Thanks to That Sara, of NYC Nom Nom fame, I had an unexpectedly wonderful Wednesday evening the other week. She had a spare ticket to a Gilt City event at Ouidad's 'Curls' Night Out' event. I was already home for the night in Brooklyn, but I'm always up for something fun (free shampoo, styling, champagne AND cupcakes!?!? Shiver me timbers!!) so I hopped right on the subway and made it there in a record 42 minutes! Yay, Q train!
We so enjoyed our main courses at Artisanal, and since most of us ordered the prix fixe menu (a set price for a smaller range of menu options), dessert was included. Let's get cracking, then!
As I've mentioned before, one of our supervisors at work takes out our whole staff (about 9 of us) each quarter for a delicious lunch 'meeting.' Okay, it's really more of a lunch, though somehow we still end up talking shop more than not. This time we went to Artisanal on a rainy, bleak, wet November day.
Swyrl is a self-serve frozen yogurt spot in Lynbrook, Long Island, not far from where ABF lives. We've gone there twice now with his family, usually a niece or two or three in tow, and it's definitely delicious.
I also put my Trader Joe's apple cider (like a liquid apple pie!) in the crockpot and let it simmer, filling up the whole house with an unmistakable aroma of fall. A splash of pomegranate juice and it took on a whole new flavor. Yum! (Don't worry--Mitzi didn't get near it until AFTER all the guests left--please don't bother to call the Health Department.
For my savory dish, I sauteed chicken breasts in a pomegranate reduction. This was SO easy to make, but it tasted like it took a lot more skill than it did. :) I sauteed some shallots in olive oil, a bit of butter, red wine, and of course, freshly-squeezed pomegranate juice! This had a tart, juicy feel to it and it went so well with the chicken.
I paired it with some quinoa, which I mixed with freshly-chopped cucumber and of course, pomegranate seeds. A drizzle of pomegranate molasses (a gift from a friend who visited Turkey) finished off the dish.
ABF repeatedly told me how delicious this was, and I have to agree with him: it was pretty righteous. The tartness of the pomegranate is balanced by juuuust enough sweetness, and the color is just downright gorgeous!
I feel like I'm seeing pomegranates everywhere, and now they aren't the least bit intimidating. I hope you'll pick up one next time you hit the produce section--they're as tasty as they are beautiful. Thanks again, Pom Wonderful!
Full disclosure: While Pom Wonderful provided me with copious amounts of pomegranates, a kick-butt apron, and giveaway bags for my guests, I was not required to give a glowing review...it just deliciously worked out that way!
I was super-excited that the folks at POM Wonderful selected me as one of 100 bloggers to host a pomegranate-centered party! They said they'd send fresh pomegranates, instructions, giveaway bags, and more...all I had to do was feature their fruit and blog about it...woo hoo!
First things first. Until now, I'd never handled a fresh pomegranate. I was intrigued and also nervous, but the POM Wonderful folks made it SO easy.
They had videos on their website to walk you through it, and they even sent a sweet pomegrantate-shaped guide that I consulted numerous times.
POM also encouraged us to post videos of the process, so I shot some (coming soon)! ABF was a sweetheart and agreed to do the chopping while I did the shooting. Here's the still shoot first. That awesome knife he's using was my Valentine's Day gift a few years ago (I loooove it!)!
It's actually quite simple! Slice off the top, exposing the 5-6 individual sections.
Then cut out each section, slicing it out just like you would section out a grapefruit or orange.
See? Not difficult or intimidating at all!
Once you've taken apart all the segments, take a moment and enjoy the beauty of it!
Remove each section and loosen the arils (the seeds) into a bowl of water. The remaining membranes will float up to the top,and you can scoop out those bits.
After you strain out the seeds, you're ready to go!
Recipes and videos coming in the next post!
My friend the NewsHawk was in town recently, and I joined him and his friends for a wandering along the Upper West Side (including lunch at Niko's). We stepped in to the lobby of the Empire Hotel for a drink, and we were surprised to see an entire drink menu devoted to the "Gossip Girl" show, a guilty pleasure show that many people reluctantly age 18 & over confess to watching.
***February 22nd, 2011: The folks at Jeremiah's Vanishing New York just broke the sad news that Niko's has CLOSED!!! I'm sad to see such an institution leave our city. And while one commenter laments the probability of a Starbucks, I'll take that over another stupid BANK. Feh. Thanks, Niko's staff, for many delicious memories.**
I met up with friends on the Upper West Side last week for a place I hadn't visited in years: Niko's Mediterranean Grill & Bistro.
I finally got around to make spaghetti squash, thanks to another timely sale by FreshDirect.com. Sometimes these suckers can be huge and quite unwieldy, but this one was the perfect size.
I've heard a few folks say it can be tough scooping out the innards, but I disagree.. I scooped out the seeds with a spoon and used a paring knife to smooth out the edges.
After a birthday dinner at Ma Peche with That Sara (see the review here), we walked out to the adjoining Milk Bar to get some dessert. There's a Milk Bar on 2nd Avenue I'd been meaning to hit forever (I STILL want to try their crack pie with its oat cookie crust!), but like so many items on 'The List,' I just hadn't gotten to it. The newer outpost in front of Má Pêche opened earlier this year, and I was just as happy to get to this location.
