Here's the Halloween question of the day - do you like sweet or savory Halloween treats?
I gave out both this Halloween
There is also the sweet side.I had Skittles and Snickers for my students. There was so much left over I brought them home.
What's your favorite Halloween treat? Let us know.
Is Whole Foods as healthy as people want it to be? SOme say yes. Some vehemently say no. This is the real question right now. Is this totally blue health food grocery store ready to embrace deep red MAHA beliefs? It's up for debate.
New contributor and food writer Ben Ryder Howe wrote about this debate in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food section. Whole Foods has always been known for good gluten free foods and fresh from the vine and tree produce.It had a reputation of selling freshly prepared food that was not only healthy but also delicious.It advocated lower sugar in its' products along with no chemicals or artificial coloring. Yet there was some problems, namely the prices.It was jokingly referred to as "Whole Payvheck" because it was so expensive to shop at any of the branches.Now the headache comes from MAHA or Make America Healthy Again.The company's founder and owner, John Mackey is a capitalist and also a libertarian. Like other MAHA he is a zealot for eating well. Errol Schweizer,a former vice-president for the grocery edition declares that whole Foods is a straight up dialectical contradiction,. Whole Foods can appeal to both sides of the aisle.
Yet the store is reluctant to embrace total MAHA ideology.Corby Kummer, executive director of Food and Society,at the Aspen Institute a non profit think tanks feels that the store has always had a get out of my face and don't tell me what to do attitude.It's been anti-government and anti-corporation. Whole Foods has always been for pele who have rejected the mainstream.One critic of this is Alex Clark, host of the podcast, "Culture Apothocary With Alex Clark," part of the Turning Point USA Network founded by Charlie Kirk.She has embraced healthy living during an aha moment when she was eating too much Chick FIket .Now the fervent MAHA only gets her foods at Whole Food .She can;t figure out why this grocery store who has been one of the first and biggest promoters of healthy eating won;t jump on the MAHA bandwagon, she has accused the company of shying away from typical MAHA causes such as opposition to seed oils and betraying its. mission to improve American health. Yet the store shies away from being too red or too blue. It could also be afraid of losing it's liberal coastal base of loyal customers too.
Should Whole Foods be a part of a political debate? No.It's just a grocery store serving people who want to eat well. That's not political. Tha't s just good common sense.
This is definitely the time of year for sweet treats and one of those is a slice of cake drenched in frosting. What's even infinitely better is cake made from scratch and frosting that's not from a can. YThere is nothing like an old school cake with an airy mound of sweetness on top.It just takes some savvy to create both perfectly.
Regular contributor and top baker Genevieve Ko knows this and contributes both advice and recipes in today's New York Times Wednesday Food section.After several years of create the perfect slice she offers her knowledge to both expert and novice bakers alike.Ome of the most important gadgets a home baker should have is a good scale. Don't use a liquid measuring cup for measuring dry ingredients like flour or baking powder. Get a cheap digital kitchen scale; then use a spoon or scraper to push the dry ingredients into a cup. Using a measuring cup for liquids could throw off a recipe. Too much cocoa in a recipe such as her chocolate peanut butter ones will make for a crumbly crumb and a surprisingly bitter flavor. Another must is mix the batter differently Ms. Ko follows Rose Levy Beranbaum ,a uthor of the famed "The Cake Bible"in which reverse creaming is used ,This is when room temperature butter is mixed with the dry ingredients. This gives the butter's fat the chance to coat some of the flours proteins and as a result stop tough gluten from forming.After the flour is coated and the butter is evenly dispersed then add the liquid ingredients. This results in a much more tender crumb.(It also makes for easier slicing too).
One of the most important aspect s for home bakers is knowing their ovens Ms. Ko recommends thinking about your oven's capacity How long does it take to preheat? Thirty minutes instead of the usual fifteen.Does it run hot or cold?Is there a significant temperature drop when the door is opened? Is it smaller than average like an apartment oveN? These tend to brown baked goods quicker than larger ovens.Ovens may have to be set twenty-five degrees higher or lower.One way to find out is to set white bread slices in different spots and see how they brown. Make a note of the results Another must do is use bake times as guidelines. Set the timer for a little before the lowest time marker and take a look without opening the oven.Test for doneness before it's too far gone. The perfect bake is a cake that has a light golden brown color. Before baking understand a cake's anatomy along with having the right pans. As for the cakes themselves.Ms.Kp give three yummy recipes, the classic confetti cake with cream cheese frosting. chocolate peanut butter cupcakes and yellow sheet cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting. Tint the frosting orange for a Halloween party . Save these recipes for Christmas dessert too instead of cookies.
Nothing beats the perfect scratch cake with a scratch frosting. The result is a deliciously light bite full of flavor. This is the perfect Halloween treat.
Fall may be the time for apples and pears but it's also the time for grapes. There are all sorts from the richly colored Concord to the pale blushed color Traminette. There's nothing like a dish with them or just eating them as a snack.
One of the most popular and famous is the darkly purple Concord. These are the richest flavored grape, Most people know them from being in grape juice and jelly. Yet on their own. they're delicious.They have the eclasspic grape flavor always associated with the fruit. They add bright color to any charcuterie board. Pair them with a bold flavored cheese such as Bleu cheese and a sharp Vermont cheddar. However soft, creamy cheese like Brie and goat also work well with them . They are excellent for your own version of Welch's Classic grape jelly along with being perfect for pies and cobblers.Carawba grapes are also thriving right now. These are a muted berry red color and have a delightfully sweet taste. They're perfect for making homemade juice and wine. These, too, would be perfect for any charcuterie board. Try them with a very creamy cheese like Fontina, Brie and Camenbert. You could also pair it with goat and cheddar. You can make jelly with them and even more surprising ketchup. The grapes are boiled and then mixed with a variety of spices such as cloves cinnamon , allspice and black pepper. Vinegar gives it that classic ketchup tang while sugar balances out all the flavors.
Another fall grape is the blush colored Traminette..They have a floral and spicy taste .better suited for wines. However this Indiana born fruit is derived from the German varietal Gewurtztraminer. They make a good appetizer paired with feta . You could also try the silvery pale Vidal blanc. This is a grape you can use to make preserves instead of jelly along with making homemade juice. Are preserves harder to make than jelly or jam? Yes. They involve cooking whole pieces of fruit which requires a delicate balance to prevent the flesh from breaking down too much. Jelly, on the other hand , is created from strained fruit juice. Autumn crisp grapes are also being harvested right now. every supermarket. They are large and juiy, perfect for snacking with a citrus, peach flavor. It also has notes of muscat and rose too.One big plus about them is that they are seedless, making them easy to eat. You don;t have to worry about crunching down on seeds or swallowing them.These definitely belong on a charcuterie table. They pair well with everything from cured meats to nuts to cheeses.
Fall is more than just apples and pears. Try grapes this season for a good snack or dessert. They're sweet and perfect . a good fruit for the autumn.
Halloween is a time for all sorts of candy, Yes, those Twix and Smarties are fun but there's nothing like homemade treats to enjoy at home. What's even more fun is that you can be creative. A fun treat can be handed with just some cocoa , sugar and ingenuity.
Coconut haystacks are always a treat. These are easy to make , using dark, milk or white chocolate It's melting butter with solid chocolate and then mixing in toasted or untoasted plain shredded coconut. You could sub in coconut oil for the butter but I feel that it gives the candy a richer flavor. To make it spooky for Halloween add broken pretzel twists for legs and candy eyes on top. SLivered almonds can another f be added to the recipe for more crunch and taste. Chocolate bark is a tasty snack Again any kind of the chocolate can be used. It's just melting a bowl of chocolate chips for twenty seconds each bowl. The melted chocolate is then spread on wither a greased cookie sheet or onto parchment paper. This is the time to add the candy corn , orange and black sprinkles as well as candy eyes,Let set in either the fridge or a cool place such as a front porch. Break into pieces and serve. Keep in mind this recipe can be made for All Saint'; day using leftover Halloween candy such as Reese's peanut butter cups, Twix bars and Rolos caramels.
Homemade fudge is usually thought of as a Christmas sweet yet it can also be made for Halloween too,.A simple fudge recipe is combining condensed milk chocolate chips and a drop of vanilla extract However you can a teaspoon of butter or plant butter for a much richer taste. A simple decoration would be a dash of orange and black sprinkles on top but you can press in candy corn or candy pumpkins too. SInce it is the season expand to making pumpkin fudge. This is using white chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and two tablespoons of pumpkin puree (use Libby 's brand which is very smooth and creamy. The flavoring is typical pumpkin spice - a mix of a teaspoon of cinnamon, along with a quarter teaspoon of nutmeg and an eight of a teaspoon of cloves. Melt the white chocolate and condensed milk together in the microwave. This only takes a minute and then afterwards microwave at thirty seconds intervals , The mixture will be very thick. Add the spices now , GIve it a good stir and put into a greased or aluminum foil line pan. It should be refrigerated for at least four hours before cutting and serving. You can press candy corn into it for decoations
Halloween is all about sweet treats. Homemade ones are the best. Make them for a fun way to celebrate the holiday.
Just because It''s Halloween doesn't mean you can;t cook out. A f barbecue under a full moon is always can be both delicious and exciting. You can have the foods of summer but with a fall twist.
Hamburgers and hot dogs figure at any barbecue. You can easily have beef, Impossible or turkey burgers. Throw in some scary spice with a dash of Szechuan pepper or paprika. If this is too much add it to ketchup to be put on later. Cut out eye triangles and jagged smile on cheddar cheese slices and pt them on hot burgers. They'll melt into jack o'lanterns. Hot dogs get the fright treatment too. Carve out fingernail indentations and wrinkles so they look like the real deal. Add some barbecue sauce or ketchup. for more .Ribs too can get the Halloween treatment. Use pork ribs because they resemble the human kind the most.After they're cooked place them them on platter much like human ribs. Have at plastic skull at the top while grilled sausages can be coming out of the bottom of the ribs like intestines. You could also grill the sausages and arrange them like intestines. Use a layer of barbecue sauces t give them a bloody look to ramp up the ick factor.
Cook out sides can get the fall treatment too. Potato salad can be given snap with a crisp apple cubed into it this adds an unexpected jolt of sweet ness to it. You could also create a bowl of apple salad that has another fruit of the season in it - cranberries. This is taking cut apples and dried cranberries and mixing them with chopped celery , mayo and pecans or walnuts. A sprtixx of lemon juice is added for some brightness and tanginess. This can be made with Greek yogurt for a lighter, healthier version.Pears are also big right now and you can pair chopped ones with Bleu cheese for a sophisticated side.Fennell is also added as are walnuts.The dressing can be a balsamic vinaigrette or even just a simple one made with white wine vinegar. If it's really cold outside and you want to warm up your guests you could serve up cups of hot pumpkin soup. This is an easy make that involves unsweetened pumpkin puree., sauteed chopped onion, chicken broth and cream. The onions are sauteed first in a mix of butter and olive oil in a large souppot then the pumpkin is added . When these are thoroughly mixed add a cup of chicken broth , and a quarter cup of whole cream. SImmer , adding salt and pepper. This can be served with rice blended in a long with butter. It's the perfect chill chaser for a cold night.
A Halloween Barbecue may sound like a scary idea but it's well worth it. Create a fun night outdoors with good food. Everyone will enjoy this celebration to fall.
Everyone always has to have a special meal on his or her birthday. It could be a juicy diner hamburger with a large size of fries and onion rings. It could be a bowl of spaghetti, graced with garlic bread. These are the foods that help make the day even more special.
What is your favorite birthday meal? Mine used to be risotto Milanese , the creamy saffron drenched rice dish from Milan. Now it's spaghetti with sauce although I wouldn't;t say no to shrimp cocktail and clam chowder.
What dish makes your special day sing? Let us know.
Everyone who loves cooking and baking has , at one time or another, dreamed of opening a restaurant or bakery. It should be simple, right, Finda space, create a menu, get good suppliers and cook or bake. However sometimes the dream can border on nightmare. There's a lot that goes into opening the perfect eatery.
Regular contributor Priya Krishna wrote about this in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food section. She interviewed and followed newly minted restauranteur Mohleena Khan, at the age of tihrty-five was ready to jump into an entirely new business. The brutal truth is opening anything in New York City is a pretty big risk.There are astronomical rents, stiff competition and city bureaucracy.However this has not deterred the 4557 future eatery owners applying for permits in Manhattan. However most were filed by celebrity chefs and very rich future owners.Ms. Khan is undeterred too. She may not be a cook but she is bright and organized, pluses for running any business. Luckily her friend Aleks Jeune can cook and knows something about food running the Brooklyn coffee shop Chez Alek. The food will be her native Indian because Brooklyn has so few Indian restaurants in the middle space between take out and find dining. The borough's casual restaurants are also hard to get into . This should make it interesting to prospective investors
Is it , though? The two friends can put up around thirty thousand of their own money and raise one hundred thousand from a combination of family and friends. Unfortunately the response is tepid. Many friends are buying houses or having children . Money for them is spent on these. MOuleena's father Pradip gives fifteen grand while her sister ,Alisha, who gives ten grand. Some friends chip in with amounts ranging from two to ten thousand . Mouleena and Aleks put in an extra fifty-nine thousand on their credit cards. The next step is finding an affordable rental. They pick one on Nostarnd Avenue. It;s in ahistorical district so there will be papers to fil out. Then there are the other papers from the health inspection to liquor license.After these are acquired it's time for renovations. Luckily Mouleena's husbands have some experience with construction and Aleks ; husband chips in to help too. Both build a birh wood bar. The women re picking out fabrics for decor. It's looking good until it isn't. They want it open by Jume first . It will take a while. It does finally gel with them making such fusion dishes as a breakfast plate with Masala eggs and tots along with phuchka, spicy potato balls in a semolina crust.
Yes it's hard opening and maintaining a restaurant. However if that's a dream go for it. It's worth every penny.
Midnight pasta has a glamorous appeal. It's original name pasta mezzanotte implies a quick dinner after a wild night out. Imagine people coming back all dressed up to make a good plate of whatever. Yet I reality it's just means a dish thrown together with whatever can be found in the pantry. This makes for a good week night supper.
Regular contributor Melissa Clark explored this in her A Good Appetite column in today's New York Times Wednesday Food section. Another name for midnight pasta might be pantry pasta because the ingredients are what's ever left in the pantry. Think canned fish like anchovies or tuna, along with pickled peppers, capers , canned beans and of course tomato paste. Add spices like fennel seeds , top with cheese like grated Parmesan. Use lemons for a fresher , different spin. Ms Clark also likes to scatter a frilly green like parsley on top or leftover celery leaves chopped up. A few fresh picked and chiffonaded basil leaves can also be used for a good dose for color and flavor. She gives three recipes , one that includes the unexpected miso along with beans. Beans such as cannellini and chickpeas bring about protein and create a silky creaminess when broken down with the olive oil. As for pasta, any kind will do . It always pays to have a box of any kind in the house.
The three recipes given are perfect for weekdays and weekends. There is pasta with white beans, olives and fennel. Here she uses short chunky pasta like fusilli cavatappe, campenlli or shells. They're better for the sauce to cling to. A can of drained cannellini beans makes up the sauce's base while crushed red pepper and fennel add mellowness and zing at the same time. Pitted green olives give the sauce tang and brininess. For sauce , reminiscent of bright days by the seashore there is the pasta with lemon,capers and anchovies, This is a sauce for long pasta like bucatini and spaghetti. A lemon sliced into thin half moons gives the sauce its' sunniness while anchovies bring about an earthy saltiness . The same goes for the two tablespoons that are also added. A tablespoon of butter gives it creaminess. A different spin is long pasta like spaghetti or fettuccine with miso, Parmesan and pickled peppers. Miso and soy sauce are added to a mix of melted butter , garlic and black pepper. Parmesan and pickled peppers along with the pasta are added and mixed together last. A pinch of salt can be added if the sauce isn't briny or salt enough.
Midnight pasta is a great and fun way to make sauce. Don;t serve it at midnight though. It's the perfect meal for weekdays and weekend suppers.
Today is Samuel Taylor Coleridge 's birthday, the amazing author of Kubla Khan and Frost At Midnight. He would have loved a cream tea, complete with scones and jams along with a good joint of lamb.
There is cake
Celebrate this great poet today with a slice of cake or scones laden with clotted cream. ENjoy his rich array of poems and critiques. Enjoy his birthday.
One of the biggest problems for any dinner party is coordinating the courses . What is the perfect side for roast Cornish hens? Is a cheesecake appropriate for finishing a paella? In other words what works with what/ It is hard to figure out.
Usually a dish's ethnic origins can lead to what the side dishes and dessert will be. A pork shoulder with apples and onions on the side is basically Germanic in background. Think about serving sauerkraut or sauteed cabbage with bacon on the side. Spaetzles are a must if there's gravy. Dessert could be a lush Black Forest Cake, rich with cherries and kirschwasser (a cherry liqueur ) or a creamy Bienenstich a 'bee sting " cake consisting of two layers of sweet year dough , pastry cream or whipped cream and a topping of whipped cream studded with almond slivers (hence the cake's name . The almonds are said to resemble stingers) Cassoulet or even duck a'orange are perfect dinner party main courses .It 's only right to have French sides. For cassoulet which is a rich stew consisting of pork, sausage and duck, it's just better to have an unassuming green salad with a plain vinaigrette and slices of warm, crusty French bread. What works as a dessert? Anything with an acidic tang such as a lemon sorbet or a lemon tart. You could also have the light but chocolate-y pots du creme or creme brulee.
Flavor intense dishes such as paella are usually stand alone dishes. You could start it off with gazpacho shots for guests or shot glasses of just plain gazpacho, the chilled vegetable based soup. Also a simple salad works well along with slices of toasted baguette or Italian bread. As for dessert anything lemony as an antidote to they heavily saffron spiced rice and meats. Another option is the Spanish version of creme brulee cream catalana, . This is slightly different than its' French cousin because it has cinnamon added to the sugar on top. A fun dinner party meal is chili. There is nothing like a bowl of it. Of course the perfect side is a homemade cornbread. This can be baked plain or studded with chopped jalapenos. Serving it with nacho chips is also a fun and tasty way of enjoying the chili. Dessert after this can go two ways, You can have bowls of a light fruit sorbet such as lemon or strawberry or something rich and decadent like a molten chocolate lava cake served with a scoop of cinnamon flecked ice cream. A plate of Mexican wedding cookies would be a great touch too.
It is hard coordinating a dinner party menu. Yet remember where the dish came from and then go with it form there. Have sides and a dessert that represent the main dish's country of origin. It'll prove to be a more unified dinner party.
Since its' inception in 1802 mayonnaise has always been made with eggs. Yet as the world embraces more vegan options may recipes are not leaning toward the plant and nut based. There's a new one out , based entirely on almonds. Is this a nutty idea? Yes but the almonds produce a smooth silky condiment better than the egg rich original.
I discovered this new Mayo when look for a vegetarian option. I really love it .It was the perfect sauce for the ImpossibleBurger.
It is tailgating season.There are two schools of thought regarding tailgating.Is it fun to have a party in the arena, near where the action is happening or is better just to have it in the comfort of your own home? There may not be excitement bu there is a decent bathroom along with less noise and parking lot stress,
WHich camp are you? I actually prefer an at home tail gating party. It's somehow more comfortable to relax on a couch with amenities at my fingertips
Which are you .Let us know if you're a more stadium partyer or prefer a cozy living room or den.
Kansas City is synonymous with barbecue. People have come from all over the world just to get a bite of tender smoked and sauce ribs and other meats. Is it still the capital? Yes! It's growing thanks to inclusivity and ethnic influence.
New contributor , Jed Portman, a major contributor of Serious Eats, wrote about tthis in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday's Food section. Kanasa City has a reputation for having a barbecue that is drenched in sauce as opposed to the more preferred and more sophisticated Texas style barbecue.The city's heartland barbecue with it's wide variety of meats and thick sauce may feel too approachable to be considered cool Barbecue slathered in sauce doesn't fit the "Texas craft aesthetic" according to Robert Moss, the South Carolina based author of Barbecue: The Hisotry Of the American Institution.It's one of the great American barbecue styles and people have moved away from it. Yet all is not lost. More American prefer the large variety of smoked meats that the city has to offer.It's a style that involves cooking inexpensive cuts of meat low and slow.Kansas City had one of the largest stockyards in the country .Brisket was almost handed to cooks .A Kansas City specialty - burnt ends , the ends of brisket, was given to peoples. It too is drowned in sauce.
Kansas City has good barbecue joints that are noteworthy. There is Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que that has been lauded by former president Barack Obama and Anthony Bourdain. Cheif stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce are big fans of the restaurant which has three locations.Owners Jeff and Joy Steffney felt the barbecue scene was stagnant, especially in the Seventies and Eighties. They brought a competition exactitude to such age old techniques that involved meat sauce , rub and coals., foreshadowing the rise of craft barbecue in Texas in the 2000s.Kansas City barbecue also has ethnic influences too. There are racks of baby back ribs seasoned with jerky seasoning from Lampang. Thailand. Barbecoa, a Mexican barbecue joint has smoked chicken with echeberra while the South Indian eatery Of COurse serves burnt ends with cardomiHome Chefs can also replicate the recipes at home. Mr. Portman gives recipes for sweet chile baby back ribs and burnt ends..
Kansas City will always be the capital of good barbecue. People will go to it and enjoy all sorts of smoked meats. It;s what the city is known for,
Surprisingly one of the hardest dishes to make right looks like it would be the easiest. The simple meatball is far from that. It's a complext marriage of meats cheeses and spices. SOmetimes its' recipes call for a binder. Sometimes not. Yet it's so delicious that home chefs should never shy away from making a batch of them.
Regular contributor and good stylist Sue Li gave recipes and advice on them in today's New York Times Wednesday Food section. Basically there are no strict rules for making them as she has found out from her years of being a food stylist and working with professional chefs. A meatball is nothing more than a blend of meat seasonings and in most cases a binder of sorts. There's not one single formula however but a few principles for ingredients and techniques. Once they're learned a home chef can make the perfect polpetti every time. The classic Italian-American one should be a delicate one. Ms. Li's recipe for it is a blend of fattier ground beef and pork. It's lightened with two kinds of cheeses - Pecorino-Romano and ricotta.It adds milkiness without the milk along with tenderness . The ground beef used should have a good ration of fat - about eighty per cent lean to twenty percent fat. As for mixing - mix the egg, cheeses and seasonings separately and then add the meat. This will ensure that the flavors are equally distributed and it is a loosely packed ball.Mix in the meat , according to another great NY TImes chef, Kenji Lopez-Alt as if you were folding in egg whites into yolks.
What about meatball size? Try not to aim for the mammoth ones that many Italian restaurants serve. Go for ping pong sized ones using a cookie dough scoop.Sear them in olive oil, making sure to seal in the inside and creating a burnished crust There are some meatball recipes that require a tighter texture and more mixing. Ms.Li gives a chicken meatball made with the ground meat. The tighter ones hold their shape giving them a springy texture that perfect for frying and dipping. Chicken can be bland tasting, unlike beef and pork. Ms. LI adds paprika, cumin and coriader along with mint leaves.The sauce sin;t tomato but a dipping sauce made of Greek yogurt and lemon. Then there is the other recipe, one that is rich with pork and tofu.These are Lion's Head meatball so name probably because of their large size. The tofu gives the other ingredients a lightness. These are first formed and dipped in a slurry made from water, cornstarch and soy sauce.They're then steamed for more spring, nesslater being served with cabbage and broth.
Meatballs are actually pretty easy to make. Try these recipes for a new spin on a classic recipe. They're a simple dish but complex in flavor and texture.
Baking is going to be an important aspect for home chef during the next two months. Luckily The New York Times dropped their baking issue in Sunday's papers. There is everything here, from cakes, to cookies to even muffins. These are all perfect for the dinners and parties ahead.
This is a pretty substantial issue and definitely a keeper for all sorts of bakers from experienced to novice ones. Keep in mind that these are not your typical sugar cookie and vanilla cake with chocolate frosting recipes. These have interest. These have spice. These have even fire. There are caramel cookies heated with the Korean gochujang, a red chili paste usually used with veggies or meat..Miso gives layers of unami to pecan banana bread. Again it's used mostly in soups to bring out the flavor.Candied ginger give zing to ordinary marbled shortbread cookies.Lemon bars are given color and tanginess with cranberries. Even a simple apple crunch cake is boozed up with half a cup of bourbon. Even sugar cookies are not the typical holiday recipe. The New York Times recipes gives them color and an earthiness by the addition of freshly ground Earl Grey tea leaves cooked with butter.
Go through your Sunday papers for this issue if you haven't already saved it. It;s chock full of great recipes. Bake these for the holiday season and beyond.
I made my bisnonna's or great grandmother's Piedmontese pumpkin soup. It was just a perfect dish fora cold, rainy day. It's a pretty easy cook. You do need two sixteen ounce cans of Libby's pumpkin puree(DO NOT get the one that's meant exclusively for pie filling.It's loaded with pumpkin pie spice)along with half a white onion, and veggie stock.
It was then adding the pumpkin and then briskly stirring it into the onions. This needs to be thinned out.I used two cups of Lidl's Veggie stock (Which is excellent and I'll be using it in other homemade soups too)
Any vegan will tell you - the IMpossible burger is exquisite. A vegan will also tell you it's becoming harder and harder to find. It seems grocery stores are not carrying any of the plant based meats.anymore. They're becoming harder to find than a - plant based unicorn.
It's a phenomena of sorts that I've been noticing for a while. It started - for me - in my favorite Lidl. They were selling Impossible chicken nuggets and dino nuggets for a the longest time. It was great to pick up a package and have t for two meals during the week. However like some of their items (such as the Duc du Couer potato and vegetable gratins) Lidl stopped carrying them. The alternative was my local Acme. They're three times the size of Lidl and there was bound to be something there - nuggets burgers - bacon. Nothing. The pickings were so slim. THey do have a vegan deli section but even that's limited to veggie hot dogs, and cold cuts. Luckily and thankfully Wal-Mart has come to the rescue. They sell all kinds of Impossible Plant based meats and fish . Gardein is also there offering such plant based main courses as sweet and sour chicken and nd battered cod fillets. I stocked up on IMpossible Burgers and Nuggets. and , Beyond Steak Tips. All are going to be used in various dishes for the next week or more.
The question is why have the other stores stopped selling these plant based meat?Why is Wal=Mart close to being the only one? I did read that Wal-Mart was catering to the younger and hipper vegetarian crowd, hence the wide variety of products. They want to expand their customer base and this was one way of doing such.Is it working? Most likely. A shopper enters Wal-Mart with one product on his or her mind and walks out with several. It's also a great way of introducing first time visitors to take a look at the store's other products like computers, appliances or clothes to name a few . Trader Joes' does carry some plant based meats and a few creations of their own. Target and Shop Rite also has a selection but I don't think they're as extensive as they used to be. It could be the stores themselves. It's much more cost effective to carry the real thing such as twelve dollar real burgers and whole chickens for fifteen dollars each. Stores will always cater to the carnivores. Yet they're losing out on catering to other important sectors , the vegans and vegetarians.
What's to be done of vegan and vegetarians can;t get their plant based meats. Switch to Wal-Mart? Write to the bigwigs at local groceries. Just get that vegan main course for those who need it.
What is your favorite fall dinner to make? is a Sunday roast with all the trimmings? Or a rich sauce over polenta? Do you love creating a steamy casserole, full of good stuff? What about a homemade soup or stew?
Let us know what thrills you to cook a big meal. I love working with polenta and gnocchi. These to me, symbolize autumn and the rich flavors of the season. What about you?🍁🍁🍂🍁🍂
African American food has always been a big part of the American table. it has influenced the way Americans cook and eat for four hundred years. There is a problem though. Restaurants celebrating it may be going away.
New contributor and Washington DC journalist Alexander Nazaryan wrote about this in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food sections. Washington D C was a hotbed for all sorts of soul food restaurants. One very famous one, Georgia brown attracted everyone from former president Bill Clinton to such celebs as Denzel Washington and Wesley Snipes.It's many dishes also attracted newsman Ted Koppel and the Reverend Jesse L. Jackson. Not anymore. It had to close because the traffic was not coming anymore to this thirty year institution that was a second home to Marion Barry , DC;'s four time mayor and Vernon E. Jordan a civil rights leader and top aide to President Clinton.It's closing exemplifies how Black restaurants are receding from the Capitol's once vibrant restaurant scene. Other famous restaurants such as Horace and Dickie's known for its' fried fish closed way back in 2020. Other eateries like The Dsitrict Soul Food and The Bussdown DC, also have shuttered their doors. Cultural scholar W, Ralph Eubanks believes it has to do with the fact Washington's tastes are changing.
The demographics are changing and a new generation is coming up. Menus are in flux, even at one of the city's oldest restaurants the Florida Avenue Grill, first opened up in 1944. It claims to be the world's oldest seafood restaurant. The new owner Jay Hawkins is going to offer more vegan dishes and cocktails in order to draw in a younger, crowd. It offers all day breakfasts and lunch which are offered at good prices. Two large eggs and bacon are ten dollars with no extras offered Toast is an extra cost along with home fries . These may be too expensive for both locals and tourists who watching their budgets, Also, such classics as chitlins are off the menu. Ms. Hawkins gets numerous calls from older regulars who want them back on the menu.Florida Avenue Grill most likely will survive because it is also a museum to the civil Rights movement. Many leaders are there while in Washington. There are still options for soul food fans. There is still sweet potato pie at Hnery's Soul Cafe.The United House of Prayer for All People houses the saints paradise Cafeteria while Ethiopian chef Elias Taddesse runs Doro Soul Food.
Is Washington DC a bell weather for the demise of soul food? Maybe not. A new generation has to discover its; classic flavors and goodness. They need good restaurants to do this.
Fall is the perfect time for a dinner party. people can get dressed u and enjoy fancy food and drink. what's even better is paving a menu that's both easy to plan and easy to make. That alone s the key for having a good get together,
Instagram chef and new contributor Dan Pelosi gives such recipes along with planning and hosting tips in today's New York Times Wednesday Food section Dinner parties , much like holiday gatherings, do require planning, especially if it's to go right. Chef Pelosi offers a planning guide that can be easily cut out and turned into a check list.Of course send a guest list .Follow up with invitations or evites to make sure that the exact amount of people are coming. This help greatly with stocking up both food and drink.The second step is plan the meni. Go for exciting using what's in season or in accordance with the party's theme. Another big must do is shop early. Buy pantry staples like sugar and canned goods early on so they're crossed off the grocery list.He also has tips for the week of such as confirming invites and go on a full onose cleaning rampage. The day before is spend, organizing,cooking and prepping along with choosing what outfit to wear (although just go for something simple.- home chefs will still be cooking and cleaning after all). Then there's the big day of . Take out the trash and get ready. Although again keep the elastic simple. Home Chefs will have the split honor of being the head chef and host. Don;t get too dressed up in an outfit that might get stained or splashed on.
As for the recipes and drinks. Chef Pelosi offers fun and tasty ones. It looks like the recipes have a Mediterranean slant. He starts with a non alcoholic Negroni, the classic citrus drink, made with grapefruit and fresh orange juices. Cloves and black peppercorns give it bite. Instead of alcohol it is hibiscus tea that provides the fruity base. The meal starts off with a roast squash with crispy chickpeas and feta. Chef Pelosi suggests frying the chickpeas the night before. Use delicata,acorn and kombucha squashes because their fresk becomes creamy when cooked. Cayenne pepper gives it fire while feta provides a creaminess. Another delicious side is charred broccoli with an anchovy dressing. Imagine a bagna calda with deeply charred broccoli , topped with Parmesan For the main dish there is roasted salmon with smashed olives. The fish rests in a sauce of a floral, Herby and briny mix. Two large oranges are zested and juiced The salmon is dry brined and roasted.. The orange zest and juice are whished with the olive oil. The olives and parsley are then added in .This is spooned over the salmon. The dessert is pignoli cookie , a Southern Italian classic. This is the perfect end with espresso at the ready.
A fall dinner party is easy to throw. Have delicious food and good drinks for guests. It's the perfect night in,.
Fall is the time for stews and sauces. These are great on their own but they need something to absorb the rich sauces and gravies. You could have rice or mashed potatoes but polenta soaks up everything better. It also lends a nutty flavors to the mix as well. It's also great left over, refried toa crisp and served with just cheese or seasonings.
Many home chefs hear this simple cornmeal. Just because it's Northern Italian , doesn't mean that it's complex and fancy. yes it does grace some of Piedmonte, Lombardy and Veneto regions of Northern Italy. Yet it's one of the easiest dishes to make.I'ts just cooking one to one and a quarter cups cornmeal to four and four and a half cups of water. Add two tablespoons of olive oil gives it smoothness and silkiness (although two tablespoons of melted butter can do the same thing along with adding flavor). A half teaspoon of salt is also blended in to bring out the cornmeal ;' sweet flavor. Three cups of water are slowly simmered and the polenta is whisked in ,also slowly. The last cup of water is then added in. If the texture is too thick, stream some water for a less lumpier consistency. Another hint is regrind the polenta before cooking too for a smoother texture. What cornmeal should you use? Some swear by Quaker Oats cornmeal, Others prefer Bob's Red Mill. The best bet is to experiment with different kinds. See what you like. See what your family likes and then go with the most favored one.
Keep in mind you can also go the easy route by buying polenta logs. I've recently used Melissa 's Organic Polenta Logs. these come plain but you can also buy them in herbal , hatch pepper and tomato flavors. These are great to slice up and fry in a mix of butter and olive oil. These rounds only take about five minutes on both sides to fry up and they're perfect for stews and sauces.These rounds are also good fried on their own ad just eaten with salt and pepper. Any polenta is good with chicken and a mushroom gravy. Instead of the usual mashed potatoes, think of a scoop of corn meal.Bolognese , sauce that delicious mix of ground beef and tomato sauce is usually served over pasta, yet it can also be poured over polenta for a different kind of Sunday meal.Osso buco is another dish that pairs perfectly with this side. Veal shanks are cooked in chicken or veal stock along with onion, celery and carrots in a white wine sauce. garlic gives it more flavor along with thyme for more taste. This is then served over a creamy polenta with the corn mash absorbing the thin gravy.
Instead of rice or mashed potatoes think polenta. It can be served with almost any meat and sauce. It's the perfect stan in for any side this fall
Weekend cooking can be a pain but it pays off, especially if you are planning to have it for the entire week. Saturday and Sunday are perfect days to make those frozen meals for week night dining. There's so much you can make for a full five busy days ahead.
Be ready when you want to cook a lot.Make sure that the cutting board is clean and wiped down. Are the knives sharpened? Do you have the right ones? Are the pots , both for stove top or for the microwave also clean and ready? When the utensils and gadgets are ready then look at what you have? Jarred sauces and pasta make for good weeknight dinners. They both store and freeze easily. Have boxes of your favorite pasta along with lasagna sheets for cooking. Have both read and white pasta sauces to cook with to vary the upcoming agenda of meals.beans are a vital ingredient in soups and stews. Make sure you have the appropriate number of cans . Also have a variety too, Chickpeas are versatile and can be used in everything form soups to curries. red kidney beans are another must. They add flavor to soups like minestrone. Do you have enough herbs and spices. Make sure there is enough garlic and onion powder along with oregano and rosemary. Do you have enough of the basic seasonings such a as sea salt and peppercorns that can be freshly ground? Most importantly - do you have the storage containers ready to be filled and stored.
As for recipes, again a hearty pasta such as penne or bucatini work well with reheating. You can just cook the pasta and then let everyone microwave their own cup of sauce. for later eating. They can be cooked together too.Another dish that can last well into the next weekend isa bean stew. Add any kind of bean you like or a combo of them such as chickpeas and cannellini along with a veggie such as spinach . Tomato paste and vegetable broth give it a smooth texture. Keep in mind that you can add chicken or beef to this along with stretching it out with rice. or quinoa.For easier cooking with this use your crockpot It allows you to to go about yoru Saturday chores and errands with only having to check in once or twice to see how it's cooking. A meat based stew even lets you make some dumplings for a more filling meal. These can be made either plain or with herbs for a tasty extra.Of course soups are a good dish to make. They're easy to to store and easy to reheat in the microwave. Take advantage of the season's bounty. A good squash, cauliflower ro pumpkin soup is easy to whip up especially if you have a bof soup pot and an immersion blender.
It's so easy to devote a weekend for weeknight cooking.Decide what you want to make. Get the ingredients and cook. You;ll have delicious homemade meals for the week ahead,
Years ago it was hard to make a good pot of polenta and then fry it up into tasty buttery rounds. It was equally hard to make a good salsa de zucca or squash sauce. Now these ingredients are easy to find and a snap to make.
Polenta e saucisse is a fall dish loved by everyone in Piedmonte. My school's womens' volleyball team consist of such alon with a few f=girls from the Veneto province.I wanted to make them something to alleviate their homesickness - What better than this . Polenta e saucisse with squash sauce. There is a catch .This is vegan.
Do you still fire up the grill despite the falling leaves?Are charred burgers or hot dogs more appealing than a Sunday roast with mashed potatoes.? Some people love a good fall cook out. Others do not.
Here;s the question then - do you still barbecue despite the sometimes falling temps (here in New Jersey, the weather keeps bouncing between the fifties and eighties).Or are you more let's make that chicken in the oven? I kind of waver between the two. I love a good barbecue, but an indoor meal has its' appeal to.
Let us know during this beautiful October weekend.
A good restauranteur is hard to find. A very good one is a unicorn. Yet Stephen Starr is that culinary unicorn. He is the man who brought back the classic eatery Pastis and turned Philadelphia into a foodie must stop. He is the driving force behind where and what America eats.
New contributor Christine Speer Lejeune wrote about this amazing force in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food section. Stephen Star is responsible for some of the best and most popular eateries, in New York City, his home town of Philly and Nashville. He is reviving the scandal stained Babbo in Manhattan, a restaurant that was once Mario Battali's before Battali's sex scandal ruined his career and business.He has done some wonders with reviving the legendary place Pastis and is now expanding to to Nashville. In one year alone he has amassed around four hundred million in revenues,a pretty amazing feat in this depressed economy however he is responsible for a whopping forty-three restaurants.He has a true instinct for what diners want and he attracts a huge array of fans. The Bidens were just at his Philadelphia trattoria Borrmini,, Mick Jagger and Oprah were fans of his Asian fusion eatery Buddakan. He has worked with such chefs as Kevin McNally to name a few.
Surprisingly enough Mr. Starr didn't start out in the food or hospitality business.He started spinning records for local radions in his native Philadelphia. (in fact he runs his eateries like record companies and often used musical and album restaurants along with dressing laid back record producer in his black tee shirt and jeans) . At twenty-one he changed course when a former girlfriend dumped him for being broke. He resolved not to be broke again and started a succession of show business ventures in the Philadelphia area. However a lightbulb went off when he visited New York City's Global 33 a martini bar. He loved the feel and the crowd, a bar filled of sexy, young good looking people. He could brink that to Philly. He opened up the Continemtal Martini Bar in 1996 around the time when the martini culture movie "Swingers came out." The place was an instant hit. It was the jolt that set the foodie scene there afire. He opened up the pricey yet successful Buddakan which brought celebrities toa city mostly known for scrapple and cheese steaks along with Colonial history. Even Robert Di Niro visited. Now Starr is all over his city and Manhattan.
Stephen Star is bringing fun dining and good food to two of the East Coast's most important cities. He has brought Asian at Buddakan food to the forefront and revived classic restaurants. It's will be amazing when he expands to other cities like Nashville.
Party and salad may not go together. One tends to pair a festive gathering with more appropriate foods, such as charcuterie or roasts. Yet a salad , done right can make a gathering interesting and delicious. It's not just a bowl of greens mixed together with bottled dressing. It's something more.
Chef and regular contributor Hetty Liu McKinnon wrote about this and gave recipes from her newest book Linger: Salads, Sweets And Stories To Savor (Knopf 2025) in today's New York Times Wednesday Food section. She recommends thinking outside the bowl. Try smoky roasted veggies or pantry friendly legumes. Add comforting noodles along with homemade chunky dips and great homemade salad dressings. One way of having a phenomenal salad is choosing make ahead dishes that only get better over time. Her example for this is a take on the classic British Coronationsalad. Usually made with chicken and left to marinate , Chef Liu McKinnon subs in chickpeas. A day in the fridge makes the flavors bolder along with bolder and more exciting. Along with chickpeas, cauliflower adds more crunch especially when the two are roasted with a sprinkling of cumin on top. The dressing is a mix of Greek yogurt, apricots (as in the original recipe(, celery and red onion that';s been steeped in water to mellow out the onion-y flavor.
Chef Liu McKinnon also includes a great dip and a salad version of the classic Dan Dan dish. For the dip she takes sliced turnips and fries them in a combo of oil butter ,garlic and miso. The dip is a combination of feta and pistachios blended together with garlic, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil and a splash of water. Put this and salad leaves on a large plate, then top with the turnips. Other veggies can also be used as well as crips pita or French bread. The second is a riff on the classic Dana Dan dish, There is no meat in this one however. Ramen noodles combine with bock choi and canned corn. Toasted sesame seeds and cilantro give it more color and flavor. The dressing is a blend of pantry essentials. Chinese sesame paste or tahini is mixed with Chile oi or Chile crisp along with soy sauce and rice wine vinegar.Two to three tablespoons of non dairy milk like almond, oat or soy is used for creaminess . For all of these everything can be made the day before and assembled the day of , considerably cutting prep time. Just let the salads sit for thirty minutes before serving.
Salads can be the stars of any party. Make all three or save them for different gatherings. They're sure to be hits.
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