here comes the sun

It is officially May and that means summer is right around the corner, its ambassador sun peeking through the fickle clouds.  And it is a tease - this week has been sunny and hot, then cool and very windy.  I'm a girl who likes consistency; I need some form of warmth and brightness that is here to stay.  

While I'm waiting for summer to permanently lodge its residence here in the city, I'm taking things into my own hands.  The bright and tart tang of fresh lemons can transport me to a sticky summer afternoon in an instant, and that is exactly what I need when the day's temperature is in the 50s.

These lemon poppyseed cakes are currently being offered as a take-home gift at Marea, and an at-home batch seems like the perfect cure to keep my impatience in check.

spicy & tasty

What to do when the weather turns warm and humid?  When thoughts of productivity and cleaning the apartment get derailed by the tantalizing lure of sand, sun, and ocean?  Only one possible thing can cure this itch, and it doesn't involve sunbathing on the lawn of Tompkins Square Park in the middle of the East Village.


The Fiance, a couple of friends and I decided on a whim to rent a car and go out to Jones Beach.  While this weekend may have been a little too cool for a full-fledged, romp in the ocean type of trip, it was definitely a welcome introduction to what promises to be a hot summer.  


On the way back, since we already had the rented car for the day we took advantage of being outside of Manhattan and took a detour to Flushing, home of Chinatown and a slew of authentic Chinese restaurants.  Spicy and Tasty, despite the slightly unoriginal name, proved to live up to its moniker with an array of impressive dishes.

We sampled crunchy and spicy bamboo shoots, and chicken that was crisp and accentuated with bright red chilies.  These bright flavors were tempered by soft, pillowy rice cakes - glutenous discs of congealed rice adorned with savory cabbage and spring onions.  And finally, for dessert, rice balls filled with sesame paste with peanut dressing.


Let me just say, the perfect ending to a warm, beachy day is hot, spicy food that kicks your sunbathing tastebuds awake.

mango pate de fruit

Success!  

For such a tiny little candy, pate de fruit has really has a massive possibility of failure.  Everything has to come together to get it right - pectin, acidity, reducing the liquid down enough ... I've tried a couple of times before, with varying success, however this time it did work perfectly and I have delicious treats to show for it.

Well here it is, the result of my attempt to make a homemade candy for my gummi bear-addicted friend.  (I'm not pretending it's healthy, just homemade.  Somehow that always makes things taste better, even when it's essentially just fruit-flavored sugar.)

Mango Pate de Fruit

-yields one 8x8 square pan-

345 g mango puree

45 g orange juice

360 g sugar

60 g vitpris*

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Combine the sugar and vitpris, set aside.  

Bring puree and juices to a boil, whisk in sugar/vitpris mixture.  Keep whisking, return the mixture to a boil, and whisk vigorously for five minutes.  Pour into plastic wrap-lined pan and let it cool.

Once firm, you can cut the pate de fruit and roll it in granulated sugar.  Store tightly covered in the fridge, otherwise the pieces will weep.


*a type of pectin

a study in pre-processed food

I take pride in the fact that I care about my food.  Not just the way it tastes, but like many a locavore, slow food enthusiast, organic-minded, free range supporter, and whatever else under the sun you may call it, I care about how it gets to my plate.  Growth, harvesting, and shipment are unavoidable histories that belong to each piece of produce, meat, or grain on its way to cooking and consumption.  Learning that history - the story behind the food I eat - is just another part of enjoying food.

In some cases it can take a very small thing to open my eyes to how my concept of 'food' has, in many cases, been turned to the auto-pilot of mass-produced and prepackaged goods.  When I say a small thing, I mean small - as in the size of an almond.

Have you ever seen a fresh almond? - because I hadn't.  Nor had I even thought about the differences between pale, mild, blanched and skinned almonds vs. the dark toffee-brown of roasted almonds; as long as they came ready to eat then my curiosity was sated.

Luckily for me, the restaurant got a delivery of fresh almonds today, and for the first time I was able to inspect a skin-encased green (!) almond.  Fuzzy, and with a firm texture that yields slightly to a gentle squeeze, it reminded me of an under ripe peach.

Being able to see, feel, and taste the almond in its unaltered form made me feel a little more in touch with this particular nut.  I've learned to appreciate how its raw mellow, slightly tangy flavor can, with some human intervention, transform into a robust and firm flesh, and how it can even be coaxed into sweet roasted bitterness and with an almost meaty flavor.  

Now that it's almost the end of April, this tasty little reminder of how fresh food can be so refreshing renews my anticipation for full-fledged farmers' market season.  Bring on the unprocessed, unpackaged, unrefined, un-everythinged food!

... and exhale

There is no rest for the weary, as I have been diligently proving over the past couple of weeks.  The trip to Monterey - bookended with sleepless nights - was followed immediately by preparation for a PattyCake event this past week.  Normally, knocking out a couple dozen cupcakes wouldn't be too taxing, however by the time I'd traveled across the country and back there was practically no time to get things done.


With work and PattyCake finally done for the week, I am entirely ready for a relaxing, slothful weekend.  The weather is supposed to be dreary and wet, but luckily this morning's walk was intermittently sunny.  

It was so nice to just let my mind wander and not have to focus on anything but the surrounding trees and bushes.  (Of course, having an excited little dog with me on the walk wasn't bad either.)  Now, after a peaceful morning and some good coffee, I finally feel myself beginning to recover from these last couple of weeks.

Butterfly Town, U.S.A.

One of my favorite things about visiting my parents' home in Northern Virginia is sitting on their back deck and basking in the greenery that doesn't exist in New York.  (Well, outside of Central Park.)  Naturally, it was one of the things about this past weekend in Monterey that I enjoyed the most - there was so much nature I felt like I was in a National Geographic series.

My parents have an abundance of different plant life in their garden, including bushes with conical clusters of saturated blue, pink, and purple flowers.  Butterfly bushes, like the insect they're named after, are bright, colorful, irresistibly beautiful, and happen to permeate the entire city of Monterey.  In every single part of the city we visited, whether in the busiest shopping districts or the more remote parts of the Pebble Beach forest, these bright purpley blue flowers poked their heads out to remind us that yes, there's a reason Monterey is called "Butterfly Town U.S.A."

Quite simply put, I was in heaven.

It was the icing on the cake of what was already an amazing weekend:

1) My baby brother got married to an amazing woman.

2) The Mr. and I got a break from work, the crowdedness of Manhattan, and life.

3) I actually pulled off a pretty good-looking (and tasting) wedding cake!

If it were in any way possible, I would have packed bushels of bushes in my duffel bag to smuggle back to the city with me.  Alas, I think my packing skills are limited to buttercreamed cakes and fondant; for now these pictures will have to do.  (Or maybe a visit to Virginia is in order ...)

a new start, a new sister

A little over ten months ago, my little brother, A., started talking about a girl that he'd become friends with, R.

Over the course of the ensuing year, it became increasingly clear that they were each other's 'other' - A. told me over the phone, when he announced their engagement, that the moment of realization actually came when they were having a heated argument.

"I'd rather be fighting with her than be with anyone else."

And so this past weekend our two families came to Monterey, California, to witness and celebrate their commitment to each other.  It has been a whirlwind weekend, filled with breathtaking rock beaches, lush seaside forests, and mild weather.

My family stayed at the hotel on the Naval base converted from an old late-19th century Art Deco resort.  Walking through the spacious halls these couple of days has given me a glimpse into California's past, and made me nostalgic for a time I haven't ever experienced - a time where peacocks roamed the lawns (yes, they still do today!) and the resort was in its prime.

More on the wedding itself later - California isn't done with me yet!