For an upcoming story on food trucks, we want to know your favorite spots. We’d like to know about those hot dog trucks, sure, but what we’re really looking for are the trucks that are doing something out-of-the-ordinary.

Let me know and we might feature your favorites in the paper!

The owners of the Birdsall House are opening an artisanal pizza restaurant called Gleason’s in Peekskill in August.

The restaurant will serve pizzas and flatbreads made with a sourdough pizza dough created with yeast propagated from New York state beer, most likely from Captain Lawrence Brewing Co.

The menu will also have pasta of the day (or week, maybe) as well as small plates. There will be eight draft lines for craft beers, and, says John Sharpe, one of the owners, “we are certainly going to step up the wine program on this one.” (He mentioned cocktails, too!)

The partners—Sharpe, Tim Reinke, Bryan Delaney and Damian Collemo—named the restaurant after Jackie Gleason, who had a house in Peekskill. The building was for many years a place called Miller’s, and Sharpe says Joe Namath was a regular.

“We have to assume that if Joe Namath was hanging out there that Jackie stopped by a couple of times,” laughs Sharpe.

There is a 1940s bar in the restaurant—“old bars seem to find Tim and I,” says John—but there is little more worth saving. So unlike Birdsall House, which was renovated to its former glory, Gleason’s will have a more contemporary and classic look. They are still working out design details, but they are considering a tin ceiling in the bar area and a more modern feel for the dining room.

Sharpe, Reinke and Delaney also own the Blind Tiger Ale House in Manhattan.

You can keep up with the progress on the Gleason’s blog here: http://www.gleasons-peekskill.com/blog/

The first time I went to Alain’s Bistro in Central Nyack, I knew I liked the food, at least what I could taste of it. I was pregnant at the time, and delectable and delicious dishes like salads with runny eggs, pate and foie gras were a no-no. (“No offal!” my doctor told me. Did he realize he was talking to a food writer?!)

This visit, things were different. I went with a big group of people and got to try most everything the menu. We had classic dishes such as mussels, frisee aux lardons, roast chicken, and yes, pate and foie gras terrine. (Yes, we splurged a bit.)

Our visit was well timed, too. Soon, Alain will open Alain’s Express, a to-go spot in downtown Nyack where you can get sandwiches, salads and prepared foods to take home for dinner. If the food there is anything like it is at the restaurant, it will be a great addition to Nyack.

For our meal, the food was all good, and mostly great. Alain’s is the kind of place you might forget about because it’s off the beaten path a bit. But don’t. Make a reservation. It’s the closest thing we’ve got to Paris in Rockland County.

More, after the jump.

Amuse bouche. A little mousse of some kind, if I remember properly. On top of a cucumber.

Asparagus soup. Very springy!

Mussels with chorizo. Very plump and fresh and the sausage was porky and good.

Smoked herring, which was surprisingly very delicious. Everyone said it reminded them of bacon!

Country pate. Quite delicious.

Foie gras terrine. Silky, fatty and yummy.

Roast chicken. Crispy, juicy. So good!

Lamb shank. Very tender and tasty.

Cassoulet.

Good but a bit too tomato-y for me.

Steak. Really really good. And a crazy rich blue cheese sauce, too.

The Alsatian tart with bacon and onion. Sort of like a pizza. Very good!

And for dessert, we had a Cafe Liegois, which was a coffee cup made of chocolate and filled with espresso ice cream, espresso and whipped cream. A real treat.

Bravo, Alain’s Bistro.

The 411 on Alain’s Bistro.

And, as a bonus, here’s the link to the Restaurants We Love column on Alain’s, which ran in the paper while I was on maternity leave, so didn’t get to blog. I think Pete Kramer loves it just as much as I do.

Defining moments often happen at the most innocuous of places. For Scarsdale resident Jennifer Deutsch, it was sitting at her kitchen table. Doodling on a paper towel while chatting with her kids, she sketched out her dream for a wine bar. The swirling-with-vino glass she drew is now the logo for Crush, which opened in Larchmont in March.

Deutsch admits it took her kids’ urging — along with a strong desire to leave corporate America where she’d long worked in financial services — to take the plunge and open her own business. But it’s a business she knows well, having run a wine-distributing company (in addition to her day job) in Charlotte, N.C., for many years.

Her goal with Crush: To create a place that’s an alternative to dinner, where you can enjoy good food and wine.

Photos by Tania Savayan/TJN

More after the jump.

“There aren’t a lot of places around here where you can relax and talk with your friends,” she says. “I wanted a comfortable lounge atmosphere that feels like you’re in someone’s living room.”

And so you do: there are two cozy window seats that easily seat four; a dancing gas fireplace and plenty of seats at the bar. Also homey are the glittery chandeliers and an original tin-pressed ceiling, which complement the dark purple walls, flickering votifs, and nicely-spaced tables.

The menu remains a work in progress. both food- and wine-wise — as Deutsch figures out what the neighborhood likes vs. “what Jennifer likes.”

For now, you can expect traditional small plates (garlic shrimp and sliders with spicy ketchup), charcuterie and cheeses, dips and spreads (roasted mushroom and spinach-artichoke) plus salads and desserts.

The chef is Alex Garcia, a frequent Food Network contributor known for his Nuevo Latino cooking as well as for his work leading the kitchens of notable Manhattan restaurants Patria and Calle Ocho.

Wine suggestions are paired with each offering and are available by the glass or bottle.

There’s a sense of fun and playfulness to the wine menu with drinks divided into what suits your palate. , including “lighter style reds,” “jammy goodness,” and “sweet and fruity.” There are a few beer options, and a specialty cocktail list that plays on the crush theme, including a Schoolgirl Crush (Prosecco, Absolut Raspberri, Pama Liquer), Lifelong Crush (Prosecco, Gran Marnier), Working Wife Crush (Moscato, Absolut Mandarin) and Secret Crush (Prosecco, Absolut Citron).

Deutsch is busy planning a host of fun events and special promotions, too.

There’s a Monday night “Commuter Deal” with free tapas from 5 to 7 p.m.. She’s also planning a “How to be a Guest at Your Own Cocktail Party” from 7 to 10 p.m. April 23 ($35) and “How to Spice Up Your Summer with Chef Garcia” from 4 to 7 p.m. June 4 ($50). The space — with a capacity for 90 – is also available for private parties.

Jeanne Muchnick

Crush Wine Bar, 1985 Palmer Ave., Larchmont, 914-834-6600.

Oh how I wish there was a Cooked & Co near me. Or maybe I don’t! Because I’m powerless to resist the food there. I couldn’t help but order a ga-zillion things last time I was in: Nutella muffins, chive-and-ramp frittata, steak sandwich — and that’s just lunch. I took home dinner, too.

Cooked & Co opened in late April on Garth Road in Scarsdale, and it’s been humming along ever since. And no wonder. First off, the food is great, yes. Here’s that nutella muffin, which also has banana and hazelnuts. Man, oh man.

But the space is also beautiful. It’s got an industrial-chic look that still manages to feel airy and light.

The display case goes down one side of the shop, with a coffee bar and a refrigerated case on the other.

A banquette with vintage-looking pillows lines the front window, which looks out onto the street.

More food and photos, after the jump.

Herb Lindstrom, who owns the shop with three other partners — Melissa Iscaro, Denise Ruggiero and Christian Petroni, the former chef at Peniche in White Plains and Barcelona in Greenwich, Conn. — used to work at Standing Room Only in Scarsdale.

He told me he loved making things for the display case there, but that off-premise catering was such a big part of the business that he was never able to give the case as much attention as he would have liked.

So here, at Cooked & Co., the case comes first.

While the partners will do parties, they want to keep them small. (And eventually they may also do a chef’s table Friday nights at Cooked & Co.) Keeping catering parties small means they can concentrate on making really delicious food for you to take home for dinner — or eat in for lunch.

Here was my lunch the other day (don’t worry, I took most of it home):

For dinner, I had the terrific corn salad, and a mix of the spicy Buffalo chicken and orange-sriracha shrimp. I don’t have any photos of that because my husband and I scarfed it up before I could get my camera out. Bravo, Cooked & Co!

And here’s the story that appeared in print on May 6 by Jeanne Muchnick. (The good photos on this post are by Tania Savayan/TJN)

We snagged the last Nutella muffin.

Melissa Iscaro, a partner in Cooked & Co., the new prepared foods cafe in Scarsdale, had baked only 12 that morning. She put the word out on Facebook, and by the time we had lunch at noon, we got the last one. It was gooey and sweet and topped with chopped hazelnuts for crunch. We considered ourselves lucky.

And so, it seems, do the partners at Cooked & Co. “We’re all chefs and we all love to cook,” says Herb Lindstrom, who co-owns the cafe and shop with Iscaro, Denise Ruggiero and Christian Petroni, the former chef at Peniche in White Plains and Barcelona in Greenwich, Conn.

From left, Melissa Vesuvio Iscaro, Christian Petroni, Denise Cheramie Ruggiero and Herb Lindstrom

The partners’ relationships — forged over busy stoves at area catering locales and restaurants — have led to this “dream project” in which the goal, says Lindstrom, is to offer the best restaurant-quality food in a to-go setting in Westchester. (Lindstrom worked for many years at Standing Room Only in Scarsdale.)

There is indeed, a food-lover’s vibe to the urban-chic storefront, decorated with natural materials put together with a designer’s eye.

Burlap bag pillows are strewn along a window seat in the front, Edison light bulbs hang in Mason jar-style fixtures, and a flat-screen TV set set above an early-1900s ice box plays the Food Network all day.

The simple yet stylish ambiance is the ideal backdrop to the real star of the show: The refrigerated food cases and the various “try me” offerings set atop them that set your taste buds into overdrive. There are sandwiches such as grilled chicken, meatball sub, house-roasted turkey, and roasted eggplant, as well as salads (including build your own), and burgers (“regular,” turkey, veggie and Buffalo chicken).

You can also get smoothies, protein shakes and coffee. But the piece d’ resistance is the ever-changing rotation of dishes, including chimi-churri shrimp, spicy chicken and Mexican corn salad with Parmesan cheese, lime and chili.

Corn salad with light aioli, lime zest, parmesan and sriracha

Order a little bit of this and a little bit of that and your food will be delivered to you – warm if needed – on a plate and served to your table.

All of those dishes make for easy take away, and there’s also a case in the back filled with interesting products like house-made avocado butter, strawberry frozen fruit pops and Jenni’s ice cream in innovative flavors like salty caramel, whiskey and pecans, and Riesling poached pear.

In the future, expect cooking classes and a weekly chef’s table dinner, where Petroni will get creative with a multi-course tasting menu for 12 (reservation only and first come, first served). Catering for small events will also be available.

And then, of course, there are those Nutella muffins.

If you go…

128 Garth Road, Scarsdale, 914-205-3939. Search Facebook for Cooked & Co. Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Friday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Closed Sunday.range

On first trip to Mexico (ah, back when I was just barely a teenager!) I was introduced to many experiences, including new flavors and ingredients: Jícama was one of them. I’d be lying if I said it’s since been in my repertoire. It’s one of those things that I recently rediscovered and, I’m happy to report, that these days I’m a full-fledged jícama fan.

You’ve probably seen this root vegetable before, but maybe you assumed it was its unrelated relative: the turnip.

It’s available it many of our local markets (including Viva Grande on Huguenot in New Rochelle) and  I hope I can now get you to stop, pick up, and purchase—as I promise that this little baby will add another dimension to your salads!

In flavor, jícama (pronounced HEE-cah-mah) is perfect marriage of apple, cucumber, and water chestnut—and it’s crispy-sweet, and  thirst quenching. They’re usually about 4 to 8 inches in diameter, but range in weight from about half a pound, to wow, 6 pounds.   Oh—another of Jicama’s nice qualities: it can be enjoyed cooked (great in a stir-fry dish) or raw. In fact, in Mexico, it’s not uncommon to see people eating jícama with a sprinkle of fresh lime juice and chili powder  or hot pepper.

This colorful and tasty slaw is perfect for summertime barbecues! Also, you can make the yogurt sauce the night before you make the slaw. And finally friends, and yes this is the mom in me, it’s good for you!

The recipe, after the jump.

Jicama Slaw

Serves 6 to 8

1 cup plain, low-fat  yogurt (I like the thicker Greek yogurt)

4 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons Turbinado or raw sugar
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 teaspoon toasted cumin seeds
3 cups peeled and  julienned jícama (I like them cut into fat matchsticks!), from approximately three jícamas

3/4 cup roasted corn

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, diced into 1/4-inch pieces

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine the yogurt, 3 tablespoons of the lime juice, cider vinegar, sugar, cilantro, and cumin  and whisk to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes, or up to 24 hours.

Combine the jícama, corn, shallot, and  bell pepper. Pour the remaining one tablespoon of fresh lime juice over the salad, and mix well.

Just before serving, combine the yogurt with the salad. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve immediately.

Exciting news from the White Plains Library! John T. Edge, an award-winning food writer one of the foremost authorities on Southern cuisine, will be at the library 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday, June 10 for “Food for Thought: The Food Truck Comes to the Library” to benefit the White Plains Library Foundation.

Edge will discuss his latest book, The Truck Food Cookbook: 150 Recipes and Ramblings from America’s Best Restaurants on Wheels (Workman Publishing, New York, 2012), in which he celebrates the ever-exploding truck food scene. There will also be food truck-themed hors d’oevures and a silent auction.

Edge’s bio, and more information on the event, after the jump.

From a press release:

Edge, who hails from Oxford, Mississippi, has written several books on American food, and has been included in the Best American Food Writing every year since 2001. He is the 2012 winner of the MFK Fisher Distinguished Writing Award presented by the James Beard Foundation, the nation’s most prestigious recognition program honoring professionals in the food and beverage industries. In addition to being the director of the Southern Foodways Alliance, Edge writes the “United Tastes” column for the New York Times and contributes to Oxford American and Garden & Gun. He has also written for Gourmet, Food & Wine, Bon Appetit, GQ, The New York Times Magazine, Travel + Leisure, and many more. He was a commentator for NPR’s All Things Considered, a judge on Iron Chef, and has appeared on CBS Sunday Morning, Nightline, and more.

Event tickets are $65 and include a food-truck themed hors d’oeuvres buffet, beer and wine. Copies of the book will be available for purchase and signing by the author, and there will be a silent auction featuring wining and dining. Proceeds will benefit the White Plains Library Foundation. Tickets may be purchased online at http://foundation.whiteplainslibrary.org, or by calling 914-422-1495.

The White Plains Library Foundation, a non-profit organization, proudly supports the work of the White Plains Public Library to transform lives, every day. The Foundation supports a wide range of after-school programs, cultural events, literacy initiatives, online resources, teen programming, and career resources.

Chas Anderson likes to say he’s hard-wired for the restaurant business. His paternal grandfather worked for The 21 Club in New York City and his maternal grandparents were French chefs. “Being a restaurateur is in my blood,” he says.

And so, thanks to good timing — Martini & Chocolates in Eastchester was closing just as he was scouting for a restaurant location — he’s now the proud chef-owner of Burrata Wood Fired Pizza, an authentic Neapolitan style eatery specializing in the artisan techniques of Italy.

Photos by Mark Vergari/TJN. More photos, and more of Chas and his story, after the jump.

The restaurant, which Anderson, a French Culinary Institute grad, calls “his dream and his passion,” opened on February 13 with a simple menu: A choice of 10 individual-serving pizzas with a variety of toppings —

—  three kinds of salads, three sides, and a variety of antipasti, which include the restaurant’s namesake, burrata, an Italian cheese made from mozzarella and cream. (The name means “buttered” in Italian.)

Though the cheese is definitely a winner, with an outer shell that gives way to an interior that’s soft and velvety, the big “wow” factor here is the huge, shimmery gold-tiled hearth wood-fired oven imported from Naples, designed by third generation master oven builders. It’s insulated with the volcanic soil of Mount Vesuvius and cooks the hand-formed 12-inch thin-crust pizzas in 60 to 90 seconds — and adds a great wood-burning smell to the dining room.

In other words, this is your not your usual grab-a-slice-to go pizza joint. Instead you’ll find a polished homey atmosphere with butcher block tables, linen napkins, mason-jar votives, and a carefully selected all-Italian wine list, with choices available in either quartinos or bottles. Most everything on the menu is sourced from Europe, with flour from Naples; tomatoes from a small food co-op in Puglia, Italy; olive oil from Greece; octopus from Spain, and so on.

What Anderson can’t find in Europe – or what doesn’t travel well – he uses locally or as local as he can get. Authenticity is key, which is why he sources his burrata cheese from a farmer in Vermont, who is originally from Puglia. Superior quality ingredients and freshness are essential, and Anderson admits he’s passionate about educating diners about what “real” pizza is. “A lot has been lost in translation,” he says.

He should know. Anderson, who lives in Bronxville and grew up in Eastchester and Scarsdale, spent months eating his way through Italy, often eating pizza three or four times a day (when he wasn’t eating gelato or pasta with Bolognese), as well as meeting and talking with bakers and chefs to absorb and learn their cooking methods. Then he put his own spin on things. Among his favorite items on the menu: the Parigi pizza with Cognac onions, Gruyere, pancetta and fresh thyme, which came about because he loves French onion soup and wanted to create a pizza that tasted like that. “Pizza is essentially a flatbread with toppings,” he says. “But to me, it’s a canvas, you can paint anything on.”

— Jeanne Muchnick

When my husband and I go out for a meal we have one main objective:  find a place where both the vegan and the omnivore can enjoy a good meal.  One way to do that is to go to Manhattan where vegan and vegetarian restaurants abound.  Another is to find creative chefs in Westchester who can accommodate both the plant-based diner and the meat-eater.  I wrote about our terrific experiences at Haven, Sweet Grass Grill and Zitoune here on Small Bites during Hudson Valley Restaurant Week 2012 and more recently interviewed the vegan-friendly chef of Haven Restaurant in Pleasantville.

Turquoise in Larchmont – a restaurant we have frequented for many years – is another great option for the “mixed-diet” couple.

The Turkish decor at Turquoise is vibrant, lush and inviting. The friendly proprietor, Emin Acar, is almost always at the door greeting customers as they arrive for lunch or dinner.  My biggest problem at Turquoise is avoiding the temptation to fill up on the wonderful starters brought to the table which include warm pita, olives in their oil (perfect for dipping the pita), and a flavorful humus.

At Turquoise for dinner last month the meat-eater in this couple ordered the grilled calamari to start; I reviewed the ten vegan meze (appetizer) options and went with the fresh, crunchy Ezme salad.

This salad, with simple ingredients of finely chopped fresh tomatoes, onions, parsley and walnuts, has a wonderful spicy kick.

While my husband ordered the Iskender Kebab (thinly sliced lamb prepared Turkish-style over sliced, warm pita bread with a touch of tomato sauce and yogurt on the side) I reviewed the vegetarian section of the menu (six items, four are vegan and one can be ordered vegan) and requested one of my favorite dishes at the restaurant, the Turquoise a la Turka.

Lightly steamed vegetables with a crunch are delightful!  This dish includes okra, eggplant, white beans, mushrooms and broccoli and is served with couscous.

The portions are incredibly generous at Turquoise and I almost always leave with leftovers that are perfect for lunch the next day. The food at Turquoise is consistent and the variety of vegan options keeps me coming back.

Turquoise
895 Palmer Avenue
Larchmont, NY 10538
(914) 834-9888

I Eat Plants columnist JL Fields blogs about her transition to a vegan diet and lifestyle at JL goes Vegan: Food & Fitness with a Side of Kale. Her original recipes have been featured on Foodbuzz, BlogHer and Meatless Monday. She is the editor of the community blog Stop Chasing Skinny: Find Happiness Beyond the Scale.   JL is the founder and lead consultant for JL Fields Consulting.  She serves on the board of directors of the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary and the advisory board of Our Hen House.  Follow JL on Twitter and Facebook.

Liz did me the honor of carrying a version of my Sunday blog post about David Wondrich’s cocktail seminar in today’s print editions of The Journal News.

Print readers had the benefit of receiving adaptions of Wondrich’s recipes. Here they are for Small Bites readers:

Traditional punch

Ingredients

Directions

In a large silver bowl filled with large chunks of ice, add the Jameson, Madeira, lemon juice, and water. Stir in the lemon peels and dust with freshly ground nutmeg. Serve in small cups.

Adapted from David Wondrich

Improved Brandy Cocktail

Ingredients

Directions

Adapted from David Wondrich

Martini

Ingredients

Directions

Adapted from David Wondrich

Singapore Sling

Ingredients

Directions

Adapted from David Wondrich

A Westchester connection
I had a nice note from reader Ron Freeman of Mount Kisco, who posits that the word cocktail may entered the vernacular in Elmsford. Ron writes:

In the 1930s we moved to Orchard Hill, which abuts the southerly boundary of the village of Elmsford, and became familiar with a tavern, at the northeast corner of Tarrytown Road (Route 119) and Saw Mill River Road, known as O’Brien’s Chateau. The tavern had a large neon sign of a cocktail glass with a prominent feather sticking out of the glass and the lettering “Home of the First Cocktail!” Historical records indicate that one Abraham Storm constructed the tavern in the early 18th century and that, during the Revolutionary War, colonial and French officers frequented the tavern where Betsy, the barmaid, decorated their libations with chicken feathers from the local Torie hen-coops, thereby producing the nickname! ...
... There are other versions [of the word’s origin], but I think the first is the most colorful and plausible! Hope you find the above of interest, I’m sure many other area “old-timers” will have similar recollections.

Thanks, Ron. I’ll do some research to see if this theory holds water (or booze!) with cocktail historians.

As we kick off the grilling season with Memorial Day this weekend, let’s talk burgers.

We already love local beef because it tastes better and supports the farm-to-table philosophy. And when we can’t buy local, we buy organic, to avoid added hormones and chemicals. (Pink slime, anyone? Blech.)

So why not take it up one step further? Grind your own beef. Think it’s hard? No way. If you can grate potatoes for latkes, you can grind beef for hamburgers.

My dad, who was the gourmand in our family long before being a gourmand was cool, had one of those clamp-on-the-table-and-crank-it grinders, which I inherited. And while that’s fun to use — and beats bicep curls at the gym — I prefer using the sausage-making attachment for the Kitchen Aid mixer

You can also grind meat with a food processor, pulsing quickly but sparingly until it’s chopped. Don’t whir. You’ll end up with paste. (See? Just like latkes!)

If you’re taking the time to grind your own beef, buy it from a reputable source. That might mean a local farm, farmers market, or even butcher or small grocery store. Ask where the beef comes from and whether it’s organic or grass-fed.

I recommend a combination of half chuck and half brisket, because good fat content will make the burgers juicy. A little bacon never hurts, either. (Sirloin works, too, but more expensive.)

To form patties, gather about 6 ounces of beef and loosely pat them together. So they don’t shrink when you grill them, use your thumb to make an indentation in the center.

Tips for grinding, after the jump.

Lamb burgers make for a nice twist, and they are are easy to make when you’ve already got the grinder out. Serve a burger of half lamb shoulder and half chuck on a English muffin dressed with Green Goddess dressing, and you’ll be the star of the neighborhood.

And here are two last tips: it’s easier to grind meat if it’s hardened by the freezer, but not frozen. About 15 to 30 minutes should do the trick. And when you grind meat: make extra. Sure, grinding your own beef is as easy as making latkes, but pulling a package of ground beef out of the freezer is even easier.

Now get grinding — and grilling!

Today in the print version of Small Bites (I’m referring to the food section, haha!), I had a story asking where to get the best soft shell crabs.

Philip McGrath, the chef-owner of Iron Horse Grill in Pleasantville, says he has a customer who pesters him daily, asking when the soft shells are coming in, and begging him to call as soon as they do.

“People love the fact that there are these seasonal things,” McGrath says. “It’s a phenomenon.”

McGrath sautés his soft shells and serves them with ramps, golden cherry tomatoes, walnuts, basil and white wine with wild rice. The crabs should be crispy on the outside and succulent on the inside, he says.

So where are your favorites? How are they prepared? Tell me below!

For 12 weeks, we feature a wine, and include tasting notes and suggestions for pairings. At the end of the 12 weeks, we’ll review our Mixed Case, and recap the choices. Each mixed case will be chosen by a local wine shop owner, who will also become our wine expert-in-residence during his or her tenure. (So should we need recommendations for a holiday, for example. we’ll ask.) We’ll get a new expert for each case. Right now, we’re working on our Mixed Case from Aries Wine & Spirits in White Plains.

Domaine de Rimauresq Xavier Flouret Nationale 7 Rose 2010 is bottle 8 in our series. To see the rest, click here: Mixed Case on Small Bites.

Bonus online content

Name of Wine: Domaine de Rimauresq Xavier Flouret Nationale 7 Rose 2010

Region: Cotes de Provence, France; a 40 year old vineyard at the foot of the Maures mountains , 5hy3 Domaine is named for the river of the Maures which runs through it.

Tasting notes: a serious dry rose made from Grenache, Cinsault and Tibouren grapes; refined and subtle strawberry and peach fruit aromas, elegant texture, tart fruitiness and minerality in the palate and a refreshing finish

Goes with: grilled fish and other seafood dishes of the Mediterranean but has enough body to stand up to richer dishes such as foie gras and roast chicken

Why we chose it: dry rose is widely enjoyed throughout the Mediterranean when it is too hot for red; this wine reminds us of happy times in the south of France and St. Martin

Price: $19.99.

Julia Child once said, “It’s hard to imagine a civilization without onions.” I could not agree more. What is it about them? They add so much flavor to everything we eat – and we use them in so many different ways: raw, grilled, pickled and of course added to our mirepoix to flavor the base of many dishes. It’s a vegetable that dates back to the Bronze age. Egyptians buried it with their dead, Romans used it medicinally and the Europeans in the Middle Ages used them to barter. There are so many varieties with so many flavors.

Here is a little factoid about cutting an onion:  did you know that it releases a gas called  Propanethiol S-oxide? When mixed with certain enzymes in the onion, it creates a sulfur gas. These gases then get to your eyes and create a mild acid which irritates the eyes. So just about the only way to not cry is wear goggles.

Today I’m going to focus on the sweet variety. Within the sweets some  popular ones are: Walla Walla, from Washington and Maui, from Hawaii; but these pictured above are the famous Vidalia from Georgia. They are my favorite, possibly because they are the first sweet onions I ever tasted, and I love their flavor.

Their shape is unique, round and slightly flat and this year’s crop are just appearing in the market now. Here is an interesting tidbit about how they are grown: they are started in seed beds in September and then hand planted in November, just in time to harvest now. As with other onions you want to purchase this vegetable when its nice and firm, without soft spots or green sprouts. Nutritionally they are fat free, cholesterol free, sodium free and a good source of Vitamin C. I thought it would be fun to try to use them two different ways this week. This beautiful bunch was picked up at my local grocery store a few days ago. They are just gorgeous – small and golden.

Earlier that morning I had picked up a couple of soft shell crabs from Port Chester Seafood and I also had a few portobello mushrooms in the ‘fridge. Just to mix things up I decided to season everything with something other than a typical seafood crab spice. If you’ve never been to Penzey’s you’ve got to check it out. Locally you can find them in the Palisades Mall,  Norwalk, CT, and an outpost at the Grand Central Market.  You can find them on line too, but if you are close enough to a retail store you must make the trek. My friend Lynn introduced me to that mecca of spice several years ago and I’ve never looked back. In addition to having basic and exotic spices they make the most wonderful blended seasonings. I’ve frequently told participants in my cooking classes at Tarry Market that using blends can be one of the easiest ways to add a lot of flavor to your cooking without getting stressed about how many herbs and spices you are trying to add. For this simple sauté I used their Northwoods spice. Its a blend of several basic spices and includes chipotle. Herbacious with a kick!

I simply sliced the onions and seasoned them with olive oil and the Northwoods blend. I did the same for the mushrooms and crabs. In a grill pan on the stove top I cooked the onions and mushrooms together. Once they were done I tossed in the crab right into the same pan and finished them. A quick and tasty dinner in less than 30 minutes!

I had in my mind to do something that could be cooked down or pureed for my second recipe. Over the weekend we celebrated Elinor’s graduation in Vermont and I headed up the cooking for a big family dinner. Grilled chicken seemed to be the most logical choice for the BBQ, so I created a little marinade that worked out beautifully. (The recipe is below.)

After grilling the onions over charcoal I blended them with a few ingredients for a lovely marinade. This recipe makes a lot, so what I ended up doing was dividing it and using the other half for my guests to drizzle over their cooked chicken, as desired.

I hope you give these zippy sweet onions a try this weekend. You simply can’t go wrong, even if you just slice and grill them for your Memorial Day BBQ.

Buon Appetito!

Maria’s Vidalia Onion Marinade
Makes about 4 cups

3 medium Vidalia onions, sliced 1½ ” thick
1 sprig of fresh rosemary, leaves only
1-2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
½ cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup water, plus more if needed
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, plus more
1 teaspoon coarse black pepper, plus more
Chicken of your choice, with skin if possible

Drizzle the onion slices with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over hot charcoal until nicely charred. Cool slightly and place in a blender.

Add the rosemary, vinegar, oil, 1 tablespoon of sugar, water, salt and pepper. Puree until smooth. Taste for seasoning and add a little more sugar if desired and water if it’s too thick.

Divide in half and cover your chicken, marinating for a few hours before cooking. Set the other half of the marinade aside for serving.

Cook your chicken as desired, but do try to get the skin crisped!

Maria Reina is a personal chef, caterer and recreational cooking class teacher in Port Chester, NY. In her free time she loves hanging out at local Farmers Markets in Westchester County doing cooking demos with seasonal ingredients. In addition to her blog you can follow her  on Facebook and Twitter.

Antun’s of Westchester, the beloved catering hall and restaurant in Elmsford, will close its doors on May 31.

Parties that had been booked for the summer have already been notified, said Rich Stytzer. Stytzer’s father, Ron, took over the landmark restaurant 27 years ago.

The restaurant has been in existence since at least the 1930s, and perhaps before, and has seen many incarnations, incluiding as Bill Reiber’s, Reibers Razzberry, The Tale of the Fox and Antun’s Restaurant.

The Journal News is planning an appreciation of Antun’s, and we would like to hear from people who have fond memories of it. Please send your remembrances and photos of family celebrations and special occasions at Antun’s to reporter Dwight Worley, dworley@lohud.com, 914-694-3517.

You can also comment below.

I’ll update with more information as I get it.

Here is Antun’s web site: www.antunsofwestchester.com and its facebook page.

It might be surprising to find a seasoned, CIA trained chef at Mt. Kisco Seafood.  Yet, owner Joe Di Mauro’s customers know differently, and they rely on chef Jonathan Everin for freshly prepared, ready to go, meals for lunch or dinner and superb catering for all their parties.  Just a peek at the stocked refrigerated cases full of chowders, bisques, sauces and salads shows a small portion of Jon’s handiwork.  I had the unique pleasure of spending a day in his kitchen and experienced exactly how things work at Mt. Kisco Seafood.

Specialty store: Mt. Kisco Seafood in Mt. Kisco

Description:  Owner Joe Di Mauro and his staff are Westchester/Putnam’s local fishmongers, and they bring our area an extensive variety of the freshest seafood available.  But wait, there’s more … like produce from Cabbage Hill, specialty meats from D’Artagnan, cheeses from Rainbeau Ridge, or breads from Red Barn Bakery.  Mt. Kisco Seafood has a country market feel with all the bells and whistles of a one stop shopping gourmet market.  Of course, there’s always a delicious selection of prepared items straight from chef Jon Everin’s kitchen like White Clam Sauce, Crab Cakes or Lobster Bisque.  So, whether you need to pick up dinner on the way home or organize a clam bake party, Mt. Kisco Seafood is always happy to help.

Owner:  It’s no wonder that owner Joe Di Mauro is an expert on all things fishy since he’s been doing this for over 30 years and obviously loves every fin, gill and shell of it.

Photo courtesy of Margaret Rizzuto Photography

Chef Jon Everin

Sous chef:  Marcos Baldone

Intern:  Isabella, a senior from Horace Greeley High School, comes in for a few hours every day to help out.  She enjoys working in the kitchen and learning, but in the fall she’s off to Johns-Hopkins to major in cognitive science.

Behind the counter:  The staff at Mt. Kisco Seafood are happy to assist customers pick the perfect piece of fish, suggest cooking methods, and offer to help choose a side or two to go with it.

What’s in the case:  

a glimpse into the seafood case

Yes, that salmon is white.  About 6% of Wild King Salmon (that usually have red flesh) have a genetic abnormality that produces an extra enzyme which allows it to process carotene rather than collect it. Carotene is in the shrimp and krill that salmon eat, and it gives them their typical red or pink color.  The Ivory King Salmon’s unique white flesh is mild and silky (I made some for dinner that night!).   It’s a short season to the end of June for the King Salmon, so you’ll have to hurry if you want to enjoy some for yourself.

Here’s another special item in the case:

It’s “hard” to believe that these soft shell crabs are just blue crabs in disguise in their very soft molted state.

Signature dish:  The Tuna Carpaccio is always available on Saturdays, but this signature dish is only a phone call away to order during the week.  And that’s a good thing, since it is really something special.  The tuna is first marinated in teriyaki sauce and seared quickly, keeping it perfectly rare on the inside.  Jon then thinly slices it into squares and plates it onto a platter with a sprinkling of scallions.

This beautiful platter is another example of the concept of “no waste” in the kitchen.  Jon uses trimmed pieces of tuna which were not large enough to portion for the case but were the perfect size for the carpaccio.

Coolest appliance:  The tall box off to the side wasn’t a time machine, but an industrial-sized rotisserie.

All fish and no meat gets a little boring, so this behemoth gently twirls chickens on a spit to crispy golden perfection as they baste in their own juices.

Size of kitchen:  The kitchen is a fairly large space measuring about 15 ft x 30 ft, with two walk-in refrigerators, and two chest freezers that can also double as counter space.  There’s a triple basin industrial sink along the side wall and a humongous ice machine (it keeps all that fish nice and chilly).

it’s pretty cold in there

The long 10 ft x 3 ft stainless steel prep table across from the sink area was used as our assembly space to package the finished items in quarts, pints or flat containers.

Turning up the heat:  With 12 burners of heat between them, the Tristar and Vulcan stoves are the workhorses of this kitchen.  They handle the enormous simmering stock pots with ease.

the stoves “stocked” up

really turning up the heat!

Secret ingredient:  Shhhhh, do you know what makes the Lobster Bisque so addictive? ~~ a quick pour or two of sherry.

Favorite kitchen gadget:  My favorite food processor on steroids, the Robot Coupe, just went up a notch in my book when I found out that it has attachments.

Jon uses the continuous feed chute with the julienne disc to thinly slice carrots and broccoli for slaw.

I kicked myself thinking how many times I’ve just thrown away broccoli stems when I could have made this healthy (and yummy!) slaw.

What’s on the prep list:  This was as close to a prep list that I could see

but Jon knew exactly what needed to be done. In a restaurant kitchen, orders are constantly coming in fast and furious from the dining room.   Although this kitchen had its own more relaxed rhythm, time was still a factor.  Obviously, the store can’t run out of items like Stuffed Clams or Tomato Basil Crab Bisque.

What’s cooking in the kitchen now:  Dish after dish (I counted over 12) were completed and packaged in trays, pints and quarts.  Here’s a visual sampling:

Music:  There was no music in the kitchen on the day I was there; but at exactly noon, the guys took a break for family lunch and a small mounted TV was tuned into “Who Wants to be a Millionaire.”  A friendly competition ensued as answers and lively comments bounced back and forth.

My random insights:  Jon has a hinged faucet to the side of the stove that fills up stock pots with ease.  What a great idea!   Aghhhh, why didn’t I think of that for my own kitchen?

Every day Joe Di Mauro has a different blackboard trivia question for his customers.

Is it Georgia? and do I win another amazing day at Mt. Kisco Seafood?

Details:  Mt. Kisco Seafood, 477 Lexington Avenue, Mt.Kisco. 914.241.3113.  Open 7 days a week:  Monday thru Friday, 9 am to 7 pm; Saturday, 9 am to 6 pm; and Sunday, 9 am to 4 pm.

Patrice Costa is a passionate foodie who is on a personal culinary mission to learn it all from local chefs.  She looks forward to sharing her experiences as she goes behind the kitchen door in some of her favorite restaurant kitchens.  When not on foodie assignments, she can be found working in the open kitchen at Thyme Restaurant in Yorktown.  

The Captain’s Log

Whiling away a summer day with a Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA in one hand, and a bocce ball in the other, poised to give it (the ball, not the beer) a hearty toss down the lane…

Not a bad way to spend an afternoon, huh?

The bocce court has been constructed on the lawn outside, and Captain Lawrence Brewing is just awaiting final approval from the Town of Greenburgh to pull the wraps off it and play ball. Owner Scott Vaccaro says it won’t be long now.

“We’re optimistic that by the first Saturday in June, you’ll be able to play bocce and drink beer on the patio,” he says.

Summer is shaping up to be a hot one at the brewery. After months of contemplation, Scott has picked the first beers for the new experimental brewhouse. There are two: what he calls a “hoppy wheat-based pale ale, dry hopped with Palisade,” that’s been dubbed “Batch 1”; and the brewery’s first employee brew, from Captain Lawrence vet Scott Tobin. His “Batch 2” is a toasted coriander wit beer (the Belgian white beer style) fermented with German Kolsch yeast.

Those are expected to be ready for public consumption in the next couple weeks.

“We’ve christened it!” Scott says of the pilot system.

Brewing in the new brewhouse, he says, was similar to cooking in a new kitchen—there was a bit of a learning curve as he and the gear got a feel for each other, which in Batch 1’s case, knocked what was initially to be an Imperial IPA down to the pale ale range.

There will be 10-15 kegs of each available to taste. They’ll go fast, but Scott says there will be a steady lineup of new creations coming out of the pilot system.

With Father’s Day less than a month away, the annual St. Vincent’s Dubbel, a Belgian-style Abbey ale released each year for Day of the Dad, will be available in 750 ml bottles (five out of five dads preferred the St. Vincent’s to a necktie or aftershave). Meanwhile, Hops & Roses—a nod to Axl, Slash and the G&R boys in the form of a golden ale flavored with hibiscus, rose hips and elder flowers, and stored in oak barrels—will be bottled in the next few weeks. Smart money says that brew’s reviews will be better than those for “Chinese Democracy.”

And as anyone who’s been in the tasting room the past few weeks can attest, the spring favorite Golden Delicious, aged in apple brandy barrels, is currently available in samples and bottles. That flavor-rich trippel ale packs a serious punch.

So does the Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA, which has been hauling home hardware at a Michael Phelps-ian pace. The Reserve snagged silver medals at the Tap New York Craft Beer Festival last month, including one for Best Craft Beer, NY State, then made Time Magazine’s elite “Nine Beers You’re Drinking This Summer” list. (Alas, not the issue with the nursing toddler on the cover.) “An extra hoppy India Pale Ale at a whopping 9% ABV,” said Time.

Speaking of time, Scott says he hasn’t had enough of it recently to hang out in the tasting room on weekends, thanks in large part to his baby boy. The bocce court, however, may change that. “Once that’s ready,” he says, “I’ll have to teach Drew how to play.”

—Michael Malone (malone5a@yahoo.com)

Captain Lawrence Brewing, at 444 Saw Mill River Road in Elmsford, is open Tuesday through Friday (retail 2-7 p.m., samples 4-7 p.m.); and Saturday, with retail and samples 12-6 p.m., and brewery tours at 1, 2 and 3 p.m. The author is paid by Captain Lawrence, partially in beer, for “Notes From the Tasting Room.”

You know those games where people ask you, what would be the one thing you would take outside with you in case of a fire, and you wonder what the right answer might be. I, kind of have the same dilema when I am asked to pick my favorite spice. To me, it is almost like being asked if I have a favorite child.

Well, I may not be able to settle on the one special spice, I can tell you that cumin is certainly one of the essentials in my kitchen. Smoky, potent and strong, this tiny seed is an essential for cooking Indian, Mexican and Middle-Eastern cuisines.

Cumin is a native to middle-eastern and Mediterranean regions. It was grown in ancient Egypt where the seeds were used in rituals and for food. There is mention of this spice in the old and new Testaments where it is spelled as, “cummin”. It has been excavated at a site call Tell ed Der in Syria, this site has been dated to the 2nd millennium BC, so this spice is at least 4, 000 years old.
Cumin belongs to the parsley family and is the seed of a flowering plant. It comes in varieties of white, brown and black. There are differences in taste depending on the color and type of cumin used.

In my kitchen, the variety of cumin most frequently used is the brown variety. There are variations to how I use it. I used the whole seeds for tempering or lightly toasted in oil in the recipe I shall share with you. Cumin powder also shown here is used for dishes in combination with other spices.

Well, there are rules to every game. One of my spice rules are to powder spices in small quantities and use as needed. Try to avoid buying pre-ground spices. Once you get hooked to the smell and freshness of home ground spices, there will be no turning back. A small variation to the ground cumin, is to toast the cumin for a minute till the cumin is fragrant and darkens slightly and then grinding it. This minute of process makes a big different, the taste is much strong, deeper and bolder.

I buy my cumin in fairly large quantities and store the whole cumin in airtight containers in a cool and dry space and use it within a year of purchase.

I shall share a simple recipe for cauliflower, which is seasoned with whole cumin seeds, ginger, turmeric, lime and cilantro.

Cumin and Lime Cauliflower

I tend to use olive oil for my recipes, mostly because I feel it is a good compromise between health and taste. It you want you can add a tablespoon of butter to the cauliflower with the oil.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

3 tablespoons oil (I use EVOO)

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

1 head of cauliflower (about 2 cups), chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

Salt to taste

1 lime or lemon

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro or mint

Method of Preparation

1. Heat the oil on medium heat for about a minute.

2. Add in the cumin seeds and cook for about 30 seconds until the seeds sizzle and darken slightly.

3. Add in the ginger and saute lightly for about 30 seconds.

4. Add in the cauliflower and cook on medium heat, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, until the cauliflower softens and turns dark golden in spots.

5. Add in the turmeric and the salt and mix well.

6. Lower the hear and cover and cook for 7-8 minutes.

7. Remove the cover, the cauliflower should be fairly soft at this point.

8. Cut the lime and squeeze in the juice and garnish with cilantro and enjoy immediately.

I shall be featuring red chilies or cayenne next, I would love to hear how you use this potent spice and also see your recipes using red chilies. Please share as comment to my facebook page or on small bites.

Rinku Bhattacharya, is a daytime financial professional, who spends the rest of her time immersed in food. Rinku is the author of the blog, Cooking in Westchester, where she shares her life experiences, and original recipes that combine Indian spices with produce from her backyard and local farmers markets. Rinku is blessed with a gardener husband, who always surprises her with a prolific and fresh supply of produce to keep her creative instincts flowing. Rinku has been teaching recreational cooking classes for the past six years, and has found her classes a great way to learn and connect.

Her cookbook the Bengali Five Spice Chronicles, is scheduled to be published in November 2012. Rinku can be found on facebook, twitter and pinterest.

Here’s a look at the photos from today’s Grand Tasting at Westchester Magazine’s Wine & Food Weekend.

Sunday’s Grand Tasting at the Ritz Carlton.

Did you attend? What were your favorite wines? Foods? Let me know below!

David Wondrich, the mixology sage, leads a Saturday seminar behind the bar at 42.

A dash of absinthe can perk up your Manhattan and a bit of grated nutmeg can add a welcome subtlety to a traditional punch.

So said David Wondrich, the Esquire columnist and mixology sage who hosted a Saturday seminar at Westchester Magazine’s Wine and Food Festival. With commanding views of the Lower Hudson Valley as a backdrop, Wondrich used the bar at 42 as his pulpit, preaching cocktail history and offering tips of bartending trade to an eager audience of 40.

I’m Ed Forbes, the digital editor at The Journal News and LoHud.com, and I was among the acolytes Wondrich took on a journey that began aboard British ships in the early 1600s and ended in today’s cocktail renaissance, Wondrich used four cocktails to outline the history and evolution of modern spirits.

First came a traditional whiskey punch — Wondrich explained that punch likely originated aboard British sailing vessels in the Elizabethan era. When sailors’ beer spoiled in tropical climates, they improvised with citrus, whiskey and rum.

“These people were English,” Wondrich, a former literature professor, quipped. “An English boat without beer or wine or something to drink is unthinkable.”

Combining muddled lemon rinds, lemon juice a bottle and a half of Jameson 12, a half-bottle of Madeira wine, water and freshly grated nutmeg, the punch was stirred over large chunks of ice and proved to be a perfect late-spring refreshment.

“Punch should be strength of sherry,” Wondrich said, explaining that it’s an inherently social drink that’s meant to be enjoyed in small cups at an afternoon or evening gathering.

Punches came to the New World along with British settlers, Wondrich said, and were de rigueur through the colonial and federal periods.

In the youth of the republic, Wondrich said, American ingenuity delivered the cocktail — early forms included the Old Fashioned and the Mint Juleps. Wondrich shared the Improved Brandy Cocktail as an example of a pioneering American cocktail.

“A cocktail was a pick-me-up, a morning drink,” Wondrich said. The latest theory in mixology lore is that the word cocktail derives from the phrase, “cock your tail up in the morning,” he said.

Adding equal dashes of Angostura bitters, orange curaçao and raw-sugar simple syrup with about 2 ounces of Martell’s VS brandy — all shaken over ice — Wondrich delivered a complex and satisfying cocktail.

After the end of the Civil War, cocktails became increasingly complex and increasingly common both in America and overseas. Victorian Americans delighted in Champagne concoctions, Wondrich explained, and began experimenting with a gamut of spirits — gin, brandy, Applejack, rye.

At the Manhattan Club, an establishment for silk-stocking New York Democrats, the Manhattan emerged from the genius of a bartender who mixed some of the club’s famed, aged rye with vermouth, which came in to vogue in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Variations quickly followed — the Metropole (cognac mixed with vermouth); the Turf Club, the Martinez and finally, the Martini.

“Many of you probably remember the Martini of the 1950s,” Wondrich mused, gesturing across the Long Island Sound to his native north shore. “When I was growing up, the bartender simply said the word ‘France’ when mixing martinis.”

Vermouth had fallen from favor in mid-century America. Worn by depression and war, the Greatest Generation liked their cocktails stiff. Still, Wondrich said it’s important to recognize the dynamic role vermouth can play in a cocktail. His third recipe was a Martini as it would have been served in the 1890s.

Combining equal parts Beefeater’s London dry gin and equal parts Noilly Prat French vermouth, Wondrich added dashes of orange bitters. Stirred over ice, the yield was a complex and rewarding appellation that confounded some in the audience who’d grown up in houses where vermouth was verboten.

As he likely does at every seminar he leads, Wondrich fielded the Bond question with grace.

“Why did James Bond not stir?” an attendee asked.

“The simple answer is James Bond is an idiot,” Wondrich replied.

Stirring, Wondrich explained, makes for a cold and less-diluted drink. Ian Fleming, he said, was writing about a secret agent who probably didn’t want a terribly stiff drink — Bond had to be on his game.

As he wove his tale of high jinx and high balls, Wondrich offered a few tips:
» Fuller bottles of bitters require heavier shakes to deliver satisfactory dashes.
» Traditional bitters — Angostura, Peychaud’s, orange bitters of whatever brand — are more often than not all a home bartender will ever require.
» Barspoons — long-stemmed spoons with shallow bowls — make terrific stirring tools.

Rounding out Wondrich’s survey of cocktails was the Singapore Sling. He immediately discredited the Raffles legend, in which the boozy boat drink was invented at the famed Singapore hotel in 1915.

“People were drinking pink gin slings in Singapore in the 1890s,” Wondrich said.

Wondrich’s sling used 2 ounces of Plymouth gin — a variety different from London gin — and dashes of cherry heering, Angostura and Benedictine. The sling was nothing short of delightful.

“It’s a simple drink,” Wondrich joked, “with three ounces of booze!”

Were you at the grand tasting Saturday Westchester Magazine’s Wine & Food Weekend?

Take a look at our photo gallery here: Saturday photos from Westchester Magazine’s Wine & Food Weekend

Westchester Magazine has just released tickets for the previously sold out Saturday Grand Tasting for its Wine & Food Weekend at the Ritz-Carlton this weekend. Click here to get ‘em while they’re still available. westchestermagazine.com/wineweekend.

Meanwhile, I hear the Burgers & Beer Bash (also sold out!) was a smashing success last night, with 1,200 people attmding. I’m waiting to get some photos, but after the jump, I have the menu of burgers from the 22 participating restaurants. I’ll update as soon as I get photos!

42 The Restaurant: Pork fried rice and quail egg
Benjamin Steakhouse: Sliders and cream spinach
BGR Burger Joint: Wellington Burgers, Veggie Burgers, Greek burgers
Birdsall House: barbecue
Buffalo Wild Wings: assorted wings
Buttercup Bakery: cupcakes and red velvet cake
Crabtree’s Kitle House: Pat La Frieda Custom Blend Burger with Applewood Smoked Bacon
Burgers and bread pudding
Empire City, Dan Rooney’s: mini sliders-cornbeef, swiss cheese, sauerkraut & russian dressing
Harvest on Hudson and Half Moon: “lamburginis” lamb sliders
Lazy Boy Saloon: Gourmet prime sliders (variety), tequila citrus chicken wings
Memphis Mae’s BBQ: Blackened Voodoo Jambalaya: Traditional New Orleans Jambalaya “enhanced” by Dixie Brewery’s Blackened Voodoo Beer
Piper’s Kilt: Burgers
Pizza Luca: pizza
Polpettina: chicken and fish tacos
Restaurant North: Chicken burger served on brioche roll with rapini pesto and aioli
Rye Roadhouse: Ribs with mac n cheese & jambalaya
Starbucks: coffee, cake pops, whoopie pies
Texas de Brazil: steak and mashed potatoes
Ritz-Carlton: jail break burger(stuffed with roasted chilies and jack cheese), bbq ribs and a Romanian hand rolled beef and pork mini burger.
Westchester Burger Co.: Hamburgers
X20 Xaviars on the Hudson: A slider with Beef & Foie Gras served with spicy truffle & sherry mayo and served on brioche or a pretzel bun

Jonathan Pratt and Craig Purdy, owners of Peter Pratt’s Inn in Yorktown Heights and Umami Cafe and MexToGo in Croton-on-Hudson, will open a French Bistro with a Moroccan flair in the former Bella Paula location at 120 Grand Street in Croton-on-Hudson this summer. They hope to be open by July.

Pratt says the menu will be classic French bistro — steak frites and frisee aux lardons and the like — with Moroccan dishes, too, such as tagines, carrot salads and mint tea. France and Morocco have had political ties since the 8th century.

The restaurant will have 50 to 60 seats inside, and 20 seats on a patio. It will look more like Paris than Marrakech, thought Pratt wasn’t sure whether they’d have a zinc bar. Bella Paula used to be split in two; one side a pizzeria, the other a restaurant. Pratt and Purdy are converting the pizzeria to a bar, which will also have seating. The working name, which may change, is Brasserie Grand.

I don’t think that the avocado was, for me, a love-at-first-bite kind of thing, but wow, times have changed. These days I find it hard hard to resist the nutty flavor of avocado flesh; it can be eaten with just a squirt of lime and a sprinkle of salt, used as a topping for soups and salads, or used as a backdrop in different guacamoles and salsas.

This interpretation of guacamole—with a bit of spark and smoke from chipotles, sweet from the grapes, and crunch from the nuts—is a crowd pleaser, and perfect as a kick-off treat for your spring or summertime barbecues. For a larger crowd, this recipe is super simple to multiply. (By the way, to make chipotle purée, you can buy a can of chipotles en adobo in any Latin market—or section of a market—and purée them in a blender. This will keep for up to 6 weeks, or beyond, in the fridge—and adds a nice smoky flavor to sauces—and even mayonnaise.)

Serve this guacamole with a bowl of your favorite tortilla chips, and ice-cold beer or fruit-filled sangría.

The recipe, after the jump.

Guacamole with Grapes and Toasted Nuts

Adapted from Mambo Mixers, by Arlen Gargagliano, ©2005

Stewart, Tabori & Chang

Makes about 2 cups  

1 small shallot or 1/2 a red onion, finely diced

Juice of 1/2 lime, plus more as desired

1/2 teaspoon chipotle purée  (or more—according to taste)

15 to 20 seedless red grapes, halved

1/3 cup toasted pecans (or walnuts) coarsely chopped

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

In a large bowl, combine the avocados, red onion, and lime juice. Stir in the chipotle purée and grapes, but don’t mix it too much or the avocados will get mushy. At this point, you may want to refrigerate the guacamole (with the avocado pit, so the browning is lessened). Just before serving, remove the pit, stir to mix. Add another squirt of fresh lime juice, and then the toasted pecans, salt and pepper, and cilantro.

I have always considered Whole Foods a go-to place for plant-based groceries: nut and plant milks, tofu, tempeh, seitan, soy yogurt, and coconut ice cream, to name just a few.  I did not know until recently, however, that the last Thursday of every month is “Vegan Thursday.”

Irene Devore, Culinary Demonstration Specialist at Whole Foods Market, White Plains, serves up vegan treats from 12:00 – 2:00 p.m.  by the coffee bar.  Trained at the New York Restaurant School, Devore selects a vegan cookbook each month and demonstrates several recipes. Participants receive a copy of the recipe and, most importantly, samples of the finished product.

I observed that two types of Whole Foods customers experienced the event.  The first group were those who came to the store specifically for the vegan demonstration (I was a part of that group). This group stands at the station while Chef Devore talks us through each recipe, answers questions and, of course, gives us food.  The other group of customers are the curious shoppers.  There is an inviting sign over the demonstration kiosk

that entices customers to stop for a sample and to hear about the recipe. On this particular Thursday there were far more of the latter.  Dan Burnstein, pictured above, in town on business from Tulsa, was simply in the store to pick up supplies for his stay in White Plains.  (He is a vegan and we vegans know to find a Whole Foods when traveling out out town.)  He was delighted to see the Vegan Thursday sign and sample a sweet treat.

For the April “Vegan Thursday” Devore selected the classic plant-based cookbook How It All Vegan and she served up three terrific recipes:  Vegan Spanakopita, Lemon Kale SooFoo Salad, and Vegan Black Bean Brownies.

The secret to the Kale Salad was the vegan “feta” (made with herbed tofu) and SooFoo, a blend of brown rice, grains and lentils. Both the herbed tofu and SooFoo are available in the store, naturally.

“Vegan Thursday” is just one of many in-store events planned by Culinary Demonstration Specialist Irene Devore.  Be sure to check out the store calendar for future tastings and demonstrations. The next “Vegan Thursday” is May 26, 12:00 – 2:00 p.m., Whole Foods Market, White Plains, 110 Bloomingdale Road  White Plains, NY 10605.

I Eat Plants columnist JL Fields blogs about her transition to a vegan diet and lifestyle at JL goes Vegan: Food & Fitness with a Side of Kale. Her original recipes have been featured on Foodbuzz, BlogHer and Meatless Monday. She is the editor of the community blog Stop Chasing Skinny: Find Happiness Beyond the Scale.   JL is the founder and lead consultant for JL Fields Consulting.  She serves on the board of directors of the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary and the advisory board of Our Hen House.  Follow JL on Twitter and Facebook.

Rhubarb … it’s one of those mysterious ingredients in the produce aisle. Not being a regular “baker” it doesn’t call to me. My friend Lynn grows it and cooks with it a lot. Particularly making the ubiquitous Strawberry Rhubarb Pie that my step-daughter Elinor adores. So when I decided to highlight it this week, as it’s in season, I wondered how I could make it savory? The bunch I brought home was picked up at the Chappaqua Farmers Market from Madura Farms.

The leaves are poisonous, and typically are removed by the time they get to the store. However, if you are harvesting yourself, be sure to throw them away! If the stalks are really thick you can remove the outside strings by peeling them with a small paring knife. The texture of the stalk is similar to celery, the flavor however, is a different story!

The flavor of rhubarb is distinct and remarkably tart. In desserts it’s typically macerated with sugar and paired with strawberry to balance its bite. (We’ll get to that in a minute.) So how do incorporate it another way?

More after the jump …

After a quick perusal of my cabinet I came across some red lentils. Maybe a stew? One of my clients that I cook for has a child that was, up until recently, a vegetarian. So a few years ago when I started cooking for them I needed to make a lot of vegetarian dishes every week. I picked up Mark Bittman’s tome on all things vegetable, and it has been my go-to reference for many, many ingredients. Happily to my surprise he has a Dal recipe using red lentils, with the suggestion of adding rhubarb! His recipe is below, but I can tell you now this could not be an easier dish to make. You basically put everything together in the pot, add water and let it all cook together to create a creamy spicy stew. Dals are typically found in Indian cuisine, made with lentils and served over rice.

I’m sure you’re saying, “Come on Maria, where is the rhubarb dessert?” All right … here is just about the simplest “crumble” dessert you can make. (The recipe is below.) I found these incredibly amazing strawberries at Tarry Market.

The white ones are called Pineberry and the red ones are Strasberry. Really beautiful and luscious. The pineberries taste like a cross between a pineapple and strawberry. The strasberries are  wild strawberries that resemble a raspberry. They don’t taste like them, just a similar shape.

After macerating the rhubarb in some sugar, I added the strawberries and a little flour.

A simple crumble topping of butter, flour, brown sugar and oats.

Place in ramikens and bake for 20 minutes. How easy is that?

I hope I’ve enticed you to purchase some rhubarb this weekend. It’s relatively inexpensive, readily available and super easy to use.

Buon Appetito!

Red Lentil Dal with Rhubarb (recipe adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian)

Serves 4

1 cup dry red lentils

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

2 cardamom pods

1 tablespoon yellow mustard seed

2 whole cloves

1 teaspoon coarse grated black pepper

1 small dried ancho chili

1 cup rhubarb, 1/4-inch dice

kosher salt to taste

2 tablespoons butter

Combine the first 8 ingredients in a small pot. Cover with cool water by 1 inch. Cook at a steady simmer for about 30-40 minutes, seasoning with salt as they cook. (Remember, add your salt slowly. You can always add, but you can’t remove!)

After you get a nice thick consistency remove the cloves and cardamom and stir in the butter. I tossed in a little cilantro too. You can serve this over the rice of your choice warm or over a nice piece of crusty bread at room temp.