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New York City is a wonderful place--every possibly language, culture and cuisine has a home here. And pork gets its very own island! I took the ferry out with That Sara (of NYCNomNom--her review is here) and her BF, Mike. It was a beautiful, albeit humid, day, in September.
Make no mistake--this is no place for vegetarians or vegans (although they offered a vegetarian ticket, what we saw was definitely not worth it!)
We got there bright and early---I'd read many a time that food events on Governor's Island quickly went south, running out of food and causing outrageous lines. We weren't taking any chances! Since we'd bought the Thrillist discount, we also got to go through a little faster: advantage: US!
We planned to make a quick loop around the area and see what we wanted to come back and try, but it didn't really work out that way. Too many tempting stalls stopped us in our tracks. There's so much to show you, but I'm going to narrow it down to my 3 favorite bites:
Ici (remember how awesome they were at Brooklyn Uncorked??? Still awesome) had a stand where they had a shredded pork over spicy greens. This contained peppers, so Sara ordinarily wouldn't be able to try it, but they offered to make a non-pepper version just for her--so we came back about 30 minutes later and they had it waiting. I thought that went above and beyond! It was delicious--the greens were fresh, the dressing had lots of black pepper, and it was just bright and scarfable. I must get to this restaurant in 2012!!
The Smorrebrod stand had 3 bites: 2 bits on bread and a meatball. The pork terrine on the most amazing rye bread--holy crap. I could have stopped here and been so, so happy. The pickled veggies on top gave it a nice crunch, too. I have to track down this bread--it was so delicious that I found out which person at the stall was responsible for it told her repeatedly how amazing it was. A-may-ZING.
The meatball was just okay..but look! Another butter-slathered slice of that to-die-for bread!
Rounding out the top 3 is Austrian restaurant Edi & The Wolf. I had just seen the owners on The Today Show a week or two ago, and everything they made looked amazing. I can't even remember what this bite is--I just know that normally I would have passed it by, but after seeing the spot on the Today Show and talking to the enthusiastic workers at the stand, I had to give it a shot. What a delicious, transformative mix of flavors. Get ready, ABF--we are GOING HERE!
And there was a sweet bite I loved too--bacon-maple-cinnamon rolls. Yeah, you heard me. I went back for a second one. I could have gone back for three, four, five and six, but I didn't.
The beer flowed a-plenty, too, courtesy of Six Point Beer. I'm not much of a beer person, but the Belgian White ws light, refreshing, and not too malty.
Overall, the event was excellently organized--there were only long lines at a few spots, and plenty of food to go around. Even the bites that were just 'ok' were still fun to try. Things started disappearing around 1:30, but by then we'd eaten our fill and then some!
I can't believe this was my first trip to Governor's Island-- I will be back to rent a bike, ride around, and take in the gorgeous scenery, including jaw-dropping views of the NYC skyline that I love so much.
Will I be back for Pig Island 2012? Hmmm...maybe. But if you've never been, I definitely suggest going at least once! And do yourself a favor: go hungry.
Also..wanna see more yummy pix? Check out my Stuff I Ate FB page and/or click here!
My trip home from visiting Texas was an adventure all its own. My flight landed in Baltimore about 30 minutes late, but my connecting flight was delayed by 2 hours. Which turned into 3. Which turned into 4. Ah, travel. Upon hearing I'd have a good few hours to burn, I wondered where I'd go to get some food and kill some time. I turned to my right and saw Vino Volo a mere 20 steps from my gate! Sweet serendipity!
I ambled up to the bar, took in my surroundings, and opened up my menu. The bartender said hello and asked how I was doing, and I gave my trademark smile and replied that I was doing much better now that I had somewhere to be for my 2-hour delay. He seemed... yeah.. pretty uninterested. Wow, sorry I'm so boring! Back to the menu, where one glance was all it took to decide on my order...
And then they arrived....my tasting of three world reds from South Africa, Argentina, and Spain. Delightful! And a mere seven dollars! Seven!
Each glass (or tasting) comes with little paper doilies (?) that have the wine's name, background, flavor profile, and a brief description. I loved this!
I saw it posted somewhere outside Vino Volo that they serve food, so once the bartender came back, I asked for that menu, too. They categorize the foods by which go better with red, white, etc., and smack at the top of the 'red' category were the braised pork mini tacos. I ordered the half portion for 5 dollars. FIVE!
This was deeelicious, and a perfect pairing with the 3 wines. They really brought out the zing in the sauce, and the meat was a nice foil, especially with the peppery South African Shiraz. Even the tortilla was soft and delicate. I would have liked just a little more lime juice on the sandwich, but hey, I'm in the middle of the aiport, right? I'm just happy to be here at this point!
This was a lovely little place, even if the bartender wasn't the friendliest sort, at least not with me (he seemed super chatty with everyone else---was I looking THAT bad, or did he think my few attempts at striking up a conversation were New Yorker for 'leave me alone?' We'll never know....). I thought it odd that he never checked in on me, didn't ask if I was enjoying my food, needed anything, etc. He was chatting with everyone else but me...odd! Most people like me, dammit!
While I enjoyed the people watching and plane watching--you could see Southwest planes taking off right outside the window--I didn't linger as long as I would have, had I felt just a bit more welcome. Still, my bill came to a whopping 12 bucks (15 with a 25 percent tip) and I did enjoy the wines I tasted, plus the sandwich was just enough to keep me going in the middle of a long haul home. I saw they have locations in JFK, Newark, and a host of other airports, so I will definitely pop in to the next one I see.
**NOTE: If you've stumbled upon this blog by way of Foodbuzz.com, welcome! I hope you'll add me to your regular sites and visit often!!!! Feel free to comment, browse through old postings, make yourself at home!!**
Last night's Recession Recipes party was a blast! I proposed to Foodbuzz.com that I do a bunch of recipes that were wallet-friendly without tasting like it. I was even more delighted when FreshDirect.com put nearly half of my needed ingredients on sale---serendipitous savings!!! I made homemade salsa, black bean salsa, white bean dip, fajitas, pork medallions, and cappuccino panna cottas (my first try)! The real star of the show, however, was the asparagus gruyere tart. I found the recipe a few months ago in a Martha Stewart email and filed it away for future use.
As the tart was almost finished, I stepped outside with the BF to make sure his parking spot was legit (it was). While I was gone, my fabulous friends made sure the tart came out of the oven at exactly the right time. They were also lovely enough to help me eat it all. I should have made two of these! The recession-recipe part was even moreso, as FreshDirect.com had asparagus on sale this week--woo hoo! The tart looks quite impressive, but is sooo easy to put together. You bake the puff pastry a bit, add the cheese & asparagus, a splashing of olive oil, salt and pepper, cook another 20 min, and ta-daaaaah!
I made sure to bring some pickled garlic from Sahadi's (post coming later this week), which is an addictive snack I discovered through meeting Yoga Jen! It's not at all garlicky--it's more pickly. The garlic is crunchy and salty--it WON'T give you garlic breath, and you can eat all you want and not wake up the next day reeking of garlic. I think we probably all knocked about 20 points off our cholesterol just by popping a few of these babies. ;)
I also made fajitas, using London broil, an exceptionally affordable cut of meat that is also quite tasty. I coated it in a dry rub of chili powder, black pepper, ground mustard, paprika, and a smattering of red pepper flakes. I cooked the meat earlier in the day (about 6 minutes on each side under the broiler) so I wouldn't have to spend too much time in the kitchen when my friends were here. Once it was time for fajitas, I sautéed the onions and peppers (which cost about 2 bucks), warmed up the meat, warmed up the tortillas, and served the fixins! This went pretty quickly, too.
Earlier this week, I used about 2 dollars' worth of fresh watermelon and canteloupe to infuse a cheap bottle of tequila (about 20 bucks). For the price of 3-4 drinks at a New York City bar, I had enough for about 5 times that! My friend Carlota was our bartender for the evening, and she kept the fresh and tart drinks flowing--we were quite happy! The watermelon gave it a fresh sweetness, and the infusing part couldn't have been easier! I definitely will be trying this again. To make the drinks even more fun, Carlota brought CRAZY STRAWS!!! Everyone had one, and it made the evening even more fun. We reminisced about how our parents used them to get us to drink our milk when we were younger (a feat even easier if said milk was chocolate!), and now, here we were, sipping grown-up drinks and still having fun.
I had a test run for the white bean dip earlier this week, but found the raw garlic was too sharp, so earlier in the day on Saturday, I tried my hand at roasting garlic for the first time (yeah, I took a lot of chances that day!) It came out beautifully (if a bit messily), and it really made all the difference in this dip. The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of the roasted garlic, but I used nearly the whole head of it! It's quite healthy for you, too, and as I had olive oil, lemon juice, and salt already on hand, the only out of pocket cost for me was 2 dollars for the cans of cannellini beans! CHEAP! TASTY! PERFECTION! That was all gone by night's end, too.
I made the black bean dip the day before, as that needs an overnight chill to really get kicking. 2 cans of black beans (99 cents each), some canned corn (1.29), a .75 cent red onion, and a healthy helping of freshly-squeezed lime juice are the main components of this tasty dish, which was even more scrumptious this morning as leftovers for breakfast.
The only time I really spent in the kitchen while the guests were here was as I made the pork medallions. I got enough pork for a CROWD for 8.70 (another amazing FreshDirect deal this week). Let me repeat that: fresh, succulent pork medallions for UNDER TEN DOLLARS! I only used about half, so I served six people for about 5 bucks. Awesome. I was catching up with my friend Yoga Jen while I sautéed the meat, and I was so caught up in our conversation that I forgot to add the mushrooms! Regardless, the shallots, red wine sauce, and pork all worked together quite nicely. And I have sooo many leftovers. The unused pork is going in the freezer for future meals.
I hope my friends had as much fun as I did last night. I had friends from different areas of my life gelling with others, and we seemed to be mixing quite well. We were laughing, eating, taking pictures of us laughing and eating (thought not everyone approved their photos for blog use, a right which I fully respect!), and before I knew it, the night was over and everyone left stuffed. That meant my work was done. ;) People didn't even have room for my panna cottas, but I gave one a try and HA! I did it!! I used a recipe I saw earlier this week on Brian Boitano's new cooking show. I can't believe I pulled these off on my very first try! The coffee flavor was strong but not overpowering, and they were sweet but not too sweet. I have a few leftover panna cottas in the fridge, and they definitely won't last long!
And I can't forget what the BF brought: a perfect summery end to the night: a summer fruit tart! For the price of two desserts at your average restaurant (15 dollars), he brought enough tart for everyone! The fruit was fresh and flavorful, and the custard wasn't too sweet--this tart was a winner! Holly P was also a photographer/videographer for the evening: she captured a clip of me using my awesome Shun Santoku knife to cut a slice of tart before she left! (my don't discriminate quote was referring to how she shouldn't have to choose one dessert over another!)
Thanks again to everyone for coming out on that hot, humid August night, and helping me eat the fruits of my (money-saving) labor! Having company is always fun, and it was great to have a night in without breaking the bank. Just because we're all pinching pennies these days doesn't mean we have to live on bland, boring food! You can eat good, healthy, delicious food, and our Recession Recipes night proved it! I'm quite proud of myself for trying new things and succeeding, and quite blessed to have great friends who came out and encouraged me to go for it! Thanks also to Foodbuzz.com for selecting my proposal!!
I've been test-driving some recipes for the Recession Recipes party this week, and one I think I've settled on is Pork Medallions. However, the recipe I MEANT to make differed greatly from the end result, but in the most delicious way.
I found a promising-sounding recipe in Ellie Krieger's 'The Food you Crave' cookbook that called for balsamic vinegar, dried cherries, shallots, etc. I sliced some medallions off my roast from FreshDirect.com and started sautéing in a mere two TEASPOONS of olive oil (yes, teaspoons!), only to realize I was missing the chicken broth called for halfway through the recipe. That's the second time this has happened to me in a matter of months (and yes, I've learned my lesson--I stocked up on it as of today). The whole POINT of this recipe was to use a nonstick pan and then deglaze it with the broth, getting all those yummy bits of brown deliciousness off the bottom of the dish.
As I stirred around about twice the recommended amount of shallots for this dish, I decided to improvise a bit and reached for a can of beef broth (yeah, yeah, I know) and a cheap but tasty bottle of red I set aside for this week's party. I splashed about a half a cup of broth, and just over a quarter-cup of wine in there along with a little butter and a bunch of baby bella mushrooms. Since I was using red wine, I opted to skip the balsamic. I sautéed that mixture even longer, scraping up the brown bits on the pan's surface, turning the mushrooms a dark, glazed brown, reducing the sauce by about half. I returned the medallions to the pan for last-minute warming, then piled the whole thing on my plate. IT. WAS. DELICIOUS.
So delicious, in fact, that it wasn't until I was doing the dishes that I realized I'd completely forgotten the cherries! I also loved this variation so much I made it the next night for lunch! Total cost for 3 servings? Oh, about 6 bucks! Woo hoo!
Eternal Optimist living in NYC. From awesome restaurants to home-cooked meals, I'm living a life I love, one bite at a time! Not all posts are NYC-centric, though--I spread the love on vaca and other jaunts!(PS: I abuse parentheses often and without remorse)
