happy hour: pomegranate dandy

I had a cocktail at Freeman's a while back ago and it rocked my world. I mean really, this thing was so delicious I immediately memorized the ingredients so I could try to make my own at home. They call it Freeman's Cocktail, but because I'm not sure of the exact proportions I renamed it Pomegranate Dandy. All it requires is some bourbon, a lemon, pomegranate molasses and bitters. Shake them all up and you've got yourself cocktail that tastes like the best grown-up candy ever. It's a little sweet, a little sour but it's all good. Have a great weekend! Cheers! Pomegranate Dandy inspired by Freeman's Cocktail serves 1 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice 1/2 oz pomegranate molasses 2 oz bourbon lemon peel, for garnish dash of bitters ice 1 Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. 2 Strain into a glass. 3 Using a knife, cut a 2-3 inch piece of lemon peel avoiding the white pith as much as possible. Gently fold it so the outsides touch each other and squeeze the oils over the drink. Fold the other way and garnish the side of the cup. 4 Cheers!
Filed under happy hour by Kelly. May 29th, 2009 . 5 Comments

fresh the movie

Last night Aaron and I attended a screening and panel discussion for the new documentary, Fresh. It is such a fantastic, fantastic film. It's a discussion about where our food comes from that gives us a look into industrial farming, which is so depressing and eye-opening. But also shows people who are doing amazing things like farmers Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms (who you may remember from Omnivore's Dilemma) and Will Allen of Growing Power. It was so inspiring to see people who had solutions to this problem and were so passionate about the cause. I actually got so caught up with the film that I forgot there was a panel discussion with Mr. Salatin, Mr. Allen, Joan Gussow (Just Food), and Josh Viertel (Slow Food). When they walked out I wanted to scream with excitement like a schoolgirl. Yeah, it's that good. If you're anywhere near any of the following cities hurry and book a ticket, you won't regret it. Check out more info and view the trailer here. May 28, 2009 - Boston, MA May 31, 2009 - Kansas City, MO June 2 & 3, 2009 - Minneapolis, MN - June 2nd Screening Nearly Sold Out! June 4, 2009 - Milwaukee, WI June 6, 2009 - Encinitas CA June 7 - 11, 2009 - Seattle Film Festival June 10, 2009 - Vancouver, Canada June 12, 2009 - San Francisco, CA June 15, 2009 - Berkeley, CA June 17th, 2009 - Denver, CO
Filed under events by Kelly. May 28th, 2009 . 1 Comments

canning season

The New York Times has a great article and slide show in the Dining Section today about canning. There are lots of sources listed and even a Do's and Don'ts of canning, which put some of my fears to rest. Preserving Time in a Bottle (or a Jar) Photos by Evan Sung for the New York Times
Filed under how to and read by Kelly. May 27th, 2009 . 1 Comments

tart n’ tangy frozen yogurt

A few years ago frozen yogurt chains like Pinkberry, Red Mango and my favorite Oko started popping up all around the city. Lines would wind out the door with eager patrons waiting to get their yogurt fix. If you've never had this yogurt, it's a tasty experience. It's very fresh tasting and much more tangy than traditional soft serve frozen yogurt. Imagine my excitement when I flipped open an issue of Sunset magazine and found a recipe for homemade tart n' tangy frozen yogurt. As if that weren't awesome enough, it had only two ingredients. Yup, two. I picked up a big container of fresh plain yogurt at the greenmarket from our local dairy. When I got home I pulled my ice cream maker out of the freezer and got to work. I simply poured the yogurt into the bowl, added some sugar and started stirring. I have unfortunately managed to lose the stirring attachment to my ice cream maker which means I get quite a workout each time I want to make ice cream. Appropriate I guess. After the mixture got a little thicker I just stuck it in the freezer for a few hours and let it be. After a day of wandering out in the warm sun, I came back and scooped myself a bowl of my delicious creation. I always get coconut on top when I visit Oko, so I continued the tradition and gave my scoops a crown of coconut. I took a spoonful and was instantly happy. It tastes just as tangy and fresh as the professional variety, but it somehow tastes better because I know how it's made. Next time I think I'm going to go all out and start with coconut yogurt... oh the possibilities!  This is too simple and delicious not to try. tart n' tangy frozen yogurt from Sunset Magazine 1 32oz container of plain yogurt 3/4 cups sugar 1 In the bowl of your ice cream maker, stir the yogurt and sugar until the sugar has dissolved. 2 Follow the instructions on your ice cream maker to complete the frozen.* *I have an idea if you don't have an ice cream maker. I'm no expert at all, but since my arm is half my ice cream maker I'm thinking you could probably freeze a metal bowl (perhaps with a towel around it to act as insulation) and then just mix the ingredients with a spatula. It should take about 15-20 minutes of active stirring.
Filed under eat and sweets by Kelly. May 27th, 2009 . 4 Comments

strawberry shortcake

This weekend when I went to the greenmarket I could hardly contain my excitement when I saw little blue baskets of ruby red strawberries sitting on tables. Strawberries are definitely my favorite fruit, so I'm a sucker for them throughout the entire season. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with them, but I bought two pints because I was sure I could find something. Then, as luck would have it, I cruised on over to Lottie + Doof and there was the most glorious fresh strawberry pie. I hesitated to make it only because I wasn't sure if I wanted to have a whole pie at my fingertips all weekend, but when some friends invited us to an impromptu picnic, I got started. Oh but if only I read directions... I had about 2 hours to make this and I felt confident that I could. I went ahead and picked up some shortbread cookies for the crust and started making it. Then I read the entire directions (which aren't long at all and should have been at least perused before I started), only to read that the pie needs to set for 4 hours. I don't know how many times I've done this before, you'd definitely think I'd have learned by now. But nope. So here I was, a whole bunch of strawberries chopped up, soaking in sugar and lemon juice, a pie crust waiting to be filled and an hour before we had to go. I did a quick calculation of my possibilities and strawberry shortcake it was. The pie crust would have to be frozen until I had more time. Biscuits, or in this case shortcake, are one of those things that tend to intimidate people, but in reality, they're really easy to make. Plus, with a few tweaks, they can go sweet, savory or just plain buttery. I ended up using a recipe from the Joy of Cooking with a few changes to make it a little more flavorful. When they were done I let them cool for a few minutes, then packaged them in a paper sack and packed them in the picnic bag. I poured the strawberry mixture into a ball jar, gathered some paper plates and silverware and headed to the picnic, eager to try out my strawberry shortcake. The result is something magical and quite perfect for a picnic on a warm summer day. The biscuits were nice and buttery, with hints of lemon and cinnamon. The texture is slightly crumbly but still fluffy enough to really soak up some of the juice. I topped each one off with a few heaping spoonfuls of strawberries and some of that sweet lemony liquid. I'm telling you, it was like a little piece of heaven. Super delicious, super quick and rather lovely to look at. strawberry shortcake a compilation of recipes and tweaks from Lottie + Doof and the Joy of Cooking serves 12 strawberry mixture: 2 pints of strawberries, hulled and diced 3/4 cup sugar 1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice shortcakes: 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 Tablespoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 Tablespoon sugar 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon lemon zest 6 Tablespoons butter, chilled 3/4 cup milk
Preheat oven to 450° 1 Stir together the strawberries, lemon and sugar and mix until sugar is dissolved. Let sit for at least a half hour. 2 In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and lemon zest. 3 Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut in butter until it's the size of small peas. 4 Make a well in the center and pour in the milk. 5 Stir until the dough just comes together. 6 Lay a piece of plastic wrap about the size of a large baking sheet on the counter. 7 Place the dough mixture on the plastic wrap and work it into a log, about 3 inches in diameter. 8 If the dough feels warm, stick the log in the fridge for about 20 minutes. If it's still pretty cool, cut the log into slices about 3/4" thick. 9 Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. 10 To assemble the strawberry shortcake, simply place a shortcake on a plate or in a bowl, then scoop out a few heaping spoonfuls of strawberries, then drizzle a few more spoonfuls of the strawberry/lemon liquid.
Filed under eat and sweets by Kelly. May 26th, 2009 . 5 Comments

oh happy day!

Strawberries are here!
Filed under events by Kelly. May 23rd, 2009 . 4 Comments

happy hour: peanut infused vodka + butter cup cocktail

Ok, it's time for the last installment of my vodka infusions. Are you ready for this? Peanut infused vodka. I first tried it at an underground food event I went to last year and it blew my mind. It's unlike anything I'd ever tried, so when I started experimenting with infused vodkas it was one of the first things I tried. If you like peanuts, you have to try this. Put about a cup of unsalted peanuts in jar, then cover it with vodka. Let it sit for a few days, then strain it. That's all. The vodka takes on all the flavor of the peanuts and the actual peanuts are left without any flavor. If you want to try something gross, try one of those peanuts. Not good. The peanut vodka is crazy and definitely worth tasting on it's own. It's like eating spoonful of peanut butter in liquid form. It will confuse your tastebuds. But if you want to make a cocktail, may I suggest a little something called the "Butter Cup" that Aaron and I came up with. It's like a peanut butter cup in a cocktail glass, so get ready for a good time. I'm back in Brooklyn after an amazing trip to San Francisco and ready for a long weekend. I hope you have a great one! Cheers! butter cup makes 1 cocktail 2 parts peanut vodka 1 part vanilla simple syrup* 1/2 part chocolate sauce ice 1 Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Shake for 15 seconds. 2 Strain liquid into a cocktail glass. 3 Cheers! *To make vanilla simple syrup, combine equal parts water and sugar, plus a vanilla bean. Bring to a simmer until sugar dissolves. If you'd like to take an easier route, I did try using cream soda and it was pretty tasty.
Filed under happy hour by Kelly. May 22nd, 2009 . 7 Comments

spiced chickpeas

I was looking for a party snack for a recent little soirée at our house and I thought baked chickpeas sounded like they'd fit the bill. I'd never really made chickpeas before, but luckily my friend Jillian was around to coach me when I got nervous. My idea was to coat them with a spicy, oily mixture to help crisp them up and give them a little punch. So I mixed up a few spices, like garlic, tumeric, pepper and cayenne and coated the peas with them. Next I tossed them with some olive oil and popped them in the oven. Like I said before, I'd never made chickpeas before, so I set the timer for 20 minutes. Umm, yeah, chickpeas take a really long time to cook. After repeated timer settings, I finally pulled the chickpeas out for the last time after an hour spent in the oven. I was pretty happy with the result. The chickpeas had a nice flavor, all the spices worked together quite well rather than one standing out. The texture was crispy when they came right out of the oven, but after they were on the table for a while they started to lose that crispier texture and became a little softer. They still tasted good though and the true sign of success, they were all gone at the end of the night. spiced chickpeas makes about 2 cups 1 large can chickpeas 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon tumeric 1/2 teaspoon white pepper 1/4 teaspoon cayenne 1 teaspoon salt 2 Tablespoons olive oil Preheat oven to 350° 1 Drain 1 large can of chickpeas and put the peas in a large mixing bowl. 2 Combine the spices and thoroughly mix into the chickpeas. 3 Pour the olive oil over the peas and make sure they're all coated well. 4 Pour the chickpeas in one layer onto a sided baking sheet. 5 Bake for 30 minutes, mix the chickpeas up a bit then bake them for another 30 minutes.
Filed under eat and snacks by Kelly. May 21st, 2009 . 8 Comments

san francisco love

Ahhhhh... it's hard to come back home when a trip is so good. And this trip was good my friends. I have so many tastes and places to share with you I can hardly wait. I tried my first burrito, had the most amazing coffee of my life and ate at some of the best restaurants in the country. But unfortunately it will have to wait a few days until I get myself and my pictures sorted out. It will be worth it, I promise. I'll be back the rest of the week with a tasty snack for you to try and I'll end the week with the last installment of infusions... I hope you'll stick around.
images above from the Ferry Building in San Francisco
Filed under travel by Kelly. May 20th, 2009 . 6 Comments

happy hour: coffee infused vodka + coffee delight cocktail

Ok, are you ready for round two of infused vodka mania? This week we're getting a hair crazier and infusing our vodka with coffee. Coffee is an even quicker infusion than the citrus we made last week. My infusion was super strong after only a day in the pantry. Just one whiff of that stuff and you'll be awake for good. So you've got your infusion made, now you just have to make a tasty cocktail. Well, I've got a simple and delicious one for you to try, although it does take a little thinking ahead of time. That's because you need to make coffee ice cubes. Once you've got that done you just add some of the coffee infused vodka, a little vanilla syrup to sweeten it up a bit and then top it off with a bit of seltzer. Shazam, you just made a delicious coffee delight cocktail. This week is a super duper happy hour because I'm actually in California. My awesome friends Erik and Dana are getting married and I just couldn't be happier for them. I'll be back to making stuff mid next week. Until then, have a great weekend. Cheers! coffee delight cocktail makes 1 2 parts coffee infused vodka 1 coffee ice cube 1 part vanilla simple syrup* seltzer 1 Place the vodka, ice cube and syrup in a cocktail shaker. Give it a shake for about 15 seconds. 2 Pour the liquid into a glass and top it off with a little seltzer to give it some fizz. 3 Drink up! *1 part sugar, 1 part water, 1 vanilla bean
Filed under happy hour by Kelly. May 15th, 2009 . 3 Comments