Gettin' Siggy Wit' It
...The abundance of slightly toasted sunflower seeds made for great textural contrasts, as well as adding very pleasant nutty and floral points in taste and aromatics, complimented expertly with rich, layered, spicy, acidic notes of a beet-horseradish mayo dipping sauce.... [Full Post]
Baked Alaska
...Add to that the melange of flavors and aromas: the rich mustard with the soft, small pearls of punch, the cooling ginger, the kicky chili, the verdant dill, and the heady cognac, all of which bouyantly supported the flavors of the mouthful bites of the salmons without once overwhelming or masking them.... [Full Post]
Pinche Bueno
...these razor clams, whose smooth, toothsome yet nicely creamy texture and deep, briny properties were deftly complimented by the kicky heat of the chili and sweetness of the caramelized garlic flavor in the oil.... [Full Post]
Star-Struck
...What I wound up with was a very tasty dish layered with the flavors of sweet, earthy butternut squash, salty, porky, pancetta, a bit of citrus to elevate the squash, some sauteed garlic for smoky sweetness, and the bitter, herbal leaves of mesclun countered nicely by the acidity of the balsamic vinegar.... [Full post]
Tre Bene
...He first recommended the truffle egg toast appetizer off the pane-bruschetta menu section. The dish consists of two egg yolks baked on bread, and topped with fontina cheese and truffle oil. The offer the option of adding grated bottarga on top, and me being a new fan of it, decided it was worth the extra three bucks.... [Full post]
Like A Good Neighbor
...The side salad of arugula, fresh basil, cherry tomatoes and shaved parmesan was a perfect compliment to the dish, as was the wonderful glass of white wine, an Argentinian torrontés of bright, subtle citrus, apricot, and peach, with herbal hints, a nice "weight" (it doesn't "coat" the inside of your mouth), and finishing clean enough that you can still enjoy the flavors of whatever you're eating.... [Full post]
Make A Date For Tiella
...My tiella showed up looking and smelling wonderful, and they were excellently executed. A smear of foie gras, being deep with flavor, does its usual, mouth-watering wonders for the palette, with its minimal use not playing nicely with the prosciutto—San Daniele being "daintier" than most—and both rewarding the light yet firm crust and the earthy, grounding melted mozzarella.... [Full post]
Getting Ziggy With It
...A very decent pie this was. A nice, pliable but not doughy crust, with a thin strong fold but without the more the more New York-style "crisp". The cheeses were traditionally rustic and aromatic, the sausage buoyantly spicy and sweet, and all of it drizzled with a clean and earthy olive oil that brought all the good flavors together with each bite... [Full post]
Surf & Turf's Up
...I made a tuna tartare, mincing fresh raw tuna with soy sauce, salt, pepper, scallions, fish sauce, and ginger. I chilled the tartare while skillet-grilling an Angus tenderloin steak and making a hollandaise sauce incorporating wasabi paste and a little bit of mustard. After the steak was done and sat for a few minutes, I topped it with the chilled tartare, topped that with a sunny side up egg yolk, and spooned the wasabi hollandaise on top.... [Full post]
My Little Sweet Potato
...The sweet potato, surprisingly novel in this incarnation, was full of welcomingly palatable properties, with its firm but pliant texture evocative of mellow, almost fruity pumpkin, yet also offering the savory nuance of a squash or eggplant.... [Full post]
Quick Post | Going Green
...Vinegary, sour, fully and richly brined, these snap on the outside with a modicum of tooth pressure and chew with a juicy crunch that shoots flavor all over the inside of your mouth.... [Full post]
Catching Up
...The fennel and bottarga pie was rich with layers of flavor, from the citrus-hued piquancy of the fennel to the earthiness of the bottarga, which boasts the same flavor property—almost—as anchovies, with more subdued salinity and brininess.... [Full post]
Breakfast Pita-za
...We both finished these handily and happily, the eggs being nicely serviced by the peppery pork and mellow cheeses, with a finishing kick from the chili oil. My anchovies adding some meaty saltiness and her onions providing a bright, crisp piquancy on the tongue... [Full post]
Quick Post | Pesto Change-o
...I prepared a box of couscous, first sautéing sliced garlic and pine nuts in butter in the bottom of a medium-sized pot, then using water and apple juice as my liquid, letting it boil, stirring in the dry couscous, taking it off the heat. Then, after letting it steam itself to doneness, fork fluffing it with a little extra butter and some diced mint leaves, spooning on a plate, topping it with the red snapper, and serving it with oven-toasted pita bread brushed with a rosemary-honey-olive oil mixture.... [Full post]
"Dinkfast"?
...I won't ever give up omelets or pancakes or French toast forever, but considering not only the great tastes in these two dishes, but how much healthier (lower in carbs, cholesterol, sugars) they were as well, I think I could make a good case for eating like this more often during the a.m. hours.... [Full post]
Quick Post | You Wanna Pizza Me...?!
...On the second tortilla, I spread a thin layer of pesto sauce, then topped that with some shrimp I had briefly boiled, then some bacon bits. I drizzled some white truffle oil (expensive, yes, but worth it with the high number of applications it's capable of), and a "splattering" of black lumpfish caviar.... [Full post]
Quick Post | Assorted Italian Chicks
....Wanting to keep it Italian at heart and simple, I picked up stuff for two different versions of the bruschetta. One version would get fresh mozzarella, a tomato and basil salad, and be topped with a sunny side up egg, the other would get proscuitto, pesto, parmesan cheese.... [Full post]
Puttin' On The Schnitzel
...The textures were all close to spot on; the schnitzel was thin and crisp on the outside,with the veal on the inside being tender enough to easily cut and bite through. The shreds of cabbage were cool and crisp, and the nuggets of potato in salad were comfortably malleable between my tongue and the roof of my mouth.... [Full post]
Quick Post | Fun with Funghi
... I removed the salmon from the skillet, then deglazed the oil and pan drippings with several squeezes of a lemon, rendering and dissolving any solid bits. I then stirred in two tablespoons of dijon mustard, and two tablespoons of butter, stirring that into a nice sauce... [Full post...]
First Friday Spring Morning
...Most often you'll find a sharp and/or spicy cheese accompanying roast beef; I find that it sometimes overwhelms the taste of everything else, most criminally, the beef. The brie was nice, smooth, and all "melty", with its milder flavor, which let the red peppers and scallions showcase its natural robustness, and allowing the roast beef to be the star of the sandwich with both its flavors and texture. The only seasoning throughout was salt and fresh-cracked pepper.... [cont.]
