NY Is A Burger Town

 New Yrkers are lucky. Visitors to the great city are lucky. Why? it's a burger city. There are so many different kinds and variations of this American classic in New York and it's boroughs.

The New York Times Wednesday Food section  put together a compiliation  of the best burger joints in New York today. Editor Nikita Richardson led the group consisting of Becky Highes,Ryan Sutton,Mahira Rivers and Luke Fortney.They went all over the boroughs and tasted some of the best patties. They found nineteen top choices that would make any burger lover weep. One of the best cheeseburgers is in Gramercy Park. Joe Juniors gives an  open faced one dripping with American cheese.There is also fried onion burger at Hamburger America It's served with passable fries and an frosty Arnold Palmer (a blend of iced tea and lemonade) For those who love a good organic burger there is the grain fed one at the Lower East Side's Eel BarChef Aaron Crowder uses meat fromhe flanl and the front leg to create a juicy, flavorful patty.Fans  f special sauce should grab the burger at Bar Americano.It;sa tasty mixture of brisket chuck and short rib and smothered in The best of cheeses Grueyere. There is also Bou  Jiamoat Famous Food which has a burger made out of pork belly.There is also the original Hamburg steak at Cafe O Te in Brooklyn. There is also the Pakistan influenced one at BK Jani's in trendy Williamsburg.

Burgers can come in other meats and even forms. Try Mommy Pai's chicken burger created by Ann Redding who was born in Thailand. She loved Mc Donal'ds as a child and her sandwich s an homage to them.It has Thai influences too with sour mustard greens.There is also the lamb burger at the Gramercy Parkl L'Express.It is a nine ounce patty spiced with Moroccan flavors, cumin, coriander and cinnamon.Pf course there are sausage and fish patties too. Try the bratwurst burger at Wekstatt.This is a brat inspired pork patty topped with Gouda cheese and bacon onion jam. To make it more German it[s served on a pretzel bun there is also chorizo frita at Frita Batidos. They also offer vegan and beef patties too. Fish can be turned into a tasty round.Win Son Bakery offers a shrimp burger made from seasoned shrimp paste and served on a milk bun,Mariscos  E; Submarino has their version and served with Muenster cheese.Tuna is also versatile and Greenpoint Fish and Lobster Company turned it into a smash burger served with special sauce and cheddar.

New York City is a burger city. Try any of these tasty patties for  great lunch or dinner. They're the best of the best.

Strange Wine

 The wine industry surprisingly has some interesting developments lately. It's not just reds and whites with the occasional blush. This is something different. Wine is becoming exciting again, thanks to news ideas and new wine making concepts.

Orange wine is now on oenophiles' radar. I discovered this just yesterday during a pop ad and it intrigued me. Originally I thought it was a fermentation made from orange juice but that couldn't be the case. You can make orange wine at home but there are no wineries that actually do this. Orange wine is actually white wine made by leaving the grape skins and seeds in contact with the juice. This creates a deep orange hue. What about the taste? It has diverse and aromas not usually associated with wine, such as sourdough, jackfruit along with honey, varnish (!!!) and linseed oil (!!!!!). Palate wise they're dry and big , possessing a tannin like red wine with a sourness  that fruit beers have. Orange wine does pack a punch. You may want to sit down after a few sips.Since this is a bold wine, bold foods should be served with it. Think spicy Moroccan or Ethiopian cuisine - like those spongelike pancakes called injara. The wine also is great with Korean and Japanese foods. It's also good with beef and fish thanks to its' high phenolic content. Coppola and Red Hook Wineries sell orange wine.

Then there's Stella Rosa that sells all sorts of fruity wines. I found this out from Mike Colameco's Food Bites on PBS Sunday afternoon. His is just a two minute filler between America's Test Kitchen and Lydia's Family Table. Chef Colameco was mentioning about the billboard ads for Stella Rosa' wine of the month club that he saw on his way to his second home in Cape May. They were featuring a wine of the month club featuring fruity  berry wines. This  deserves some investigating. Stella Rosa does have some odd flavors like watermelon (!) and grapefruit (!) flavored ones.They also have pineapple and mango too as well as cherry , blueberry, peach and even vanilla.Where do these come from? The Ribolo family in Los Angeles where they founded LA's historic San Antonio Winery. Their "regular" wines come from the aromatic grapes grown in their native Asti in Piedmonte and they were the base of the winery's first big seller Moscato d'Asti. They also created Rosso, the first semi sweet, semi sparkling red wine blend.The family also has tasting rooms  and bistros across California.

Wine is becoming exciting again. Try a bottle of orange. Join Stella Rosa's wine of the month club. It'll make for some interesting drinking.

Chicken And Jam

A good meal should have one simple classic dish and one complex highly flavored one. The new York Times Food section delivered this yesterday in two recipes from two of their star writers. Melissa Clark gives us hints and instructions on how to create the perfect roast chicken while David Tanis has a great recipe for Moroccan herbed jelly. Bring them together for a dinner party for a widely varied meal, full of flavors and textures.

Novice home chefs would do well by reading  A Good Appetite in yesterday's New York Times' food section.Melissa Clark show how to easily roast a chicken. It starts with a trip to your local supermarket or butcher's shop and try to get the best, usually a free range , antibiotic bird is the best choice. Once you bring it home, then salt it.It should b brined about a day before the actual roasting. Also leave it uncovered  in the fridge so the skin can dry out a it Doing this gives the finished roast a nce golden, burnished look.For flavoring, salt and pepper  = that goes without saying - but also herbs. Try the "twiggy" ones like rosemary, bay leaves and thyme. These will release less moisture than other herbs.If you prefer a lemony flavor , then use curls of lemon rind as opposed to lemon wedges.You can truss or tie up  the legs if you want but it really doesn't male a difference. Ms. Clark recommends using a sauce such as chimichurri or Béarnaise, but personally I'd go with just the plain  chicken. A roast chicken is flavorful on it's own.

You could make David Tanis. herbed Moroccan jam to go with the roast. The recipe was taken from Paula Wolfert's 1973 cookbook, "Couscous And Other Good Food From Morocco."It's not a jam in the traditional sense, it refers to the slow cooking down of ingredients. It's a favorite dish of acclaimed chef Russell, Moore of Camino Restaurant in Oakland, California and he has put it in his newly released cookbook "This Is Camino" He has tweaked the recipe  so that instead of using foraged greens it uses the more domesticated ones such as lettuce along with parsley and carrots. Kale and broccoli rabe are also added along with celery tops and cilantro. Spice and heat come in the form of cumin and hot chiles.The jam method begins with first steaming the greens, completely drying them out and then cooking the down in  pepper infused olive oil.The process only takes ten to fifteen minutes and then you can be served. Finish with a squeeze of fresh lemon. Mr. Tanis recommends serving it with pita but if you want try it as a sauce with Ms. Clark's roast chicken if you want.

Try  Melissa Clark's roasted chicken recipe for an  elegant dish. Serve it or have it follow Dave Tanis' exotic herbed jelly .They're a perfect blend of simple and complex, great for dinner or even supper.

Amping Up Your Barbecue

July Fourth not only signifies the birth of our nation but also the start of the barbecue season. It's time to amp up the old tired recipes and try some new recipes. Shoot some spark in your outdoor grilling for tastier and fun meals.

Most home grillers make just beef and turkey, but you can try bison and emu as well. Both are flavorful and lower in fat and calories. Emu is 95 percent fat free and it's perfect for dieters who still love a rich burger but don't want the pounds,Bison is only 152 calories  too and it is another alternative to beef. Some gourmet supermarkets do sell both meats but you can also get them on line Of course you can also take the traditional recipe and give it a tweak. Add a dash of chili powder for some heat or even cumin for a more exotic flavor. Adding the last is a health benefit because it aids  digestion. Another way to ratchet up those burgers is by serving them on brioches . Top with a homemade chutney for flavor.Hot dogs, another summer classic, can also be transformed into a gourmet treat. Slit the dogs before cooking and when they're hot off the grill stuff them with  real English cheddar and apple wood smoked bacon Good cheese shops will have several different kinds of cheddars while the bacon can be had at the local grocery.

Potato salad is another must have for a barbecue. The usual recipe has mayo and celery however you can try it Moroccan style with tomatoes and saffron. Paprika and cumin are also stirred in for color and zing.Home chefs can also make one with an oil and vinegar dressing, using champagne vinegar and chervil. Mediterranean style is also good especially when you're serving kabobs.This one has feta cheese . kalamata olives and rosemary.,It is also eye catching thanks to using baby red, whit,e and purple spuds. For a really different spin try sweet potatoes.They have to be roasted first, usually with a drizzle of olive oil They need a simple dressing such as a red wine vinaigrette. because of their intense sweet flavor . Macaroni salad is always on the picnic table. Mix it up by subbing in soba noodles or penne instead of the usual elbow kind Give family and guests something to talk about with an Asian style pasta salad , complete with spicy Thai chilis and peanuts. Meats and fish can also be added  .Try grilled chicken and even salmon to rev up the noodles. Another tasty and rarely made dish is the Neopolitan   tomatoes and bread salad. This is taking sliced tomatoes and onions and mixing it with cubes of stale Italian bread and  olive oil. Rosemary and oregano are also used. The salad should be made two to three hours in advance and chilled.

Zest up your barbecue wit exotic meats and salads. Revamp the classic into new and tastier recipes. It'll make your barbecue much more special and exciting.