How are you celebrating Nebraska’s anniversary? I hope with steak. Oh, did you need a recipe for that? Here’s one. With creamed spinach, even.
It took me a long time to get on board with the Bloody Mary. Years, even. Every few months, I’d order one at brunch, hoping that it would click, that I’d be able to appreciate this early afternoon beverage that was beloved by so many.
One day, I ordered the Bloody Mary at Bar Toto to wash down my eggs di parma with. When I took that first sip, the skies opened and the angels sang. Finally, I understood the appeal of the Bloody Mary. I also understood that all of the Bloody Marys I’d had previously had been pale imitations of The Real Thing.
Now, I’m obsessed with Bloody Marys. My favorites in Brooklyn include the aforementioned Bar Toto version, as well as the ones served up at Sidecar and Alchemy. Incidentally, those are also my three favorite places for brunch. The house-cured corned beef at Sidecar is unreal.
I’ve also been trying to perfect my own Bloody Mary recipe. I’ve made some good ones, but they required so much tweaking that didn’t get written down that I have no idea how I made them. This past weekend, Evan was all, “Make me a Bloody Mary,” and I was all, “Make it your own damn self,” and he actually did, instead of waiting for me to decide I wanted a Bloody Mary and make him one, which is what he usually does. And it was delicious. I am hereby relinquishing weekend Bloody Mary duties.
I love squash soups in the winter, but find that they aren’t always hearty enough to be a complete meal. When I make them at home, I add my secret ingredient — red lentils. Not only do they make the soup more filling, but they also punch up the color. Here’s the recipe for the one I made for lunch today:
Acorn Squash Soup
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
1 medium acorn squash
1 tablespoon unrefined coconut oil
2 shallots, minced
1 1-inch piece of fresh ginger root, grated
4 cups vegetable stock
1 13.5-ounce of coconut milk
1 cup red lentils
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Kosher or sea salt
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Pierce squash all over with a sharp knife. Place on a baking sheet and roast, turning occasionally, until a fork goes into the flesh easily, about 40 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. Heat coconut oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to brown, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add ginger and cook for another minute.
3. Add stock, coconut milk and lentils and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until lentils break down, about 20-25 minutes. Stir in cayenne pepper.
4. Cut squash in half. Scoop out seeds, and then rinse and dry them. Scoop out the flesh and add it to the soup. Season with salt to taste and simmer for about 5 minutes.
5. Toss squash seeds with a pinch of salt and sesame oil. On a baking sheet, roast in oven until crispy and lightly browned, about 6-8 minutes.
6. Blend soup in a standard blender or with an immersion blender until smooth. Garnish with seeds and serve.
SnOMG, you guys! It’s like a winter wonderland out there! Here’s the scene from my porch in Brooklyn:
And another:
The trip to Philadelphia and Atlantic City for this weekend has been canceled due to inclement weather. We’ll go in March, though. So what to do instead? I’m thinking soup.
It’s a new week, and that means it’s time to forget about the wine, cupcake, grilled cheese and bacon transgressions of yesterday and start fresh. And starting fresh, to me, means cooking a bunch of healthy food so later in the week when I’m feeling lazy, I don’t shove pizza in my face. I started with this: a super easy salad that isn’t really a salad (my favorite kind).
Shrimp and Lentil Salad
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup fresh dill, finely chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup roasted red pepper, diced
1 cup cucumber, diced
1/2 cup shallots, finely chopped
2 cups cooked lentils
8 ounces cooked shrimp
Directions:
1. Whisk together the lemon juice, mustard, salt, pepper, dill and olive oil.
2. In a large bowl, mix red pepper, cucumber, shallots, lentils and shrimp. Toss with dressing. Allow flavors to meld for at least 15 minutes before serving.
1) Does Con Edison live on my street now? Because they’ve been camped out here for about six years now.
2) Is this particular Con Edison truck driver an egg enthusiast? Because if so, I can get behind that. Eggs rock. Did you know they’re the only truly perfect source of protein? It’s true. And if this particular Con Edison truck driver is not just an egg enthusiast, is he or she moonlighting with the American Egg Board? And if he or she is moonlighting with the American Egg Board, won’t Con Edison frown on their company-branded truck being used in such a manner?
3) What point is this particular Con Edison driver trying to make about bacon, exactly? Is it on par with the egg? The perfect accompaniment? A food so delectable that it needs no words, no context? A cuisine onto itself?
4) Did a random egg lover vandalize this particular Con Edison truck with his or her important message of breakfast? Was he or she working alone, or with a separate bacon lover? Or did the egg lover vandalize the Con Edison truck first, and then a bacon lover came along, felt bacon needed to be represented in any breakfast-related graffiti, and added to what was already there?
5) Would you have even more questions if you saw the other side of the truck?
Because I do. And I plan to spend the remainder of the afternoon loitering in the proximity of this particular Con Edison truck until I get some answers.
Linus sent me this wonderful video today. Here’s the description:
A video made in stopmotion for competition AdobeYouGC. The simulation of a tutorial which shows how to make the lovely butter cookies with the new Adobe Photoshop Cook! Whole set was made with cardboard and with kitchen utensils.
Adobe Photoshop Cook from Lait Noir on Vimeo.
Last night, I fell asleep on the couch, or rather, cried myself to sleep while watching “My Sister’s Keeper,” because, I mean, have you seen that movie? Tearjerker is an understatement. Jesus. Anyway, Evan came home and attempted to rouse me with a gentle shake and a “Wake up, princess!” In my confused, sleepy state I responded, “I’m not a princess. I’m just a girl who pees in a cup.”
Yeah. I don’t know, either.
I first heard about Korzo back when it was called Eurotrip. I was slinging cookie dough at Little Buddy Biscuit Company at the time, and Chef Pete told me about it. Then I forgot, because there are a lot of restaurants in Brooklyn.
Recently, Majo mentioned how much she loved the place, so Evan and I decided to have our low-key pre-Valentine’s Day dinner there on Saturday night. And I’m glad we did.
Korzo describes their cuisine as “updated, healthier and sensibly adventurous takes on Central European dishes.” To start, we ordered the Klassic Langos, or Hungarian Fried Bread with a roasted garlic and brown butter paste. It tasted similar to Italian zeppole, though savory instead of sweet. I didn’t get a picture of it because we devoured it in about five seconds flat.
For an entree, I ordered the Wunderwurst Platter. For starters, I loved the presentation. The German, Hungarian and Polish sausage trio was grilled to perfection, and the tangy homemade sauerkraut was a fantastic accompaniment. My only quibble, and it’s a minor one, is that the brightly colored sauces on the dish didn’t add much in the way of flavor. I say it’s minor because with the spicy mustard and fresh horseradish, I didn’t feel like I was missing anything.
Evan ordered the Spicy Hungarian Goulash, which was full of flavor and packing just the right amount of heat. Again, the presentation was great, and the homemade spaetzle was well-seasoned and not too heavy.
I took one bite of the goulash and exclaimed, “This is what I’m getting next time.” Evan said the same thing when he tried mine. Since there are several intriguing items on the menu, including a FRIED BURGER, we may have to make many, many more trips. Rumor has it Korzo has an amazing beer selection, too, but I’m a wino and Evan’s all about the whiskey, so you’ll have to try that for yourself.
Korzo, 667 5th Avenue, Brooklyn
