CHOW: CHOW Pick

New Finds: Maple Bitters from Vermont

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:55:00 -0800

Vermont-based Urban Moonshine makes maple bitters using organic botanicals. Imbibe has a nice cocktail idea on its blog for using them, courtesy of John Gertsen of Drink in Boston. We think they’d be a delicious addition to our Log Cabin cocktail recipe: apple brandy, maple liqueur, sparkling apple cider, and lemon juice.

If you want to try your hand at making your own bitters, we also have easy recipes for grapefruit, saffron-cardamom, and cherry-vanilla, among others.

Urban Moonshine Maple Bitters, $10.99

New Finds: The Grand Central Baking Book

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:58:00 -0700

The new cookbook from the minichain of Grand Central bakeries scattered throughout Portland and Seattle is full of simple, classic recipes: clafouti; rustic fruit tarts organized by season; “hand pies” filled with spicy potatoes or steak and onion; homemade graham cracker sandwich cookies filled with vanilla cream … the list goes on. It’s not a book of fancy trendy things, just stuff that is timelessly appealing, presented in a way that feels accessible and nonintimidating. It would be a nice gift for someone just getting interested in baking.

The Grand Central Baking Book, $30

New Finds: Irresistible Peppermint Patties

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:00:00 -0700

Recchiuti Confections recently sent over some samples of its holiday chocolate lineup to the CHOW office, and though the truffles were good, printing some Christmas-related crap on top of the same old dark-chocolate ganache doesn’t really seem all that new or exciting. What was new, however, was the appearance of peppermint thins. They’re bite-sized, extremely minty, and coated with dark, intense chocolate. Now Recchiuti just needs to start making them the same size as those big York Peppermint Patties.

Recchiuti Peppermint Thins, $18 for a box of 24

New Find: Never-Stick Brownie Pan

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:11:00 -0700

No more broken brownies or stuck-to-the-bottom brownies. This is like a springform pan for brownies or bar cookies, even Rice Krispies Treats. You simply cook the batter in a grid shape, then the bottom lifts out so each brownie is individually formed and needs no scraping out of the pan. Genius!

Slice Solutions 9×9 Inch Brownie Pan Set, $19.99

New Finds: Parker's Guide to Cheap Wine

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:15:00 -0700

Yet another sign of the times. Hot on the heels of Michelin FINALLY reviewing moderately priced food in New York, along comes Parker’s Wine Bargains, a book from wine expert Robert Parker that covers the best wines costing less than $25. The book is organized by country and has tasting notes for more than 3,000 wines.

Parker’s Wine Bargains, $12.14

New Finds: The Local Foods Wheel Hits New York

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 07:36:00 -0700

The San Francisco Bay Area has had one of these great local food wheels for a while, but now there’s a new version for the New York metro area. The rotating cardboard discs tell you what’s in season throughout the year; you can move the dial based on the month to see what you can consume and still be a locavore. The team that makes the wheels—Jessica Prentice, Sarah Klein, and Maggie Gosselin—dealt with the troublesome fact that nothing grows in the dead of winter in New York in a cute way. From mid-January to mid-March, there are pictures of a root cellar. Sweet potatoes, onions, dried beans, apples and such, are in crates below jars of apple cider and pickles, hanging cured meats, and crocks of sauerkraut, and kimchee. (CHOW has instructions on how to make sauerkraut.)

I’m happy to see that the locally-made items listed as “year round” include hard cider and maple candy. Now that’s a sustainable diet I can get behind.

Local Foods Wheel, New York Metro Area, $12.95.

New Finds: Smoked Pickled Okra

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 13:04:00 -0700

I wanted to try the much-raved-about Rick’s Picks line of pickles from NYC and, as I can’t resist okra in any form, Smokra was a great choice. It’s smoky as hell thanks to smoked paprika, and it really makes my lunchtime salads fun. A no-brainer for a Bloody Mary, and I imagine quite delicious on top of polenta.

Smokra, $12.99 for a 15-ounce bottle

New Finds: Candy-Colored Colanders

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:46:00 -0700

Preserve’s candy-colored colanders are made from 100 percent recycled plastic and are pleasingly inexpensive. Great for a starter kitchen rather than the boring ones from Ikea; and they won’t heat up and burn the bejesus out of your fingers like metal colanders.

Colander, $12.99

New Finds: Kimchee Butter

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 09:50:00 -0700

Momofuku Milk Bar pastry chef Christina Tosi is famous for her Compost Cookies, made with pretzels, corn flakes, and coffee grounds, and her Cereal Milk-flavored goodies. But she also makes little eye cream–style pots of flavored compound butters and spreads in flavors like kimchee (pictured,) black pepper, dulce de leche, and Cotija/sour cream, for $3.25 a jar.

The kimchee flavor wasn’t sour, like the Korean pickled cabbage delicacy, but rather tangy-smoky tasting, like barbecue Lay’s potato chips. It was good on corn on the cob, and I imagine it would make dynamite scrambled eggs. Black pepper you could dollop on steak. And dulce de leche could be smeared on toasted white bread. I’m excited to find out what Tosi’s fall and winter creations will be. I’m hopeful they’ll include some good eggnog riffs.

New Finds: Germanic Fermented Soda

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:38:00 -0700

I was eating lunch at Schmidt’s, a new German restaurant in San Francisco, and tried Bionade, a delicious imported soda. It’s not very sweet (tart, actually) and advertises itself as being a “naturally fermented beverage” made with malt. The company’s site says that it’s fermented in a process similar to beer, except that the results are non-alcoholic.

Flavors include: Elderberry, Lychee, Herbs, and Ginger-Orange. I love the trend towards fermented, lightly-sweetened, soda-type products. I think this is going to be the big non-alcoholic beverage trend of 2010, fulfilling the promise that “adult sodas” like Dry never really delivered on because they were, well, a little tasteless.

Bionade, $2.49

New Finds: Ketchup and Mustard Take a Seat

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:45:00 -0700

Now your condiments get their own kiddie table with this almost-too-adorable picnic-themed stand from the painstakingly curated San Francisco housewares store the Curiosity Shoppe. You can stow salt, pepper, ketchup, and mustard in the miniature table. A great summer host gift for the lighthearted griller in your life.

Picnic Condiment Set, $18

New Finds: Addictive Crackers

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:39:00 -0700

Never in a million years would I have bought American Vintage Wine Biscuits on my own, but there were free samples at the Cheese Store in LA’s Silverlake, and they were good, so I succumbed. They were the surprise hit of a picnic I went to Saturday, and a late-night drunken snack attack with my brother on Sunday. Despite the tacky ’80s-era Napa packaging, the tiny sweet-savory biscuits are great on their own or smeared with cheese. I got the Red Wine & Black Pepper flavor (you can’t taste the wine all that much), and the company makes a White Wine, Shallot & Cayenne variety that sounds interesting. There’s also a promotion going on now where you buy a box (over the phone) and get one free!

American Vintage Wine Biscuits, $7

New Finds: Snap-On Can Handle

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:34:00 -0700

Your sweaty summer hands will make your beer hot, a problem Perpetual Kid decided to solve with a snap-on can handle. The claim that “it adds a wealth of refined class to your chug!” is ludicrous, but it would be amusing to have lying around for barbecues.

Perpetual Kid Can Grip, $4.99

New Finds: Pretty Hippie Ice Cream Scoop

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:00:00 -0700

Merchant No. 4 is selling these elegant teak scoops made from non-chemically finished plantation-farmed wood. Perfect for serving organic wildflower honey ice cream at your next drum circle. Sorry, but it doesn’t double as a bong.

Ice Cream Scoop, $16

New Finds: Chilled Messenger Bag

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:59:00 -0700

There’s a reason the new Timbuk2 Dolores Chiller is red, white, and blue—and, no, it doesn’t have anything to do with the Fourth of July. It’s because Dennis Hopper’s favorite beer goes perfectly inside.

The bag is insulated, waterproof, has a built-in bottle opener, and can hold at least a 12-pack. The only thing missing is a valve to let out all the melted ice, because I’ll be damned if my new iPhone is going to fall victim to any end-of-the-day spillage.

Timbuk2 Dolores Chiller, $110

New Finds: Chic Black Platter

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:43:00 -0700

I’m always looking for platters this size and shape, with a flat bottom. They’re good for serving deviled eggs, canapés, and any other cocktail party nibble you can think of. I’ve accepted that the melamine trend ain’t going anywhere, and so I’m fully ready to get behind this beautiful plastic tray with a birdcage on it.

Aviary Melamine Platter, $15.99

New Finds: Interesting Wedding Place Card Idea

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:47:00 -0700

Recycled paper place mats from Greenergrassdesign were inspired by children’s pop-up books. Part of the place mat can be punched out and folded up, functioning as a spot where you can write somebody’s name.

The wedding-cake-themed ones would be great for (duh) a wedding. Maybe not so much for a “Congratulations on Your Divorce” party.

Publique Living Popmat Paper Placemats, $26 for a set of 10

New Finds: Eclectic Cocktail Glasses on Sale

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:29:00 -0700

The MoMA store has the cutest tumblers on sale right now; they would make great summer cocktail glasses. Each one is cut glass with a different pattern. Since they’re all clear, they match nicely, but since each has a different pattern, perhaps your guests will be able to tell their drinks apart.

Distinct Patterned Glasses, $64.95 for a set of six

New Finds: Adjustable Measuring Cup

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:30:00 -0700

The Nuscüp Adjustable Measuring Cup and Scoop makes all other measuring cups obsolete. You need 2/3 cup of flour, 1/8 cup of milk, 6 ounces of syrup? No problem! Simply point the rubber thumb slider at the measurement you need, fill, and dump. The Nuscüp measures both dry and liquid ingredients, cups and tablespoons, English and metric systems. There’s even a magnet on the back so you can hang it on the fridge instead of sticking it in a drawer, and the whole thing comes apart for easy cleaning.

Nuscüp Adjustable Measuring Cup and Scoop, $13.95

New Finds: Hook and Go Shopping Cart

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:04:00 -0700

Lugging home groceries isn’t easy for the car-free urban shopper. Either you confine yourself to what can be carried on the bus, or you have to drag a large, unwieldy granny cart to the store with you. But wait! You don’t anymore.

The Hook and Go Shopping Cart is a svelte alternative, folding up into a much-more-draggable size than the granny cart, and expanding into a sturdy rolling conveyance with hooks to hold your shopping bags (reusable, of course). Roll it through the market and then roll it right back home. Maybe you can even roll it right next to your bed and eat out of the bags with your fingers.

Hook and Go Shopping Cart, $70 ($75 with two reusable polyester shopping bags)