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Es werden Posts vom Juli, 2015 angezeigt.

Henry's Tavern

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For Father’s Day, we wanted to take my Dad out for lunch and weren’t sure where to go—he likes to be helpful with my blog and said he would just like to go somewhere new, and they live further north than we do, so we decided to give Henry’s a try. This is the latest incarnation in the building (and from the same restaurant group) that was originally Kincaid’s and then for a short time, Stanford’s (in Clay Terrace). Henry’s has an even more casual feel and they have even taken over part of the dining room with a shuffleboard table and pool tables that are free to play for diners. My kids were fans of these options. It’s more of a bar feel, and it seems to be working for them, because it was more crowded than I had ever seen the other two places. We got a bunch of starters, because everyone wanted something different, and I was happy because I got to try a lot of things. After a recent trip to Wisconsin, hubby and I were intrigued to try their cheese curds, because we had enjoyed the one

You’ve Entered the Calzone Zone

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I’ve never been a huge fan of the calzone, and I assume most people that don’t eat their pizza crusts feel the same way. However, since this has been requested hundreds of times, I thought I’d put my personal feelings aside, and give the recipe a shot. I call it a recipe, but it’s actually a technique, since the calzone's greatest feature is its ability to accept any combination of cheese, meat, and vegetables as a filling. Today, calzones are most commonly stuffed with the exact same toppings that go on a pizza, which, besides the crust issue, was one of my main problems with it. I mean, why not just fold a pizza in half, and call it a day? So, I decided to do what I hear is a more traditional filling, featuring ricotta, fresh mozzarella, and ham. The result was as enjoyable, as it was surprising. It was almost, but not quite, lasagna-like. The extra crust didn’t bother me as much, and everything seemed to work together beautifully. I decided to recommend our Wolfgang Puck dough r

Next Up: Calzone

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Sangrita Saloon

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Hubby and I wanted a kind of light, early dinner the other night after traveling all day and he mentioned Mexican food (not exactly light) and Sangrita popped into my mind. I didn’t know a ton about it, but I knew it was more of a cocktail place (saloon they call it) with small dishes and a somewhat limited menu, so we headed over there. Plus, it’s NEW!  First of all, as I said, it isn’t a huge menu—a few appetizers and 4 kinds of tacos and sides pretty much, but I really appreciate the fact that the kitchen is focusing on these things and not trying to do too much. The drink menu in this is way bigger. They have a huge list of Agave-based choices. We did get a couple cocktails because, you know, research and all. Hubby started with the Margarita classic ($7) and I got the Margarita Jardin ($9) just to be different. Both were very good—lots of fresh juice and nice quality booze being used here. I liked the addition of the grapefruit and basil in mine—it really did make it sort of taste

Baba Ghanoush – The Day After Dip

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No matter what you’re grilling this summer, chances are good you’re going to have more hot coals than food to cook on it, which makes baba ghanoush the perfect post-barbecue recipe. Instead of those glowing embers going gently into the sweet night, why not grill up some eggplant, and make one of the world’s best vegetable dips? You can cook the eggplant any way you want, but charcoal is my favorite. Next best would be cooked over a gas burner, but that can really mess up your stove, so I guess the real next best is baked at 400 F. until they collapse, and get very soft. As you can see in the clip, this is not a very complicated recipe. As long as this is seasoned thoughtfully, you should be enjoying a wonderfully savory, yet refreshing dip. Just be sure to pay attention to the salt. Eggplant, like almost every vegetable, needs a good amount of salt to bring out the flavor. The difference between a terrible dip, and a stellar spread can be as little as a half teaspoon of salt. Wait for

Penn and Palate

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I got to hit one of the new places in town the other day with my friend @wibia . I am very excited by the sheer volume of new places to try right now. I am trying to be patient and not go to them all too quickly, but I figured since these guys run the Legend in Irvington already, they’re probably ready going to know how to run a place. They’ve done a nice job with the interior, although there are areas that feel kind of empty—I guess  maybe they are leaving space in case they have people waiting. The menu is pretty straightforward American fare with a couple of twists. I like the touch of having pictures of local artists on the walls—a nice diversion from sports figures. I wished for some background music though, it had a strange silence when I first got there and it wasn’t very busy. Our server was very friendly, and checked in on us frequently. I had the chicken and bacon club ($10) and a side order of pommes frites ($3). The ingredients on the “sandwich” were good quality, but it wa

Have a Great Fourth of July Weekend!

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We’re going to take a couple days off for the holiday, but wanted to wish you a very safe, and festive 4th of July!   Fabulous summer cookouts are just one of the many things that makes America great, and I hope you’re involved one of those tomorrow; preferably serving something you saw on Food Wishes (like the no-baked cheesecake flag cake pictured here). Enjoy the food, the fireworks, and possibly the adult beverages, and we’ll be back next week with brand-new videos, as usual. Stay tuned!  .

Bento Cafe- Revisit

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My daughter and I decided to go back and try Bento Café. The first time I went, I really enjoyed the dumplings –and the sushi wasn’t bad (just enormous!), so I was curious to see if the other food was good. The menu is quite extensive ranging from noodles to what else-- Bento boxes. We both got a lunch Bento Box. Considering the amount of food you get with them, the $7.95 price tag is pretty reasonable. You get a crab Rangoon, a fried spring roll, 4 pieces of California roll and then your entrée, which you choose. Ok, it’s a lot of food, but honestly, the only thing that stood out for me was my entrée, which I really enjoyed. I had the basil ginger chicken, which had a nice slightly spicy edge and lots of fresh basil in it, giving it a lot of depth of flavor. The white meat chicken was very thin and actually very tender—the slices were pretty big, I would have actually appreciated a knife and fork to cut them with. There were a bunch of veggies in there—my favorites were the zucchini,

4th of July Special: Red, White & Blueberry Grilled Chicken!

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These colors don’t run, but they do stain, so I recommend eating this delicious, red, white and blueberry chicken outdoors, preferably at some type of 4th of July barbecue. While the Independence Day wordplay was very much intentional, this grilled chicken is no gimmick. Smoky, spicy meats have been paired with sweet-and-sour, fruit-based sauces since we’ve had cooks, so that this combo works beautifully is no big surprise. And yes, other juicy fruit like peaches, or other berries will work nicely. Like I said in the video, I made my spice rub extra hot, so I could really take advantage of the cooling effects of the sweetness in the sauce. Sweet cancels out heat on your palette, so you can kind of push things a bit if you want. The measurements below are what I used, but you should, and must adjust.   As far as chicken doneness goes, I recommend checking with a thermometer. If you cook a lot of chicken, it’s fairly easy to tell by feel, but why take a chance? I usually go to 150 F, wh