The Best Thing I Had In My Mouth - Hurricane Irene Edition

It's weird what you do in emergencies.  On Thursday of last week, there was definitely rumblings of Hurricane Irene, by Friday my friend had informed me she was looking for a battery-powered radio.  What?  Like you are really that worried?  Then the news of the subways closing by noon on Saturday came, and it started to freak me out a bit.  It was more about the lack of cheap transportation than the fact that there could be some real damage.  I was feeling stuck.  So what did we get for the emergency?  Water (to make us look sane), Lay's potato chips, tortilla chips, mixed nuts, Pepperidge Farm Bordeaux cookies, and Pirate's Booty.  My friend stopped at Harlem Vintage and he they were pretty low on things (New Yorkers know what's important).  On Saturday, we spent a bit of time making salsa and a pitcher of margaritas to get us through the weekend.  The slim chance of death was just enough for me to go hog wild and not care that I  had two bowls of Pirate's Booty in a row while laying on the couch watching Friday Night Lights.  Thanks Hurricane Irene!

Please enjoy this Curb Your Enthusiasm clip, where Larry David proclaims his love of Pirate's Booty (we share the same passion):

Last year, I made this tomato salad - click here to check it out.

CSA Week Eleven

Okay, I am totally behind, blame it on Irene.  She really put a cramp in everyone's style this week.  Here what I got in my CSA this week:

-Red onion
-Hot peppers
-Green bell peppers
-Eggplant
-Carrots
-Corn
-Tomatoes
-Basil
-Watermelon
-Nectarines
-Peaches
-Eggs

Mondrian SoHo - Imperial No. Nine

My friend and I stopped by the Mondrian Soho Hotel, while wondering through Soho.  The outside had a rusted iron fence with ivy, and an archway beckoning us to come in.  So we did.  The lobby is something from I don't know where, and I actually would recommend you close your eyes (think a paint bucket of periwinkle blue has been throw all over the room, blue shiny vinyl seats, blue velvet, and a blue feather boa lamp - yuck), and make a u-turn to your left into the Imperial No. Nine restaurant.  It is like the Secret Garden/Alice In Wonderland, so pretty, whimsical, and a perfect place to get a drink with your girlfriends.  There was even a swing we sat in, which made drinking a little precarious, but didn't stop us.  If you are in the area, I would recommend checking it out.

The Best Thing I Had In My Mouth - Tomato Grilled Cheese Sandwich

This week has been a huge disappointment of mediocre food.  Accidentally added guac in my Chipotle burrito online order - FAIL.  Had Dominos Pizza - health FAIL.  Ate at Dos Toros - LivingSocial FAIL.  There were some successes - Roasted Tomato and Eggplant soup (which I also used as pizza sauce), homemade pizza, and this tomato grilled cheese sandwich.  Fresh CSA tomatoes with Consider Bardwell Farm Pawlet cheese.  Major SUCCESS and the best thing I had in my mouth all week.

If you are in the mood for some baking - try this chewy and crispy chocolate chip cookie recipe.

CSA Week Ten

Hooray!  Finally got real tomatoes!  Here is what else I got this week from my CSA:

-Basil
-Carrots
-Corn
-Eggplant
-Cucumber
-Summer squash
-Lettuce
-Peppers
-Cherry tomatoes
-Tomatoes
-Peaches
-Melon
-Eggs
-Wild Flowers

Last night I made tostadas with the lettuce and cherry tomatoes.

Sometimes my favorite thing to do with a tomato is just slice it up and put some salt on it.  I think I am going to save a few and make a margherita pizza, with my own tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese, and basil.  A pepper pizza sounds pretty good too, and even this grilled-peach and proscuitto pizza sounds interesting.  Pizza party!

I am actually making tomato and eggplant soup tonight, and I desperately need to make some zucchini bread and freeze it for the later.  I still have a few zuccs hanging around in my fridge.

If you end up making tomato sauce, how about some homemade pasta to go with it?

The Best Thing I Had In My Mouth - WheatFields Kalamata Olive Bread

My friend visited Kansas last week and brought home three mini loaves of WheatFields Kalamata Olive Bread.  If you are near Lawrence, Kansas, you have to make a stop at WheatFields, one of the best bakeries in the country.  Seriously, I am still searching for an equivalent in New York and cannot find one.  And you can find anything in New York!  They have great bread, a wonderful breakfast, and the best chocolate et chocolate cookies.  This toasted Kalamata Olive bread with scrambled eggs was the best thing in my mouth all week.  Hands down.  This sourdough bread is filled with whole olives, so you really get a couple of olives in every slice, instead of whimpy, tiny pieces of olives I have found in other olive bread.  No competition!

Click here for the Dutch Baby Pancake with Peaches I made last year.

CSA Week Nine

This week in my CSA I got more zucchini (ugh) and a ton of other stuff.  Here is what I got:

-Mesclun greens
-Green bell peppers
-Beets
-Eggplant (my arch nemesis)
-Basil
-Yellow squash
-Zucchini
-Cucumbers
-Cherry tomatoes
-Melon
-Watermelon
-White peaches
-Eggs
-Sunflowers

Feeling a little unmotivated this week, but made some tacos and pesto on Wednesday.  On Thursday, my friend made these stuffed peppers from Smitten Kitchen, which used up the rest of the tomatoes, peppers, and some zucchini.

Tonight, I am planning on making a zucchini tart, which uses the pesto I made and the zucchini!

I would love to make a watermelon salad with basil and feta, and maybe roast some beets.  Ugh, what to do with this eggplant?  I might make this roasted tomato and eggplant soup (to hide it)!

Check out my review on the Van Leeuwan Ice Cream Truck.

Rosemary Apricot Turnovers

Over the weekend I made some Rosemary Apricot Turnovers.  I love the combination of rosemary and apricot together, it is a great subtle savory-sweet combo.  This recipe is made in two sessions.  The first half is a very simple poached apricot recipe, and the second is the assembling of the turnovers.  These are so cute, just perfect for a summer picnic.  They are best the day you make them, otherwise their flaky goodness is lost to this sticky New York heat.

Eden Eats

Eden with Chef Piroska.  Photo from Cooking Channel.

So I randomly came across Eden Eats: Austin on the Cooking Channel one night, pressed record, and finally watched the whole thing on Wednesday.  What a fun show to watch!  I totally have a girl crush on the host Eden Grisphan!  She is so funny, enthusiastic, and sweet, not to mention adorable-tomboy-cool.  If you haven't seen the show, you still can, click here to see the air times.   I can't tell if is going to become a series, but I really hope so!  Austin looks like an amazing culinary adventure!

CSA Week Eight

This week I got tomatoes for the first time, tons of corn, and delicious fruit.  Last night I munched on a lot of stuff instead of making any real dinner.

Here is what I got:

-Onion
-Purslane
-Basil
-Cherry tomatoes
-Summer squash
-Peppers
-Jalapenos
-Cucumber
-Corn
-Watermelon
-Peaches
-Apricots
-Eggs
-Sunflowers

Last night I made some poached apricots for some hand pies I will be making later in the week.
I might make this corn and zucchini salad.  Or corn fritters!
Maybe I will try this squash loaf cake, but I am just going to say it - I am sick of zucchini.
And I am making a huge salad tonight with the lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers!  Watermelon with basil and feta sounds pretty good too!
And I might make a little bit of salsa too!

Spoon Plus

Above photos taken from Aissa Logerot's website.

I saw this clever spoon and chopsticks combo on Design You Trust.  It is by designer Aissa Logerot.  Click here to check it out and the other cool things she designs.

Squash and Goat Cheese Frittata

My friend made us this delicious Squash and Goat Cheese Frittata (from Martha Stewart's Cooking School) this weekend.  It is the perfect breakfast meal, when you are overloaded with yellow squash and zucchini!  I love how fluffy this frittata came out, I definitely will be making it again.  The squash and zucchini can be replaced with any precooked vegetables you like.