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Homemade Christmas Cookies – Day 4
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Marzipan Cookies. Crispy toasted almonds and a double chocolate grid (white and 60% cacao) grace the tops of the chewy marzipan base. Final decorating stage shown here. Stay tuned: more cookies to come!
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Homemade Christmas Cookies – Day 3
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Chocolate Pecan Whiskey Balls. Named for the chocolate and toasted pecans in them, but especially for the pecan whiskey (yes, it’s a thing). Sparkling sugar adds a crunchy, festive touch. Stay tuned: more cookies to come!
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Homemade Christmas Cookies – Day 2
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Biscotti! These twice-cooked treats (aka cantuccini) are laden with toasted almonds and dried cherries that I simmered in Amaretto. Delicious dunked in coffee for breakfast, wine for dessert (as they do in Italy), or cocoa for snowstorms. Stay tuned: more cookies to come!
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Homemade Christmas Cookies – Day 1
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Identity Crisis Cookies – so named because I couldn’t decide whether to make chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin or toasted coconut pecan and since I had all of those on hand…well, you get the picture.
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I just had the privilege of being one of the judges for the New York Indonesian Food Bazaar’s vendor competition sponsored by the Consulate General of Indonesia at New York. 🇮🇩 We sampled six bowls of Aneka Bakso (soup with Indonesian meat paste balls) – Warung Solo led the pack, photo 3 – and three plates of Gudeg Komplit (a delicious stew featuring unripe jackfruit made with palm sugar and coconut milk accompanied by chicken, eggs, tofu/tempeh, beef skin, and rice, of course) – Pecel Ndeso emerged victorious in this competition, photo 7. Judging was based on flavor, creativity, and presentation. Props to all the contestants!
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We were in the neighborhood, so we stopped by Azerbaijan House, 2612 East 14th St, Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn to check out what Mina had cooking. The three of us were in search of a delicious, light lunch and having been there before, we knew exactly what to expect and weren’t disappointed.
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Tashkent Salad – boiled beef tongue with daikon and red radish.
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Kutab (aka Qutablar) – I never pass up the chance to order this griddled treat; similar to a crepe, it’s filled with meat, folded in half, dressed with pomegranate, and always tasty.
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Düşbərə – The menu describes them as homemade ravioli, but you might know them as the mini version of manti, delicious little dumplings served here in soup.
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Stuffed Cabbage
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Kükü – a thick pancake made with potato, onion, egg, greens and nuts; real homespun flavor!
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Dumplings!
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The spirit springs from Eastern Europe but the spin is straight outta Brooklyn. We ordered the Wild Shrimp (made with parmesan and ricotta), roseate hue courtesy of beet infused dough, and the Classic (pork, beef and onion) because if you’re doing a tasting of anything, always start with the classic. Adorned with our choices of fried onions and bits of roasted mushrooms, Luda’s Dumplings also offers seven other toppings (including 🥓 bacon!) and even more sauces.
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In addition to these perfectly delicious pelmeni, Luda’s Dumplings, 3371 Shore Pkwy, Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn serves four other varieties including chicken breast, spinach & cheese, loaded potato, and sweet cheese (in a chocolaty dough). Four more reasons for me to go back!
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I was just writing to a friend about how I’m in the throes of Thanksgiving cooking and baking. Seems like I get a little more ambitious each year, adding something new here or there, finding more stops to pull out; the meter’s not on “totally overwhelmed” yet, but it’s getting there.
So what can I make for dinner that isn’t a time sink when I’m up to here (my hand is under my chin) with work in the kitchen? Easy. My favorite sandwich: oven-toasted, buttered Italian bread with roast beef, melted brie de meaux, arugula, watercress, scallions, alfalfa sprouts, sliced tomato, and most important, my signature slightly smoky, trifle tomatoey, heavily horseradishy sandwich spread.
If anyone were ever to name a sandwich after me, it should be this one.
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It seems like there’s a proliferation of Georgian restaurants and bakeries (no, not the US state “Georgia” but rather the Former Soviet Union country “Georgia”) around New York City these days, and I, for one, am thrilled about it. Our feast at Old Tbilisi Garden, 174 Bleecker Street, Manhattan hit the heights but only scratched the surface of this wonderful cuisine.
Of course, we ordered adjaruli, one of the many varieties of justly famous Georgian khachapuri (literally “cheese bread”). Kayak shaped and filled with two kinds of melted cheese, butter and an egg, the ingredients are stirred together to create stretchy, cheesy nirvana; always a crowd pleaser.
And then, for contrast, we got megruli, cheese bread filled with cheese and then topped with more cheese and baked. Did I mention cheese? Think Georgian pizza.
Khinkali – despite the resemblance, these are definitely NOT soup dumplings. Just grab one by its topknot and bite into its savory lamb filling. So good!
The Pkhali Trio fulfilled the vegetable requirement of our meal: spinach, eggplant, and green bean spreads served with Georgian bread.
Bazhe, a Georgian walnut-garlic sauce, was a perfect complement to succulent chicken.
Chakapuli is lamb stew in white wine sauce spiked with tarragon, an herb that figures significantly into the cuisine – and even soft drinks like tarkhun!
And no Georgian meal would be complete without skewers of savory tender marinated lamb with tkemali sauce. 😋
Note: Read the complete review here!
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Belarussian Xata – Part One (because I need to go back – yes, it’s worth doing again). Located at 1655 Sheepshead Bay Rd, Brooklyn, it’s currently New York City’s only Belarusian 🇧🇾 restaurant and I’m grateful for it. Xata means “cottage” and the memorable décor strives for authenticity (I’m assuming this: I know food, not interior design 😉). The staff is attentive and helpful; since Belarus is Russia’s neighbor and was once part of the Former Soviet Union, there’s a lot of cross-pollination between the cuisines but if you’re a purist like me they’re happy to point out Belarusian specialties.
The appetizer “Village Style” sets out three different kinds of salo (fatback, not unlike Italy’s lardo): plain, smoked, and Hungarian style, served with chunky fried potatoes and greens. So that you’re not just eating unadulterated fat, I recommend constructing each forkful with a bite each of salo, potato or bread, one of the greens, and a bit of mustard. Highly enjoyable.
Machanka, a traditional Belarusian specialty featured three kinds of pork – sausage, ribs, and a cut of meat – in a delicious creamy gravy that reminded me a little of veal blanquette but on steroids. All of the meats were wonderfully tender. (You have the option of ordering the dish with either blini or potato pancakes.)
We also got the grilled branzino with vegetables, not a Belarusian dish, but one of us was craving fish! The kitchen did a good job here as well.
Dessert was warm Orshanskie (“сырники оршанские в чугунке”, literally Orsha cheese pancakes in a pot, Orsha being a city in Belarus), mini cheese balls with a few raisins added for good measure bathed in a sweet sour cream and poppy seed sauce. Surprisingly good!
Note: Read the complete review here!