Monthly Archives: June 2011

June 21, 2011 · 8:46 am

recipe goodness :: the ultimate summer slaw

The ultimate slaw

The ultimate slaw

Creamy cole slaw {you know, the kind you see at delis} is a dish that sneaks its way into one too many BBQs. It’s soggy. It’s flat. It’s so easy to improve on. The thing about cabbage is you can feed A LOT of people with one shredded head and very cheaply too. So if you get a little creative, you can actually create a spectacular side on a budget. I love using red cabbage — it’s purple for pete’s sake and you can’t get much cooler than that! I also love using thinly sliced radishes for a peppery bite and running a few carrots through the food processor sideways so you get thin rectangles and not just shredded carrots. So much color, so many textures and a mix of crunchy, vibrant, flavorful goodness. Two important notes: 1) I highly recommend making this with a food processor — it comes together in a matter of minutes with all the chopping that needs to be done; and 2) make this 24 hours in advance if you can — it softens the cabbage a bit and really lets the flavors come together. Plus it’s one less thing you have to worry about on party day.

The Ultimate Summer Slaw

1 cup mayo
3 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons milk
2-3 jalapenos or red chilies
1 head of red cabbage, chopped thinly
1 bunch of radishes, sliced
2 carrots, quartered then sliced lengthwise
Salt and pepper to taste

  1. Combine all ingredients except cabbage, radishes and carrots in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.
  2. Shred cabbage in food processor by cutting the head into quarters and feeding through the tube using the shredding attachment. Add to a very large bowl.
  3. Wash radishes and remove tops and roots. Feed through food processor tube using the slicing attachment to get 1/8-inch thick slices. Add to the cabbage in the bowl.
  4. Peel and remove tops of carrots. Depending on length of carrots, cut the length into thirds or quarters so you get 2 inch long pieces. Feed through the food processor tube horizontally with the slicing attachment so you get 2-inch long rectangular slices. Add to the cabbage and radishes.
  5. Pour mixture from step 1 over the top and mix thoroughly. Salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Add to large zip lock bags or cover the bowl and let chill out in the fridge for 24 hours if you can to really get a great mix of flavors.

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June 17, 2011 · 11:04 am

Do This! Edible’s Eat Drink Local Week Kicks off this Saturday

Eat Drink Local Week 2011

Local. Local. Local. We at 8.ate@eight and Freshocracy think Local is where it’s at. Not only are there amazing foods being harvested within 250 miles of NYC, but there are amazing people doing things with this food {and drink}. This is one of my favorite weeks in the city each year — everything from local oysters to local brews are being showcased in a series of seriously summery shindigs. So clear your calendar and devour all the goodness coming our way from Edible’s Eat Drink Local Week!

Saturday June 18th — Festival of 7 Ingredients

Those are seven stellar spring foods–in this case strawberries; peas; chives and green garlic; rhubarb; lamb, oysters and yogurt–produced or farmed or fished locally. Each has delicious stories to tell, and to jump start Eat Drink Local Week Edible Manhattan is hosting a festival and tasting (oyster stew! green garlic and chive quesadillas! spicy lamb salad with pea greens!) and includes wine from Wolffer Estate in Long Island and beer from Kelso of Brooklyn.

When: Saturday 6/18 6 to 9pm
Where: OpenHouse Gallery in SoHo at 201 Mulberry Street
Tickets: $25  HERE

Wednesday June 22th — Taste of Greenmarket

The benefit of all benefits to raise money for the Greenmarket Youth Education Project. Just check out this incredible lists of chefs:

Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern
Dan Barber of Blue Hill & Blue Hill at Stone Barns
April Bloomfield of The Spotted Pig, The Breslin & The John Dory Oyster Bar
Marco Canora of Hearth & Terroir
Mary Cleaver of The Green Table & The Cleaver Company
Marc Forgione of Marc Forgione
Alex Guarnaschelli of Butter
Kurt Gutenbrunner of Cafe Kristall, Cafe Sabarsky, Blaue Gans & Wallsé 
Rick Hickman of The Green Table & The Cleaver Company
Lauren Hirschberg of Craftbar
Peter Hoffman of Savoy & Back Forty
Patti Jackson of I Trulli
Gabriel Kreuther of The Modern
Bret Macris of Rose Water
James Meehan of PDT
Marc Meyer of Cookshop, Five Points, & Hundred Acres
Marco A. Moreira of Tocqueville Restaurant
Deborah Racicot of Gotham Bar and Grill
Julie Reiner of Clover Club & Lani Kai
Aaron Sanchez of Centrico
Justin Smillie of Il Buco
Bill Telepan of Telepan
Karl Franz Williams of 67 Orange Street
Galen Zamarra of Mas (farmhouse) & Mas (la grillade)

When: Saturday 6/18 6 to 9pm
Where: Studio 450 450 West 31st Street, New York, NY
Tickets: $225 General Admission 7 to 10 PM; $350 VIP Tasting 6 to 10 PM Purchase tickets

June 26th — Beer and BBQ

Beer and barbecue at Townline BBQ in Sagaponack to kick off Eat Drink Local on the East End. Look for all seven ingredients, including a roasted lamb with yogurt and chives, smoked oysters, plenty of peas and strawberry-rhubarb something.

When: Sunday 6/26
Where: Townline BBQ in Sagaponack
RSVP: call Townline, 631.537.2271, or buy your tickets here.

JUNE 29 — Meet Your Maker

“Meet Your Maker”: a local food and drink artisan tour at the Brooklyn Brewery. In celebration of Edible’s Eat Drink Local Week Edible is teaming up with The Brooklyn Brewery, Blue Bottle, Brooklyn Winery and Mast Brothers Chocolate for a night local food tours and beers.  $15 gets you a tour of one of four businesses and a gathering at the Brewery for beers afterwards.

Where: The Brooklyn Brewery, 79 N 11th St, Brooklyn
When: Wednesday June 29th, 6 to 9pm
Tickets: Reserve your space here.

JUNE 29 — Strawberry Social

The Strawberry Social: to raise funds for Food Systems Network NYC at La Plaza Cultural Community Garden.

Where: La Plaza Cultural Community Garden; 9th St. and Avenue C
Tickets: $50 Reserve your space here.

JUNE 30 — Oyster and Beer Party

A Long Island oyster and beer party to end Eat Drink Local, at Jimmy’s No. 43. This all-you-can-eat event will offer up precious Blue Points along with “Naked Cowboy Oysters,” wild-harvested bivalves named after the infamous Naked Cowboy himself (heads up, word is he will be making an appearance).  Craft beer and wine (sourced from the East End of Long Island) will be available for purchase.  Featured beer will include Greenport’s Duck Porter, and wines will be from the Paumanock region vineyards.  Notable shuckers will attempt to dethrone Jimmy’s No. 43 champ, Eddie “Oysters,” winner of the 2010 NYC Food Film Festival’s Great New York City Shuck and Suck.

Where: Jimmy’s No. 43
When: Thursday, June 30; 5 to 10pm
Tickets: $35 Get your tickers here!

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June 14, 2011 · 9:39 am

Vinegar Hill House is a Sweet Spot for Supper

Vinegar Hill Specialty Cocktail: blanco tequila, curacao, lime, grenadine

Vinegar Hill Specialty Cocktail: blanco tequila, curacao, lime, grenadine

 Vinegar Hill is not a Brooklyn neighborhood you hear much about — perhaps because it only stretches for about six blocks and is neighbored by the more buzz-worthy DUMBO. But if you have thus far overlooked this charming area, I suggest you take a stroll through this historical corner {and more strongly suggest you don’t wear cobblestone-unfriendly heals when you do.} The neighborhood feels a bit like you have traveled back in time with Federal style homes, quiet sleepy brick-laid streets and a few storefront gems that sit happily on a mostly residential row and look like places you could buy an antique musket from the Battle of Vinegar Hill during Irish Rebellion of 1798 {and now you know where the hood got its name.}

But my first trip to Vinegar Hill was not prompted by an historical expedition. Rather, it was to grab dinner at the equally as charming and most definitely delicious Vinegar Hill House. The copper-topped bar and copper-haired-bearded bartender was a quick conduit to a warming-first impression. The cocktail menu is simple in length, but lists an inspired concoction of choices. After a brief chat with said bearded bartender, he pleasantly described  his affinity for Despues del Ensueno {pictured above} — delightful on that humid summer eve.

The dinner menu did not disappoint either. Special app of the night: house-cured ham. It was so good I ate it too quickly to take a picture — professional mishap #1. We also sampled the farmstead cheese & salumi platter with homemade crackers and a pickled quail egg. With duck pate rounding out the selection, this clearly was not just another cheese platter and we were better for it.

Vinegar Hill Cast Iron Chicken

Vinegar Hill Cast Iron Chicken

Feeling old-world New York, I could not resist the Cast Iron Chicken. It comes straight out of the brick oven piping hot with the danger of searing your arm if you mistakenly touch the pan as you gleefully dig into the juicy, buttered bird — professional mishap #2. But it was well-worth the lasting burn mark. If you want to go for a safer eating option, try the Mezze Maniche — a shorter version of the always popular rigatoni that is stopped with a lovely pork ragu.

Vinegar Hill Mezze Maniche with Pork Ragu

Vinegar Hill Mezze Maniche with Pork Ragu

The Skim: Getting out of the city slog doesn’t have to mean you need to travel to the Hamptons. Spend the summer visiting some of New York’s less-trafficked neighborhoods to digest a little historical charm and a fantastic meal for the evening. Vinegar Hill House is only a short walk from the river, so it also lends itself to being a great place to start the night before a NYC skyline stroll along the Brooklyn waterfront or before attending a bargemusic concert under the great Brooklyn Bridge.

Map: 72 Hudson Avenue, Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn
Reservations: Taken for 4+ Sun-Mon; 6+ Sat/Sun Brunch
Phone: 718-522-1018

Other Favorite Brooklyn Haunts:
Under the Bridge, Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory Treat {Post-VHH Dessert!}
18 Favorite Meat Dishes for Men & Barbeque Heaven @Fette Sau
Rustic Space Features Really Good Wood-Burning Oven Pizza @Roberta’s
Blue Bottle Coffee Brews One Brilliant Cup at a Time
A Better Brooklyn Breakfast @ Dizzy’s Finer Diner 

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June 10, 2011 · 11:36 am

Do This!: Freshocracy Greenmarket Cooking Demo This Sunday

Freshocracy

NYC’s local farm-to-table
grocery and recipe delivery service. 

The tools to put better meals on your table. 

“Freshocracy takes real ingredients, from real local farms, and wraps them in a bow with a recipe card that promises success at the table.”
— Keith Gibson, Grazin’ Angus Acres Farm

Come Meet and Try Freshocracy!

When:  Sunday 6/12 from 12-2pm
Where:  77th Street Greenmarket (@Columbus Ave)
What:  Christina and Andreas will be running a cooking demo of their favorite Freshocracy recipe: Ostrich Tacos with Lime-Pickled Radishes
Why:  Why not?!
  • Meet Christina (or just say hi)
  • Watch, taste, ask questions, ooh and ahh
  • Introduce neighbors and friends to the new farm-to-table delivery service that so many New Yorkers have come to know and love!
  • Meet the farmers who are working hard each week to bring you such amazing seasonal farm-fresh food!
  • Did we mention free food?
See What People Are Saying About Freshocracy:

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June 9, 2011 · 9:00 am

Do This!: Get Back to Your Roots

Get Back to Your Roots

Get Back to Your Roots

There is something very gratifying about growing your own greens. Herbs, flowers, veggies, whatever. I must have acquired this love to ‘putz’ in the garden from my Italian father, who can almost always be found in this worn-out threads strolling the beds, pulling weeds, watering the seedlings and making our backyard look lush.

But there is more than just beauty to growing your own garden — it is quite a practical thing to do. During the summer, I often want to make a simple tomato and basil salad or fresh salsa for a BBQ.  But as I stroll through Whole Foods, I realize how quickly these things add up — a pint of tomatoes for $3.99, large bunches of parsley, cilantro basil and mint for $1.99 each {and 1/8 of which I actually need and end up wasting the rest}. The benefit of growing a few simple herbs that you like to use all the time is your own free herb aisle that costs you nothing more than a few seeds {or seedlings} and will last you from spring to late fall.  And let’s be honest, it’s more effort to go to the store to buy these things than it is to sprinkle a little water on your plants each day so that all you have to do is snip off what you need whenever your cooking heart desires.

Even if you don’t have much space {concrete jungle dwellers}, all you need is a few window boxes or small pots and you’re set. For most things you do need sunlight, but a few herbs will do just fine on a windowsill if that’s all you have access to.

Here’s what you need to get started:

  1. Small plastic cups and plastic wrap {if starting from seeds}
  2. Window boxes or pots {if starting from seedlings and to transfer your seeds to once they become seedlings. You can usually fit 2-3 kinds of herbs side by side in a window box depending on how long it is. And 1 herb per round pot.}
  3. Potting soil {the kind with time-releasing nutrients is great so you get the benefit of rich soil over a few months}
  4. Water {of course}
  5. Your own two hands 🙂
If you plant nothing else, plant these:
  1. Basil {really hearty and goes great on lots of summer veg}
  2. Thyme {perfect on sauteed/grilled mushrooms, zucchini, chicken. will continue to grow inside through the winter. }
  3. Rosemary {my favorite herb! will continue to grow inside through the winter}
  4. Sage {BBQ chicken’s favorite friend!}
  5. Mint {will keep coming back in your pot EVERY year. even after it dies in the winter. That’s an easy one!}
  6. Strawberries {surprisingly easy to grow in a pot. and what a treat!}
  7. Arugula {small leaf lettuce is really easy to grow in a window box — and SO much more flavorful}
  8. Parsley and Cilantro {don’t you just hate buying an entire bunch when you only need a little}
  9. Grape tomatoes {if you have sunny outdoor space for a really large pot, you will get hundreds of little juicy tomatoes off 1-2 vines. I eat them like candy!}
Tips:
If you have the patience to start seeds in a small plastic cup with a little soil, it’s awfully gratifying to see them sprout up. Most seeds only take 1-2 weeks to germinate, so even though it’s already June, you can still start some herbs that don’t need to grow as tall as tomato plants — like basil or parsley.
  1. Get a baking sheet and line it with a plastic cup or small pyrex dish for each plant. Fill it about 3/4 of the way with light, fine soil and place your seeds on top evenly spaced.
  2. Follow the directions from your seed packet, but it will probably tell you to cover the seeds with 1/8-1/4 inch of soil. Add water to soak the soil and then cover the cup with plastic wrap and use a rubber band to secure the wrap to the sides. This will create your own little greenhouse to trap moisture and heat and help the seeds grow {especially if starting in April or May before it’s warm outside}. Add more water each morning if needed to keep the soil moist.
  3. If you start in April/May before it’s warm, keep these inside, but whenever you get a warm day you can easily transfer all the cups on the sheet to a sunny spot outdoors to benefit from the natural heat/sunlight. If you’re starting now, you can place the cups outdoors. Just make sure they are covered so the birds don’t get them!
  4. Once your seeds become ~2-inch seedlings, transfer them to a larger pot with soil and let them spread their roots!
First Strawberry of the Season!

First Strawberry of the Season! (June 7th)

City Herbs

City Herbs

Sweet, Sweet Tomatoes

Sweet, Sweet Tomatoes

Recipes to Showcase Your Home Garden:
Creole Roasted Fresh Corn-Tomato Salsa
Spinach, Strawberry & Halloumi Salad
Tomato, Basil & Feta Salad
Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken
Whole-Grain Mustard & Rosemary Pork Chops

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June 7, 2011 · 10:17 am

recipe goodness :: strawberry chamomile tea

Strawberry Chamomile Tea

Strawberry Chamomile Tea

It’s strawberry season! And when life gives you strawberries, make strawberry chamomile tea, of course! We gave this tea to all our freshocracy customers for mother’s day and I fell in love. The main ingredient is Berried Treasures Farm’s tristar strawberries that were frozen to preserve through the winter. After boiling them in cheesecloth with some chamomile you get this spectacularly red and sweet all natural drink that tastes just like summer. It’s the perfect thing to give your kids or enjoy yourself on a scorching day. And while it makes for a perfectly delightful refresher on its own, top it off with some seltzer, champagne or even tequila to jazz up your glass. Go to Ikea, buy some inexpensive bottles with rubber stoppers and show off your new concoction. This also makes a fantastic party or *just because* gift to share with friends.

Makes 6 quarts {if you don’t want to stock up, cut in half}

Courtesy of Chef Rick Jakobson 

2 lbs. frozen tristar strawberries
8 chamomile tea bags
6 quarts cold water
6.5-8 oz honey
2-3 lemons
generous pinch of kosher salt

  1. Wrap frozen strawberries and chamomile tea bags in cheesecloth and tie tightly to ensure no strawberries can get loose.
  2. Place cheesecloth in a large stockpot and cover with water. Add 6.5 oz honey.
  3. Bring to a boil and let simmer until strawberries release their flavor. Once water begins to boil, use a wooden spoon to squeeze the cheesecloth against the side of the pot to release the juice of the strawberries.
  4. Turn off stove and let steep for ~10 minutes. Squeeze cheesecloth one last time to release all the juice and remove from the pot.
  5. Add juice of 2 lemons and a generous pinch of kosher salt. Stir and taste. Add more honey or lemon as desired.
  6. Let cool and pour into bottles or pitchers.
  • Variation 1: Serve with a sprig of mint, topped off with a little seltzer
  • Variation 2: Serve with champagne {one part strawberry chamomile, 2 parts champagne}
  • Variation 3: Mix with white tequila and fresh of lime {2:1:1 tequila:strawberry tea:lime}

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