Before I went into the studio this morning, I spun a sweet potato through the saladacco and then marinated the “noodles” in a dressing of peanut butter, lemon juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, nam pla, garlic chives, rice vinegar, ginger, and agave nectar. I figured it would go well with and help influence whatever ended up being dinner. Which was BBQ chicken. So I gave some big whole legs the espresso rub, and whipped up…
Year: 2008
So as if by design, upon my return our neighbor Kenny had just brought some rainbows he caught at one of his favorite spots upstream. Combined with the (not quite seamless, but pretty close) overlapping of the bolting winter greens and fast-arriving new ones, the stage was set for exactly the kind of homecoming dinner I had been craving while I survived on coffee, carbs, and wine all weekend. Milo was so happy to see…
I’ve been in the city since Friday, doing a bunch of boring, tedious things that are nonetheless important- like finish the kitchen in Brooklyn before the tenants move in. Not my idea of fun in the kitchen. The culinary highlights thus far have been a lovely Seder dinner with relatives and friends and the penne all’arrabiata I made for breakfast this morning. There was no parsley, nor garlic, but there were some old dried chilli…
The first things I made in the class were a bunch of these espresso cups. Their form is based on Richard Serra’s torqued ellipses, and I glazed them white then dipped the bottoms in black to refer to the intended contents. I can’t say that they make my coffee taste better, but the experience is definitely more pleasurable.
I’ve been working at a local ceramic studio since the beginning of the year, and the owner/teacher fired the kiln this weekend. Today I went by to get the first of what should be several more series of plates, bowls, and cups to inspire more detailed cooking and presentation as well as smaller portions. Though I have no training in the field, I’ve always been influenced by Kaiseki cooking; now that the garden is a…
So there was this pork shoulder in the freezer. It had been there for a very long time (properly vacuum-sealed, don’t worry) and the warm, burgeoning gorgeousness all around- plus the fact that the smoker is right next to my studio, so I see it 20 times a day- inspired me to thaw it and do things to it. To begin, the espresso-based rub, and then a bit of time to sit while I lit…
We were in the city for the weekend (eating a variety of Asian takeout, plus a good brunch at my favorite Williamsburg Italian place) so tonight’s dinner was a study in the intersection between fast and delicious, using available staples. Eggs can often mean the difference between good and great, so since we had some I made pasta (no flavors, just basic) and pulled a jar of our strained yellow cherry tomato purée from the…
The temperature dropped pretty precipitously overnight, and today (though it did eventually warm to balmy-adjacent, as a realtor might put it) was one of those raw English days where you just can’t seem to get warm. That, combined with the fairly empty fridge, suggested a simple, hearty dinner with an appropriate balance between clean vernal goodness and rich carnal pleasure. So I soaked beans. Most of life’s problems can be either solved or comfortably postponed…
I got home this evening after a quick round trip to Boston, which was productive but involved far too much driving in too short a time. Fortunately we had some good stuff in the fridge, and I did manage to get a piece of fish on the way home. I combined the rest of the turnip soup with some kale Christine puréed with ricotta while I was gone to make a good green sauce. I…
We finally had a chance to get together with Chris & Sirkka after much too long; between his touring schedule and both our kids getting colds, it has been a while since we got to have dinner together. I had already roasted beets and made blue potato gnocchi, and there was kabocha purée, so I defrosted our last venison steaks that our neighbor Kenny had given us last fall after he and his brother killed…