Foodies rejoice. Finally there is a cooking show for those of us who are actually interested in great cuisine, and learning tricks of the trade from true masters, as opposed to some made for TV food personality, or some frenzied cooking competition. Each week, Steven Fried of Beyond the Dish takes you behind the scenes to shop with the chef, hear what inspires them, and learn first hand how to prepare some of their signature dishes. Who knew that swirling the pan was the key to Wiener Schnitzel? This is not glamour TV. It’s real and funny, in the end you feel empowered to actually give some of these complicated dishes a try.
Check it out starting tonight at 9:30PM on NYC Life. That is Channel 25 for you Time Warner, Verizon, and Comcast subscribers and 22 on Cablevision. AND as an added bonus, this marks the debut for sponsor hour.ly.…the first of its kind online hourly/temporary jobs platform that was started by my husband, with inspiration from yours truly. For the time being both are largely tri-state based, but look for lots of news to follow over the summer. We are cookin!!
Like many of you, watching the news from the Gulf coast this past week, and listening to the plight of the Louisiana fisherman has been nothing short of heartbreaking. I won’t even get into what BP should have to do to make amends, but instead today address what can be done to help the LA shrimp farmers, and your own pockets. BUY shellfish, now, direct from the farmers and squirrel it away in your freezer for as long as you can!!
Spring has sprung, and in as much as it is a shock to the system to go from 50 degrees to 90 in a matter of days, it is so fantastic to be outside and free of jackets and endless layers of clothing…(that said, work must be done before bathing suit season arrives!!) There is something about this weather that makes you instantly want lemonade and fresh mint, and after souring my pantry this afternoon, came up with a great summer alternative. For this we used sparking water, which even my kids loved, but certainly would go nicely with a little vodka as well. Here’s to sunny days!!
As Thanksgiving draws the near, the question of what wine to buy and serve tends to elicit undue stress. There is something about a holiday that revolves around a single meal, and is so complex in its ingredients and flavor profiles, that a normally confident wine shopper, buckles under the pressure. Light meat, dark meat, gravy, cream, cranberry and assorted spices, all on one plate, and before 5 PM. How can one wine fit the bill? Truth is that it can’t….it’s exhausting, and I have read the countless articles and blogs to prove it!
A dear friend emailed me the other day in a panic over making mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, and wanted to know if I had any secret tricks for making mashed potatoes that did not turn to glue. You would think that making potatoes would be easy. Boil the potato, hit with a masher, throw in some butter and milk and viola….sadly the starch in potatoes can be your enemy, and disaster always seems to strike when you have guests coming to dinner. So what to do?
Ohh the things I do for my tid-bits page! Inspired by a section in this month’s Bon Appetit magazine on clementines, and a love for the little fruit that has just appeared on grocery shelves, I thought it would be fun to see if I could make a puree or reduction of clementine juice that could make for a tasty cocktail for the holidays. Well after some tinkering and lots of testing, there was a clear winner. Enjoyed sooo much that before I knew it the entire bottle of champagne had been consumed. (And I thought it was the butter & cream I had to be wary of when recipe testing!) Give it a try as a great seasonal alternative to more traditional Bellinis and mimosas.
I love good cookbooks, especially those by truly gifted chefs who take everyday ingredients and make something extraordinary. That said, for most working up the courage to try these recipes is another matter; especially for a quiet night at home with the hubby & kids. So what about Haute comfort food?? Forgotten until now. Thomas Keller, who is best known for his award winning restaurants, The French Laundry, Per Se and Bouchon, has just published a new cookbook,