Cooked Books

Food News: The Philadelphia Issue

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Live in Philly or planning a visit? Here are some food-related events (and links) worth traveling for:

We start off with "Who's Coming to Dinner: Cooking for Different Audiences," an exhibition of Chef Fritz Blank's Culinary Archive and Library at the University of Pennsylvania until December 19, 2009.

The African Cookbook, is an online cookbook from the African Studies Department, also from U Penn.

Three Little Fishes, and how to cook them up nice, from the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The Philadelphia National Candy, Gift and Gourmet Show is soon approaching, January 10-12, 2010, at the Atlantic City Convention Center.

And from earlier this year, the Atlantic asked where to find the Best Philly Cheesesteak in Philly. Where do you stand?

Seafood Watch

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:00:00 +0000

With the news that the demand for beef is one of the largest contributors to global warming, we're left asking Where's the Fish? Unfortunately simply switching from a Big Mac to a Filet-O-Fish isn't as easy as it sounds (oh, but that it were!). Fish consumption is fraught with both ethical and environmental repercussions. Whether it's the high levels of mercury, the intense overfishing that's leaving our waters bereft of wild specimens, or the farmed fish that Mark Bittman cleverly calls, "the cage-raised chickens of the sea" eating fish is increasingly becoming a edible moral quandary.

An easy (perhaps too easy) place to work out your confusion is with the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch Recommendation List. With their Super Green List you can feel "good" about your fish-eating options. As of October 2009, eight fish (a mixture of both wild and farmed) made it to the Best of the Best List, including Rainbow Trout (farmed). With relatively inexpensive rainbow trout available at my local coop, it makes a wonderfully easy meal. One of my favorite recipes comes from Vij's Indian Cookbook, and is a simple sour cream curry that works beautifully with the seared trout.

Seared Rainbow Trout with Sour Cream Curry
(adapted from Vij's Cookbook which calls for Striped Bass in the recipe)

Sour Cream Curry

3/4 cup canola oil
1 tsp. asafoetida
3 cups pureed tomatoes (I use canned crushed tomatoes)
1 T. salt
1 t. tumeric
1 t. ground cayenne pepper
2 t. ground fenugreek seeds
7 cups water
1 1/4 cups stirred sour cream
3 T. crushed garlic

Heat 1/2 cup of the oil in pot on medium heat for one minute. Add asafoetida, stir well and allow to sizzle for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes, salt, tumeric, cayenne and fenugreek. Stir together and reduce heat to low, cover the pot and cook for five minutes. Remove the lid and stir well.

Add water, stir and increase the heat to medium. Bring to a boil and cook for ten minutes, stirring regularly so that the water blends in completely with the spices. Stir in the sour cream and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for another five minutes. Remove from heat.

In a small frying pan, heat the remaining 1/4 cup of oil on medium heat. Saute garlic for five minutes or until brown but not burned. Stir cooked garlic into the curry and set aside.

Fish

6 fillets rainbow trout (or striped bass)
1 T. salt
1 T. cumin seeds
1 1/2 T. ground cumin
2 T. ground coriander
1 t. tumeric
1 t. cayenne pepper
2 t. paprika
1 T. mango powder
1/2 c. canola oil for searing

In a large bowl, mix salt, cumin seeds, ground cumin, coriander, tumeric, cayenne, paprika, and mango powder. Spread this mixture on a baking try and dip each fillet in the mixed spices making sure both sides of each piece are completely coated. Arrange coated fillets on the baking tray.

Just before serving, heat 1 1/2 T of oil into a nonstick frying pan on medium heat. Place a fillet, skin side down, in the pan and cook for about 2 minutes. Allow the skin to become slightly crispy. Gently turn the fillet over and cook for another 2 minutes. It should flake easily when prodded with a fork.

Arrange one fillet, skin side up, in a large bowl. Pour sour cream curry on top. [Coconut rice is also a nice addition.]

Joy to the World

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:50:00 +0000

One hundred and thirty-two years ago today, in 1877, Irma Rombauer, author of The Joy of Cooking, was born in St. Louis, Missouri.

What is arguably the most famous cookbook of all time began in 1931, when Rombauer, at fifty-three, self-published her collection of family recipes, calling it The Joy of Cooking.

(Fowl & Game chapter from the 1931 self-published Joy of Cooking)

A few years later while playing bridge at her cousin's house in Indianapolis, Irma met Lawrence Chambers, president of the publishing house Bobbs-Merrill. Chambers admired Rombauer's work, bought Joy of Cooking, and Bobbs-Merrill published the book in 1936.

The book was so successful that Bobbs-Merrill published an enlarged and revised edition in 1943 which Rombauer wrote with her daughter Marion Rombauer-Becker. A third edition of Joy was published three years later in 1946. And in 1951, the first Joy of Cooking edition to credit Marion as co-author was published. Many more mother/daughter revisions followed. In 1997 Irma's grandson, and Marion's son, Ethan Becker, was added to the co-author string, when the All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking was published. Most recently, in 2006, the seventy-fifth anniversary edition of Joy of Cooking was released, and so the family tradition continues to this day, forty-seven years after Irma's death.

For a fascinating look at the Rombauer's, I highly recommend Anne Mendelson's wonderful book Stand Facing the Stove. To view older copies of Joy, the New York Public Library is fortunate to have the original 1931 self-published Joy, plus the first edition 1936 Bobbs-Merrill Joy, and many other editions too.

So happy birthday to a woman who truly brought Joy to the World.

David Ferriero's Desert Island Cookbook

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:15:00 +0000

Name: David Ferriero

Occupation: Andrew W. Mellon Director of the New York Public Libraries

Desert Island Cookbook: The Classic Italian Cookbook
by Marcella Hazan

Why The Classic Italian Cookbook? David explains:

An inspiring, relaxed approach to food preparation, in keeping with the Italian ethos. As she writes in the "Afterthoughts" section of her book:

What people do with food is an act that reveals how they construe the world.... What we find in the cooking of Italy is a serene relationship between man and the sources of his existence, a long-established intimacy between the human and natural orders, a harmonious fusion of man's skills and nature's gifts. The Italian comes to his table with the same open heart with which a child falls into his mother's arms, and with the same easy feeling of being in the right place. (Hazan 393)

For me good cookbooks nurture creativity and experimentation. Hazan's cookbooks do that. Her polenta with gorgonzola and fried polenta recipes lend themselves to experimentation with other ingredients. Her sauces, likewise, encourage experimentation. Among my favorite recipes: chicken livers with sage, roast chicken with rosemary, fennel braised in olive oil, and the pasta dishes -- cappellacci to cappelletti, tortellini to tortelloni!

Chicken Livers with Sage
(from Marcella Hazan's Classic Italian Cookbook)

1 1/2 lb. chicken livers
2 T. finely chopped shallots or onion
2 oz. butter
1 dozen dried sage leaves or a handful of fresh sage
6 T. dry white wine
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper

Examine the livers for any green spots and cut them out. Remove any bits of fat and wash the livers thoroughly in cold water. Dry well on a paper towel.

Sauté the shallots in the butter over medium heat in a frying pan. When they turn pale gold, raise the heat and add the sage leaves and chicken livers. Cook over high heat for just a few minutes, stirring frequently, until the livers lose their raw, red color. Transfer the livers to a warm dish.

Add the wine to the pan and boil briskly until it has almost completely evaporated. Scrape up and loosen any bits of cooking residue. Add any liquid the livers may have released in the dish, and allow it to evaporate.

Return the chicken livers back to the pan, turn them quickly for a few minutes over high heat, add salt and pepper, and then transfer to a warm serving dish.

Japanese Albumen Photographs

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:30:00 +0000

Women serving tea

The Japanese hand-colored albumen photographs you see here are just a few in a series available on the Library's Digital Gallery and in the Library's photography collection. The photos, roughly 110 in all, date from the 1890's until the first decade of the 20th century, and include images of Japanese city and landscapes, gardens, shops, and the rituals of every day life.

Liquor store

Fruit store

Tea picking

Gathering shellfish

Tea time

Having a rest (smoking and serving tea)

Jessica Pigza's Desert Island Cookbook

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:51:00 +0000

Name: Jessica Pigza

Occupation: Rare Books librarian, Handmade Librarian, and half of the duo behind NYPL's Handmade: Crafternoons!

Desert Island Cookbook: The Cook and the Gardener by Amanda Hesser (1999)

Why The Cook and the Gardener? Jessica explains:

Amanda Hesser’s The Cook and the Gardener is part cookbook and part meditation on four seasons of local growing and cooking (the locale here being Burgundy, France). It’s one of those great cookbooks that are as satisfying to read as they are to cook from.

Produce takes center stage on these pages—both in Hesser’s recipes as well as in her tale of befriending and working with the taciturn gardener Monsieur Milbert throughout the year. And along the way, Hesser also reveals her great respect for those who tend and coax food from the land. Each seasonal chapter includes a variety of dishes that reveal Hesser’s knowledge and wide-ranging curiosities. Her recipes for meats, jams, vegetables, breads, liqueurs, and sorbets never overwhelm or intimidate, and in each she shows her enthusiasm for well prepared foods eaten at their peak.

A few favorite recipes that I return to again and again are for carrots. The delicious Carrot and Bay Leaf Salad possesses an elegance sometimes lacking in carrot salads. Although Hesser doesn’t call for it, I like to splash a tiny bit of white wine vinegar or a squeeze of lemon over the carrots as well before serving, to counter the oil. I’m also a big proponent of her Roasted Carrots with Thyme, as well as the sweet and savory Carrots and Calvados. These, like many recipes in The Cook and the Gardener, offer tasty reminders that you needn’t do much to a vegetable to coax out its flavor.

(photo courtesy of the Library of Congress, American Memory Project)

Favorite Recipes:

Carrots, Three Ways

Roasted Carrots with Thyme

Carrot and Bay Leaf Salad

Carrots and Calvados

Carrots and Calvados (adapted from The Cook and the Gardener):

8 medium carrots, trimmed and peeled
Sea salt
1/4 lb. thickly cut bacon, cut into 1/4 inch strip (lardons)
1/2 c. Calvados
1/2 c. winter stock (beef based stock) or water
1 T. butter
Salt

Bringing a medium saucepan of water (seasoned with salt) to a boil. Add the carrots and boil until just tender on the outside but still crisp in the center, 4-5 minutes. Drain and cut into 1/2 inch diagonal pieces.

Melt the lardons of bacon in a large saute pan over medium-low heat for 5-7 minutes. Brown them on all sides and then remove them to a plate. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from the pan, and then return the pan to the stove over medium heat. Add the carrots and toss to coat with the bacon fat. Add the Calvados and increase the heat to high to reduce the liquid to a syrup, about 2 minutes.

Add the stock. Bring to a boil and let it reduce until most of the liquid has evaporated and the carrots are tender all the way through and are beginning to brown lightly, 5-6 minutes. If the carrots are colored but aren't cooked through, add more stock and reduce again. Remove from the heat and add the lardons. Stir in the butter. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve.

Be sure to check out the Handmade: Crafternoons! at the New York Public Library this Saturday, October 10th, from 2-4 pm for an afternoon of knitting with KnitKnit author Sabrina Gschwandtner, and two of the knitters she profiled in her book: Teva Durham, author of Loop-d-Loop and Annie Modesitt, author of Confessions of a Knitting Heretic.

Gourmet

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:30:00 +0000

Gourmet Magazine is closing and the news is shocking. Emails are flying, Twitter is aflutter, and the petitions have begun. It will be missed greatly, and I feel for all the Conde Nast employees affected by the foldings.

The good news is that the long and illustrious history of Gourmet lives on, in multiple formats, at the Library.

For starters, those interested in seeing a full run of Gourmet Magazine need only come to the 42nd Street Library and request it.

For electronic access to some of the most recent issues (2008 to the present), any New York State resident with a driver's license, state ID card, or library card can access the Library's subscription to ProQuest Platinum from home or work.

The Library also has hard-copies of the original Gourmet Cookbook (1950-1957) on the open shelves of the main reading room; Gourmet's Guide to Good Eating (1957); Naomi Barry's Gourmet: Paris a table (1971); Margaret Costa's Gourmet: London at table (1971); Gourmet Cookbook (1984); Gourmet's Menus for Contemporary Living (1985); Best of Gourmet from 1986 on; Endless Feasts: sixty years of writing from Gourmet (2002); the yellow Gourmet Cookbook (2004); Remembrance of things Paris: sixty years of writing from Gourmet (2004); and History in a glass: sixty years of wine writing from Gourmet (2006), among others.

So while you may mourn the loss of a monthly subscription, or miss the gorgeous covers at your newsstand, feel free to celebrate Gourmet's legacy at the Library. We keep it so that it never goes away.

W.P.A. Tavern Signs

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:30:00 +0000

Now that I've forced you to linger on Duncan Hines' Adventures for longer than is humanly necessary, I'm back! But as you see, I haven't ditched the travel theme entirely. Behold Tavern Signs, a unique and beautiful book filled with the signs of colonial taverns and inns.

Painted by W.P.A. workers, Tavern Signs contains 31 detailed plates, plus notes on the taverns' historical significance, compiled by the Works Projects Administration's Pennsylvania State Wide Museum Extension Project, circa 1943.

The portraits, objects, and symbols featured on tavern signs evolved as a way to identify the taverns for the sizable illiterate population who would frequent the establishments; long before road maps became the norm, tavern signs acted as landmarks on the various post-roads winding through the countryside. According to the introduction in the book, "Not only did the sign of Three Crowns, [...] mean that the traveler was on the correct road to his destination in a distant city or town, but it also cheered him with the anticipated rest, refreshment and jolly companionship after the long rough journey by horse or coach."

Tavern Signs also provides some interesting background on the nomenclature of the various terms used. For example, "tavern" was used mainly in New England and New York State, and usually meant that drinks were available, but not necessarily food or sustenance. "Inn" was used primarily in Pennsylvania, (although many locations avoided it because is was so closely associated with the British) and served both food and drink to its patrons.

Here are some of my favorites from the W.P.A. collection.

General Greene Inn
This inn, which was located in Buckingham, Pennsylvania, became the headquarters for General Greene during the Revolutionary War. Greene is famous in my neck of the woods for having supervised the construction of a fort in Brooklyn, N.Y., built to protect the Continental Army in The Battle of Long Island (which Greene, in fact, missed due to illness). Today that Brooklyn neighborhood is called Fort Greene, and one of its most popular restaurants is called -- you guessed it -- The General Greene.

The Beekman Arms
As a college student in the Hudson Valley, I know The Beekman Arms as the pristine inn and restaurant in Rhinebeck, N.Y. It is one of the places that proud parents go with their graduating offspring for a lovely meal. (My parents took me to Pizzeria Uno for my graduation meal, but I've "gotten over it.") Rhinebeck is one of the oldest settlements in the Hudson Valley, and was populated largely by refugees from the Rhine Valley who were brought to New York by Col. Henry Beekman, whose father held a large land patent. The Beekman Arms is apparently the oldest continuously operated hotel in America, so you can still go to have a cocktail in the cozy bar with all the nearby college students and their parents.

The Spread Eagle

The Spread Eagle was located in Radnor Township, Pennsylvania -- about fourteen miles west of Philadelphia -- and was a favorite stop for mail and accommodations for travelers on the Philadelphia-Lancaster Turnpike. Gradually, more and more houses and businesses were built up around the vicinity of the inn, and the village became known as Sitersville, after the Eagle's landlord John Siter. For more information on the many incarnations of the Spread Eagle, I recommend Julius Sachse's Wayside Inns.

While Tavern Signs is clearly one of the most visually arresting books on tavern signage, it is by no means an exhaustive catalog of every tavern sign in the United States. For that information, I'd start with Helene Smith's Tavern Signs of America: a catalog. Smith catalogs each sign with the name of the tavern, the material and size of the sign, the original location, and the date and the sign painter (if known).

New York is well represented in Smith's catalog, but interestingly Gramercy Tavern is nowhere to be found. Curious.

Adventures in Good Eating

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 11:00:00 +0000

Many thanks to Gourmet Magazine for mentioning the New York Public Library's menu and cookbook collection in Kristin Ohlson's piece "A Culinary Card Catalog." It was wonderful to read about other libraries' culinary collections, and Ohlson rightly points to the Kentucky Library & Museum for their wonderful collection of Duncan Hines memorabilia.

I've been fascinated with Duncan Hines for a while now, ever since I learned that he was more than just a name on a brownie mix.

Duncan Hines was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky in 1880. For the first part of his life Hines worked in public relations and in the production and editing of corporate brochures. These jobs demanded a good deal of traveling and the long road trips -- with very few decent food options -- made Hines (always a food enthusiast) into a discerning road food diner.

In order to find the best places to eat on the road, Hines spent months researching, not only the best tasting spots, but also the cleanest and most affordable restaurants. He filled notebooks with his findings and soon, according to Oxford's American National Biography (ANB), other salesmen began to consult Hines' expert opinion on where to go to eat.

In 1935, in order to satisfy the increasing appetite of salesmen looking for a good meal, Hines published a listing of his favorite spots in thirty states and sent it off as a Christmas greeting. The popularity of that list kept the requests for food recommendations coming in, so Hines published a small brochure called Adventures in Good Eating for $1.50, adding more restaurants to the original list and with short descriptions of the food and ambiance.

Hines' favorite spots tended to be small, family-owned, roadside restaurants where cleanliness was of utmost importance. According to ANB, Hines often entered the restaurant through the back, making sure that the entire kitchen was tidy. If a restaurant was clean, affordable and tasty, it was deemed worthy of being included in Adventures of Good Eating, which was published yearly. Those recommendations then allowed restaurants to post a sign in their window reading "Recommended by Duncan Hines." However, if Hines felt that the restaurant's quality had fallen, he would demand that the sign be taken down.

One restaurant that did meet Hines' approval was Sanders Court and Cafe in Corbin, Kentucky. In the 1939 issue of Adventures... Hines wrote, "A very good place to stop en route to Cumberland Falls and the Great Smokies." Hines lists the sizzling steaks, fried chicken, country ham and hot biscuits as the highlights of the 24-hour cafe.

It's been said that the review and endorsement of Sanders Court and Cafe by Duncan Hines helped the restaurant gain notoriety and led to its subsequent success. I'm sure Colonel Sanders himself was most pleased.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President...

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 16:25:00 +0000

While I don't have President Obama's birthday menu in our collection (yet), all the talk about his birthday got me thinking about the Presidential memorabilia in our collection. The menu above is from President John F. Kennedy's 46th birthday party, held at the Waldorf-Astoria on May 23rd, 1963. (His actual birthday is May 29th.) You can read his remarks online through the extraordinarily informative American Presidency Project.

It is not the same birthday dinner where Marilyn Monroe seductively sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President." That was the year before in May, 1962. She died just a few months later.

Belting the Borscht

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 17:12:00 +0000

My father buys his borscht in screw-top jars, usually Streit's or Gold's, and keeps them in the fridge. Since my mother doesn't eat beets, my father doesn't bother cooking up a batch of the homemade stuff just for himself.

Unlike the creamed herring, and U-Bet syrups -- other foods my mother won't touch but that my father loves and keeps in the house -- I never had any desire to taste this jarred borscht. The color was off-putting and it seemed weird to eat soup out of a jar.

That was then, as they say.

My conversion happened a few years ago. I was on a date at Veselka. We sat outside and drank our Pilsners, and then my date surprised me by ordering a bowl of borscht (and he wasn't even Jewish!), while I ordered my chicken soup.

I was intrigued and curious about his soup choice, so I tried a spoonful. It was tangy, refreshing, sweet and salty (like me!), with a deep, purple-red color that was simply beautiful.

Yesterday, as I woke to a dreary, wet, and humid day, I had an intense craving for borscht. But rather than follow family tradition, I broke open James Peterson's Splendid Soups, and followed his easy instructions for a simple borscht. I made a couple of changes: I used one red beet and the rest golden, so the color is a bit less saturated, but is still a deep, penetrating ruby. Peterson also calls for beef broth, but I used homemade vegetable broth instead. I like my borscht without any meat -- it makes for a much cleaner taste that I prefer.

I'm pleased to report that the borscht came out perfectly. We served it Russian-style, with sides of hard boiled eggs, boiled new potatoes, sour cream (or crème fraîche), black bread, radishes, butter, and lots of dill.

I had two bowls for dinner last night and finished another for lunch today. I think I'll save the rest for my Dad.

The Night Before Cookbook

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 01:28:00 +0000

Who needs recipes when you've got a cover like this?

We've got a young, attractive couple (the authors, no less) in a real kitchen (their own), paying little attention to the camera as the husband (in 1967!) does the chopping in the foreground, and his beautiful wife stirs the contents of a copper pot in the background. Even the title, The Night Before Cookbook is sexy.

The authors, Paul and Leslie Rubinstein, presumably know their food. Paul, as his wife Leslie describes, "was not only born with a silver spoon in his mouth -- it was filled with pâté de foie gras." Indeed it probably was. Paul, after all, is the son of famed pianist Arthur Rubinstein and cookbook author Nela Rubinstein, whose cooking and book Nela's Cookbook, were so warmly described in Judith Jones' memoir The Tenth Muse.

But enough about his pedigree. And forget about the recipes. I'll just take the dust jacket.

The King of Hops

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:30:00 +0000

If you, like millions of others, were shocked and saddened by the passing of Michael Jackson on Thursday and perhaps raised a glass of brew (or whiskey) in his memory, then you were inadvertently marking the memory of someone I like to call 'the other Michael Jackson.' If the Michael Jackson from Gary, Indiana was referred to as the King of Pop, than the other Michael Jackson, of Wetherby, Yorkshire, could be called the King of Hops.

Michael Jackson (1942-2007) was a leading beer and whiskey writer and critic, whose groundbreaking book The World Guide to Beer (1977) helped usher in a new appreciation of beer around the world. He was especially fond of Belgian brews, and wrote extensively about them in his book The Great Beers of Belgium. He became known as the Beer Hunter after a documentary series -- of the same title -- followed him around the globe as he tasted beers from all over the world.

Jackson also wrote a host of beer and whiskey appreciation articles for British newspapers, such as the Guardian, which we have available digitally at the New York Public Library. In an article from 2003 called "Beer to Dine For," Jackson writes about pairing food with beer, an increasingly familiar sentiment coming out of wine and spirit writers here in the States, most recently voiced by Eric Asimov in his Times' piece last week.

There is so much more to say about Michael Jackson: his glassware, his rating systems, and his writings. I look forward to exploring his world in greater detail throughout the summer as I increase my knowledge of beer and perhaps toast to his memory in Belgian beer bars throughout the city.

And that's something to drink to.

Kitchen Cabinet of Curiosities

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:13:00 +0000

The Shorthand Club of New York Dinner Menu:

I found this wonderful little menu for a dinner sponsored by the Shorthand Club of New York celebrating their third anniversary. According to the New York Times, the Shorthand Club was created for male stenographers "all thoroughly imbued with the one ambition -- to better themselves by becoming more efficient in their chosen field of endeavor and to help others similarly inclined." The dinner was held on February 10, 1912 at the West End Restaurant, just a few doors down from the Club's home base on 125th Street.

While the menu itself is rather unassuming, it's the wonderful shorthand on the back of the menu, presumably written by one of the Club's members (perhaps mocking the MC?), which makes this item colorful and unique -- that along with the wine glass stain on the front cover.

The Mask of Orzo

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:30:00 +0000

I eat a lot of pasta. At the supermarket I stock up on a variety of different shapes, like spaghetti, linguine, penne, fusilli, farfalle, and so on. And then there are those small little shapes off to the side, usually reserved for soup, with names like ditalini and anellini. I rarely peruse those players -- except for orzo.

That little one pound box packed to the gills with rice-like pasta is one I replenish again and again. It's cheap, tasty, versatile and it feels really nice in your mouth. In college, my housemate would make a simple dish of orzo, olive oil, peas, and Parmesan, and I've been a convert since.

And because I'm automatically drawn to recipes that feature orzo, I have a few up my apron sleeves that I'm happy to share with you.

The dish above, believe it or not, has artichoke hearts somewhere in that bowl. The recipe comes from a 2006 Gourmet and it's a quick and simple lunch option: orzo, artichoke hearts, lemon zest, and toasted pine nuts in a light vinaigrette. Eaten warm or at room temperature it's a nice brown bagger for those of us stuck in the zoo that is Bryant Park in the summer.

Another favorite orzo recipe is Mark Bittman's orzo risotto from How to Cook Everything, and it's become my mainstay side to roast chicken, sauteed fish, or braised anything at all. The dish captures the creamy richness of regular risotto, but is far less heavy and about the half the work.

And finally, a lovely summer dish of orzo, feta, dill and tomato -- also from Gourmet. Served with grilled shrimp or scallops, it's a light, enticing, and all-together satisfying meal.

Orzo with Artichokes and Lemon Zest
(from the May 2006 Gourmet)

1 1/2 cups orzo
3 T. pine nuts, lightly toasted and coarsely chopped
1 can artichoke hearts, not marinated, 14 oz.
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 T. red wine vinegar
salt/pepper
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 t. freshly grated lemon zest

Cook orzo until al dente. Drain.

Meanwhile drain artichoke hearts and rinse well. Pull off leaves from bases of the hearts and quarter bases. Rinse leaves and bases well, then drain.

Stir together oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add orzo, pine nuts, artichokes, parsley, and zest and toss to combine.

Orzo "Risotto"
(adapted from Mark Bittman)

2 T. butter or olive oil
1 onion, minced
3 cups stock (chicken, beef, or vegetable), plus 1/2 cup more if needed
1 1/2 cups orzo
Salt/Pepper
1 cup Parmesan
1/2 cup parsley leaves, minced

Place butter in saucepan and turn heat to medium. When foam subsides, add onion and cook until it becomes translucent. Meanwhile, heat stock in separate pan.

Add orzo to the onion and stir. Add salt and pepper and the stock -- all at once. Cover and reduce heat to medium-low.

Cook, stirring every few minutes if necessary, until the liquid is absorbed and the orzo is tender, about 15 minutes. If the orzo is underdone, add more hot water or stock and cook for 5 more minutes. Stir in half the Parmesan and parsley. Garnish with the remaining parsley and serve, passing the remaining cheese at the table.

Orzo with Feta, Tomatoes, and Dill
(from the July 2008 Gourmet)

3 T. extra virgin olive oil
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup dill
1 t. grated lemon zest
1 cup orzo
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta

Toss oil, tomatoes, dill, zest, and 1/2 t. each salt and pepper together in a serving bowl. Let stand at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile cook orzo in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain and toss with tomato mixture. Add the feta and toss once more.

Eating In

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:02:00 +0000

As if the recession wasn't enough to convince you to stay home and cook, the New York Public Library's Young Lions are hosting a panel discussion called Eating at Home this Monday, May 18th in the Library's Bartos Forum. Included on the panel are food writers Amanda Hesser and Julie Powell, chef Rocco DiSpirito, and Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at NYU, Marion Nestle.

For more information about the Young Lions and the event, check out the NYPL website.

Babbo's Recipe Archive

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 18:24:00 +0000

Years ago I had the pleasure of dining at Babbo. It was a lovely meal with great food, wonderful friends, and delicious wine.

I haven't been back.

Not that I would refuse an invitation, it's just if I want a Mario Batali-restaurant experience, I find that Lupa serves those needs just fine. Lupa is just as delicious, easier to get into, and less expensive.

But that doesn't mean I never want a bit of Batali's Babbo in my belly. For that I turn to the Babbo website.

Granted, the website is a bit...cluttered, but the site is a treasure-trove of wonderful culinary information, from travel advice, to an ingredient-of-the-month, to other restaurants worth trying, and finally to the restaurant's archive of recipes.

Yes. Archive. A librarian's dream.

Babbo's recipe archive is exhaustive and addictive. A few weeks ago, I made their Black Spaghetti with Rock Shrimp and Spicy Soppressetta. I go weak for squid ink pasta, and the simplicity and uniqueness of the dish really got my attention. While the jalapeno salsa nearly burned my eyes out (3 cups of jalapenos?), the dish was predictably spicy, and wonderfully flavorful.

So rather than rely exclusively on Epicurious or Food TV for your online recipes, head over to Babbo.com, and order off the menu.

What other restaurants do you know of that post their recipes? I'd love to hear about them!

La Fonda del Sol

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:00:00 +0000

La Fonda del Sol (The Inn of the Sun) originally opened in 1960, and was the creation of Joseph Baum and his Restaurant Associates group. Located in the Time-Life Building on 50th Street and Sixth Avenue, Craig Claiborne called La Fonda del Sol "one of the most lavish Latin-American restaurants north of the border." He continued, "Should this restaurant become a Manhattan attraction to vie with the Empire State Building and the lions at the Public Library [that's us!], it will be well-deserved."

In 1960, four-course dinners at La Fonda cost $5.50, $6.50, or $7.50, depending on the food offerings chosen, and coffee was made table-side. Claiborne's review makes special note of the restaurant's cocktail options, including sangria -- apparently a relatively new libation to NYC restaurants at the time. He writes, "[...T]he management recommends a drink known as Sangria, which is really a wine punch made with citrus juices, Chilean wine, and soda. It is undoubtedly authentic but it would be more suited to warmer climates."

Beyond its culinary offerings, La Fonda was known for its creative and colorful design. The entire restaurant -- from its linens and dishes, to its menus and matchbooks -- was designed by Alexander Girard. Displays of Latin-American folk art, masks, and pottery wheels attracted Spanish-language school groups who apparently arrived en-masse for the $2.50 lunches. The restaurant closed in the early 1970s.

Just a few months ago, La Fonda del Sol re-opened in the Met-Life Building off Park Avenue with Josh DeChellis as head chef. From the photos online it displays nothing of the kitchy aesthetic that marked the restaurant's first incarnation, and while I haven't seen DeChellis' new bill of fare, I thought I'd present the 1960's La Fonda del Sol menu in its full glory.

Fowl Weather

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 18:15:00 +0000

Yesterday was yuck. The weather was rainy, windy, and generally atrocious; my doctor's appointment ran late; the only food in my system was a croissant, two cups of coffee, and a slice of chocolate layer cake from Juniors. I had a headache and was (barely) functioning on very little sleep.

And then.... The clouds parted, the sun came out, and suddenly it was beautiful Friday evening and all was good in the world. My original dinner plan of chicken slowly braised in beer suddenly seemed like an inappropriate dish for a spring evening. I was all set to break out the limes and tequila, when crash! The rain began again, the wind howled, and the limes would have to wait a few more days. James Villas' French Country Kitchen came off the shelf for one more winter go-round.

Villas' chicken recipes are some of my favorites in the poultry canon. They're consistently delicious and not terribly time-consuming -- which is an important detail for a tired Friday night dinner with friends coming over. His recipe for chicken simmered in Riesling is one of my absolute favorites, and is on heavy rotation throughout the year. But chicken braised in beer seemed to be the perfect antidote to the wet wind outside, and required little more than what we already had on hand.

While the chicken cooked and filled the apartment with inviting smells, my boyfriend quickly cooked up Villas' country omelet with walnuts, potato, parsley and chives. Served over greens, it was a lovely and light first course, and will likely take its more rightful center stage in the months to come.

The moral of the story is that in foul weather, there is nothing better than a few good friends and a great chicken recipe to put you in a wonderfully fowl mood.

Chicken Braised in Beer
(from James Villas' French Country Kitchen)

2 T. butter
2 T. olive oil
1 4lb chicken, cut into serving pieces (we used thighs and drumsticks instead)
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
3 T. gin (we omitted this)
1 1/2 cups dark beer or ale
bouquet garni: 1/4 t. dried thyme, 1 bay leaf, and 2 parsley sprigs tied in cheesecloth
salt and pepper
3/4 lb. mushrooms, quartered
3 T. heavy cream (optional, but recommended)
2 T. parsley

In a large, heavy casserole, heat butter and oil. Salt and pepper the chicken on both sides and brown on all sides over moderate heat. Add the onion and garlic, stir and cook until lightly browned. Add the gin and ignite. Add the beer, bouquet garni, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the mushrooms, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes or until chicken is tender.

Transfer the chicken and mushrooms to a heated platter and keep warm. Discard the bouquet garni from the casserole, add the cream, increase the heat, and reduce until the sauce thickens. Taste the sauce for seasoning, pour it over the chicken, and sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving.

Omelette Fermiere

5 T. butter
1/4 cup finely chopped potato
1/4 cup finely chopped country ham (we omitted this)
4 walnuts, coarsely chopped
2 T. minced parsley and chives
6 large eggs
pepper
1 T grated Gruyere cheese (we omitted this, but it would be welcome next time)

In a skillet, heat 2 T. of the butter. Add the potato, ham, and walnuts and saute over moderate heat for 5 minutes, stirring. Stir in the parsley and chives.

In a 10" omelet pan, heat the remaining butter. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and pepper. Pour the eggs into the pan and stir with a fork over moderate heat just until the edges are set. Spoon the sauteed mixture quickly across the center and cook until the omelet is set but still very soft. Fold into thirds like a letter, and sprinkle cheese on top and serve.

Chez Julia

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 22:00:00 +0000

As a young girl visiting my relatives in Providence, R.I., I remember how slowly and deliberately my aunt would drive through her neighborhood at night. I thought perhaps she was just more cautious than my own mother, but I soon learned that she drove slowly not for fear of running over a small child, but because she wanted to see how other people decorated their homes.

Other People's Places (You down with O.P.P.?) are endlessly fascinating: the decoration, the paint colors, the wallpaper, the books on the shelves, the light fixtures. Who doesn't become a complete voyeur when given the chance to peak into someone else's living space?

Celebrity homes can either be especially intriguing, or incredibly boring. The homes of C-list celebs in In Touch, for example, often seem to have been decorated by publicists eager for their client to appear legit.

Chefs are curious subjects for home tours, because at least one room is their's and their's alone: the kitchen. But what about the rest of the house?

Exhibit A: The home of Julia and Paul Child. The above photos are from an August, 1976 Architectural Digest piece on the Child's home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. What's so glorious about this photo spread, is that while we all know her kitchen ("the beating heart and social center of the household," as she calls it in the article), it's rare to catch a glimpse into the rest of her home: the living room, the dining room, the pastry room off the main kitchen, and the "grass-papered" music room. The Child's home seems especially familiar, warm, and thoroughly lived in - in other words, a home worthy of driving by slowly.

Julia et Jim

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 18:54:00 +0000

With so many menus in the New York Public Library collection, it's not uncommon for me to stumble upon a gem I've never seen before. The menu featured here is one such example. Had a patron not requested this 1975 dinner menu honoring James Beard and Julia Child a few months ago, it would still be sitting in its box downstairs. But thankfully the request was made, and I was introduced to this charming item.

The dinner, which was sponsored by the Wine & Food Society of New York, was held on Halloween night at the Pierre Hotel. And in addition to a traditional menu of food offerings, the organizers wrote creative "recipes" for both Julia and Jim, wherein the ingredients and techniques that make up these two unique personalities are written out in a recognizable recipe format. The result is clever, sassy, and fun.

Ruth Madoff's Cookbook

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:40:00 +0000

While Bernie Madoff spends the rest of his life in prison, his wife Ruth will have plenty of time to work on a second cookbook. Yes, a second cookbook. Ruth Madoff edited a cookbook in 1996 called "The Great Chefs of America Cook Kosher," which has garnered its own bit of controversy.

Ruth, along with her friend Idee Schoenheimer, is credited as an executive editor of this spiral-bound work, although according to an article in the New York Times a few months ago, the book is really the work of food writer Karen MacNeil.

In the article, MacNeil (who is credited as editor of the book) claims she was paid to write the entire book...and did. Ruth Madoff may have had her own author blurb, but according to MacNeil, Madoff didn't write a word. Rather, she simply wanted to be part of something "fun."

The book features recipes from top chefs around the country who have adapted their dishes to fit the requirements of a kosher kitchen. Many of the recipes are simply reprinted from the chef's own cookbooks and hardly require any culinary creativity to make them kosher.

For example, Lidia Bastianich shares her recipe of pappardelle with fresh porcini sauce -- taken from her book La Cucina di Lidia -- while Al Forno owners Johanne Killeen and George Germon include their recipe for roasted asparagus. In other words, simple recipes already fit for a kosher kitchen.

It's also questionable whether the Madoff's even keep kosher. The Times article refers to a London Daily Mail article which claimed that Bernie was a big fan of pork sausages, "taboo under any definition of kosher cooking."

Rest assured, the New York Public Library has the book in its holdings, and unlike Mr. Madoff's Ponzi scheme, it won't cost you a dime.

Kheer Royale

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 02:49:00 +0000

Of all the puddings in the world, rice is my favorite. I do Kozy Shack rice pudding, I do Greek diner rice pudding, but my favorite is Indian rice pudding, or kheer. It's a thinner, milkier pudding, and with the delicate taste of cardamom, it makes for a refreshing and subtly sweet dessert.

I've attempted kheer before, and failed miserably. But this weekend, as I was cooking a fairly sizable Indian dinner for my brother's birthday, I decided to attempt it again. I know how much that boy loves his rice pudding. This time I used Vij's recipe. Five ingredients, and an hour and ten minutes later, kheer royale.

Rice Pudding
(from Vij's Elegant and Inspired Indian Cuisine)

Note: I halved the recipe and it served six people. This is the full recipe, as printed.

10 to 12 green cardamom pods
3/4 cup basmati rice
12 cups whole milk
1 cup sugar
raw, unsalted almonds for garnish.

Lightly pound cardamom and peel off the pods. Empty brownish-black seeds into a medium pot. Discard the pods. Add rice and milk and bring to a gentle boil on medium-low heat. Simmer, stirring gently and regular, for about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Never scrape the bottom of the pot while stirring, otherwise you maybe get bits of slightly burned milk in your pudding.

As the rice and milk cook, the consistency will become more and more like pudding. Stir often, or turn down the heat slightly if the rice begins to clump.

Remove the pot from the heat and add sugar. Stir well. If you wish to serve it chilled, wait until the pudding is at room temperature before putting it into the refrigerator.

Sprinkle almonds (or pistachios) over pudding before serving.

Library Class

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 21:56:00 +0000

Tomorrow, Tuesday, February 24th, I'm teaching a class at the Humanities and Social Sciences Library on culinary research. It's open too all who are interested, and it starts at 3:15 pm.

Founded on Oyster Shells

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Federman) — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 17:14:00 +0000

This Saturday, February 21st, the New Amsterdam Market - whose goal is to provide a public market promoting regional agriculture - is hosting a fundraiser called Founded on Oyster Shells at the f/ocus Rental Gallery in Manhattan. The event, which costs from $50 - $100, will feature various types of East Coast oysters (including Blue Points which are ubiquitous on every 19th century restaurant menu), in addition to local beer, bread, butter, chowder, baked beans, pickles and seltzer.

The menu is reminiscent of 19th and early-20th century oyster bars and parlors, where oysters were often slurped up, and chased down, with a cold lager beer.

The fundraiser is also auctioning off over two dozen prizes, from sharing a meal with Alice Waters at the restaurant of her choosing, to having mixologist Allen Katz mix drinks at a cocktail party for you and twelve of your guests, to inviting Jacob Dickson to cater a pig roast at your home, to enjoying lunch and a tour of Stone Barns for two adults. Check out all the options on their auction site.