Savory Corn Pudding, part of my Local Grill-Off entry
23 Jul 2009

Savory Corn Pudding, part of my Local Grill-Off entry

by | posted in: Cook-Offs, gluten-free, NYC Events, Recipes, Soups & Stews, vegetarian | 16

It’s the kind of cook-off that was my dream come true: the emphasis? Local food. The dish’s requirements? Nothing, aside from being local. The judges? Three established food writers whom I admire. The fundraiser’s cause? Slow Food NYC. The location? The sandy Water Taxi Beach in Long Island City, where I’d spread out my toes shoeless on several occasions. So maybe not everything turned out to be really dreamlike: it was raining all day, at some points more furiously than … Read More

The Great Hot Dog Cook-Off ’09
20 Jul 2009

The Great Hot Dog Cook-Off ’09

by | posted in: Cook-Offs, Events, NYC Events, Recipes | 11

Is anyone surprised that the Great Hot Dog Cook-Off, which had raised $1,000 last year for charity with a sold-out crowd of 120, would quadruple its success this time around? Not I! And guessing from the way this year’s event sold out well in advance, it could have been even “greater.” The sizzle of competition gets hotter by the minute. Sizzle is an excellent word for the action last Saturday at Clinton Hill craft brewery Kelso, where the 4th annual … Read More

Savory Chickpea Flour Pancakes (at the Indian Culinary Institute)
17 Jul 2009

Savory Chickpea Flour Pancakes (at the Indian Culinary Institute)

by | posted in: Beans, Demos & Workshops, gluten-free, Recipes, Sides & Salads, vegetarian | 33

Chef Geetika Khanna did not have to make the best tomato curry-drenched lamb and turkey meatballs at the Curry Takedown to make me sign up for a class of hers. She didn’t even have to introduce herself to me at the event, proving to be as friendly a culinary expert as the rarity goes (in this world of Gordon Ramsays). When a class called “Simple, Healthful and Economical Weeknight Indian Meals” appeared on the calendar for the Indian Culinary Center, … Read More

Breadcrumb Crusted Zucchini with Rainbow Chard
13 Jul 2009

Breadcrumb Crusted Zucchini with Rainbow Chard

by | posted in: Recipes, Sides & Salads, vegetarian | 17

I’m finally getting some color this summer. Each week, my CSA share has given me bunches and bunches of greens: lettuces, bok choy, Russian kale, snap peas, tat soy, fresh herbs and the occasional candy colored radish or berry-red beet. I was thinking I might turn into the Green Giant consuming it all. But this weekend, I took a retreat to North Fork to visit my friends at Garden of Eve (again), and teach a homemade vegetable dumpling-making class. It … Read More

Tea Leaf-Smoked Chicken
10 Jul 2009

Tea Leaf-Smoked Chicken

by | posted in: gluten-free, Meat & Poultry, Recipes | 6

For the past few years, every Fourth of July has proven a raucous night of rooftop reveling not even close to climaxing with the nine o’clock fireworks spectacle. So this year, I hopped across the Hudson bright and early to “get away from it all” at my parents’ suburban backyard barbecue. Funny, I thought I’d be escaping the smog and fumes of the city. Instead, I found myself ensconced in a different type of smoke altogether, that of black tea … Read More

Urban Chicken Raising 101
8 Jul 2009

Urban Chicken Raising 101

by | posted in: Demos & Workshops, NYC Events | 12

Two weekends ago, I woke up early to tend to the hens. Okay, so they were not my own; and I only got up early because I had to get to the Bronx, where a chicken raising workshop was held. Part of the Edible Garden educational series by the New York Botanical Gardens that was sponsored by Just Food, it was a beginner-level crash course in keeping America’s favorite poultry for companionship, eggs, and more benefits which I’ll get into … Read More

Reason for Not Eating Out #33: To Preserve a Dying Art
6 Jul 2009

Reason for Not Eating Out #33: To Preserve a Dying Art

by | posted in: Reason of the Month | 20

My great-grandmother was a keen tatter. Every Christmas, my family took out her tatting: intricate cotton snowflakes, bells, Christmas trees, flowers, all tatted by her own hand. Tatting, I was told by my father, her grandson, was a dying art. It’s a bit similar to crochet, but the particular style of weaving has fallen out of favor through the years, for some reason. I’m aware that knitting and home-sewing have become chic hobbies in recent years, even (or especially) for … Read More

It’s a Slow Food Grill-Off at the Water Taxi Beach
2 Jul 2009

It’s a Slow Food Grill-Off at the Water Taxi Beach

by | posted in: Cook-Offs, Events, NYC Events | 6

To the BBQ and cook-off nation: A call to tongs! Slow Food NYC and The Good Beer Seal are hosting a benefit grill-off at Harry’s Water Taxi Beach Long Island City on July 21st, 6-9pm. This event is all about location, location, location: instead of focusing on a certain ingredient or dish, cook-off contestants must use locally-sourced foods and be prepared to tell which farms they got their grub from. There’ll be more food to go around than theirs, too, … Read More

Mint Chutney Potato Salad
30 Jun 2009

Mint Chutney Potato Salad

by | posted in: gluten-free, Recipes, Sides & Salads, vegan, vegetarian | 12

I received a mildly annoying press release in my inbox the other day: “Picnic food safety greater concern in hot weather” was the subject line (food bloggers out there, you get that, too?). The draconian yarn went on to provide tips to curb food-borne bacteria, which hot weather accelerates. As bringing homemade food to a sunny patch of grass outdoors is one of my all-time favorite activities, I felt that it was oddly singling out picnics as some sort of … Read More

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