I'm a shucking fanatic!

I have had two unbelievable nights at Astor Center. Tuesday night with Maria Jose de Heredia and last night with W & T Seafood. You know me, I could go on for ages about the poetics of de Heredia's wines, the 1985 Tondonia was out of this world, but today, I need to rant about my new love for oysters.

At first I was intimidated by them... but not after this class! Nellie and Matthew gave the class a thorough background of these mollusks talking us through east to west and back again. The usual Kumamoto and Fanny Bay were top of the listers but the BEAVERTAIL was unreal!!! So big, briny, crisp, and creamy all at the same time. Yummmmmmmmmmm!

I've also discovered my hidden talent of (and love for) shucking! My new favorite stress reliever.

Making Moves....

Last Friday the City Winery cru (ha, get it?) invited me back for bottling. While I couldn't be there all day I did enjoy two hours of shepherding the 2008 Cabernet Sauv into 750 mL green bottles. I have to admit, my fire was re-lit.

Basically, I'm done moping around wanting a change... so I'm just going to make it happen. I love wine and food for many reasons, but mainly because the joy that comes with sharing them with new and old friends is, by far, the best high. There is something to be said for the bond between people when dissecting the meaning of life over a glass of Priorat and a freshly prepared meal.

There is good in this world and if the only place to experience that good is at the table or in the kitchen or in a vineyard, then so be it... I refuse to miss out.

So what am I doing? Well, I'm just going to do it, whatever that it is. But I can say that wishing and hoping are out of the question.

Last night, Marcy and I sat at the Tea Salon in Chelsea Market and swooned for a few hours over art, culture, and the 2007 gold muskateller we were sipping on. This wine blew my mind! I have never tasted anything so well balanced with florals, herbs, minerals, and passion.



At first sip I tasted jasmine and lavender; Marcy had hints of vanilla. Every element was subtle and whispered vivid scenes of the land from which the grapes came. A slight hint of sage hovered over the pallet while honey seeped into your taste buds. Brilliant. Absolutely, brilliant.

This morning, I stopped at Grey Dog in Chelsea. Got my coffee, listened to a little 70's rock while mixing in raw sugar, and left with a smile on my face. Now I'm at work and looking forward to my wine class tonight at Astor with Maria Jose Lopez de Heredia - an outstanding female winemaker from Spain (I believe Rioja).

Life is good, remember... you just have to open your eyes to see it.

A relaxing morning

I woke up about an hour before my alarm and decided not to turn on any lights or music.

Instead, I walked around my apartment in the dusk of 5:50am, put some water on to warm up for Genmaicha tea and laid back down in bed.... in the silence. When I rose for a second time (only minutes later), I cooked some white quinoa for breakfast.

Quinoa and honey is supposed to be a fantastic boost of protein in the AM... we'll see how it works! Perhaps I'll cut up some strawberries and orange for the experiment!

Have a beautiful day!

Escarole, garlic, criminis, truffle oil, OH MY!

It's the first night I've been home before 7pm without anything to do in a long time. So what to do? I could go for a run.... I should go for a run. The half marathon is this coming Sunday! Nah, I'll go tomorrow morning. I have a 1/2 bottle of this fantastic 2005 Spanish blend, a fresh head of escarole, and recipe burning in my mind. I'm going home to cook, drink, think, write, and relax!

Trompe l'oeil! Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie gave me some deep inspiration. Food that looks like one thing but is actually something else. Ok.... then how do we stop thinking of anything edible as anything but its self? How do we get outside of societies box? It is its own thing. A plant, an animal, a synthetic. Hm, interesting. One of my favorites was the tomato tartar that looked like a real steak tartar.

The end of the show was the most inspirational: mindless eating. Brian Wansink's segment helped me understand food marketing in a new way... and it's making me kind of want to move into this field. Of course I still have my dream of being a winemaker (or at least working at a vineyard part time while owning my cafe)... I'll never give that up. In the mean time, however, what if I practiced what I believe in?

It's like making dinner. What do I use to get the result I want? What is the result I want? If I mince an extra clove of garlic will it make or break? Will the safron be a pleasant surprise? What about the truffle... is there even room for the truffle?!

Such is life! A huge kitchen and a garden full of choices. The trick is that we have to approach, harvest and utilize the precious ingredients before they lose their umph!

Kidney Beans and Boston Lettuce

The escarole scampi did not happen last night... but kidney bean lettuce wraps did! A super easy and extremely delicious meal that is exotic, fun, and different.

All I did was soak dry kidney beans over night and boil them until they "mashed" themselves. I added in some peanut chili sauce (natural peanut butter, chili pepper, cayenne pepper, and oil), washed off some boston lettuce leaves, and topped them with the beans.

Give it a try. Next time I'll experiment with chickpeas or lentils and currys!

I've been slacking

I've been slacking on my writing! I don't know what it is. There are so many articles I've been reading and stories on NPR that really strike a chord with me, but I just haven't had the time to reflect on them and share with you! I'm not even going to try right now because I feel rushed and whatever I say won't make much sense.

This morning I picked up a cup of coffee on my way to the subway. Park Slope is really beautiful this time of year with the blossoming tree lined streets! I realy felt like a New Yorker and appreciated living here.

Tonight - I'm babysitting and am looking forward to sauteeing some fresh escarole scampi and angel hair pasta!

Ok... that's all I got. Until I get a few more minutes, have a great day!

Your's truly in the NY Times!

Ok, ok, so there are over 400 photos featured, BUT mine are #163 & #167. Hey, in this life, we take what we can get!

Make this quick!

I only have a few moments but I wanted to get a several thoughts out that have been swirling around in my abyss:

1. 1 Ingredient per week. I've decided I need to broaden my produce and protein vocabulary by experimenting with 1 new item per week. This week's item will be announced later today... but I think I want to try out some recipes with genmaicha tea (just because I'm obsessed with it right now).

2. NY Times article yesterday about people photographing and chronicling EVERYTHING THEY EAT! I fall into this trend, but I still have to ask the question: what makes the general public care? Well, me personally, I believe that by being conscious of what we are putting into our bodies is the first step to creating a safe and sustainable food system. When we eat mindlessly (ie: while driving, while talking, while working, etc) then it "doesn't matter" what we are fueling up with... when in fact it does. One of the most beautiful aspects of European culture is that eating is an event. It should be. No matter how busy we are we NEED to find time to sit down and eat real food. If it takes a bunch of ego-centric bloggers (myself included) to pronounce this - then so be it.

3. Re-zoning of fast food restaurants in high obesity areas of NYC. Ok - several things here. Yes, it will affect job openings for some who are unable to find jobs anywhere else (that is coming from a woman who was only able to find a job at a Burger King), but let's not make this a negative, people! We need to start wanting... DEMANDING better for ourselves and our community. Change starts from within and perhaps instead of opening up another fast food joint on the corner in that empty commercial lot, how about an indoor farmer market? Home gardening store? C'mon, let's get creative and make the good happen. I'm going to research this more because it's fascinating - we should all have this on our radars!

Alrighty, that's about it for now. And please, I'm not ignorant about low income areas having higher obesity rates because that's all they can afford. I live in a pretty low income area and I see it... but I also see the community garden that opened up several blocks away. I see bakeries opened up by long time community members who are cooking themselves. It's beautiful and it CAN be done!

Easter Eggs and a Birthday Weekend

I haven't colored Easter Eggs since I was a little girl. Well, this weekend, I surprised the dude with a dozen hard boiled eggs and four mugs of blue, green, red, and yellow!

I'll comment more on the birthday weekend... let's just say that I need to detox!

Day 3: Say Yes, Say Yes, Say Yes!!!

Not everyone has to like you and you don't have to like everyone.

I found myself at City Winery last night not for wine making, but for wine drinking and an awesome blue grass show. My girlfriend, Ryan, and I sat feet away from Langhorne Slim and sampled several glasses of wine (if there is any such thing as one-too-many we may have been at that limit).

As I walked in I couldn't help but wonder why I hadn't been back to my internship? Had I said something wrong? Did I not talk enough? Are they not busy enough for me? Well, instead of beating myself up about this I listened to the music. Langhorne sang song after song to me, it felt. Lyrics like "let it flow, let it flow on the outskirts of town"; stories about running away; messages that resonated with everything will be ok. At times I felt as if I were the only one in the bar listening and clapping my hands and sipping my wine.

As it turns out, such is life! We make attempts and they may not always turn out to be what we were looking for... so then we move on and find something else that does turn out to be what we are looking for.

Thanks, Langhorne!