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Showing posts from March, 2010

Peep Jousting

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Peep joust warriors The tradition of Peeps. Marshmallows extruded out into rows of chick and bunny shapes. Doused in a neon sugar with an acrid bitter aftertaste, then boxed, wrapped, and then presented to children for Easter. Beloved by sugar fiends, kiddies, and few others. I can't stomach them, and barely consider them to be in the food category. Often found in their own display in the store away from the other candy and snacks. Peculiar. Try Peep jousting instead of eating them. A fun way to get rid of them, and pass time with the game loving family on the holiday. Peep Jousting Rules 1) You will need two teams. Its helpful to form the teams around the color of your Peeps. Pink versus green, yellow versus purple. Its harder to determine the winner if your Peeps are the same color. 2) Each team will position their peep on half of a toothpick or lance. Its helpful if a third party is available to judge that both peeps are evenly positioned. Peeps with more lance territory have a

Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs

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Natural design and color Marvelous eggs with a swirling and crackled designs inspired by Chinese tea eggs. Subtle neutral colors made from natural vegetables, spices, and tea dye seep into cracked egg shells. Turmeric for yellow, tea for a rusty brown, and red cabbage makes a redish purple to blue. Don't mistaken them for sculpted marble facsimile. You can eat these eggs. A simple project for an easy going Easter brunch. Natural Dyed Eggs Eggs Water 3 tsp salt 3 tblsp white vinegar 3 black or red tea bags 1 tsp turmeric 1/2 half small red cabbage sliced, or about 1.5 lbs, Gently place eggs in a sauce pan. Cover with water, and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and let sit in water for 2 minutes. Rinse under cold running water. Tap with the bottom end of a spoon until cracked. Try to avoid large cracks and chips. To many cracks may cause the shells to drop off during cooking. Lightly cracked In three separate sauce pans add 1 qt water, 1 tsp salt, 1 tblsp vinegar to each pan.

Meat: Noah Bermanoff of Mile End Delicatessen

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brisket platter and poutine Canadian Noah Bermanoff has set a fire in Brooklyn with his luscious Montreal style meats and bagels served up at Mile End Delicatessen . Not a raging fire, a low, smoldering fire. The kind of fire that tenderizes spiced meat to a luscious hunk. Mile End is being clobbered with customers and soaring reviews from the media alike. Its well deserved attention for Bermanoff and his juicy heritage brisket. All born from the simple fact that he missed the smoked pastrami of his home. Interview by Jason Diamond via Jewcy . Photos by Naomi Donabedian. Take out line at Mile End You dropped out of law school to open Mile End? Is your mother worried? Well, I'm technically still on a leave of absence. I indeed left permanently or temporary to do this. I wasn't very happy in law school, and this was something I really wanted to do for awhile, and I suppose I felt inspired at the time. It was a bold moment perhaps, and rather just feeling enslaved to the

Oven Onion Rings

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Mighty crunch, hint of spice Onions make my eyes leak worse than a cardboard shack caught in a Nor'easter. I shall not shed a tear for this wonderful oven baked onion ring recipe I discovered on The Brown-Eyed Baker's website . Add some spices, minus some salt you won't forget this baked better than the restaurant version. Oven Onion Rings 1/4 cup flour 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp turmeric 1/4 tsp black pepper 3/4 cup buttermilk 1 egg 1/4 cup, heaping, flour 1 1/2 cup crushed kettle potato chips 1 tsp paprika 1/2 tsp turmeric 1/2 tsp chili powder 2 medium sweet onions cut into 3/4 inch slices. 2 tblsp canola or vegetable oil Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix flour, salt, pepper, chili powder, and turmeric in a bowl, and set aside. Mix the buttermilk, egg, and flour in a bowl until well combine. In a final 3rd bowl mix crushed potato chips with the remaining spices. The 3 bowls are a set for battering your o

Orange Upside Down Cake

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Can't go wrong with winter oranges. Oranges are sweet and ready in the market. I must eat orange food to keep my spirits going until spring's first green is here. The top of this cake picture perfect by design. No need to cover it up with frosting. The original version of this recipe calls for blood oranges if you can find them. The polenta edges caramelize brown with orange syrup while the cake is fluffy and light inside. Just a little more cake, and then maybe spring. Orange Upside Down Cake 1 1/4 cup sugar divided 3 tblsp water 1/2 cup butter (one stick) room temperature, divided 1 scant cup of flour 3 tblsp polenta 1/4 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp vanilla 2 eggs 1/4 cup half and half 3 mandarin or oranges or 5 tangerines Separate egg whites from yolks into 2 separate clean bowls. Set aside for 1 hour until room temperature. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 8 inch cast iron skillet or oven proof skillet with 2-3 inch high sides combine 6 tblsp of suga

CSAs are For Food Lovers

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Box of farm freshness no grocery store necessary. The pleasure season of CSA (community supported agriculture) is upon us, and its time to sign up. After I renew my membership to my neighborhood CSA , crisp lettuce, greens, squash, string beans, potatoes, garlic, radishes, herbs, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and more will be delivered by my farmer weekly. Occasionally these vegetables have been picked only hours before they are in my kitchen. Its an incredible system organized by people who want to help local and small farms, and shames every grocery store tomato you'll ever eat after. A farm subscription that delivers boxes of veggies. Because I make a commitment to my farm's growing season all of these vegetables, and most of my diet, costs less than the farmers market, and less than sometimes than the grocery store. Even if you aren't crazy about what grows, fruit, cheese, eggs, bread, and now meat CSAs are all options! The finest fish , beef, lamb , and heritage pork