by rivka
on April 6, 2008
Ever have a total jonesin’ to make something that you had not intention of eating for a couple days? No, of course not. You’re not crazy. Maybe it was the urge to blog that got me cooking this weekend, backwards as that sounds…but for whatever reason, I found myself chopping garlic, toasting pine nuts, and steaming broccoli and raisins, knowing full well that I was going out to dinner last night, out to a brunch baby-naming this morning, and … well, out to dinner again tonight. The broccoli is still sitting in my fridge, save for the little bits I’ve been sneaking here and there. And now you all know what I’ll be taking for lunch tomorrow.
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by rivka
on April 1, 2008
(For those who haven’t been following, a bunch of friends and I went out to dinner last week at Minibar and had a $$delightful$$ meal; I’m documenting our adventure, course by course, on NDP. You can see part one here.)
Our story resumes with one of the evening’s most whimsical dishes: “dragon’s breath” popcorn. We were each handed a ball of popcorn (kettle corn, actually — sweet and salty and delicious all over) submerged in liquid nitrogen. We were instructed to exhale when we ate it, so that upon chewing and breathing, we actually exhaled, um, smoke. What DB popcorn lacked in actual culinary innovation, it made up for in giggle factor. D literally couldn’t keep a straight face as I tried to photograph, so I ended up with a bunch of blurry pictures in which the smoke is visible only because I know it’s there.
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by rivka
on March 29, 2008
If I had my way, I’d have many more dinners like Thursday night’s feast at Minibar; that said, it’s safe to assume that food that memorable won’t pass my lips again for quite a long time. I know it’s not my usual tune to do restaurant reviews, but Thursday night was truly revolutionary, and I’d be remiss not to share it with my readers, who surely appreciate the value of a spectacular meal.
Two friends, E and J, recently celebrated their birthdays; E impressively convinced J and four other rational people to shell out an arm and a few legs to eat what rarely consisted in things we’d call “food.” Main ingredients in many of the dishes included liquid nitrogen; agar agar; sodium alginate; calcium chloride; and other lip-smacking ingredients. Odd chemicals notwithstanding, each course was both tasty and fun to eat. In fact, fun was pretty much the theme of Thursday night’s feast. Minibar is a restaurant that doesn’t take itself too seriously; there’s a fair amount of silliness involved when you’re eating things that make you exhale smoke.
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by rivka
on March 26, 2008
*correction appended
When it comes to bread, I’m a firm believer in the homemade variety. There’s something so therapeutic about the process: in making bread, you create a dough from the humblest of ingredients. Using nothing more than your hands, you establish a complex web of gluten that gives the dough structure and texture; and with some patience, perhaps also a book to pass the hours, you give that dough the time it needs to grow in size and flavor. I’m no stranger to intense kneading and endless rises — I think I’ve proven my willingness to hold out for a good loaf.
Good bread has always required a good knead and a good rise; not anymore. Jim Lahey, the genius baker behind Sullivan Street Bakery, developed a recipe for a crusty, flavorful loaf that requires no kneading whatsoever. The secret? Time, and lots of it. Oh yea, and almost no yeast.
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by rivka
on March 22, 2008
I know, you don’t have to tell me — these look just like those whole wheat sables I posted in January. What can I say? I’ve fallen for nibbly sables and I can’t get up.
This is all Alice Medrich’s fault. I recently acquired her book, Pure Dessert, and ever since, I’ve been baking goodies non-stop. Her recipes are dead simple, and the sweets are addictive. Did I mention it’s called “Pure Dessert?” Yea, it’s pretty hard to go wrong there.
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by rivka
on March 20, 2008
File this under “unexpectedly delicious.” When I developed the recipe for this tart, I purposefully avoided making the center quiche-like. I wanted a cheesy filling laced with caramelized leeks and onions; a quiche, eggy and milky, is a whole different thing. That said, eggs make things hold together and puff a bit in the oven, so I was concerned that my eggless tart filling would be dense and soggy, and might even disintegrate once sliced. Not so, my friends, not so. This was truly an unanticipated success, and perhaps the best thing on my dinner table last Friday night.
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by rivka
on March 13, 2008
Mandy had a very big birthday a couple weeks back, and I made her this tart because every big birthday deserves a Sunday morning assault of chocolate, coffee, and mascarpone cheese. Did I hear you ask for a slice? Sorry folks, this one’s not for sharing.
What this tart lacks in sweetness, it more than accounts for in richness. Put less subtly, this cake isn’t overly sugary, but it packs a fatty punch, yes it does. And lest you think only two bites will be enough, I assure you that real tart fans will have no trouble at all finishing every last bite of one (cough two) slices. And they’ll be licking the crumbs from their plates in between helpings.
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by rivka
on March 10, 2008
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that everyone loves a good buttermilk biscuit. What’s not to love? buttery rich flavor and mouthfeel, flaky texture, piping hot innards, and now I have to stop because I’m salivating. Back in Israel, D used to get super excited at the prospect of biscuits for breakfast. Now that I’ve discovered my absolute favorite buttermilk pancake recipe, biscuits get less airtime in our house, but I haven’t totally forgotten about them.
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