cream, and vanilla*. I made my mixture quite smooth because I hate fruit chunks in my ice cream, but you are welcome to make this as chunky as you'd like. Chill the mixture in the fridge until cool, and then add to the wondrous ice cream machine. At the very end, I added in a handful of mini-chocolate chips.

*The original recipe calls for some lemon juice added in at this point, which would be delightful, I'm sure, but I didn't have any.

Chocolate sorbet

To be honest, chocolate sorbet didn't sound so appealing to me at first glance. Isn't the creaminess of chocolate ice cream a major part of its appeal?

But it was 8:30, we were about to settle into episodes four and five of our Mad Men season one marathon, and I just didn't feel like running out for whole milk and heavy cream. Dairy-free chocolate sorbet was starting to look pretty good.

And oh my, it didn't disappoint. In fact, even without the cream and milk, it manages to be smooth and comforting, like the summer equivalant of decadent hot chocolate.

Recipe adapted from The Perfect Scoop.

You will need:

2 1/4 cups water
3/4 cup of cocoa
Pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, 2 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped

Combine 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, cocoa, and salt. Heat over a medium burner, whisk the mixture frequently until it comes to a boil. Add chocolate, vanilla, and 3/4 cup water and stir until melted. Put the mixture in the fridge to cool, and then add it to your wonderful ice cream maker. Let the magic churning begin!

I topped ours with some fresh raspberries because I had them in the fridge (and you know how quickly those guys turn), but this this would be delightful with white and dark chocolate chips, sprinkles, or any other fresh fruit sprinkled on top.

These are a few of my favorite things

I have been a long-time reader and fan of Sarah's beautiful blog, the Pink of Perfection. I love her writing and, while I'm not a very crafty girl, I love reading about her ideas and creations there. Her recipes always feel friendly and warm, like she's a good girlfriend just passing along her most helpful weeknight dinner ideas. This one in particular has happily entered into my regular, "I don't really feel like making dinner, but I want to eat something delicious and fun," category.

All that being said, it seemed like a great idea to play along with her July project and write up my very own happiness list. Here are a few of my favorite (food-ish) things:

• The recipe and wine listings at the beginning of every issue of Food & Wine magazine -- the categories, the color coding, the possibilities!
• The very tip of a slice of pie, cake, or even quiche. My mother has always insisted that this was the very best bite, and now, even though I don't necessarily agree, I always try to savor it.
• My new ice-cream maker. So far, I've only ventured as far as Philadelphia-style chocolate chip, but much more happy news on the ice-cream maker front to come in future postings.
• Watching Peter take the first bite of something delicious. There is some variation, depending on the dish's level of amazing-ness, but it typically involves closed eyes, a nodding head, and a slow smile, followed by an extended thoughtful gaze off in the distance.
• Packing up a fast weeknight picnic for dinner in the park. There's something that feels very special about eating outside on a blanket with a glass of wine on a Wednesday, isn't there? I've been taking inspiration from this lovely list lately, courtesy of Mark Bittman.

Island food

We just got back from an absolutely delightful week on Martha's Vineyard. We ate a lot. And we beached a lot. Here's a sampling of some of my favorite meals (and some of the Vineyard -- it's just so pretty).

View from the lighthouse in Edgartown:

An incredible salad we made at home one night. We stole the idea from a salad special that Gennaro serves. It's shrimp, avocado, roasted red peppers, fresh grilled corn, and a simple balsamic vinaigrette. Isn't it gorgeous?

Sidewalk in Vineyard Haven:

Tuna, green pepper, tomato, and fennel kabobs:

Net Result lobster dinner:

Pretty soup bowls on the front porch at Chilmark Pottery:

Happy summer vacation!

Mercy, Gramercy

Peter and I have hit a lot of milestones lately.  I finished my first New York job and am about to start my second, and in the very same week, Peter finished graduate school and was offered a wonderful job.  Some celebrating was in order.

We went to Gramercy Tavern for dinner the night before the Fourth of July and hopped right up to a table thanks to the holiday weekend.  It was tough to decide between a sparkling rose and a fun cocktail to start, but ultimately we went with cocktails.  Peter's was a gin icey concoction that tasted gross to me, but he adored it.  But, oh my -- the Tea Time was just perfect.  Vodka, iced tea, lemon, amaretto, with a giant spring of mint.  

We started off our meal sharing the merguez sausage, which came with chickpeas, beet greens, and almonds.  Our delightful server suggested a spicy red wine to go with the sausage.  I liked this dish, especially with the crunch of the nuts mixed in, and they very nicely spilt the order onto two plates for us.  Our second appetizer was a baby trout special that came on a thick soup/stew made of squash and zuccinni and squash blossoms.  It was bright green and had big leaves of herbs floating around inside.  The trout were lightly battered and fried, and it tasted like the very best parts of summer.  

We shared the scallops for our main dish (also split onto two plates for us, a very nice touch), which came with baby beets in a pretty, thick pink sauce and bacon bits.  The scallops were tender and soft and delightful.  I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only just recently tried scallops, and now I can't seem to get enough of them.  

I'm a sucker for any restaurant with a nice cheese plate, but Gramercy was above and beyond.  There are about two dozen cheeses on their menu, and our heads were spinning.  By this point we trusted our server completely, so we told her that we were pretty adventurous and asked her to put together a plate with five cheeses for us.  The first was a lot like cheesy butter -- amazing.  Neither Peter or I can remember the second cheese (usually a bad sign...), but I remember enjoying it at the time. The next one was nutty and a bit grainy.  Peter, budding cheese maker that he is, wistfully said, "I wish I had an endless wheel of this..."  Next was our Cheez-It cheese -- flakey and full of that delicious cheddar taste.  The last was a strong and tangy blue.  

It was a bit decadent, but we got the German chocolate with chocolate coconut ice cream.  Good, but it too was difficult to top the incredible cheeses.  Still, an absolutely incredible celebration meal.