I am preposterously bad at broccoli.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s fresh or frozen, I cannot for the life of me get this vegetable right. For instance, I bought a whole big bag of fresh cut florets from Costco and threw them in the freezer. I figured they’d keep for as long as it would probably take me to use them – several months.

I also thought they’d be easy to prepare. Boil up a little water, maybe add some salt, throw in the broccoli and let simmer for several minutes. Poof – instant side dish!

Well, not so much.

Over the course of those several months, I’ve consistently prepared some of the most inedible greens this side of the Mason-Dixon.

It’s not that they look terrible (the pictures are of actual samples of the ghastly veggies). It’s just that they are completely tough, taste terrible and stink up the house for at least two days. I’m serious! My wife could not stop gagging the last time I tried this.

In short, I need some help with broccoli. Won’t you please take part in my poll or leave a comment? You will be saving an innocent vegetable from being mangled in new and horrifying ways, and you might just contribute to the domestic peace and tranquility of yours truly.

Thanks!

My mom used to serve this as a side dish rather than a dessert. That’s why I’ve always found it weird that actual carrot cakes have icing. Mom’s never did.

What she did do was make this cake in a bundt pan. And because I never had one, I didn’t even attempt making this thing. But when my mom replaced her bundt with something new, guess who got the hand-me-down?

That’s right, me. I fished out the recipe and went to work.

Ingredients

• 2 sticks unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp. water
• 2 1/2 grated carrots
• 1 1/2 cups flourAdd
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Cream Cheese Frosting

The last cream cheese frosting recipe you’ll ever need (Slashfood)

• 8 oz. cold cream cheese
• 5 tbsp. softened butter
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups confectionery sugar, added gradually

Directions

In a large bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar.

Add all other ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate dough overnight.

The next day, pack the dough into the bundt pan (should come about halfway up). Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees.

A little bundt in the oven.

Let cool in pan several minutes, then overturn onto a rack to cool completely. Ice with frosting.

Before icing, the way Mom served it.

Enjoy!

So, one day I came home to find a rather large box at the door.

I opened it up, expecting to see a major award, only to find a styrofoam-insulated, ice-packed package of Buitoni Wild Mushroom Agnolotti sent to me from the good folks at Foodbuzz.

Though I was bit perturbed at the waste of packaging (the Al Gore in me screamed out in pain), I was just as excited to give these fresh pasta pillows a try.

I knew that I didn’t want to overpower the flavor of the stuffing, so tomato sauce wasn’t even considered. I  wanted something fairly simple, but also complementary to the pasta, and the peas and prosciutto idea (suggested by Foodbuzz) fit the bill. The only problem: my wife doesn’t eat pig.

A substitution of turkey bacon was made, and soon we were off and running. While the agnolotti were boiling, I browned up some butter (perhaps a bit too much of it) in a frying pan.

At the end of the cooking cycle for the pasta, I tossed in the frozen peas for a few minutes of boiling, before draining the whole deal.

After letting the chopped bacon crackle a bit in the brown butter, I turned the gas down and threw in the peas and pasta for a nice ‘cook and coat.’

With a few good tosses, it was ready for plating. I removed a good portion of agnolotti, peas and bacon (all coated with brown butter) to each plate, cracked some fresh pepper and sprinkled the shredded Grana Padano (a cousin of Parmigiano Reggiano) on top.

And there you go, absolute fantastic-ness. The best compliment I can pay to this pasta is that despite all the accouterments, the wild mushroom flavor really shone through. Buitoni certainly impressed me with this pasta, and I can’t wait to try a few of the other flavors they have.

In a word… bellisimo!

Is there any movie more purely enjoyable than The Goonies?

While I love the whole adventure, it’s characters like Mouth, Data, the Fratellis and Sloth that really make this film an undeniable classic.

But there’s one character I hold closest to my heart: CHUNK. The food-obsessed klutz has some of the best lines, by far the most memorable facial expressions and a charm that shines through even the most serious scenes.

Of course, Chunk’s most famous quality is his ability to eat in the face of danger. For a rundown of his edible conquests, keep reading…

1. Ellio’s syle pizza slice and strawberry shake

During the opening title sequence, as the Fratellis try to shake the cops during an epic chase, we get our first glimpse of an excited Chunk at the arcade. Soon a fistful of what I think is pizza  – looks like the square, Ellio’s variety – is up against the glass, followed by an explosion of milky pinkness that I could only guess is a strawberry shake or strawberry flavored Quick. For some reason (probably early product placement), it bursts out of a Pepsi cup.

2. Potato chips

After Chunk drops the statue, knocking loose a very important piece, the boys go into cover-up mode when Mikey’s mom comes home with the new housekeeper, Rosalita. Chunk’s go-to action: stuffing his face. At one point, it kind of looks like pretzels, but then Mikey’s mom says something about potato chips, so I guess that’s what it was.

3. Whipped cream

Another scene, another Chunk mood assuaged by food. “Oh God am I depressed,” Chunk explains before removing the cap from a whipped cream container, inverting it and dispensing the sweet, sweet cream directly down his gulet.

It’s probably not the first time this happened on film (or is it?), but it’s certainly the most memorable.

4. Tongue and brown water

Chunk didn’t eat this stuff, but I’m going to include it anyway because it’s a funny scene. It occurs after the Goonies track the Fratellis to an abandoned restaurant near the coast. After Mouth mouths off at Mama Fratelli, she comes back with the classic: “The only thing we serve is tongue!”

They instead order a round of water, all of which are tainted with a rusty brown hue. Mmmm, minerals.

5. Ice cream closet

Another Chunk-with-food classic. Chunk finds a freezer full of ice cream (through smell alone) and gets excited. Instead of Ben & Jerry’s or Haagen Dazs, the pints he finds are a brand called Swenson’s. Flavors include:

• Pralines & Cream
• Mississippi Mud
• Chocolate Eruption
• Apple
• Grape

I know you’re probably wondering: what about Rocky Road? That actually comes up in a later scene, after Chunk frees Sloth.

6. Baby Ruth

Chunk’s peace offering to the deformed Fratelli sibling, Sloth. I’m not a big fan of Baby Ruth myself, but I could see how it would be appetizing in a situation like that. Plus, Sloth’s reading of Baby Ruth haunts my dreams.

7. Pizza

This time it’s the real stuff. Chunk’s family brings him a fresh pizza pie at the end of the movie, after the Goonies escape the pirate ship lagoon.

As much as I would love to see my family at the end of such a rousing adventure, I think the sight of pizza would be a close second.

TRUFFLE SHUFFLE TIME!

_____________________________

Food on Film is an occasional feature in which I explore some of the most significant food-related scenes in popular film.

Here are the movies I’ve covered so far:

• Star Wars
• Silence of the Lambs
• Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
• Pulp Fiction

]]> http://maneatfood.com/2009/05/09/food-on-film-what-chunk-ate/feed/ 1 mf chunk chunk-then White_Chunk chunk_sticker The20Goonies20-20Chunk20Truffle20Sh http://maneatfood.com/2009/04/25/random-meal-roundup/ http://maneatfood.com/2009/04/25/random-meal-roundup/#comments Sat, 25 Apr 2009 20:05:57 +0000 MF http://maneatfood.com/?p=800 ]]>

As you may have noticed, my posting frequency has taken a nosedive over the past few months. I won’t go into all the excuses, but I think this once-a-weekend schedule is probably going to be sticking around for a while.

Since I’m now doing a lot of quick hits on Twitter, I’m going to try to give you longer, more in-depth reads for the main site. That’s why I’m smushing together three separate meals into one amazing article (amazingness not guaranteed).

Let’s get started…

The Sidewalk Bistro (Piermont, NY)

A view from the patio

Piermont is a cool little town right on the edge of the Hudson River. There’s a strip of land that runs deep into the river (although not deep enough to peer down to New York Ciy) where you can walk, fish or just take in the sights and sounds. And the town center is filled with all kinds of small stores, galleries and eateries. One of the best is the rejuvenated Sidewalk Bistro.

Formerly The Sidewalk Cafe, this French bistro has gone a bit more high-end with its cuisine, although it can still satisfy the burger and beer crowd. The spouse and I visited one beautiful weekend last month for a late brunch. Luckily, we snagged a prime spot in the backyard patio.

Though everything on the menu sounded delicious, with both ended up ordering eggs benedict. Hers substituted crab cake for the traditional bacon, while mine used smoked salmon. Although I’m a relative rookie when it comes to eggs benedict, this was certainly the best I’ve ever had. The eggs were perfectly poached and covered with just the right amount of  Hollandaise sauce. The small mixed green salad was a much more welcome side than homefries.

Their wine list is also excellent (befitting a good bistro), but unfortunately, we didn’t have room for dessert. That will change tonight when we return for a try at dinner.

Tlaquepaque (New Rochelle, NY)

I found this Mexican place a few weeks ago when I accompanied my folks to a Toyota buy-back event at a dealership in New Rochelle. Funnily enough, it actually occupies the same space that my grandfather’s favorite Italian restaurant once occupied: Del Ponte.

New Rochelle, like many other Westchester burbs, used to be dominated by Italian food. Now, as we looked around for a place for lunch, it was Mexican after Mexican after Mexican. I’m not complaining, mind you. Mexican is probably second only to Italian as my favorite kind of food.

Tlaquepaque may be unpronounceable to gringos like me, but the restaurant itself is a fairly traditional, simple operation. Our waiter (who on a slow Sunday was also the maitre d’ and manager) took very good care of our table, and even suggested the big winner of the meal: birria.

My dad choose this off-the-menu stew after we were alerted that the 3-4 hour prep process was just coming to a close. Later I learned that birria is traditionally prepared with goat meat, but this one had veal. The tender, off-the-bone meat was perfectly spiced with just enough kick to keep things lively. My dad, who is the least food-obsessed of our small family unit, simply inhaled the stuff, and I don’t blame him. It was that good.

My mom and I were also satisfied by our dishes – mine, carne asada, and hers, beef enchiladas. If you’re in the area, I highly encourage you to stop by.

Lucky’s Famous Burgers (Manhattan, NY)

Just had this yesterday. Great stuff.

Although that’s not my picture up there, it might as well be. My lunch looked exactly the same, down to the two sauces and pocket-wrapped burger.

Even though I had the hankering for some beef, I was talked into getting a turkey burger. Not only was it delicious, but it looked like exactly what I’d imagine a 1950s hamburger would be: nice, spongy bun, perfectly sliced pickles, tomatoes and onion, crisp lettuce and a bit of ketchup on the underside. Oh, and I can’t forget the melted cheddar.

The accordion fries (what else would you call that shape?) were also tasty, although they’re best eaten quickly when crisp. If you leave them alone for a few minutes, they’ll quickly shrink and become tough.

The best parts of the lunch, however, were two little sauces. Man, were they good! The light pink stuff was great for dipping fries, and the darker stuff is what I always imagined “special sauce” would be. I think you could serve me grilled cardboard on a stick, as long as I could dip it one or both of these sauces.

Seriously.

While I learned about this event too late to enter, I thoroughly enjoyed being a judge.

Of course, everybody who walked through the door was technically a judge. But I think I took my responsibilities a little more seriously than others.

There were 15 chilis, six of which were vegetarian. As you can see from the picture, it was a blind tasting, with each platter marked only by a letter.

I proceeded through the chilis in alphabetical order, tasting each one and writing down a few notes. Out of the nine meat ones, there were only two I couldn’t stomach (one was extremely sweet), and only two I thought were really up to snuff. Quite a few were bland-tasting, which surprised me.

Two other things caught me off-guard:

1. Shredded meat made an appearance twice. Now, I love shredded meat, whether pork, beef or what-have-you. But this seemed like a strange choice for chili. And while the meat in both were tender, there wasn’t much flavor in either. Quite a disappointment.
2. The vegetarian chilis were better than the traditional ones. There was only one of the six vegie ones that I strongly disliked. The others were all as good as the one I picked as the winner of the meat division, or better. They had more spice, were more flavorful and, in the case of the winner, put a truly unique twist on chili. (Hint:  it involved potatoes and curry.)

Somehow, I managed to pick the winner of both the meat and vegetarian divisions, although I wasn’t as lucky with the runners-up.

A good time was had by all. But more importantly, nobody got indigestion! It was truly a Chili Cook-Off miracle.

An amalgam of chili samples

And so it came to pass that yours truly took part in a truly unique cooking event set in the basement of art studio in Soho.

Kinda random, huh?

The event was sponsored by Electrolux, maker of fine kitchen appliances, and featured Executive Chef of Brooklyn’s River Cafe, Brad Steelman, preparing three dishes and (and several passed hors d’oeuvres) using Electrolux products.

Let’s get to it…

Here are the apps. Clockwise from the top, we have:

• Roasted duck with rhubarb chutney and chives
• Seared tuna on avocado/wasabi salad
• Lobster salad on a crispy lentil cracker

Of the three, the roasted duck was by far the tastiest. The savoriness of the duck was nicely balanced with the sweetness of the rhubarb. The lobster salad was also good, despite my general distaste for crackers as an appetizer base. It was light, slightly citrusy and refreshing.

As for the tuna, the presentation was more buzz worthy than the taste. You may not be able to see it in the picture, but each serving was placed on an absurdly large, silver plastic spoon. After working so hard to ingest the portion, I was disappointed to find the tuna to be slightly bland. I expected more from a ginormous utensil.

The first dish that Chef Steelman demonstrated was a Spring Asparagus Risotto.

Although asparagus is generally not part of vegetable arsenal, I can stomach just about anything that rides shotgun in the vehicle of risotto. After making an emulsion mixture of shallots, asparagus pealings, dill, spinach, broth and butter, the sous chefs added it to the already cooking risotto, resulting in the brightly colored, creamy mixture above.

Was it as delicious as it looks? In a word, yes. In several words, it was one of the lightest, most refreshing risottos I’ve ever tasted.

As good as the risotto was, it might as well have been dog food compared to the Colorado Lamb Roast that came next.

I’m not sure I would ever attempt this at home, but wow, I was glad Chef Steelman decided to do it for us. First, it requires a visit to a local butcher to get two boneless lamb porterhouses. As a spouse of a semi-vegetarian, I rarely visit the butcher. And when I do, I feel overwhelmingly intimidated. But I digress.

Once you have the right meat, you need to ground up the trim from the lamb in order to mix it with mushrooms, shallots and herbs. When cooled and spread out on plastic wrap, this mixture will serve as one layer of sealant for the loins.

The other layer? A little piece of anatomical genius called caul fat.

This web-like fat membrane occurs naturally in pigs and other animals, although I’m not brave enough to find out where. What happens is that once you wrap something (usually meat) within the caul fat, it will serve as a protective layer of moisture. It will melt right into what it’s wrapped around, helping to baste the meat.

After rolling cuts of the loin and tenderloins in the ground lamb/veggie/herb mixture, and wrapping the cylindrical rolls in caul fat, it was time to twine them up and shove ‘em in the oven.

As you can probably tell by the finished product, the rolls were cut into perfect little medallions and served with potato puree and caramelized spring onions.

I can’t really describe how tender the lamb was or how, despite all the preparation, it tasted effortlessly simple. Let’s just say, I could probably eat this every night for the rest of my life.

How’s that for hyperbole?

Was it possible to get better than the lamb? Probably not, but Chef Steelman got awfully close with this ridiculously simple Melt Away Cake.

Now, if you read this blog with any regularly, you’ll know that I’m a full-fledged, certifiable chocoholic. Even when a dessert is bad, if it includes a modicum of chocolate… it can’t really be that bad. And this thing was about as far away from bad as you can get.

The way I like to describe it is a seared dessert. The heat of the oven allows the batter to crust up around the still-rare innards. And then, when you cut through the crust… an eruption of chocolate nirvana. Just the concept makes me drool.

By the way, the little disk of chocolate on top of the cake includes a shimmer of gold dust. As if it wasn’t rich enough already.

Electrolux, Blog Buddies and Recipes

Ostensibly, this evening at Desiron Gallery was about the demonstration of fine Electrolux products. And in that regard, it was a success.

Although my current economic situation prevents me from investing in new appliances, I was impressed by Electrolux’s ICON line of:

• Induction cooktops. These things heat up fast, shut off automatically when you remove the pan, and don’t waste the energy that gas stove do.
• High-speed ovens. 12 minutes for the roast? 4 minutes for the cakes? I’d love to save that kind of time.
• Warmer drawers. Awesome for when you want to keep something warm without firing up the whole oven.

Of course, the highlights of the evening was the food and the camaraderie. I finally got to meet some of my fellow Foodbuzz bloggers, including

• Sarah from Tales of Expansion
• Michelle from Taste As You Go
• Jessica from Simply Scruptious

I hope I run into them again at whatever the next function may be. In the meantime, I’ll be following them on the web and attempting at least one of the previous recipes.

(Hint: it’s the chocolate one.)

]]> http://maneatfood.com/2009/04/11/an-electrolux-evening/feed/ 3 mf ovens electrolux-apps asparagus-risotto lamb-loin caul-fat-1 lamb-rolls molten-cake cake-eruption http://maneatfood.com/2009/04/04/its-jerky-time/ http://maneatfood.com/2009/04/04/its-jerky-time/#comments Sat, 04 Apr 2009 20:21:20 +0000 MF http://maneatfood.com/?p=759 ]]>

I’m not a big beef jerky fan. I say this not because I’ve tasted a lot of jerky in my life and can’t stand the stuff. Rather, it’s just one of those fringe foodstuffs that rarely, if ever, crosses my mind.

Until, that is, I received a sampling of Garlic Parmesan Beef Jerky from the good folks at the Green Light Jerky Company.

The first thing I noticed upon opening the package was that it looked different. Instead of a red, slightly rubberized dog treat, the pouch contained  asymmetrical strips of brown meat-bark. It certainly looked as all-natural as the website promised.

The Smell

Opening the pouch yielded a smell like none other. Smokey, salty, rich and spicy – this was possibly the most evocative scent I’ve experienced in quite a while. Each time I opened it in subsequent days, the smell hit me like a locomotive. They could probably package this smell and sell it as a manly air freshener: Carnivore Potpourri.

Taste and Texture

What really surprised me about the taste was not the flavors, which I had anticipated liking based on the smell, but the texture. Dryer than dry, this really was the tree bark of the meat world. I know this reference will be lost on most, but I could only think of Hugh Jackman’s performance in the sci-fi head-scratcher, The Fountain, in which a man keeps himself alive indefinitely by partaking of the bark of the Tree of Life. Although, I’m fairly sure even the Tree of Life didn’t taste this good.

Green Light has five other flavors to choose from, and while I can’t vouch for all of them, I’d very much doubt that there’s a rotten one in the bunch.

So, what’re you waiting for? Go get some already!

Yes, I gave in to the tsunami that is Twitter.

You can follow all the ins and outs at www.twitter.com/eatwrite or just head to the nifty new Twitter widget on my sidebar.

(thanks to New Jersey Monthly)

First, an apology. I once again have to rely on the photos of others to do the visual work for me. But this time, it’s not my fault. My wife and I were late in arriving and it was raining, which prohibited any good outside shots of the new restaurant, Nisi Estiatorio.

However, if pictures are your thing, I highly recommend a visit to Nisi’s site, which features a beautiful rolling photo gallery of interior, exterior and food shots. I refer to it often, and you should too.

While I don’t want to get too bogged down in the online world, the website does provide a good lead-in to the restaurant’s impressive design sense. Neither too stuffy, nor over-the-top gaudy (always a risk with New Jersey “fine dining”), the dining room is invitingly simple and open. It’s rare that my wife and I notice the decor, but it is to Nisi’s credit that we both complimented the physical design as sophisticated and not overly-showy.

But enough with the prologue… let’s talk about the eats!

In case you haven’t figured it out already, Nisi is a Greek restaurant (although most press uses the new, catch-all phrase, “Mediterranean”). They serve a combination of  the recognizable stuff (spanakopita, baklava), some more traditional but rarely seen dishes, and several modern twists and inventions.

Manouri Sesame

After a cleansing amous bouche (a small piece of fish lightly dressed in oil and citrus and veggies), my wife and I looked for an appetizer to share. As soon as I saw the Keftedes (Mini meatballs of house ground lamb, beef, trahana, yogurt, garlic and apricot dip) on the menu, I knew my vegetarian wife would have to look elsewhere for an appetizer. Thanks to a gracious, in-depth menu review with Executive Chef John Piliouras, she chose Manouri Sesame (Crispy sesame crusted manouri cheese, raisin, pine nut spoon sweet).

The meatballs were fantastic – rich, but not too rich, with a nice meaty flavor. The ground lamb had me reminiscing about a Middle Eastern dish called Kibbi that my great aunt makes frequently. I maybe would have wanted a little more garlic and apricot flavors in the yogurt dip (it seemed like plain yogurt to me), but I was otherwise quite satisfied. The manouri was also good, though more of a surprise in the flavor department. We were both impressed by the subtle sweetness of the dish and interesting texture of the cheese in particular. It almost tasted like a dessert, but not quite.

An Interlude

While waiting for our main courses (both fish plates, a specialty), we were provided a small sampling of two other signatures dishes. The first – Garides me Orzo a la Ouzo (wild shrimp in a spicy ouzo tomato sauce with orzo pasta) – was something we, as big pasta and tomato fans, should have loved. And my wife did love it. While the shrimp was cooked well, and the sauce was savory, I, however, found it to be a bit plain. Maybe a little more spice could have made the difference.

The second tasting – Ktenia Kataifi (Sea scallop wrapped in pastourma and kataifi, kalamata vinegar reduction) – was by far the most enjoyable dish I had at Nisi. The scallop was big, fresh and perfectly cooked. The flavor of the pastourma (a Greek bacon of sorts) was interesting but not overwhelming, and wrapping it in kataifi (shredded, crispy phyllo usually used with baklava) gave it a really interesting texture. And of course, with the wife not eating meat, I was free to gobble down every last bite.

pastourma

Entrees

By the time we got to the entrees, our stomachs were almost full. We didn’t come anywhere close to finishing either of these dishes, but we got enough of a taste to judge. For my dish, I went off the menu for the Arctic Char special. Similar to salmon in many regards, this less oily fish was served perfectly cooked with crispy skin left on, sitting atop stew-like concoction of cannelloni beans, vegetables, and a light broth. I enjoyed the dish very much, although I feel like I’ve had a variation on it several times before.  I’m always a fan of beans, and the fish was certainly hearty enough and flavorful enough to get a big thumbs up from me.

In some way, however, I feel like I missed the boat. Nisi’s bread and butter is prepared whole fish. You can even pick out the exact fish you want to eat from the fresh fish display (almost alter-like in appearance) that sits prominently in the dining room. My wife did not take them up on the opportunity to choose the actual fish, but she did order one: the Lavraki (Mediterranean white sea bass; mild in flavor). I will make the review as simple as the preparation: delicious. With only a little oil, lemon and light spices, the fish was perfectly flavorful and, if a white fish can be called this – succulent.

Dessert

Even though, by this point, we already had a doggie bag wrapped up, we were charmed into getting dessert. My wife wouldn’t leave without the Baklava (layers of toasted almonds, white chocolate, amaretto syrup) and they threw in another specialty for good measure. Unfortunately, the baklava was a major disappointment. In deviating from the traditional presentation (golden brown diamonds filled with sticky and sweet), something was lost. Not only was it difficult to get through the too-many layers of phyllo, but the filling was bland and forgettable.

On the other hand, our sample of Krema Kataifi (layers of shredded phyllo, orange pastry cream, dark chocolate and raspberries) was much more successful. In this cylindrical take on a cream pie, the phyllo served as an interesting crust, with the cream, dark chocolate and rasberry nicely balancing out on top. Although it seemed to be more of an American dessert, it proved more satisfying than the traditionally Greek baklava.

Parting Thoughts

If you made it down this far, congratulations! I will take mercy on you, fearless reader, and present my final notes in a more digestible form:

• The service was spectacular. You’d be lucky to get our server, William, who provided several wine recommendations, as well as menu explanations.
• The food is well-price for what it is. However, it is not by any means the “neighborhood joint” that you would frequent on a weekly basis (unless you’re also the type to frequent the Porsche dealership across the street).
• Again, I was grateful for the opportunity to sample a more diverse selection of food and to talk with Chef Piliouras, who has taken some chances  with the menu and helped put together a fine establishment.

In summary: check out the website, make a reservation and have yourself a night at Nisi. It’s worth it.