sholli's Profile
Recipe? SF burrito beans
After trying many others, I use this recipe, although I simmer for a loooong time at low heat--often all day, or start one day, turn off over night, then finish off the next day: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/10/health/nutrition/09recipehealth.html?_r=1.
buy fresh truffles?
Monterey has black ones. Not sure of the per ounce price b/c they have them priced individually in containers, at around $15-25 each. I haven't cooked w/ them yet, so I'm not good at eyeballing the size. I'd give a call.
buy fresh truffles?
Not near the peninsula, but Monterey Market in Berkeley has them.
Great cake or similar dessert in/near Hayes Valley?
A 6" (and almost equally tall) malted vanilla cake, which is actually a dense, dark chocolate, sour cream cake w/ malted vanilla frosting. I love frosting and there was still almost too much, but the cake wasn't too sweet, and so it all balanced out. It was lovely.
Great cake or similar dessert in/near Hayes Valley?
Delessio was great and the birthday boy was very happy--thanks again for the advice.
Great cake or similar dessert in/near Hayes Valley?
Good to know about the slices. I’m willing to get a whole cake if absolutely necessary (or if the quality totally trumps other candidates), especially a small one. I may have to call Delessio and Zuni and see what I can work out. Thanks for the recommendations—I may avoid the doghouse yet!
-----
Zuni Cafe
1658 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94102
Great cake or similar dessert in/near Hayes Valley?
Thanks--do you know if Delessio serves cake by the slice (their sizes, at least as described online, look a little big for 2 of us)? And do you have an opinion of their tower cake vs. the Gateau Victoire at Zuni?
-----
Zuni Cafe
1658 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94102
Great cake or similar dessert in/near Hayes Valley?
I am in dire need of a last minute birthday cake (open to pie or cupcakes, too) today, with a strong preference for anything that's within walking distance of Hayes Valley. Miette is an option, but is there anything else/better? I'm also considering getting a dessert to go from one of the good restaurants in the area (Zuni, Jardiere, etc). Thoughts and/or recommendations on going this route? My husband (the birthday boy) loves chocolate, but is also open to pumpkin. Thanks!
Popular book re: the chemistry of food
Thanks for the replies. Now can someone tell me which of these they prefer, if you've read multiple?
Popular book re: the chemistry of food
I seem to remember a book on the chemistry of food that was pretty popular a few years ago. I'm shopping for my father, who's not a big foodie, is a retired doctor, and would be more intrigued as a light read, rather than a technical guide. Does this ring a bell for anyone? thanks.
Has anyone tried the banana bread in Cooks Illustrated, current issue?
For those who have made the recipe, can you compare it to the one in the Best Recipe? I've recently adopted that (with a little less sugar) as my go to for banana bread, but I'd be interested to hear whether the new one is better.
Budget friendly lunch ideas
I hold out and buy the Bonne Maman in quantity when it goes on sale. I used to be able to get it often for $2.50 or $3 at A&P when I lived in NJ. Even at $5 each, though, it makes for a cheap lunch w/ PB, or at least that's how I rationalize using some of the most expensive components I can find.
Budget friendly lunch ideas
I'm currently on maternity leave, so this is a familiar issue for me. I at a lot of PB&J while pregnant, but upgraded a bit to use the fresh ground PB that you can get at Whole Foods and similar markets, good jam (love Bonne Maman's Four Fruits) on homemade bread. It's also way better if you can toast the sandwich at work. Another thing I relied on a lot was quiche, which I made in quantity, froze in individual servings, and then took for lunch.
Help! How much meat/beans for chili to feed 8 adults, 12 kids?
It isn't traditional chii, but my very favorite is this turkey/tomatillo one: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Turkey-Chipotle-Chili-11339, although I use only about half the meat called for. Tripling the recipe would definitely cover your needs, which (using my modified proportions) would be about 6 lbs. meat and almost 2 lbs beans if you start your own from dried, rather than cans. You can totally tweak these two proportions according to taste and/or budget w/o throwing off the flavors, too.
For desserts, I often dress up brownies (throw in peanut butter or mint chips), or really good chocolate chip cookies (I swear by Cook's Illustrated thick and chewy) are always popular.
I want to make GREAT meatballs!
My husband just made the meatballs found in the rsvp (?) section of the June 2010 Bon Appetie--it's provided by a restaurant in Dorchester, MA, I think, but it doesn't appear to be online. Anyway, they're delicious, very tender meatballs w/ lots of fennel and leeks in the base. We ultimately had them in sauce but also froze many plain and look forward to all kinds of future fun w/ them.
Help me vary my granola recipe?
Oops--yes, I include a bit of salt with the other spices. Haven't tried nutmeg yet, though.
Help me vary my granola recipe?
I like my basic granola recipe, but am interested in suggestions on ways to vary it, since I've been making it for a while and am about to make a large quantity in preparation for maternity leave.
Currently, I bake/toast oats w/ a very small amount of brown sugar/molasses/honey, a little oil, and enough water or juice to let me mix it all together. I usually use a touch of vanilla, cinnamon, and sometimes cardamom, along with nuts (usually almonds), and sometimes some filler in the form of wheat germ, oat bran, etc. I then add dried or fresh fruit at serving.
Any interesting ideas on ways to vary the flavors a bit? I do so already with the fruit and sometimes by varying the nuts, but I'm interested in others' favorite additions or other ways to switch it up.
Thanks.
Fluffernutter custard at Shake Shack
I agree that the marshmellow isn't a strong presence, although we got it as a sundae, and so the whipped cream may have hid it some, too. Still, the custard was very good, with a nice amount of salt to balance the sweet.
Best free bread in NYC restaurants?
They don't give you tons (but will refill) and tend to give you a few different types of bread, all sliced. It was exceptionally fresh and just better/more interesting than usual. Definitely made an impression.
Best free bread in NYC restaurants?
Bouley Upstairs, which I think is the same as at Bouley itself, although obviously less of a $$ commitment for dinner. It's both interesting and fantastic, to the extent that I've ruined the subsequent dinner at least once.
Quiche. What kind? How many?
I love sauteed leeks and chevre, possibly with a little bit of shallot and/or thyme. Mushroom and sausage go well together. Several of the salty cheeses (feta, gruyere) combine well w/ veggies. I also sometimes make quiche with tons of veggies, some cheese, and little egg when I want it to have a lighter ratio.
Leftover Spiral Ham-Need Ideas!
Definitely freeze some. We make a ham/spinach/cottage cheese pasta that is utterly simple and way more delicious than it sounds. Sautee a clove or two of garlic and about a cup of the ham. Add a generous cup of cottage cheese (higher milkfat ones work best) and a small splash of chicken stock. Throw in a large bunch of fresh spinach (way more than looks reasonable) and fresh basil or parsley. Wilt spinach, then toss w/ pasta.
Need dinner recs for three women, Columbia area down to west 80's
I like Pisticci, up by Columbia. It's solid all around, but the homemade pasta and cheeses are exceptional at that price point. It's also mellow and not too loud, but not crazy (although you'll wait on a weekend). Community Food and Juice is another of the nicer/foodier places near campus, although it can get noisy. Further south, many people like Nice Matin. We had a reasonably good meal there, but it was deafening (having requested and gotten probably the quietest table in the house).
-----
Pisticci
125 La Salle St, New York, NY 10027
Nice Matin
201 West 79th Street, New York, NY 10024
Community Food & Juice
2893 Broadway, New York, NY 10025
Frozen Brunch / Egg Dishes
Quiches freeze beautifully, which surprised me at first. I've made Julia Child's quiche (she really just has a standard egg/cream ratio and you can freelance re: veggies, meat, cheese, and herbs), frozen it, allowed it to come close to thawing (I think it spent ~4 hours on a plate in a warm kitchen before doing 20-30 min. at 350) with great success. I have less first hand experience with them, but I understand that egg stratas freeze well, too. In both instances, cook fully, allow time to thaw, and then bake/warm before serving.
How loud is Da Andrea?
I agree--have never had a sound issue there, even when it's been quite busy. Go for the pasta (esp. the one w/ white truffle oil?), although not the veal ravioli. It's very good, especially for the price point.
Favorite uses for wheat germ?
I substitute ¼ or ½ cup wheat germ for the same amount of flour in each loaf for a whole variety of bread recipes. I also use it as a binding agent in granola.
ground lamb ideas?
I do something similar w/ tzatziki or hummus and whatever veggies I feel like in a grilled flatbread or pita. Yum.
PhD Graduation Dinner
We did a similar dinner (although for only 5) after my law school graduation at Gramercy Tavern. The food was excellent and the staff could not have been more gracious. My parents still talk about how much they enjoyed that meal. I have no idea how they handle the larger numbers, though. Union Sq. Cafe strikes me as having a variety of seating options and are generally super accommodating, but their food wasn't quite up to par the last two times I was there.
-----
Gramercy Tavern
42 E 20th St, New York, NY 10003
black bean recipes
We often just have a bowl of homemade black beans w/ a poached/soft boiled/fried egg or two on top plus whatever combination of tomatillo salsa, cheddar, sour cream, scallions, etc. we have in the fridge. I generally use the black bean recipe from the NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/10/health/nutrition/09recipehealth.html?emc=eta1), and so there's a good bit of cilantro and other seasoning in there already, depending on how heavy handed I was when I made the pot. I'll also make a couple pounds at once and freeze them in smaller batches, which works great.
