eat make read

Ever since we moved to Brooklyn we’ve wanted a puppy… Our first apartment was way, way too small to even think about it, but now after much consideration we’ve decided the time is right. Woohoo! I absolutely can’t wait! I’ve been making lists in my head about all the things we need to do to get ready for our little lady. I really want to make her a bed for the living room like this one, but I haven’t found the right suitcase yet. So, instead, I made her a little quilt out of some scrap fabric to put in her crate. I’m pretty sure it’s not going to stay that pretty, but it is washable. And how cute is that little donut toy? Oh boy, I can’t wait til she’s here!

Every time I see Edible Brooklyn at the grocery store, my heart skips a beat. I know that it’s going to be packed with little tidbits of information about things that will interest me and make me want to try something new. This issue has a great article about a farm in Red Hook… it makes me want to dig up my backyard and start growing some corn and carrots (unfortunately I don’t have access to it.. bummer). There’s also a really cool article about a guy who makes chef’s knives in Gowanus… how cool is that?

I got my hair cut this weekend and lo and behold guess what was on the same block as my hairdresser? Spitzers! I wrote about it last week after it had been written up in TimeOut and was eager to try it out. The space is really big… it seems like it takes up a quarter of the block, which is something that you hardly ever see in the city.

We took a seat on the communal bench and perused the extensive beer menu, finally deciding on Thomas Hooker Red Ale and Stoudt’s Pale Ale. I hadn’t ever tried Thomas Hooker, but it was really delightful. I’d read about their crazy popcorn that’s cooked in pork fat (!!!) then sprinkled with a little tarragon, so we just couldn’t pass that up. We both were in the mood for burgers, so we each got the Hickory Short Rib Burger which comes with hickory sauce and BBQ onions. We agreed that the popcorn was tasty, but not as good as the spicy cinnamon popcorn that I made a while back (so, so good). The burgers were pretty dang good too, although I would have liked a little more hickory sauce on it.

Overall, a good place for lunch on a lazy afternoon, especially if you want to do a little beer tasting. Good stuff.

I’m late to the game on this one, but how awesome does this place look? Opened last month by owners of Stinky Brooklyn and Smith & Vine, JakeWalk serves 40 cheeses along with other stuff… but let’s be honest, I’m going for the cheese. I kind of wish I were there right now.

Deeeelicious! I got a little sweet tooth this weekend and decided to make a batch of brownies. I usually use my mom’s recipe, but when I looked in the fridge I only had 2 eggs, one too few for the usual recipe. So I did a little searching and found a recipe for Intense Brownies that only called for 2 eggs. I went ahead and got to melting and mixing and after a little bit of work I was ready to pop them in the oven. Soon enough our apartment started filling with the irresistible smell of warm chocolate.

I pulled them out after around 20 minutes and let them cool for a little bit. When I couldn’t wait any longer I cut them into squares and tried em out… oh boy! They lived up to their name. They were certainly intense… in the best way possible. Super chocolatety and moist. They definitely give mom’s recipe a run for it’s money.

Intense Brownies
from chow.com

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened)
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon brewed espresso
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour

1
Heat oven to 350°F and arrange rack in middle. Line an 8-by-8-inch glass baking dish with aluminum foil.
2
Combine chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan and cook, stirring frequently, over medium-low heat until evenly melted. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
3
Combine eggs, sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, espresso, and salt in a large bowl and briefly stir until just evenly incorporated. Add cooled chocolate and mix until uniform in color. Add flour and stir until just incorporated (no white streaks should remain).
4
Transfer batter to prepared baking dish and bake until a tester inserted in center of the brownies comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.

Just in case your craving that certain beer or bar… check out beermenus.com

Unfortunately there’s still no Bells in NYC.

I pulled the key lime cordial out of the pantry after it sat for a little over a week. I took a little taste of it and, whew! it certainly was strong. I mean, it is basically vodka with a little sugar in it. I’m happy to report that the limes left a really nice limey flavor. Instead of making a fancy martini, I decided to keep it simple by just adding a little seltzer to it. It’s a nice simple beverage with a little zing.

It looks like it’s going to be a not-so-pretty weekend here, but at least it’s the weekend. I hope you enjoy it!

Cheers!

I have something kind of embarrassing to admit… You’re probably aware of my picky eater status, but I didn’t even try tomato sauce, as in “spaghetti sauce” until I was well into high school. Sooo embarrassing! The thing that changed my mind was my mom’s tomato sauce. I don’t know where she got the recipe or if she just made it up, but she would mix a jar of tomato sauce, ground beef and then came the secret goodness. She would add a little cinnamon, allspice and a tad bit of sugar. Once I tried that stuff, we had spaghetti with tomato sauce every weekend.

I’m telling you this because when I came across this recipe for cinnamon-spiked tomatoes it reminded me of that sauce and I just couldn’t resist. It sounded like the perfect easy and delicious appetizer. It didn’t disappoint… a few minutes of prep and about five more to cook it and voila! I used some whole wheat crackers that ended up being a little more like cookies, next time I’ll use a more savory base. But they still worked well combined with the tangy goat cheese and the ever so slightly sweet tomato mixture. These are so simple and delicious and beautiful, they’d be great for your next get together.

Cinnamon-Spiked Tomatoes
from the thekitchn

serves 8-10 as an appetizer

1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 of a medium-sized jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper

1
Drain the tomatoes and put in a medium bowl.
2
Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan on medium heat. Add the jalapeño, season with a pinch of salt, and and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, allowing the jalapeño to soften and mellow a bit. Add the cinnamon, cook for 30 seconds, and remove from heat.
3
Add the jalapeño and cinnamon mixture to the tomatoes, then add the sugar. Stir to combine, and add more salt and pepper to taste.

Even though none of the proper ingredients were available at the greenmarket, I was inspired by the other beautiful vegetables at the market and decided to stop by the grocery to pick up some tomatoes, peppers and onions to make salsa. I’ve made it before, sometimes it turns out good, other times it turns into a bit of disaster, like the time I put a few too many hot peppers in it and it nearly burned our tongues off. This time I took it a safer route and took it easy on the peppers. The result wasn’t perfect, but still tasty. I like smooth salsa, so I made sure it had a nice texture with a garlicy flavor and a little bit of spice from a jalepeño. I think once summer gets into full swing, I’m going to experiment a bit more by adding fruit or other flavors.

Salsa
4 tomatoes
2 cipolli onions
1 jalepeño
1 anaheim pepper
2 cloves of garlic
1 lime

1
Place tomatoes in sauce pan and pour just enough water over tomatoes to cover and simmer, about 5 minutes.
2
Once the skin has broken, remove from heat and let cool.
3
Roughly chop all the other ingredients and toss in food processor.
4
Once the tomatoes have cooled, remove core and toss in food processor.
5
Chop in processor until desired smoothness. Store in refrigerator overnight, I think it helps the flavors meld if you let it sit awhile.
6
Eat up!