no i have not gone
entirely 5 months without cooking. yes i probably gained 15 pounds this summer. but please let me explain...let's face it- there is nothing better than home-cooked food. also, fact: there is no other city on earth with as good and as many food options as New York. so with that killer combo, you can understand why i took somewhat of a hiatus from the kitchen myself.
that being said i think i owe you a recap of the culinary delights that i discovered this summer...
1)
Smorgasburg. a Brooklyn flea food market. in other words- my nirvana. situated on the East River in Williamsburg, with a view of the New York City skyline, it is a home to the cream of the crop- the best food purveyors in the metropolitan area. with everything from banana soft serve to pickles to maple syrup to lobster rolls- this place has got it all. not only is there a wide variety of goodies to suit any taste buds, but the creativity is astounding. i mean hibiscus lime soda? come on!
2)
my dad's knack for Grecian style fish. i can say with unequivocal certainty that the simpler the food, the tastier it is. take for example a basic white fish stuffed with veggie goodness and slathered in olive oil, salt & pepper, roasted on the bbq. nothin' betta.
3)
Olive & Gourmando. discovered this hidden gem on a weekend sojourn to MTL with some good friends. the meal lasted approximately 2.5 hours and consisted of multiple orders of the same dishes. we just couldn't get enough of the spring pea soup and turtle bars.
4)
burrata."burrata" means "buttered" in Italian- for good reason. this scrumptious, creamy, rich cheese is best when used as a spread on fresh baguette with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, top with roasted tomatoes and fresh figs. to me this screams heaven on a slice of bread. but please see for yourselves. you can usually find it at a farmer's market or Italian grocer- ours is "Dante's"- notice the little old Italian ladies, aren't they cute!
5)
the 3 g's: grapefruit. gin. ginger. a refreshing summer cocktail if i ever heard of one. men- don't despair, it is not the girliest of drinks, even my dad drinks it. the recipe: 1 part gin, 1 part canton (ginger liquor), the rest fresh grapefruit juice. to add a little zing we put some fresh ginger syrup that we purchased at Smorgasburg.
believe you me, there is way more where this came from, but i understand that i should not overload your epicurean fantasies all at once.
