Brooklyn Breakfast Tacos

Posted on October 14, 2011 by

Authentic, Austin breakfast tacos taken by the Gourmet Fury and posted on her blog.

Earlier this fall I got to visit Austin, enchanted land of swimming holes, relaxed cafes, and the most delicious Tex-Mex invention of all: the breakfast taco. I could eat Mexican (and Texican) food all day, everyday, for every meal and not get sick of it. My waistline might not appreciate it, but my taste buds would. This is why I find it especially gratifying that it seems that most every independent coffee shop worth its salt that you go into in Austin has freshly made breakfast tacos on their menu. Featuring corn tortillas, scrambled eggs, beans, salsa, sausage, avocado, cheese, potatoes or anything else you might want to put in it, breakfast tacos and an ice coffee are a great way to start a Texas day.

Some of the fixin’s for Brooklyn Breakfast Tacos

Coming back to Brooklyn I found myself immersed in entertaining out-of-town friends and family. Everyone had very different dietary needs, including gluten-free, diary-free, and vegan, and so to accommodate everyone I thought that instead of going to a restaurant we could just host a brunch featuring build your own breakfast tacos! That way people could take what they liked and enjoy a little Texican in Brooklyn. Paired with cold brewed iced coffee, well, it was a good Sunday.

All the breakfast taco brunch accoutrements

We made a fruit salad, as well as corn salsa, black beans, guacamole, turkey bacon, turkey sausage, scrambled eggs and home fries, but you could also make green salsa or any number of other sauces or toppings. Happy breakfasting!

Posted in Cooking, Entertaining, Fall, Recipe | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

A 3rd Cook in Another Kitchen (Guest Post)

Posted on October 8, 2011 by

Hello from Pennsylvania! Dandy Prof here. About two months ago, I left behind my beloved Brooklyn (and my beloved BFF, editrix of this here blog, with whom I shared a kitchen for seven years), for the suburban climes of Southeastern Pennsylvania. Now, I have never lived in the suburbs before, and it’s taking some getting used to. So, I find myself doing things I *never* did in NYC, like going for morning jogs, hiking up small mountains, and drinking coffee at the Starbucks in the local Target (fun times!).

However! One of the things I have most enjoyed about this move has been access to lovely local produce, with plenty of farmers markets, and a biweekly Autumn CSA share.

Latest CSA haul: carrots, radishes, potatoes, mint, eggplant, rainbow chard, broccoli, onion, lettuce, eggs, and yogurt!

Aside from supporting local farmers, what I most love about farmers markets and CSAs is how they force you to cook and bake with what’s in season. And, upon being faced with week after week of potatoes and kale, this kind of food consumption also forces you to get creative. Last week I found myself with a fridge full of locally grown eggs, beets, carrots, bok choy, lettuce, and tomato. One meal I made out of this was a modified bibimbap, with red rice topped with a fried egg, thinly sliced beef, scallions, cilantro, gomasio, and the following slaw:

Beet-carrot-bok choy slaw

Shred beets and carrots by hand or in a food processor. If you’ve got bok choy (you can also use any type of cabbage), chop it up in small pieces, toss with salt, and let sit in a colander for about ten minutes. Press out the excess water, then toss it in a bowl with the beets and carrots. Throw in some sesame oil, rice vinegar, and finely chopped ginger and garlic. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

One person can only eat so much bibimbap. But I still had leftover slaw! I also had a loaf of sourdough and a catfish fillet from the farmers’ market. Meal number 2: Asian-inspired po boy.

“Asian” catfish po boy

Blend some mayo with cilantro, scallions, and the juice of half a lime.

Prepare catfish by soaking it briefly in milk (I used kefir because I’m the child of hippies and that’s what I had on hand. You can also use buttermilk).

Catfish po boys are traditionally coated in cornmeal, but because this is Asian-inflected, I mixed panko crumbs with some flour and my own spice blend I use for dry rubs. I don’t remember proportions, but you can probably get away with salt, pepper, paprika, and cayenne. Dip your catfish in this mixture until it is fully coated, and then fry in neutral oil until cooked.

Assemble your sandwich! Mayo on both sides of the bread. Fried catfish. Lettuce. Tomato. And don’t forget your slaw.

Posted in Community Supported Agriculture, Cooking, Fall, Recipe, Special Guest | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Introducing Eat Art!

Posted on September 27, 2011 by

Photo by Dominick Mastrangelo

Readers and eaters! We are so pleased to announce the launch of our newest project, Eat Art, which is a collaboration with social-practice artist and food enthusiast Tracy Candido.

Eat Art is a new socially-engaged happening that celebrates food, art, taste, creativity, history and community. Eat Art is a hybrid event, beginning with a guided and themed tour at a NYC museum followed by a food event, like a dinner party or culinary workshop, that is inspired by a collection of art.

Our first event will be held on October 15th and begin at the Brooklyn Museum. Join us on a tour of contemporary and classical art at museum, where we will explore works of art by Brooklyn-based contemporary artists who use classical tropes to explore modern issues in society.

Our hour-long tour will be followed by a dinner that features a multi-course tasting menu inspired by and complimenting our journey through the museum. Our seasonal, farm fresh menu showcases contemporary approaches to traditional dishes.

We sincerely hope you can join us for this exciting, new event! Here is the practical info:

Saturday, October 15, 4:00-8:00pm

Meet at the Brooklyn Museum, 200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn NY

$85 per person

Limited $65 Artist Tickets will be available on the day of the event.Artists are encouraged to attend!

 Click here to sign up.

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“Dumpster Diving, Tofu + Zines” in Remedy Quarterly!

Posted on September 24, 2011 by

Remedy Quarterly Issue 6 from Kelly Carambula

I am so pleased to announce that a story about my young days as a punk rock zinester back in Portland, Oregon has been published in the wonderful journal Remedy Quarterly. Run by Kelly Carambula of the fantastic food (and lovely cocktail) blog Eat Make Read, the publication features “Stories of food, recipes for feeling good.” Each issue is put together around a theme and the newly released issue number six has “Stealing” as its binding idea. As with anything theme driven it’s really fun to see how each author interpreted that theme. My piece takes on the late 1990′s punk community’s views on stealing and how we used that to our advantage to help feed hungry zinesters at the first Portland Zine Symposium in 2001. It also features a recipe for my potluck standby, peanut tofu noodles.

Not only is Remedy Quarterly a pleasure to read, but it is beautifully designed. It even features original fonts by Aaron Carambula, among others. In this digital age it’s nice to find a beautiful magazine you can hold in your hand, so the article is only available in the paper journal. Treat yourself! And why not subscribe and support independent publishing and cooking?

Yay! My piece (& recipe) on stealing tofu in the new issue of @remedyquarterlyAnd yes, I totally cross posted this to my personal blog, killerfemme.

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Carrot Spiced Madeleines (inspired by Karaocake) on Eating the Beats!

Posted on September 21, 2011 by

Laura and Eleanor making madeleines. Photo by Dominick Mastrangelo.

Carrot spice madeleines. Photo by Dominick Mastrangelo.

A few months ago I mentioned the launch of my friend (and excellent cook) Laura’s new food blog, Eating the Beats. Her blog features recipes inspired by the music that she loves. It’s a lot of fun to read and I think the surest way out of a food rut is to let something not related to food inspire your eating. I love reading her blog to get new ideas and find out about new bands! So I was very pleased when she invited me to work on a post with her inspired by the French synth-pop band Karaocake. Reflecting on the music, which is sweet, poppy, and Frenchie as well as infused with a heavy dose of melancholy and nostalgia we thought, what better than madeleines? And perhaps, carrot cake madeleines? We invited our friend Dominick Mastrangelo to take pictures and voila! Read the results on Eating the Beats here. Et bon appetit!

Is there anything more beautiful than sifted flour? Photo by Dominick Mastrangelo.

Testing the madeleine batter. Photo by Dominick Mastrangelo.

Posted in Baking, Dessert, Recipe | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cocktail to Celebrate a Summer Storm

Posted on August 31, 2011 by

It’s that season again. It’s the time when plums ripen in orchards in upstate New York and arrive with such frequency and ferocity, with their tart purple sweetness, that it’s hard to keep up with them. Oh, right, and it’s also hurricane season. Perhaps you heard that we had one named Irene here in New York. The damage in New York City did not seem to be so bad, but I worry for those orchards and farms and farmers upstate due to the high winds and flooding.

As we waited for the storm to blow over we passed the time cooped up in our apartment by cooking. I made a plum crisp inspired by one of Heidi Swanson’s recipes, but it is going to need some tweaking before I share it here. I did, however, create a light, fun, fruity summer cocktail that helped celebrate us making it safely through the storm and used up some more of those plums.

Plum Refresher with Lemongrass Simple Syrup

1 stalk lemongrass or 1 scant handful of leaves

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

4-6 small to medium sized ripe plums

1 lime

Seltzer water

Vodka

Ice

First, make the simple syrup. This you will probably want to do ahead of time so it can cool. In a sauce pan over medium heat pour the water and the sugar into the pan and add the lemongrass, chopped if you are using a stalk. Stir lightly until the sugar has dissolved. Heat until the mixture bubbles slightly, stirring occasionally and then strain out the lemongrass. Let cool.

Next, prepare the puree. Cut the plums in half, remove the pits, puree in a blender.

To make the cocktail: In a shaker with ice combine:

2 soup spoon fulls of plum puree

1 soup spoon full of simple syrup

1 shot vodka

The juice of 1/4 lime

Shake. Either strain or serve on the rocks, adding seltzer water and giving a gentle stir. Taste it (if it’s your drink) and adjust ratio of plum, simple syrup and vodka to your taste. Garnish with mint if you have it. Cheers! Here’s to plum (and hurricane) season!

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Mango Lemongrass Sorbet with Chili and Lime

Posted on August 22, 2011 by

Mango Lemongrass Sorbet with Chili and Lime. Photo by Dominick Mastrangelo.

The summer days are already getting shorter. In the morning you can feel the tang of autumn in the air. Is it time to unpack the sweaters and break out the long pants? Not yet. We are not ones to be fooled. We know there are still some sultry days left to the season. Plus, with the Labor Day holiday coming up you may still want to sneak in some summer style desserts.

This summer we had two nice opportunity converge: my mother lent us her ice cream and sorbet maker and our friend Dominick Mastrangelo, a talented photographer, asked us to do a summer-time food photo shoot. We are only too happy to share the results of both!

This was my first foray into making sorbet and I was struck by how incredibly easy it is. It takes a little bit of planning, because you want to make sure that the freezer bowl of your ice cream maker and your fruit and simple syrup puree have time to chill for effective blending, but that’s it.

Sorbet is composed of two main ingredients: simple syrup (sugar dissolved in water) and a fruit puree. Start there, go anywhere. I use slightly less simple syrup then most sorbet recipes call for. I love fruit and dislike things that are overly sweet. I think that fruits like mangoes are sweet enough on their own! However, if you like it sweeter just double the sugar and water in this recipe. The ratio for a simple syrup is always 1 part sugar to 1 part water.

Mango Lemongrass Sorbet with Chili and Lime

For the simple syrup:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

2 small chilis, chopped roughly

1/2 lemon grass stalk, roughly chopped

Combine all the ingredients in a small sauce pan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally,  until the water boils and the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat, cool for several minutes, and then strain out the lemongrass and the chili. Set aside.

For the fruit puree:

2 to 3 ripe mangoes

1 lime

Simple syrup (see above)

Chili powder (optional)

Kosher salt or coarse sea salt (optional)

Peel the mangoes and place them in a food processor or powerful blender. Halve the lime and squeeze the juice over the mango pieces. Add a dusting of chili powder and a pinch of salt if you want an extra kick. Pour in the simple syrup and mix/blend. Pour the puree into a bowl and refrigerate until cold. You can even make this a day or two ahead of time (be sure your bowl or container is covered in the fridge). If you are impatient you can put the bowl in the freezer, just don’t forget about it!

To make sorbet:

Follow the directions on your sorbet or ice cream maker and churn until frozen. Serve with cut up strawberries and a mint leaf (though I couldn’t wait for it to be served, I just ate it right out of the bowl of the ice cream maker!).

“But wait, I don’t have an ice cream maker!” You might say. Do not fear. To cheat if you don’t have an ice cream maker simply freeze your puree until almost frozen solid (a few hours) then take out of the freezer and blend or mix in the food processor. You might need to freeze it again a little bit, but it’s a pretty close approximation of what you can get in an ice cream maker. At least it works in a pinch! Enjoy the late summer.

Posted in Dessert, Recipe, Summer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments