A Few Weeks in May

On May 5th - Cinco de Mayo - it seemed as if we were having a real springtime in Hudson.  Finally.   I celebrated the Mexican national holiday at brunch with friends who served not Margaritas and burritos, but smoked salmon and asparagus topped with an herb-filled cold, cream sauce, and eggs baked in butter and cream.  They said it was French food to honor not the victors but the losers. The Battle of Puebla on May 5th  was a significant victory for the outnumbered Mexican army over the invading  French and gave our neighbors to the south a push towards establishing unity within their country.  The US government aided the Mexican army to achieve their victory and so Cinco de Mayo is happily celebrated stateside as well.  

Dessert is made easy when you own an illustrious ice cream  parlor on Warren Street 

Right on the heels of my first outdoor meal of 2013, I jumped on Amtrak headed towards New York City to meet one of my oldest friends, Nally Bellati who had just arrived from Italy.  Our plan was to meet at Uniqlo on 5th Avenue and 53rd street - I mean, where else?   Nally took the E train from Chelsea and I got on it at Penn Station - and don't you know, there she was standing in the car that I was about to board. It was NOT planned.  Uniqlo, the Japanese give-away fashion spot was filled with tempting colors and we were seduced into many purchases but wound up returning everything.  Our mid-town plan was made so we could see our friend, designer Christopher Young's stunning, Gatsby-themed windows at Tiffany.  The whole city is quite Gatsby mad right now.

Crispy Swedish Bread, Danish Rye  Bread, Brown Butter, Sea Salt

Cardamom Panna Cotta

We were both  hungry and couldn't quite figure out where to eat - it's always a problem in mid-town  for me.  I don't have a business expense account(!), and also tend to favor ethnic food when I'm in the city.  In the end we decided to return to the reliable Aquavit.    The restaurant calls itself a Scandinavian country dining experience.  However, this Michelin-starred place with its Arne Jacobsen chairs puts quite a sophisticated spin on "country dining".  The original food concept comes from the great Swedish chef, Marcus Samuelsson.  While no longer involved with the restaurant - Samuelsson's imprinteur   is clearly evident.   The restaurant serves a thoroughly satisfying prix fixe lunch.  Both Nally & I ordered the crudités salad  served with a shower of crushed sunflower seeds, salmon, pale and subtle, napped with cauliflower puree, and a fine twist on panna cotta infused with cardamom and filled with almond paste.

And the main event was still to come - A big party at John Derian to celebrate his collaboration with the French ceramic company, Astier de Villatte (go to their link right now - it's extremely witty).
John's new shop - yup - another one, at 8 east 2nd street, right in between the his shops at #s 6 & 10 - was decorated like a French, country farmhouse  complete with straw-covered floors, and the piece de resistance - aside from John's beautiful designs on Astier de Villatte's very sturdy but delicate plates, mugs, vases, urns, compotes, was Livia Cetti's  jaw-dropping flower arrangement - paper flowers cut from hand-painted paper.

Cream of Asparagus Soup - recipe on Register Star column



Poached Eggs on Roasted Asparagus

Rhubarb Compote (sweetened with orange jam) on sliced Pain Viennoise topped with Roasted Cinnamon and Passion Fruit Ice Cream

Then Nally, and her husband, Manfredi came to Hudson for a few days.  Food was involved, of course - I've written about our at-home meals in my weekly column - Susan Simon Says (what else?), Food for Thought - which you can find here .  Once you get there click on Columnists and scroll down to mine.  Thanks.   We also had fine meals at Le Gamin, and Wasabi in Hudson - and at The newly reopened, resplendent in red and pink stripes, The Red Barn, in Ghent.  Nally says that
The Red Barn's mussels are deeeeeeeeeeee-liscious.

 

 

And then back to NYC for a dinner given by James and Mark to celebrate the publication of their Brooklyn apartment in New York magazine's special issue, design hunting, and the magazine's longtime design editor, Wendy Goodman.   James and Mark chose the Indian restaurant, Panna II in the East Village  - not for its food - apocryphal, maybe - but the word on the street is that all the Indian restaurants in the east 6th street area, between 1st and 2nd avenues share the same kitchen- no matter - the atmosphere trumped any food concerns.  The tiny room was a forest of Christmas lights, chili pepper lights, Christmas, Halloween, Easter and birthday banners.  Mark and James had arrived before the guests to cover the tables with shocking pink linens - "Pink is the navy blue of India", Diana Vreeland famously said - a copy of the magazine, place cards carried like bejeweled rajahs and ranees on the howdahs of  elephant holders, and cake pops made by Big City Little Sweets decorated in themes found in the couple's Park Slope apartment completed the table setting.

Whew.   May isn't over yet.   More to come

SUSANSIMONSAYS:
Great time at lunch with Nally and Louise Fili at Gramercy Tavern.  But, I must say - that Gramercy Tavern seems to be a shadow of its former self.  Oh, the rooms are still pretty and the attentive  Danny Meyer service still reigns- no complaints.  But, what happened to the food?   Greasy carrots, overcooked fish.  Nope.  Too many good restaurants in NYC to run back there.

 

Rain, Rain Goes Away

The rain didn't completely go away on Sunday - but it did share the day with us.   After a straight shot west on Route 23 from Hudson, NY- in the pouring down rain - I turned right onto Route 10 - in the bright sunshine - in Stamford, NY and continued until I reached my friends Rita and David's picture-perfect home in Jefferson.  The occasion for the visit - besides visiting my friends, at their country home, who I was accustomed to seeing with a kind of regularity when I lived in the city - was to visit with their daughter and grandchildren who now live in Uganda.   Zoe, her husband, David and their 3 children visit the States twice a year and it's my pleasure to see them, and watch the kids grow up and acquire a kind of British colonial accent.

I arrived in time to have an hors d'oevre selection of cheese from the nearby Harpersfield Cheese Co. Sunday's choices included raw milk, jalapeno, and black peppercorn.  The Brovettos - who own the dairy use Tilsit - a German, semi-firm cow's milk cheese that's tangy in a mild way, and fruity in that it's a welcome host to whatever other flavors are added to it - and there are many - as the basis for their cheese.  In Hudson, Cheese! at the farmers' market sells one that's aged in Ommegang ale (from the famed Cooperstown brewery).  But wait, here's the really cool part of this cheese story.  My friends have acres and acres and acres of  fields of hay on their property.  The Brovettos mow it, bale it and feed it to the cows who give the milk that makes the tasty cheese.

Lunch was served in a screened-in porch that overhangs a garden chock-a-block filled with hostas and the rest of the backyard view - it feels somwhat like sitting in a treehouse.  The table was draped in fabulous East African, purple and green tie-dyed cloth that provided a stunning background for John  Derian for Target leaf-patterned melamine plates.  (you may have noticed that last week, my outdoor table was set with the same ones - they are the perfect outdoor plate - and unfortunately they are no longer available - except maybe on eBay), and John Robshaw grass green napkins. These necessary accessories set off a generous offering of food, the ingredients for which came from the Oneonta farmers' market and Rita's garden.

There was selection of meat from various Oneonta market vendors that included pork hot dogs, spicy lamb sausages and ground beef for grilling into mini-burgers.

Zaide's Potatey Salad - made from several varieties of potatoes grown by zaide, or grandpa, David in his potato patch, green beans from the garden and freshly pounded pesto.
David's potato patch is guarded by a folk-art goat sculpture made by neighbor, John Jackson.

Rita's Cole Slaw was made with finely shredded cabbage and carrots, grated fresh garlic and dressed with half and half, a bit of mayonnaise, a whisper of sugar, salt and pepper.  Make it at least an hour before serving to give it time for the flavors to marry.

Steamed corn on the cob and sliced tomatoes completed the quintessentially summertime meal.

Our post prandial entertainment was provided, pond-side, by various swimming children and Frankie, the Golden Retriever who felt that it was her duty to stay close to those kids.  She was, in fact, their own personal life guard.  Not that she needed an excuse to stay in the water (she was born to swim) - unlike Allegra who goes in up to her knees only in order to chase frogs and bite the water.

At some point, after picking warm-from-the-sun raspberries, we returned to the porch for dessert.  I made the summer cake - already photographed for this blog - and recipe included.  The cake was served with vanilla ice cream.   Sound like a day that you might see described and photographed for a glossy magazine?  It was.  But, even better -  we were there.  


Lagniappe - or, what has Allegra's rapt attention?

 SUSANSIMONSAYS:    Come and meet legendary cookbook editor, and James Beard award-winning cookbook author himself, Roy Finamore at the Hudson Farmers' Market, Saturday, August 4th.  Roy will be signing copies of his classic books, "One Potato, Two Potato", and "Tasty", from 10:30am - 12:30pm.   I will continue to remind you that everyone loves a cookbook  as a birthday present or to celebrate a winter holiday.

Mango, Tango, Bango!!!

It's the time of the year -spring when those gorgeous little kidney bean-shaped  mangoes, the ataulfo, arrive from Central America to the produce bins of our nearby markets (they come out again in the fall). In markets with lots of space, the mangoes are displayed in their flattering, lavender colored boxes.  The ataulfo that I bought were called champagne mangoes and were imported exclusively by the Ciruli Brothers .  They're also called honey mangoes or Manila mangoes.  Regardless of their appellation they are the supreme mango, almost string less - none of that annoying fibre stuck between your teeth - with a firm, yet flexible texture.  Eating an ataulfo mango is something like eating pure mango flan.  Its firm flesh makes it the ideal ingredient for cutting into a perfect little dice and then adding to other ingredients to make a savory or sweet salad, chutney or salsa.

I made my favorite Seychelloise-style fresh fruit chutney to accompany the other components of a colorful meal.

3 Ataulfo mangoes, peeled, cut into approximate 1/2-inch pieces.  After it's peeled the mango is easily cut from top to bottom off both sides of the  pit, and then another slender slice on each side of it.  These sections are ready to make into perfect diced pieces.
2 scallions, white part (some tiny bit of pale green) chopped
1 Thai hot pepper, minced
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
zest and juice of 1 large juicy lime, or 2 small ones
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium bowl, toss all the ingredients together.  Cover the bowl and let sit in a cool spot for at least an hour until ready to serve.  Leftover chutney may be stored in a refrigerator in a tightly sealed container for up to a week.

The thing that gets me to decide what to eat as much as the ingredients themselves is their color.  The more vibrant the color the more I'm attracted to the ingredient.  To certify what seems to be whimsical reasoning I might add that the more vibrant the color the higher the nutritional value contained within the produce.   Ah - what a bonus.
RED fruits and vegetables, especially tomatoes contain a high amount of lycopene - an antioxidant.
ORANGE & YELLOW produce, including sweet potatoes, squash, pineapple, mangoes and carrots are high in beta carotene = vitamin A which helps dispel depression, headaches, heartburn and high blood pressure.
BLUE & PURPLE ingredients such as blueberries, blackberries, purple grapes, plums and eggplant contain anthocyanins = antioxidant.
GREEN the color that gives the whole category its name.  This produce is obvious, and gets its color from chlorophyll which = vitamins A,C,& K.  The fiber contained in the greens goes a long way to lower cholesterol.

Add, say, a bright, beautiful pile of pickled red cabbage on the plate with a mound of mango chutney and you've got another part of a trio flavors that will add up to a meal filled with more dips and swirls then most tangos danced in Buenos Aires.   For the pickled cabbage recipe I'm going to send you straight to my friend, Amy's blog, Coconut and Quinoa .

The protein portion of this group is my version of age tofu - fried  tofu.  In the Japanese kitchen cubes of tofu are covered in corn or potato starch and fried until golden then served in a hot broth made with mirin, dashi, sho-yu then topped with finely chopped green onions, and sometimes grated daikon radish.
Here's what I did:
2 large or  4 small shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
grapeseed or canola oil for frying
rice flour for coating
1 block firm, preferably organic tofu cut into 1 1/2-inch squares

1.  Fill a small skillet, over medium heat with about an inch of oil.  Add the sliced shallots and cook until golden - stir ocassionally or else the ones on the outer edge of the skillet will burn.  Remove the pale gold (they'll continue to cook as they cool) shallots from the oil with a strainer and drain on paper towels.  Reserve the oil.
2.   Add the rice  flour to a dinner plate.  Coat all sides of the tofu with the flour.  
3.   Reheat the shallot-flavored oil to medium.  Add the tofu, in batches, and fry until golden on all sides.  Drain on paper towels.  Serve hot - or at room temperature.

Compose your meal with a stack of tofu covered with fried shallots, a heap of pickled cabbage and
mango chutney.  All the better if you have a turquoise, navy blue or lime green plate for serving.  Bango! -here's a  meal of creamy tofu covered with a crackling crust topped with what seem to be mini fried onions rings, crunchy pickled cabbage, and fragrant, tangy fresh mango chutney.  Healthy? OMG, Yes!  For me, this meal tastes even better when eaten with chopsticks.

SUSANSIMONSAYS:   

This vintage sofa, newly upholstered with Lisa Corti fabric, from John Derian nourishes me visually in the same way as the meal I've just described.  Remember, feed all your senses.