Friday, August 22, 2003
Mozzarella di Bufala 'en Vogue'
You might have heard me on Joan Hamburg’s program yesterday. I was telling her that my friend Jeffrey Steingarten, the long-time food writer for Vogue, has written a very informative and very funny piece on mozzarella in the September issue. That's the issue that just got to the newstands and subscribers. In his story, on page 694, he tells you of his adventures in Italy tracking down the ultimate mozzarella di bufala (buffalo-milk mozzarella). Of course, his trip includes, if not features, a visit to my friend Cecilia’s water buffalo farm. When he came in June, I was there hosting my seasonal culinary vacation and cooking school. [more]
Thursday, August 21, 2003
Perfect Filet Mignon
Filet Mignon is not my favorite cut of meat. If you ask me, it’s uninteresting. Tender yes. Flavorful no. Which is why chefs always serve it with a sauce. Steak houses don’t. They serve it plain, like they do the chewier but vastly more flavorful “sirloin strip,” “shell,” or whatever they call what is actually a cut of “short loin” and is sometimes, outside New York, called a “New York strip steak.” (A Porterhouse or T-bone offers meat from both sides of the bone – a slice of filet and one of “sirloin strip.”) [more]
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
Goi Cuon: Summer Rolls
I had Corrine Trang on Food Talk yesterday. Her Pan-Asian cookbook, Essentials of Asian Cuisine: Fundamentals and Favorite Recipes, is a byproduct of her multicultural background. She was born in France’s Loire Valley of a French mother and a Chinese father who grew up in Cambodia. She was then raised in Phnom Penh, Paris, and finally New York. Her history also reflects the simultaneous diversity and similarities in the food being eaten all over Asia. [more]
Monday, August 18, 2003
Armenian Pilaf
You can look at this as a way to extend a little rice, or a way to use up the end of a box of spaghetti. In any case, it was the inspiration for Rice-a-Roni, “The San Francisco Treat,” as the TV commercials used to say. It’s from my book What to Cook When You Think There’s Nothing in the House to Eat. It’s the perfect post-blackout dish as it calls for just a few standard pantry ingredients and some butter, which can be safely stored without refrigeration if necessary.
[more]
Friday, August 8, 2003
Cianfotta Napoletana
This is the traditional Neapolitan summer vegetable stew, a relation to the French ratatouille, and right now and until mid September is the best time on the calendar to make it. There are many interpretations of this dish, as well as spellings for its name. Every family has their own take on it. So please don’t take it personally if it differs from your family’s recipe. This recipe can also be found in my book Naples At Table. [more]
Thursday, August 7, 2003
Corn Dogs
Every summer I get asked about corn dogs—how to make them, where to buy them. It’s an unbelievable seasonal occurrence. My mind does not turn to corn dogs in August it turns to Mai Tais.
[more]
Wednesday, August 6, 2003
Stir-fried lettuce?
You’re probably wondering why you’d bother to do this. It’s so hot outside right now though, even hearing the words “iceberg lettuce” can cool you down. [more]
Tuesday, August 5, 2003
Summer Tomato Recipes
Field-ripened tomatoes have just begun to arrive at local Greenmarkets. The verdict is out on their quality. There are reports that our wet spring and hot July was good for the crop. Then again, there are reports claiming the opposite. In any case, they will be the best tomatoes of the year, better than anything coming from Florida in January or Mexico in March. The tomatoes I just bought from south Jersey were fine, but not as intensely flavored as I'd hoped,well, they are rarely as intensely flavored as I hope.
[more]
Monday, August 4, 2003
Granitas
Say something in a foreign language, notably French or Italian (somehow this doesn’t work for Swahili), and it becomes romantic and wonderful, no matter how prosaic in English.
[more]
