the SIMMER blog

ate, wrote, retreated

So I recently spent three days in Ashevile, North Carolina, and I came back STUFFED. Ahhh, what incredible food. And I should have expected it -- I was there with the Eat Write Retreat folks, and knowing how very very full I was after their event last May, I should've known we'd be indulging in the same way for this event too.

Oh, how we indulged.

This was a butternut squash "cannelloni" stuffed with goat cheese, part of an extensive chef's tasting we enjoyed at Biltmore Estate as our very first event. We then took a quick tour through the Tiffany exhibit on the grounds, and headed back to the Bistro for dinner. So we started out with overindulgence, and continued straight on through the weekend in the same way.

Next morning, we met up at Early Girl Eatery for breakfast and a discussion of good photography principles -- but don't judge the workshop based on my results here. I was experimenting with my brand-new iPhone camera. Point and click with very little nuance, here.

But man, those were some seriously good pancakes.

I also got to meet individually with each blogger in attendance -- I'd evaluated their blogs in advance and given them each a printout of what I considered the strengths and weaknesses of their writing, as well as a writing assignment for the weekend. They were all receptive and interested in stretching their skills. What a great group.

Then, we actually went to see some things that weren't food! Yet.

 

ad hoc monkfish

I hardly ever make fish at home, even though it's really good for me, for a couple of reasons: you really should buy it and make it the same day, and also, I kinda don't really like the taste of fish.

But not all fish are created equal. And while I still can't make myself make a habit of strongly flavored fish like salmon, mackerel, or swordfish, I do enjoy the occasional firm-fleshed swimmer like monkfish.

So of course when I was looking for a fish recipe to try out, I went to the Ad Hoc cookbook first.

 
You basically heat up a whole lot of butter in a pan on the stovetop, throw some rosemary and garlic in it to flavor it, and do that awesome restaurant trick where you tip the pan and ladle the melted butter over the fish continuously, basting it, while it cooks. Makes me feel all cheffy.

Okay, it's not the healthiest way to prepare fish, no matter what kind it is.

But it's very good with polenta and snowpeas.

 
Oh yes. And wine, of course.

 

tweeting toward keema

Don't know what keema is? Neither did I until I asked Twitter what I should do with some ground lamb. Thanks, Twitter!

(more specifically, thanks, @marlenaspieler!)

So I Googled around a bit and kind of smushed together a few online recipes' worth of lamb keema approaches, like this one and this and that. I had just about everything I needed, ground lamb and peas and shallots and spices.

Including some spices I don't get around to using that often...

 
Unfortunately browning up ground lamb is so very not photogenic, which is why you'll only get one picture of that stage, thusly:

 
But for more photogenic purposes I would like to point out that the coriander and fennel seeds you can kind of see above were toasted in a dry pan and then cracked/crunched a bit in the much more lovely-to-look-at mortar and pestle pictured below the jump:

 

wholly molés at the astor center

I promised you this post some time ago, and here it finally is: another great cooking class experience at the Astor Center, this one led by Chef Ori, and all about the making of molé.

 

If you think of molé at all -- do you? -- you probably think of the long-simmered dark brown one, with chiles and chocolate. We made that.

 

But we also made a lot more. Check out this spread!

 

With dried chiles and fresh ones, with tomatillos and pumpkin seeds and almonds and tomatoes and...

 

when dinner is a slice of life

Like much of the East Coast and on over toward the Mississippi, New York has been dealing with a heck of a heat wave. Last week we cleared a hundred. And it was humid. I mostly sat around trying not to use electricity and hoping the air conditioning was up to the task.

Is it any wonder I didn't want to turn on the stove?

And so, sometimes, instead of being cooked, dinner is sliced.

Raw zucchini. Salted and rested. Drizzled with lemon juice and olive oil. With a little parmesan on top.

 
  
(If you want to use the same basic idea for something more substantive and less fussy, here's the recipe that first inspired me to eat thinly-sliced raw zucchini: zucchini carpaccio salad at Smitten Kitchen.)

Oh. And something else that didn't require heating up the kitchen at all:

 

dining deal: hearth's cucina povera

I don't really do full-on restaurant reviewing much on the Simmer blog, for several reasons.

1. I don't take pictures in restaurants, like most reviewers (or their associates) do, so it would look pretty dry.

2. There are plenty of people already around in NYC doing this awesomely. More power to them. And I rarely go to a restaurant enough times, and ordering enough diverse dishes, to really give a true and informed opinion of what a typical diner's experience would be.

3. Although I love restaurants, I also love cooking at home, and that's where my focus is these days. (In addition to finishing the last of the revisions on THE KITCHEN DAUGHTER, as I've mentioned. Just four more tape flags!)

But there are a couple exceptions. I did mini-reviews of Garces Training Company, because I'm a sucker for anything Garces, and of the CookieBar pop-up, because it was fun. That's why I have an "other people's food" tag -- I do, from time to time, go batty over other people's food.

And last weekend I went batty over the $35 Cucina Povera deal at Hearth.

NYC, being full of food, is also full of food deals. Prix-fixe lunches. Street carts. Buy-one-get-one offers. A gazillion dumplings for a dollar. Special nights at special prices. But what I liked about Hearth's Cucina Povera deal is this -- any night of the week, you can get three courses for $35, and a set of three wine pairings alongside for $15. Do you get a choice about what you eat? Nope. But is it delicious? You better you better you bet.

And here's another reason this is totally not a restaurant review -- I didn't even order it, though I did taste every course (and every wine). I had an out-of-this-world saffron lasagna that, days, later, I'm still reverse-engineering in my mind. But I know a deal when I see one, and when you see a deal in New York City that doesn't require you to compromise in some significant way (only available til 5:30pm! only for the whole table! only in Long Island City! only for parties of 12!), you jump on it.

Jump on it, people of New York.

books and a bite

Still embroiled in revisions (down to 13 tape flags! yes!) but had a few minutes to share a couple things with you.

First: mmmmm, tapenade and stinky cheese on crostini. The tapenade recipe is from a cookbook called Perfect Pairings by Evan Goldstein, and what makes it extra delicious is a heavy helping of citrus juice and zest. That plus black and green olives, good olive oil, and roasted garlic = magic for all occasions.

Second: Allison Winn Scotch is running an absolutely fabulous contest from her website, and you could win one of 28 books... or, the grand prize, ALL 28 books. Signed by the author(s)! Stop by her blog, Ask Allison, and follow the instructions to enter.

back in action!

Well, so... that happened. Between the move to NYC, the holidays, a much-needed vacation, and a few other hits and misses here and there, I haven't been around much lately.

The good news is, I'm back, and ready for (blogging) action.

Coming soon:

• the story of the hundred-dollar peppermill
• book goings-on as they happen
• a little something about wine country
• a whole lot of something about New York

So, give me a few days to figure out how my stove works (always a tough adjustment in a new place, isn't it?) and I'll meet you right back here for all sorts of simmering, bubbling, bookloving fun.

best bites of 2009: other notables

And then we came to the end! Last post of 2009.

Lots of delicious bites I had this year weren't exactly restaurant food, nor were they exactly homemade, so I wanted to include them in some other way. And here they are! Included.

 

1. Red chili Capogiro gelato -- it's almost TOO hot, but that's perfect, because it's also creamy and rich, and you would think it cools itself but it doesn't. Worth trying at least once! 
2. Nduja from Boccalone-- Yes, it's spicy meat paste. Sausage, really, but softer and spreadable. Good for nubbing into a sauce for pasta or just spreading on bread.
3. Apples with goat cheese and honey-- My friend Sara made these for her birthday party and they are really, really delicious. Totally nicking them for my next shindig.
4. Duck wonton with Gary Farrell Pinot Noir -- At the Sonoma Wine Country Weekend, there were about 60 restaurants and over a hundred wineries, so we couldn't get around to them all, but I sure was glad we got to this. I can't remember what table offered the duck wonton (A La Carte catering, maybe?) but it was right next to the Gary Farrell table, and the food with the wine was just a tremendous little burst of awesome. Went back for seconds. And then some.
5. Ricotta, pistachio, and basil crostini at Tria's Fermentation School. Three great tastes I would not have pegged as tasting great together, but... they totally do.
6. Sarcone's Special.
7. The goat cheese sandwich at 'wichcraft. If I had to choose between this one and the Sarcone's Special for the rest of my life, it'd be a really, really tough call. Luckily, I don't have to pick!
8. Mozzarepas. At my first two or three NYC street fairs I made sure to eat these, because I didn't know when I'd see them again. Luckily for my hips, I realized quickly they appear at EVERY SINGLE street fair in the city. Therefore, there'll always be another chance.
9. Russian Teacakes made by my mom for Christmas. In case you wonder where I get the Overdo gene, she made more than a dozen types of cookies for Christmas this year. The fact that I still gravitate toward the Russian Teacakes even though they cannot be discreetly sneaked (powdered sugar! everywhere! and I wear a lot of black) speaks to their irresistibility.

And that's it for 2009. Let's see what wonderful tastes and smells and flavors 2010 brings, shall we?

search me

I've been enjoying tracking traffic on the blog via Google Analytics, seeing where visitors are coming from. In general, they're the places you might expect -- New York, Los Angeles, and thanks to friends and family, the Midwest. But what's more interesting than where you're from is how you got here.

Google search phrases leading folks to the SIMMER blog in the past month: "simmer jael", "jael simmer", "simmer blog", "simmer by jael mchenry", that sort of thing, yes, that's expected. Welcome. You have found what you're looking for.

"boy go simmer sky" and "college essay party blogspot"? Less so. You, I can't help.

"wine in car all day"? Honey, I've got bad news for you. Depending on temperature and sunlight, it might still be drinkable, but it might not. Don't serve it to guests.

Next month, we'll see what else turns up.