MAC & CHEESE

Sixth Anniversary

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:55:00 +0000

It's the end of January, and that means it's Mac & Cheese's sixth anniversary! Where does the time and calories go? Well, I know where the calories go, and that, my friends, is one of the reasons why I've been taking it easy on the posting front this past year.

Many thanks to all who read the blog. Now, here is a roundup of this past year's highlights.

Favorite Posts It was my first year as a CSA member, and I can't say enough good things about the experience. I've signed up again this year! While the weekly posts of how I used the bountiful CSA produce is admittedly a bit boring to read, you can get a sense of how I really eat, plus these posts practically write themselves, and those kinds of posts are every blogger's dream.

Favorite RestaurantsMany of my favorite establishments I reviewed last year aren't really restaurants in the traditional sense. Little Baby's Ice Cream is a tricycle (a brick and mortar store is in the works) that makes irresistibly quirky ice cream flavors. While I don't do the Korean fried chicken at Federal Donuts, I love the donuts at this deservedly hyped corner take-out so much that I've had to set myself some limits. Va La Vinyards has long been my favorite winery in the Brandywine Valley, but I only just got around to telling you about it (maybe for selfish reasons). So happy to see the gourmet hot dog trend take off this past year in Philly, and glad when establishments, like Hot Diggity, include us vegetarians.

Favorite RecipesI can't count how many times we've made this recipe for rosemary roasted cashews in the past year; it's that good! Once you go raw kale, it's hard to go back to cooked. I have a soft spot for quirky and fabulous desserts, and these corn cookies hit both marks.

Most Popular Posts
This is the first year that recipe posts did not take the top three spots as the most viewed posts. Coming in at number one and number two, respectively, are Frankford Hall and El Rey. I explain their victory because they are both restaurants from Philly's most popular restauranteur, Stephen Starr. Coming in third is Memphis Taproom Beer Garden. I explain this ranking because Memphis Taproom's courtyard garden selling gourmet hot dogs (they also have veggie dogs!) and canned craft beer from a truck is simply awesome.

VacationWe kept it stateside this year with trips to Seattle and Portland, two cities I've never been to previously, but have long been on my wish list. Our annual trip to Pawleys Island in South Carolina where high humidity, sweltering temps, and pimento cheese nights always make me long for home.

Corn Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:26:00 +0000

Christina Tosi's decadent desserts, like crack pie and compost cookies, have been all the rage the past couple of years. I've never actually been to Momofuku Milk Bar in New York to eat pastry chef Tosi's desserts, but I jumped at the chance last year to sample five of her cookies when South Philly's Green Aisle Grocery started overnighting Milk Bar cookies in from New York. (Haven't seen a tweet about Milk Bar cookies from Green Aisle in a long time, so not sure if Green Aisle is still getting them in.)

From my taste test, I concluded that Tosi makes great cookies, if not a little too sweet and greasy. The standout cookie from the bunch, though, was the corn cookie. Oh man, is Milk Bar's corn cookie good! It tastes somewhere between a sugar cookie and the sweetest summer corn you've ever had. The secret to getting that sweet corn flavor is corn powder. What's corn powder, you ask? Nothing more than freeze dried corn, that's been pulverized into a powder in a blender or food processor. If you can't find freeze dried corn in the snack section of Whole Foods or some other similar grocery store, you can always order it on Amazon. Tosi unleashed her recipe for corn cookies last year in a issue of David Chang's quarterly magazine Lucky Peach, as well as in Tosi's new cookbook Momofuku Milk Bar. The recipe for corn cookies is even posted on the Amazon page for Tosi's cookbook, so the cat is long out of the bag. I've had this recipe bookmarked for quite a while, but had to 1) procure freeze dried corn, and 2) get over the holiday hump of mega indulgence. The original recipe calls for two sticks of butter, which, really, isn't out of the norm for a batch of cookies, but in recalling how I felt her cookies were way too greasy, I cut out just two tiny tablespoons of butter from the recipe to great results. The cookies are still very buttery, but not sickly so. Next time I bake them, I might try to get the recipe down to one and a half sticks of butter.

I also measured the cookie dough out into uniform sizes, which is something I never do. And, would you believe it, the cookies all came out consistently sized and looking professional! Might have to be more exacting in my baking in the future.
Corn Cookies
adapted from Momofuku Milk Bar
makes about 13 to 15 cookies

14 tablespoons butter, at room temperature (original recipe uses 16 tablespoons)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 1/3 cups flour
1/4 cup corn flour (I used fine corn meal)
2/3 cup freeze-dried corn powder
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

Cream butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Add the egg and beat for 7-8 minutes.
In another bowl, add all of the remaining ingredients and stir until just mixed. (I used my hands to mix the rather thick dough together.)
Measure out uniform scoops of cookie dough (I measured 1/4 cup scoops, but original recipe calls for 1/3 cup scoops), pressing the tops of the dough balls down slightly, and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Wrap baking sheet with cookie dough tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour, and up to a week before baking. It's very important to start with chilled dough when baking these cookies!
Place chilled dough about 4 inches apart on a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 18 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven, or until the edges are slightly browned.
Cool cookies on a cooling rack. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Birra

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:37:00 +0000

A few weeks ago we stopped into Birra, a pizza and beer restaurant right in the heart of bustling E. Passyunk Avenue. Open for only a few months now, Birra has had no problem finding it's stride.

The tight restaurant and bar was packed when we arrived, and since they don't take reservations (too casual and small for such a thing), we put our name on the list, were given a thirty minute estimate on the wait, the host took our phone number, and we scooted a block up the road for drinks at Salt and Pepper's more sedate bar. Thirty minutes later our phone rang, and a table was waiting for us when we walked in Birra.

Birra means beer in Italian, so of course Birra has a strong beer list to match it's name. I was a bit concerned that Birra did not offer wine, since it's not listed on the online menu, but fear not; they have wine!
We hit most of the vegetarian items on the menu that came recommended by our server, although there are plenty more veggie dishes to hit, even though the menu is short and sweet.

The roasted veggie salad with mixed greens, seasonal vegetables, and balsamic mustard vignette is served with a few triangles of flat bread. Winter squash is in season, but I'm not sure how seasonal the zucchini and cured tomatoes are. Those tomatoes were the best part of the already likeable and sizable salad, so I'm not really complaining. The chewy and concentrated flavors of the cured tomatoes were, again, the best part of the red sauced, roasted vegetable pizza. At twelve inches, Birra's thin crust pizzas are perfect for splitting with another person. The mac and cheese pizza at Birra is not the first time I've had such a doubly carb loaded disk. The concept of such a pizza is not as bad as it sounds, and also not as interesting as it sounds. This menu item didn't come recommended, but I had to give it a go anyway.

Black pepper is about the only stand out flavor on this pizza, and considering that Birra's pizza crust is a bit bland, you really want to order a pizza with more flavor umpf at Birra. I'm thinking the mac and cheese pizza would be better ordered as a "Birra bowl" — any pizza toppings and sauce baked in a bowl with a pizza crust laid on top like a pot pie.
The roasted veggie panini with cured tomatoes, zucchini, basil pesto, and provolone was actually my favorite of the night with big flavors, crusty bread, and small pitcher of their sweet tomato sauce for dipping.

Birra may not have my favorite pizza crust in town (everyone has an opinion about that!), but their vegetable toppings are fresh and flavorful. The atmosphere is casual and lively, making Birra a perfect spot to grab a drink or meal while taking in a game on one of their many sports-tuned televisions, or, you know, just to hang with some friends

Birra
1700 E Passyunk Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19148
267-324-3127

Vacation Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:01:00 +0000

We're already into the second week of January, so I fell like I've missed the window to do a Christmas vacation recap, but, heck, I'm just going to do it anyway. I'm just not ready to write any serious post about a restaurant or recipe.

I had fun going home over the holidays, visited family and friends in two states and four cities, ate some great food, and drank way, way too much.

After twelve hours on the road, we pulled into my Dad's house in South Carolina the day before Christmas Eve, where two kinds of pimento cheese are kept in the fridge. Pimento cheese sandwiches all around!Our Christmas Eve tradition is to eat an assortment of cheese, cured meats, and crackers with chutneys, jams, and honey, and other bits and bobs like marinated Brussels sprouts. We also drink lots of champagne.
My favorite gift I gave was an original drawing from Philly's own Hawk Krall. I've been admiring his artwork on sites like Serious Eats and Hawk's own site for some time, and wanted to get his print of a pimento cheese hot dog from Sandy's, a small chain from my hometown.

Well, Hawk's a super nice dude, and after a few back and forths over email I ended up getting two original Sandy's drawings. Hawk's also so super nice that he agreed to do a custom drawing for me to give my Dad for Christmas, and he did it with only a short notice. I couldn't be happier with his artwork, and my Dad was just thrilled with it, as well.

The story behind the Banana Dog is this: the Banana Dog is similar to the popular (well, it's not unheard of) mayo, peanut butter and banana sandwich, but my Dad claims to have invented the Banana Dog one day when there was no sandwich bread in the house, and he ingeniously improvised with a hot dog bun. His claim to fame is now memorialized thanks to Hawk.
After all the gifts were opened we did a moonshine tasting. What, that's not what every family does for Christmas?

I've tasted some pretty bad moonshine (usually brought to the party by that guy no one really knows), but these two bottles that my Dad got from a friend were absolutely the best I've ever had. The one called Favorite Child was aged in an oak barrel, making it essentially bourbon. The other was called Apple Pie, and it tasted exactly like fresh apple cider with nary a hint of alcohol taste. Apple Pie is dangerous!
Then it's the divorced kid shuffle off to my Mom's house for Christmas Day where the champagne flowed, as well.
Anson Mills is not the only story in South Carolina when it comes to milled grains. It seems that everyone is growing heirloom corn and milling nowadays. We packed our car with grits to bring back home from those who've been milling for over a century (Adluh), and grits from a new kid on the block (Keisler's Mill).
Anyone from Columbia remember back in the late 90's when Ital Island, this crazy, African art-filled, soul food and Caribbean vegan restaurant popped up for about a year or so, then disappeared to leave all us vegans and vegetarians crying? Well, after more than a decade it has reappeared at a new location, and with a new name. Lamb's Bread Vegan Cafe is Ital Island. Same African masks, same incense, same owners, same cook, same food. So glad to have you back!
With all the truly good food I ate, I'm ashamed to say the most memorable and delicious thing I ate was this can of Hapi Spicy Sriracha Peas. Ate the whole can! The combo of sweet, spicy, salty, garlic-y, and crunchy is unstoppable.
This sweet old dog lives at a house near a mountain trail in Hot Springs, NC. She was our guide for the day, expertly walking us to the overlook, then back down. I imagine she does this many times a day, every day, with all the mountain visitors. Not a bad life!Then it was time for a wine and cheese picnic in the hot spring-fed hot tubs in Hot Springs. These outdoor tubs seated at the edge of a river are stupidly cheap. Your skin is so soft afterwards. I was upset that I didn't get any banana pudding from Glass Onion in Charleston (sold out one day, and didn't make the next day), but I did get a pimento cheese omelet and creamed greens for New Year's Eve brunch.
This gorgeous live oak and treehouse is in my brother's Charleston backyard! That picture is pretty much my childhood fantasy.
After an explosive New Year's Eve celebration in Charleston, we awoke a few hours later to get in the car for a long and miserable, hungover car ride back to Philly. I actually thought ahead and bought black eyed peas and collards down South to save myself a trip to the grocery store in Philly when we got back. Ignoring the reveling Mummer's outside my door (remind me to never come back to Philly on New Year's Day), and in a weird hungover/long-car-ride haze, I somehow managed to make collards and hoppin' John for a late dinner before crashing into bed.

Good to be back!

Cookbook Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 01:21:00 +0000

The winner of the Glass Onion cookbook is commenter Haley, who has this to say about her most memorable Southern food experience:

i went to a small liberal arts college in the middle of connecticut where we rarely left campus. two days before we were about to graduate we decided to take an adventure. our 8 closest friends from college decided to take a road trip to the smokin bbq cafe for some mind blowing pulled pork and okra stew. mmhmm.

Congratulations, Haley! The adventure with your friends, and the pulled pork sounds fabulous. And okra stew is one of my all-time favorite dishes.

Please get in touch with the address to which you'd like to have the book shipped. Email me at: mac.and.cheese.review (at) gmail (dot) com

Cookbook Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 15:00:00 +0000

Hope y'all had a wonderful holiday! I sure did. In fact, I'm still on holiday vacation, and am down in my home state of South Carolina visiting family and friends.

What? You want more presents? OK.

I am delighted to giveaway a copy of the cookbook Glass Onion Classics: Recipes From a Southern Restaurant to one lucky reader. This new and unused cookbook (I did flip through it, though) comes from Glass Onion, one of my favorite restaurants in Charleston, South Carolina.Glass Onion's "ridiculously good" banana pudding (it is ridiculous!), grilled pimento cheese sandwich, and deviled eggs is my usual. I just might be eating this very same order right now!

Glass Onion serves up non-stuffy, fresh and local, classic Southern food in a casual storefront located on the busy Savannah Highway just a stone's throw from the Charleston peninsula (the touristy part). This means that while Glass Onion is always busy with people in the know (I once giddily dined across from Southern cookbook author Ted Lee), it's not overrun with tourists like made-popular-by-television Hominy Grill and Jestine's Kitchen. The Glass Onion's cookbook is NOT vegetarian, but any crafty vegetarian can adapt almost any recipe. This 168-page cookbook covers all the Southern basics, like pimento cheese, buttermilk fried chicken, grits, and red velvet cake, with brief stories before each recipe, and a few black and white drawings here and there. Peppered throughout the book are profiles of Southern food farmers and friends, like Allan Benton (Benton's Bacon) and Glenn Roberts (Anson Mills).

To enter to win:
Please leave one comment on this blog post telling me the most memorable Southern food you cooked at home, or ate at a restaurant. The contest will end January 3, 2012 at 8pm EST. One winner will be picked randomly. Be sure to check back for an announcement of the winner, so I can get your mailing information. Sorry, but I will only ship to US addresses.

The cookbook and giveaway are provided by me (because I like Glass Onion so much), and all opinions are my own.

Red Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 15:22:00 +0000

Tomorrow is the first day of winter, and that means those of us up North are settling into many months of cold and seasonal depression. And in my case, bitching about how cold and depressing it is. It also means that any fresh tomato you buy sucks. Ah, another thing to complain about.

What's a girl or boy who has resigned to eat seasonally, or just committed to flavor to do? And, now that we're all avoiding commercially canned goods because of their BPA lining, canned tomatoes are out of the picture. It's looking pretty grim for all those winter hearty pastas, stews, and casseroles that call for tomatoes, that's for sure.My solution for getting around crappy tomatoes in the off-season is to make what we've been calling around here "red sauce." Red sauce is nothing more than carrots, beets, onions, and garlic that, when cooked and pureed, come together into a vibrant, savory, red sauce with a hint of sweetness. If you didn't tell anyone that they weren't eating tomato sauce, they might not even second guess red sauce.

To be honest, we don't make red sauce just in the winter; we like it so much we make it year round. Red sauce can be used almost anywhere you would tomato sauce. We slather it on pasta, pizza, meatballs, and sloppy joes.

I'm posting this recipe for mostly selfish reasons (I'm tired of looking it up in a book), but I encourage you all to give this recipe a go. Especially in godforsaken, tomato-less winter.
Pizza loves red sauce!

Red Sauce
adapted from Yoga Kitchen

2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
4 cups peeled and chopped carrots
1/2 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups vegetable stock
1 medium beet, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, minced
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Melt butter in a large skillet. Add carrots, onion, and garlic. Cover and saute, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes, or until tender.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan, boil beets until tender. Drain.
Transfer beets and carrots to a blender. Add all remaining ingredients and puree until smooth.

Shane Confectionery

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 13:10:00 +0000

It's been nearly two years since the Berley brothers, Eric and Ryan, bought Shane Candies in Center City. You may know the Berley brothers from The Franklin Fountain, their old-timey ice cream parlor complete with period costumes on Market St. just down the block from Shane's.Since buying Shane Candies in early 2010, the Berley brothers have been hard at work restoring the fusty candy store to it's former glory. Just a few of the many endeavors include pulling up linoleum floors to reveal old pine boards, uncovering and restoring original architectural elements, and repairing antique candy making equipment to put back into use. The store's new reincarnation under the Berley brothers was opened this December 5 (just in time for Christmas!) as Shane Confectionery, making this 110 Market St. location the oldest candy shop in America that still makes most of its own candy. When you funnel through the curved glass storefront windows to the store, be sure to notice the candy store timeline printed on the door. The sugary shop at 110 Market St. has been a candy store since 1863, and in the Shane family from 1911 to 2010.Almost all of the chocolates are made in-house, many from original Shane recipes, including the beloved buttercreams. And don't miss the hard candies made from their collection of over 300 Clear Toy Candy molds, a Christmas gift tradition brought over by the Germans.Those candies that aren't made in house are retro candies like Teaberry gum, Wilbur Buds (a Pennsylvania candy and precursor to Hershey's Kiss) , and Jawbreakers, in keeping with the period theme of the store. And, yes, you'll find the Berley brothers and their shopkeepers in period garb at Shane Confectionery.With attention to historical details both in architecture and candy making, and a wide but not overwhelming selection of sumptuous candies (get a salted chocolate-covered caramel!), Shane Confectionery should be on every tourist's list, especially if you have children. After a long, excruciating day of looking at, yet, another Ben Franklin statue, Shane Confectionery will win any parent back into their child's favor.

Locals can skip the sightseeing, and head straight to the chocolate case, kid or no kid.

Shane Confectionery
110 Market St., Philadelphia, PA 19106
215-922-1048

Artichoke Relish

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:52:00 +0000

The chronological nature of a blog means that, inevitably, posts roll off the screen to be forgotten in the archives. Occasionally, I resurrect a favorite recipe for those who missed it the first go around. What I have in my hand above is a Jerusalem artichoke (or sunchoke), which is the tuber of a sunflower. It's crunchy, sweet, nutty, and absolutely delicious! These were dug the other day at our friend's farm, but you can maybe find some now (autumn and winter) at farmers' markets and better, local grocery stores. My favorite way to prepare Jerusalem artichokes is as a sweet and tangy relish. Every year, my friend and I get together to can 18 or so pints of the stuff (one year we made 40 pints!). It's become a lovely tradition.Where do all of those jars of relish go? In deviled eggs, tuna salad, chicken salad, egg salad, and chickpea "tuna" salad. On top of burgers, sandwiches, and hotdogs. Next to butter beans and black-eyed peas. On a cracker with cheese. We use it on and in every thing!

Having just made our annual 18 pints of artichoke relish this past weekend, I thought I'd pull the recipe back up to the top of the blog for all y'all that missed it the first time, which was nearly 4 years ago! I'd like to think I've gotten just a tad better at blogging since then.Artichoke Relish

Adapted from A Gracious Plenty: Recipes and Recollections from the American South

Makes 17 or 18 pints

5 quarts Jerusalem artichokes, chopped
2 gallons water
2 cups non-iodized salt
3 pounds green cabbage, chopped
1 1/2 pounds onions, chopped
6 large green and red bell peppers, chopped
3/4 cup flour
1 (24-ounce) jar prepared mustard
2 quarts apple cider vinegar
3 pounds sugar
3 tablespoons mustard seed
2 tablespoons turmeric
2 tablespoons celery seed
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon hot sauce

Soak artichokes overnight in 1 gallon of water and 1 cup of salt. In another container, soak the cabbage, onion, and bell peppers in the remaining 1 gallon of water and 1 cup of salt.
The next day, drain the artichokes and vegetables. Spread the artichokes on one towel, and the vegetables on a separate towel.
Combine the flour and prepared mustard in a bowl, avoiding lumps.
In a 10-quart or larger pot, add the vinegar, sugar, mustard seed, turmeric, celery seed, and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then add the cabbage, onion, and bell peppers. Bring back to a boil and cook for 10 minutes over medium heat.
Reduce heat to low. Add and mix about a cup of the cooking liquid to the flour and mustard mixture, then add the thinned mixture to the pot of cooking vegetables, and stir.
Add the hot sauce and artichokes. Raise the heat and stir until almost boiling (about 5 minutes).
Remove pot from heat, and ladle hot relish into sterilized jars, wipe rims of jars, apply sterilized lids and bands, and process for 15 minutes in a hot water bath.

Santucci's Square Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 11:45:00 +0000

We ordered a mushroom and onion pizza for delivery from Santucci's Square Pizza the other week, and, yep, it really is as good as people say.

A small, local pizza chain with six location in Philly, Santucci's is known for it's square pizza with cheese on the bottom and sauce on the top. Not spending time north of the city where five of their original venues are located, I had never heard of Santucci's until they decided to open up shop near the Italian Market, and every person squealed with joy from print and social media.

A Santucci's square pizza starts with seasoned cast iron pan, which cooks up a sturdy and chewy crust. The crust is topped with mozzarella cheese, then the pizza is crowned with a deep red, thick, perfectly seasoned, herb-flecked sauce.

Santucci's makes a damn fine pizza. No, really. Every one at the table actually took a moment after eating the first slice to comment on how good it was. From crust, cheese, sauce, and toppings, there was not a thing to complain about.

As far as classic pizzas go, it's one of the best eat-in-front-of-the-tv pizzas I've had. They even managed to thoroughly cook, but not dry out the mushrooms!

Not sure I'll ever make it into their casual restaurant for a sit-down dinner, but I'm hoping for more rushed days to come around as an excuse to order another pizza from Santucci's.

They also do soups, salads, sandwiches, strombolis, pastas, flatbreads, and wings. If there are standouts on the menu other than the pizza, please let me know, and we might add it to a future delivery.

Santucci's Square Pizza
901 S. 10th St., Philadelphia, PA 19147
215-825-5304

Desi Chaat House

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 11:38:00 +0000

Sitting here in November with freezing toes and fingers, it's hard to believe that it was 100-degrees the day I visited Desi Chaat House in University City, but it takes extreme situations to get me to cross the Schuykill River into the western regions of the city. We were looking for a reason to get out of our un-air-conditioned house, so savory Indian snacks it was!

Desi Chaat House's searingly bright orange corner store is set up for take-out, although there are are a few seats at a window counter and a small table wedged near the door. A few outdoor tables along the sidewalk are available, too.
The affordable menu has odds and ends like wraps, soups, biryani, lassis, ice cream, and shakes, but the main draw at Desi Chaat House is obviously the chaats. Chaats are savory snacks made of various crispy little bits of fried dough combined with all sorts or toppings and mix ins like onions, chickpeas, yogurt, chutneys, and spices. There are twenty or so chaats at Desi Chaat House to choose from. I'm only familiar with about five chaats on the menu, so after choosing my favorite, we just pointed and hoped for the best.

Behind the counter are canisters containing all the different crispies, bottles of sauces, and pans of vegetable add-ins. Once you place your order, they get to assembling your chaat in a to-go container, reaching here and there, going down the line until the masterpiece is assembled.
I'm ashamed to say I do not remember which one of the specialty chaats this is. Bengali, Mumbai, Punjabi? Either way, what you have is a salty, sweet, spicy, tangy potpourri of many different crispy bits, accented with potatoes, onions, radishes, lentils, nuts, cilantro, yogurt, tamarind sauce, and spicy chutney. It's a profoundly delicious textural playground of intense flavors that cover any Indian cravings you might have.
As a special, Desi Chaat House had my favorite Indian chaat, dahi puri — crispy fried semolina puffs filled with potatoes (and sometimes curds or chickpeas), then topped with yogurt, sweet chutney, spices and sev. Unlike any place I've ever eaten dahi puri, Desi Chaat House gives you the makings of dahi puri, and has you assemble your own. This involves breaking out the top of each individual puri puff (not too easy with a plastic fork), then filling and garnishing them. I'd much rather they made them for me. These dahi puri were great, but there was so much more going on ingredient-wise in the filling than I'm used to. I have a feeling that the chaat artists at Desi Chaat House lack restraint when it comes to ingredients. I also missed the finishing sprinkling of spicy chili powder that usually comes with dahi puri when they are made in a kitchen.
The vegetable samosas comes sitting on a vibrant bed of chickpeas, onions, yogurt, cilantro, and sweet and spicy chutneys. Unfortunately, the yogurt makes the already soft, pre-made and cold samosas even soggier. Perhaps one needs to request freshly made samosas. Service is definitely friendly at Desi Chaat House, and if the guys behind the counter have a moment, they will chat with you, and perhaps offer you a free dessert, like they did for us. I wish I could recommend the pistachio and almond-topped Lahori-style rice pudding from Desi Chaat House's grab-and-go fridge, but it is impossibly thick and sweet. Imagine rice mixed in sweetened condensed milk. This Pakistani take on rice pudding is not my favorite style.

While not printed on their paper menu or on their chalkboard menu, there is a 8.5x11-inch piece of paper posted listing which chaats are gluten free or nut free. Also, you can request any chaat be made vegan by simply leaving off the yogurt.

Despite a soggy samosa, having to assemble my own dahi puri (it's not really that hard), and a too sweet dessert, I'm in love with Desi Chaat House, and their vast array of chaats. I happen to love chaats more than curries, but If you love Indian food and Indian flavors, you are also going to love Desi Chaat House.

Desi Chaat House
501 S. 42nd St., Philadelphia, PA 19143
215-386-1999

Miss Rachel's Vegan Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 21:59:00 +0000

Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Don't let the thought of long hours in the kitchen stress you out. Have Miss Rachel prepare your vegan Thanksgiving meal this year!

Miss Rachel kindly dropped me off a sneak peek of her delivered Thanksgiving platter (it was delectable, comforting, and generously portioned). Each $22 individual dish includes:

'Turkey’-style seitan with mushroom-red wine gravy (or herbed tofu if you are gluten free)
Garlicky mashed potatoes
Green bean casserole
Rosemary-thyme stuffing with cranberries (or rice stuffing if you are gluten free)

Plus, you can add an individual size homemade pumpkin pie to any order for just $8.

Deliveries will take place on the evening of Tuesday, November 22 and all day/evening on Wednesday, November 23. Pickup is also available from 2-6pm on Tuesday, November 22 at Greensgrow Farm Market.

The Deadline for ordering is Sunday, November 20.

For more details, and to place an order, visit Miss Rachel's site. Orders can also be placed by emailing missrachelspantry@gmail.com, or calling 215-285-7622.

CSA Next Year?

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:19:00 +0000

Week 24: bok choy, turnips, broccoli, crimini mushrooms, onions, daikon radishes, and sweet potatoes.

Well, that's it! The Lancaster Farm Fresh spring and summer CSA has come to an end. Instead of showing you what I did with the bounty (you've probably seen it before, since I tend to eat the same things over and over), I thought I'd run through some positive an negative observations from my first CSA experience.

POSITIVES

You know you're getting local, organic vegetables if you buy from a CSA. Sure, you can buy organic produce at even the big box grocery stores, but they aren't necessarily local.

You're eating what's in season right now. This means you're getting vegetables when they are freshest and taste their best.

I would rather pick up a CSA share than go to the grocery store or farmers' market. This is where having a convenient CSA pickup time and location is very important. Fortunately, mine was very convenient. There are many different CSAs out there, and if you're thinking about signing up for one, I highly suggest picking one with a location and pickup time that fits with your schedule and routines.

Having fresh vegetables every week cuts down on grocery trips. With so many vegetables in the house (and more coming every week), you really have to work at eating your veggies, and this means making meals centered around vegetables. With a well stocked pantry of basics, and vegetables galore, there was rarely any missing ingredient I needed to go to the store for.

A CSA is a good way to get more vegetables in your diet. If you are trying to cut down on meat consumption, a CSA subscription might force you to forgo meat a few nights a week, because there's just no other way to get through all those veggies. Even if you don't eat meat, you're still likely to increase your veggie intake, and that's never a bad thing!

Getting local, organic vegetables through a CSA is cheaper than the grocery store or farmers' market. This I'm not sure of (I only compared prices here and there), but I'm going to put the price of CSAs in the "positive" category. My half share at $17 per week for 4-9 vegetable portions per week, could be cheaper or more expensive depending on where you shop, how many vegetable portions were in each share, and what kind of vegetables you received each week. Cheaper than shopping at Headhouse Farmers' Market? For sure! Cheaper than other not-so-pricy farmers' markets and roadside stands? Sometimes. Cheaper than Whole Foods? Most of the time. Cheaper than the big box grocery store? Sometimes. In the end, I think $17 for the quality and amount of vegetables I received was fair.
Week 25: cabbage, crimini mushrooms, broccoli, buttercrunch lettuce, Japanese sweet potatoes, onions, and butternut squash.

NEGATIVES

If you tire easily of repeats, a CSA might not be for you. Certain vegetables can be in season for weeks, if not months, meaning that you'll receive some vegetables week after week after week.

You cannot pick and choose your vegetables with a CSA. If you hate X and Y, it will seem like every week X and Y is in your share. You will feel resentful that you spent money for vegetables you hate and will not eat. If you refuse to eat more than a couple kinds of vegetables — or dislike an entire vegetable family, like brassicas, which include kale, Brussels sprouts, collards, and broccoli, just to name a few — you'll be happier picking out your own vegetables at the store or market.

It takes dedication to cooking at home to eat through a week's share before the next one comes. If you eat out a lot, it will be almost impossible to keep on top of a CSA share. With a two-person household and a half share, if we ate dinner out more than once a week, we struggled with clearing out the fridge before the next pickup.Will I sign up for a CSA next year? Yes!

Fortunately, I like all vegetables, don't tire easily of repeats, and cook at home frequently, so the potential negatives of a CSA (or at least the negatives that I could think of; perhaps you have other thoughts) aren't really negatives for me.

Will you continue with a CSA next year? Why did you love (or hate) your CSA?

Sweet Pickled Peppers

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 10:24:00 +0000

This past weekend was a pretty nasty one if you lived in the Northeast. Freezing rain, sleet, snow, oh my! Yes, snow is a bit out of the ordinary in October around these parts, but it's not unusual to have a first frost in October where temperatures dip down below freezing.

If you keep a garden (container gardens count!), those chilly temperatures mean it's time to put the garden to bed, and bring in any plants that can't handle the cold, as well as harvest the vegetable garden's last fruits. All I had left in the raised veggie bed were a few peppers and eggplants, so they came in the evening before the inclimate weather arrived.
These small, rounded, red peppers are actually Mini Belle peppers, but their color and size remind me of spicy peppadew peppers. Don't think I've ever had a fresh pepadew pepper, but I absolutely adore the sweet and spicy pickled peppadew peppers you get at cheese shops and olive bars (I was getting them at Claudio's in the Italian Market, but Superfresh on Columbus Blvd. has them for almost half the price of Claudio's). Goat cheese-stuffed pickled peppadews are the perfect pop-in-your-mouth snack! Mini Belles aren't spicy like peppadews, but I decided to pickle them anyway, since all summer long I've been gazing at the 5-foot tall pepper plant dreaming of cute, red pickled peppers. Feel free to use any pepper you like — sweet or spicy.Sweet Pickled Peppers
makes 1 pint

8 ounces small peppers (or enough to fit in a pint jar)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 bay leaf
4 allspice seeds
4 whole cloves
8 peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon mustard seed

Insert tip of a pairing knife into the top of the pepper, and working the knife around the top at an angle, cut out a cone. Using your fingers or some other small instrument (I used the handle of a spoon), scrape out the seeds. Wash cored peppers in water to remove any seeds stuck to the inside or outside of the peppers. Dry peppers.
Put bay leaf, allspice, cloves, peppercorns, coriander, and mustard seed in the bottom of a sterilized mason jar. Fill jar with peppers, arranging them tightly without breaking the peppers.
In a small saucepan, combine the water, vinegar, and sugar, and bring to a boil. Simmer until sugar has dissolved.
While the syrup is still hot, pour the syrup into the jar, leaving 1/2-inch of headspace. Use a chopstick or some other slim instrument to run around the edges of the inside of the jar, jiggling a bit, to release any trapped air bubbles. There will be lots of trapped air bubbles if you are using whole peppers.
Wipe the rim of the jar, and apply sterilized lid and ring. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Remove jars from water, and let cool on the counter for at least 2 hours. Check lids for a proper seal.

How I Used My CSA: Weeks 22 & 23

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 10:30:00 +0000

Week 22: red kuri squash, portobello mushrooms, romaine lettuce, red onions, red gold potatoes, and bok choy.

Swapped out escarole (reason later) and Cajun peppers (grow our own peppers) for extra red kuri squash and portobellos.

As the CSA season comes to an end, we've found that eating through a week's share before the next one arrives is impossible. I just can't burn through winter squashes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, radishes, and beets like I can the tomatoes, corn, and cucumbers of summer.

Thankfully, a lot of the produce that comes in during fall stores well. Our refrigerator is ridiculously full after weeks of stashing produce away to eat at a later date. It will be months before we get through all our our CSA haul.

I'm very glad that we waited until the end of the 25 week CSA subscription (this week is our last pickup, but I'm a bit behind on posts) to see if we wanted to extend four extra weeks into December. We are set. No need for more squash or potatoes!This escarole goes back to week 20 of the CSA, but it took a couple weeks and a couple unsuccessful tries of eating the very bitter escarole raw until I just braised in it vegetable stock like I would collards or mustard greens. It was still bitter, but now palatable. Escarole is not one of my favorite greens!
That's not just a perfectly round mound of stir fried rice studded with bok choy; it's a stir fried rice-stuffed portobello. Because why not?
Week 23: crimini mushrooms, broccoli, Flashy Troutsback romaine lettuce, radishes, cilantro, and spaqhetti squash.

Swapped out butternut squash (still have some) for extra mushrooms (we've really enjoyed having mushroom almost every week).
Steamed broccoli with seitan and mushroom stroganoff. I've been using the vegan seitan and portobello stroganoff recipe from Post Punk Kitchen for years now, and it's fabulous. Make it!
We reached back into our produce-stuffed fridge for beets, and sweet potatoes from previous CSA weeks to combine with radishes from week 23 for roasted vegetables to top wheat berries. Collards from a few weeks back were also rescued from near death to become a side.
Butternut squash from a few weeks back was used to make this veggie version of sopa de lima from the Yucatan. The recipe comes from Passionate Vegetarian, a crazy, voluminous, over 1000-page cookbook (some great recipes for sure, but many could have been culled) that the boy brought into the relationship. Cilantro and lime juice really make this soup refreshing, and different than most squash soups you've had.
Back into the fridge for previous weeks' produce to bake sweet potato muffins studded with chocolate chips. I've made these twice already! Maybe a recipe post at some point?

How did you use your CSA or farmers' market haul?

Federal Donuts

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:05:00 +0000

With Federal Donuts' Pennsport location right in my 'hood, I could have easily been first in line this Monday at 7am for their opening day, but I patiently waited until their third day of business to pay a visit.
The small corner takeout store specializing in donuts, coffee, and Korean fried chicken, opened by Steven Cook and Michael Solomonov (Zahav, Percy Street), Thomas Henneman and Bob Logue (BODHi Coffee), and Felicia D’Ambrosio, may seem like a odd food pairing catering to a niche market of food lovers, but from the turnout of people at Federal Donuts clamoring to get their hands on the long anticipated vittles, it seems the niche market of 'nuts and chix ain't so small. Federal Donuts has been selling out of doughnuts within hours of opening, and chicken, which doesn't take the stage until noon, within the hour.

Things should calm down at some point — they just opened after long anticipation and much fanfare from the media, after all — so don't get discouraged if you have not had a chance to try Federal Donuts' chicken or doughnuts.
There was only one way for me to tackle Federal Donuts, and that was to order all the doughnuts! Flavors of both the Fancies and Sugared will vary, so I didn't really try all of the doughnuts; just those offered that day.

Six Fancy doughnuts ($2 each), which are filled and glazed in advance. And...
Three Sugared doughnuts ($1.25 each), which are hot, made to order.

Of course, there's also the Korean fried chicken, which I obviously won't be posting about unless they start frying seitan (do it!). Whole ($15) and half ($8) birds are available glazed (traditional Korean style, chili-garlic, honey-ginger) or crispy and sprinkled with seasoned salts (Za'atar, buttermilk ranch, harissa).

A Federal Donuts custom blend of Stumptown Roasters PT's Coffee Roasting Co. beans is served using the single-cup Chemex method.
First things first...I was curious as to how the round cake doughnuts with a hole in the middle that are plopped out by a Donut Robot into a vat of hot oil were going to be filled, since I think of filled doughnuts as yeasted and without a hole. Were they going to fill the hole and seal in the filling somehow?

Nope. Filling is piped into the center of the cake itself, with the filling going all the way around — more or less — the tube of cake. Brilliant!

All doughnuts are made with the same cake base, which is neutral in flavor, so plays well with all the different flavored toppings and filling. I'm happy to report that the cake is light and fluffy. Still crossing my fingers that Federal Donuts will roll out some yeasted doughnuts in the future, though.
Oh, my! The Key Lime Fancy doughnut piped full of lime curd, then dipped in a sweet lime glaze and topped with graham cracker crumbs is my favorite of the bunch, and the most decadent. Put this on a plate with a fork at your next dinner party, and don't even bother whipping up a homemade dessert!
At first bite, I wasn't too keen on the Nutella-Tahina-Pomegranate Fancy doughnut filled with tahini Nutella, dipped in a pomegranate glaze and sprinkled with sesame seeds (sesame reads savory to me, and the tahini diminished the perfection that is Nutella), but this doughnut grew on me and developed into a sophisticated twist on peanut butter and jelly.
For those who like plainer flavors, the Honey-Almond Fancy with a delicate honey flavor is for you. Even though the Honey-Almond doughnut is a Fancy, this did not seem to be filled. Perhaps the filling just seeped into the cake. There has to be a chocolate covered doughnut! The Chocolate-Raspberry Fancy piped with raspberry jelly, glazed with chocolate and topped with dried raspberries is just a classic flavor combination that cannot be messed with. One of my favorites in the bunch!Another favorite is the Coconut-Pineapple Fancy. Filled with pineapple jelly and dipped in a coconut glaze with sweet coconut flakes, this doughnut is tropical with a capital "T." The coconut and pineapple flavors are so fresh and clear, it's like ambrosia (the fresh fruit salad dessert) made into doughnut form. Do not miss, if you like coconut!
The Orange Blossom-Pistachio Fancy is the only doughnut I would not order again. It's me, not you, Federal Donuts. The smell of the orange blossom glaze (isolated, it's a lovely fragrance) mixed with nuts and cake reminds me of the sometimes funky mixed smells in greenhouses. Those who don't spend lots of time around plants like I do, may find this floral-scented, curd filled doughnut just heavenly. The Vanilla-Lavender Sugar doughnut is going to be your plainest option. The lavender is so light it is barely detectable, making this, basically, a plain sugared doughnut.
I had no idea what flavor the Apollonia Sugar doughnut would be. When I asked my boyfriend what he suspected, he replied, "Prince's girlfriend in Purple Rain?" Ha.

Turns out, Apollonia is a spice blend of bitter cocoa powder and dried orange blossoms from La Boite a Epice. Here, orange blossom is not so in your face, and can be enjoyed without greenhouse flashbacks.
The Indian Cinnamon Sugar doughnut has an enchanting spice mix — is that cardamom? — that brings intrigue to a cinnamon sugar doughnut.

Fabulous job all around, Federal Doughnuts! You have done with cake doughnuts what I had hoped for from The Fractured Prune, but did not get: exciting and inventive flavors. Still gonna hold out hope for yeasted doughnuts, though.

Federal Donuts
1219 S. 2nd St., Philadelphia, PA 19147
267-687-8258

Winner: An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 21:50:00 +0000

And the winner of a pair of tickets to An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert at Merriam Theater is deleahrium with the comment: Sucked fingernail through straw in mimosa. Congratulations! Please email me at mac.and.cheese.review (at) gmail (dot) com.

There were some real doozies in the comments about bad restaurant experiences (hairy hush puppies, bloody pizzas, chicken tumors, strippers, bad breath), but only one comment elicited an audible response from me. It took a split second to wrap my head around what actually happened in deleahrium's comment, but, when I did, I gasped at the computer and scrunched my face.

There are only a few things that make me squeamish, and unsavory acts involving fingernails is one of them. The velocity of the sharp fingernail traveling up the straw. The moment of unknowing when the fingernail shrapnel hits the tongue. Pulling out the unknown object to discover it's a fingernail. The horror!

For those that didn’t win, tickets can be purchased here. Enter password “RESERVATION” to receive $5 off the ticket price.

Ticket Giveaway: An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 22:13:00 +0000

Thanks to Mills Entertainment, I have a pair of tickets to An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert at Merriam Theater Wednesday, November 2, 7:30pm to give away to one lucky winner.

From the event's page:

Selling out across the nation, mater chefs Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert share an evening of storytelling, providing the audience with a provocative back-and-forth about what really goes on behind the kitchen doors.

To enter to win, leave a six-word comment describing your worst restaurant experience.

Contest ends Wednesday, October 19 at 6pm. Be sure to check back for a blog post announcing the winner, to see if you won.

For those who don't win, you can receive $5 off tickets online, by calling (215-893-1999), or by visiting the box office with the password: RESERVATION.

Talula's Garden: Not Too Late To Enjoy The Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 11:20:00 +0000

One of the cutest and lushest outdoor dining spots in Center City is the patio at Talula's Garden, this year's new urban daughter to Amy Olexy's much lauded rural Talula's Table in Kennett Square.

Yes, the temperatures are dipping and the season for dining under the stars is quickly fading, but it's not too late to eek out a few more weeks of outdoor dining. Talula's Garden is stretching the al fresco season as long as it can with it's new staff of outdoor heating lamps.Talula's Garden is not just a restaurant with "seasonal American food inspired by the farm and garden" by Amy Olexy, but is also a restaurant by Stephen Starr, who is undeniably a master at designing themed restaurants. Theme for Talula's Garden: farm and garden. For all of you out there that swoon over Urban Outfitter's home and garden shop, Terrain, you are going to love Talula's Garden; it was hit with the same rustic and repurposed, but deliberate and chic design aesthetic.

Mix-and-match dinnerware lends to the rustic, chic vibe.

Wanting only a drink and small snack some place on the way home after traipsing through the city, we recently warmed up under a heat lamp for a glass of wine on Talula's patio just off Washington Square Park — a perfect place to escape the harsh edges of the city and unwind.Determined not to let summer slip away, I ordered a glass of Millbrook rosé at the patio bar.A few weeks ago I was tasked with finding bottles of vegan wine (animal products are often used as fining agents), and this is not made easy by wine labels, which almost never disclose if a wine is or is not vegan. Keys such as the one above on Talula's Garden's wine menu are very much appreciated.

Now, if only Talula's Garden would put a similar key on their dinner menu to denote vegetarian and vegan items, although I'm afraid not much at Talula's Garden is vegan. (Vegan dishes can be made at Talula's Garden. Check out Living On The Vedge's glowing experience.)Only wanting a small nibble, we decided on a cheese plate since cheese is one of Olexy's passions. From the six cheese plates on Talula's Garden's menu, we went with The Locavore cheese plate featuring six cheeses made in the region, and accompanied by drips and drops of honey, jams, dried fruits, and nuts, as well as a bowl of mixed breads.There's nothing I like more than sampling and comparing foods side to side. On their own, each of the six regional cheeses are great, but, side by side, there were some definite standouts (Pipe Dreams Ashed Goat Log and Birchrun Hill's "Fat Cat").

My absolute favorite cheese, though, was the Bailey's Dairy Ricotta, which is actually Talula's housemade Ricotta with cow milk from Bailey's Dairy. I was amazed at how sweet, buttery and creamy this cheese was, and declared it a perfect topping for apple pie — or any dessert that would couple with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

The garden at Talula's Garden is quite a nice little sidestep from the city sidewalks, and we hope to get back to the garden soon while the weather is still amenable.

Talula's Garden
210 West Washington Square, Philadelphia, PA 19106

(215) 592-7787

How I Used My CSA: Weeks 20 & 21

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 10:58:00 +0000

Week 20: Collards, escarole, romaine lettuce, cilantro, edamame, bok choy, spaghetti squash, and butternut squash.

Swapped potatoes and onions (have plenty!) for edamame and escarole.

Lancaster Farm Fresh (the CSA I'm a member of) has an 8 week fall/winter vegetable share that runs from the week of October 31 to the week of December 19. A full share costs $225.00 and a half share costs $140.00. The deadline for subscribing is October 14.

Here is a list of other CSAs that offer an extended fall/winter shares in our area.
Week 21: sweet potatoes, butternut squash, kale, yellow onions, edamame, white onions, and crimini mushrooms.

Swapped out fennel leaf (the boy doesn't like it), romaine lettuce (still had some), and hot peppers (we grow our own) for extra onions and sweet potatoes (they store well), and cilantro.

I'm trying my darnedest to stay on top of each week's share, but social engagements, out-of-town trips, and special holiday menus that mean trips to the store for ingredients other than what is in the CSA share are making it hard. I feel like I will never catch up and eat the fridge down (I just love a fridge where I can see every thing, and at the moment it is packed). Autumnal sushi with sweet potatoes and kale! Salted edamame still in the pods to go along with the sushi. The boy made wilted kale and roasted potato winter salad, which was surprisingly good, especially since I don't get too excited for either tahini (used in the dressing) or potatoes.
Took this chili con chocolate recipe I posted years ago and added some sweet potatoes to the mix. Topped it off with cheese and cilantro. There has been a lot of bok choy in our CSA shares! Don't farmers grow any other Asian greens around here? Used the bok choy and crimini mushrooms for a stir fry. A dumpling squash from a previous week's share was roasted along with it's seeds to top a salad of romaine lettuce and Soy Curls.
For Rosh Hashana dinner, sweet potatoes, onions and cilantro from the CSA joined turnips, carrots, and chick peas for a Moroccan stew recipe from the cookbook Olive Trees and Honey: A Treasury of Vegetarian Recipes from Jewish Communities Around the World. This is a great, James Beard Award-winning cookbook to check out if you like a little history with your recipes.

How did you use your CSA or farmers' market haul?

Burger.org

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 10:38:00 +0000

The bright orange and green walls with mirrors and lights make me feel like I'm tripping. Ordering at the bar while staring at a poorly designed menu on the wall is awkward. The long wooden bar says alcohol, but there's none to be had. I'm just not sure what to make of Burger.org, the kosher and in-your-face eco-concious burger joint right in the heart of South St.'s drunken mile.
Here's what I do know though: Burger.org makes one of the best veggie burgers in town! Didn't see that coming did you? Neither did I. The standard burger (veggie, beef, fish, chicken or turkey patty) comes with lettuce, tomatoes, grilled onions, housemade pickle, and special sauce. Other sauces like chipotle mayo and bbq are also available. Sauces in squeeze bottles are also scattered throughout the room on table tops, if you need more.

If you like the obvious-vegetables-in-patty burger like the one at National Mechanics, you're going to love Burger.org's housemade veggie patty full of corn, peas, carrots, and spinach. This veggie fritter is soft, yet crispy on the outside, with loads of flavor. The sesame seed bun is very soft, reminiscent of a backyard burger bun, but larger. If you don't do buns, Burger.org will gladly wrap your burger in lettuce.

And, with that soft bun (and great patty), Burger.org just bested National Mechanic's veggie burger. But, Burger.org does not serve alcohol, so depending on your mission, National Mechanics may still be number one for veggie-filled veggie burgers.For a little more dough, the El Mariachi burger adds guacamole, pico de gallo, and chipotle mayo to the mix.

The Very Veggie burger adds grilled zucchini, mushrooms and eggplant.
Sweet potato fries, spicy fries, truffle fries, and regular fries are on the menu, but our order of barely spiced spicy fries were inedible. Burger.org couldn't seem to get the oil high enough to properly fry the spuds. These greasy, limp potato sticks should have never left the kitchen.

Despite the fry mishaps and an atmosphere that perplexes, Burger.org's veggie burger is so good it now competes with Maoz's falafel, Hot Diggity's hot dogs, and Blackbird's pizza for quick and tasty South St. eats.

Burger.org
326 South St., Philadelphia, PA 19147
267-639-3425

Philly Food Swap

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 10:42:00 +0000

This past week a group of thirty or so food lovers and home cooks gathered together in the basement hall of the First Unitarian Church in Center City to exchange homemade foods at Philly's first food swap.

With a hyper awareness of where our food comes from, home cooking arts like canning, baking, and gardening have become hot topics that bind many like-minded home cooks. Besides reading blog posts about garden harvests and delicious kitchen adventures, there really hasn't been a way to share in each other's creations.

That's where the idea of "food swaps" comes in. A food swap is typically a small event where people get together to socialize, but, most importantly, to swap homegrown or homemade foods.

Other cities like Brooklyn and Portland have already established a strong food swap community, and it was only a matter of time before Philly got their own food swap.

Thanks to the organization of Georgia, Marisa, Alexis, and Amanda, Philly's own food swap group, Philly Swappers, was formed earlier this year. Philly Swappers aims to hold food swap events a few times a year to bring together like-minded food lovers and food crafters. The best way to find out about upcoming events is to "like" Philly Swappers on Facebook. How does a food swap work?

Events usually last no more than a couple of hours. The first 30 minutes involve checking in, getting name tags, setting up your wares on tables, and filling out swap cards on the items you brought. The next 30 minutes involve making your way around the room to see and sample what other swappers are offering, making bids on items, and socializing.

In the second hour, swaps are made "freestyle." You look at the bid sheets of the items you brought to see if you would like to swap with anyone who made you an offer. You are not bound to swap with those who made you an offer, though, and can politely decline. The whole process of swapping is a sort of controlled chaos (bid sheets give you a bit of direction, but swapping can be fast). Somehow, it works out in the end.

To get a better idea of how a swap works, this video is a good introduction.I must say, as a first time food swapper, I was beyond curious as to what people would bring and how the actual swapping would work.

I brought canned jams, fruit butters, relishes, and chutneys I made this summer, as well as herbs I grew and dried to swap. There were lots of canned goods in the house! Above are an assortment of jams from Marisa. Providing samples is encouraged, although not required. Above are samples of peach salsa and habanero jelly from Lee.Baked goods also made appearances. The above chocolate peanut butter cookies and quiches from Corey and Jason, as well as pop tarts, plum bites, and pumpkin bread from others are just a few baked goods that I can recall off the top of my head.At the end of the night, I ended up with about half of the items I had my eye on. The other items that ended up in my basket I gladly swapped for (I pretty much like all foods, so was in good company and surroundings).

My take home haul for the evening included sauerkraut, horseradish vodka, vanilla sugar, cherry fig chutney, peach chutney, pear vanilla jam, tomato jam, chocolate peanut butter cookies, black tea blend with spiced simple syrup, molasses cookies, granola, and hot buttered rum batter.

The best way to describe a food swap event is to compare it to a Christmas gift exchange, except you come home with gifts that you actually appreciate and can use. I can't wait for the next one, and am already dreaming about what I am going to make!

Other resources on food swaps:
Rules For Effective Food Swapping. Food swapping etiquette.
How To Host A Food Swap. A how-to, plus directory of food swap groups in the US and Canada.

How I Used My CSA: Weeks 18 & 19

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 10:53:00 +0000

Week 18: Italian eggplant, bok choy, tomatoes, bell peppers, apples, onions, and delicata squash.

Swapped out beets (I have so, so many) from our Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA half share for an extra share of apples.
These apples from Three Springs Fruit Farm mark the beginning of my fall and winter-long apple eating. When I get in the groove, I'll eat an apple every afternoon as a snack. It just so happens that I like to get my apples from Three Springs Fruit Farm! At the end of October (or maybe it's the beginning of November), I get an entire crate of mix-and-match apple varieties for just $20 from Three Springs Fruit Farm at Headhouse Market when they have their crate sale. The Italian eggplant went into eggplant Parmesan with tomato sauce made from the last of the frozen CSA roma tomatoes. This was soooo good!
I almost made a batch of ketchup from these tomatoes, but knowing that it would probably be the last of summer tomatoes, I decided to savor them sliced and uncooked alongside some French bread slathered with goat cheese and pear chutney.
There was broth left over from the veggie pho made the previous week, so I turned it into an off-the-cuff soup creation with rice, CSA bok choy and the last of my homegrown cherry and pear tomatoes. The delicata squash and bell peppers were used in a pumpkin curry inspired by Circles' pumpkin curry. Very good, but I must confess that with so many great premade curry pastes out there, I rarely bother making my own.
Week 19: sweet potatoes, dumpling squash, crimini mushrooms, onions, beets, apples.

Swapped out bok choy (just had it two weeks in a row) for an extra share of sweet potatoes (I got a little excited to see them).

Honestly, with the exception of the mushrooms (the boy ate them at some point without my knowledge), I haven't touched anything in this share. Because of just a few social engagements, it has taken two weeks to get through most of week 18's share. It really does take dedication to cooking and eating at home to go through a CSA share. Even a half share!

How did you use your CSA or farmers' market haul? Are you excited for the dishes that the cooler weather brings?

Latin Farmer

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 10:33:00 +0000

Update: no longer in operation.

Puerto Rican native Wilfredo Manzano aims to bring a healthier version of Latin foods to the streets of Philadelphia with his lime green Latin Farmer food truck. We found him parked at Headhouse Square Farmers' Market on a recent Sunday, but he also pulls up to Love Park, Norris Square Farmer's Market, and Temple. Like most mobile eateries, it's best to follow their whereabouts on Twitter.
Using local foods when possible, Latin Farmer's menu is comprised of empanadas, bocadillos, collard wraps, hummus, and usually at least one dessert and special drink. Any truck in Philly that sells empanadas seems to sell out fast, and the same is true for Latin Farmer.

As a vegetarian, I would like to see one of the two empanadas, and one of the two bocadillos offered be vegetarian, but with such a short menu, I guess we're lucky that Latin Farmer offers a vegan collard wrap and hummus. And, that vegan collard wrap is excellent! Supple collard leaves envelope mofungo, a traditional Puerto Rican dish of mashed plantains and garlic, for a unique and healthy lunch. The sweet sugarcane stewed onions, and lively tomato chimichurri and citrus mojo really add a pleasant punch of flavor, elevating the plantain mash to a remarkable meal. Had I known a dollop of hummus and baked plantain chips came with the collard wrap, I would not have ordered . . .a side of hummus and plantain chips. While the side of hummus and plantain chips that comes with the collard wrap is just enough to satisfy the need for a little something extra with lunch, the side that you can order separately is probably best shared with another person.

Latin Farmer's hummus flavors change, and this day they had lima bean and saffron hummus hinting at a little spice and garlic, but, for my taste, was a tad too salty. It's nice to see healthier baked plantains, instead of greasy fried plantains.While I couldn't order a vegetarian savory empanada from Latin Farmer, I did get a pastelillo, which is essentially a sweet empanada. The tamarind and cream cheese pastelillo with orange-coriander crema and dulce de leche had so many flavors in the description, but all I could distinguish was cream cheese and dulce del leche. The pastry was perfectly crisped, but the overflowing pocket of cream cheese was just too much — another texture than goo filling the pastelillo would have been nice. The dulce de leche, while delicious, was flawed with gritty grains of sugar running throughout the sauce.

That mofungo collard wrap is quite marvelous, and I'd be eager to try a different version of their pastelillo the next time Latin Farmer rolls to a stop with their healthy Latin eats.

The Latin Farmer
@LatinFarmer

Caramelized Pear Butter

noreply@blogger.com (Taylor) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 10:40:00 +0000

In a determination to not let food go to waste, we've canned more food this summer than we ever have in past seasons — cherry jam, pickled beets, dilly beans, bread and butter cucumbers, peach salsa, peach jam, watermelon rinds, pear chutney, pear relish, and pear butter.

I wish I had documented every thing we canned to share with you, but lately I've been taking a much needed break from blogging recipes (sometimes it's just nice to eat food without documenting it), and falling back on the very easy to write CSA posts (sorry to all of those out there who have hit the unsubscribe button).Back to canning. You'll notice that in that long string of canned foods there are quite a bit of pears. That's because I take care of three Bartlett pear trees that produce a lot of fruit. Sort of.

For the past five or so years, the pears disappear almost over night (really it's in about a three week period) when they are a few weeks out from being ripe. It's a huge mystery as to where hundreds of unripe pears go, as they used to not disappear, but we think it's a combination of deer, squirrels, and racoons that have wizened up over the years.

This year, I decided to not let the critters win. I harvested the pears while they were still unripe. Unripe pears work very well in chutneys and relishes when they are cooked down, so I used them there. I then waited a bit longer for the pears to be only a week out from ripe, then stripped the remaining fruit before the critters could get to them. These almost ripe pears sat in my basement for a week until they were fully ripe.

All in all, I think I got about a fifth of the pears, and the critters got the rest. This is a victory!Caramelized Pear Butter
makes about 8 pints

I was intrigued by the use of caramelized sugar in this recipe for pear butter, and combined the caramelization technique with another recipe for pear butter.

1/4 cup apple juice
6 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
7 pounds pears, peeled, cored and chopped
3 cups, sugar
2 teaspoons nutmeg
3/4 teaspoons salt

Combine apple juice and 3 tablespoons of lemon juice in a deep pot. Add peeled and chopped pears to the apple and lemon juice as they are chopped to avoid browning.
Cook pears over medium heat until juices are released and can be brought to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until pears are very tender, about 20 minutes.
Remove pot from heat and blend pears until smooth. I like to use a stick blender that you put directly into the pot, but a food processor, blender or food mill can be used, as well. Return the pear mixture back to the pot.
In a skillet, heat the sugar, stirring frequently until it melts and turns an amber color. Being very careful, pour the caramelized sugar into the pear mixture. This will produce a lot of sizzling and splattering, so be sure you have the pear mixture in a tall pot. The caramelized sugar will harden immediately upon contact with the pear mixture, but will dissolve with stirring.
Add nutmeg, salt, and remaining 3 tablespoons lemon to the pear mixture.
Simmer on medium-low heat, stirring regularly to prevent burning until pear butter has thickened to the desired consistency. Cooking time will vary depending on juiciness of pears, the size of your pot, and if you halved or doubled the recipe.
Turn off the heat, and fill sterile jars. Wipe rims and apply lids and bands. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Remove jars from water, and let cool on the counter for at least 2 hours. Check lids for a proper seal. Can be store for up to one year.

Pear butter before the addition of caramelized sugar.
Caramelized sugar.
Pear butter after the addition of caramelized sugar.