Nov 3
Half a house in New Jersey
Staten Island
Devastation
Atlantic City
Staten Island
La Guardia Airport
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Tanker washed ashore Staten Island
Breezy Point Queens
FDR Drive Manhattan
Bed Stuy Brooklyn
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Long Beach Long Island
Battery Park City Manhattan
Tattered and Torn But still flying
All photo’s from Fox Five NY website.
Nov 2
Food Bloggers Unite
Barb Kiebel author of the amazing blog Creative Culinary who I am sure you know of, has taken the bull by the horns and is calling all food bloggers to unite to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy. Barb lives in Denver and I am sure has been watching the news unfold, the scenes are heart wrenching. I live in Brooklyn, NY and made it through the storm with only minimal damage in my neighborhood, we were lucky, others were not. The scenes of devastation will tear your heart out, at least they do mine. Some lost their lives, those lucky enough to make it through the storm are homeless and their precious possessions gone.
Click on the link above (creative culinary) to see how you can join in and help. Disaster relief, FEMA, Red Cross, Salvation Army and many others are on the scene working round the clock to help but the devastation is so widespread the help is just not coming fast enough.
In Manhattan there has been no power from 34th Street to lower Manhattan since Monday, the streets, subways and tunnels were flooded. The New Jersey Coast was virtually destroyed, the devastation in Staten Island is unfathomable, so far they have found 20 dead in Staten Island alone and countless residents have lost everything. Queens, the Rockaways especially was vastly affected by the storm, Breezy Point was the scene of a huge fire that destroyed over 80 homes, Brooklyn’s coastal area’s flooded, Long Island is the scene of tremendous coastal damage and widespread power outages. It’s cold and getting colder imagine being cold and hungry with no where to go, it’s heartbreaking.
I am watching the news right now and it has gone from bad to worse, there is a possibility a Nor Easter will hit here on Wednesday, the high winds and heavy rain could be disastrous for an already fragile environment.
Please visit Barb’s blog and see how you can help!
I also cannot forget all the pets that have been affected by Sandy, they need food the ASPCA is accepting donations and desperately needs help, you can also donate to the Humane Society through their website to help rescue and feed all the animals in need.
Oct 26
What a wonderful time I had last night (Thursday) at the totally fabulous pie party hosted by Ken (hungryrabbit) and Jackie (divathatateny). There were more pie’s than I think I have ever seen in one place and every single one absolutely delicious. The event was held at the GE Monogram design center located in Manhattan on 58th St on the Upper East side. I was drooling not just about the pies but the beautiful stoves, wall ovens, cook tops etc… The pie party was sponsored by Smirnoff Vodka, Kerrygold Butter, Dubb Pies NYC ,Harvard Common Press and GE Monogram.
I met so many of my food blog and Twitter friends in person and was so happy to get to talk and hang out with them. I met the amazing Abby Dodge, Susan (littleredkitchen), Kate (foodbabbles) Chris (the Peche) and many more including our fabulous hosts Ken and Jackie.
The setting was beautiful, imagine yourself surrounded by top notch kitchen appliances in a gorgeous showroom filled with some of the most amazing food bloggers, writers and cookbook authors, pies both sweet and savory as far as the eye can see, drinks flowing and delicious appetizers cooked fresh in the GE demo kitchen, it was a night to remember.
Drinks flowed
Everyone brought pie, that was a must, after all it was a pie party!! We all set our pie’s out on tables, mingled, drank and ate, watched a demo on how to make a fabulous pie crust and then we all dug into the pies. I brought a pecan pie (the pecans were macerated in cognac and then oven dried) and a goat cheese/ricotta tart topped with brandied figs and this was nestled into a tart crust with ground toasted walnuts. I cannot even begin to tell you what my favorites were they were all so good, we were encouraged to take some of each pie to taste and take home. I have a lot of pie waiting for me in the refrigerator.
Cooking Demo
When we left were given a beautiful gift bag,containing Abby Dodge’s new cookbook Mini Treats And Held Sweets, Fine Cooking magazine, stainless measuring spoons, a cake/pie server, our choice of salted or unsalted Kerrygold butter and a lovely box of Dubb pies.
Fantastic bag of goodies
Thank you Ken and Jackie for putting together a wonderful night of friends and food in the amazing GE Monogram Center. I know it must have been a tremendous amount of work and I have to say it was flawless!! I should have taken more pictures but I was so busy talking and eating and meeting people I forgot to snap the pics, I did manage to get a few pictures of the sweet pie table before we dug in.
Beautiful Pies
More pies
And more pies!!
How about more pies!!
Oct 19
Sorry I have posted more than once today I just wanted to thank everyone who voted for my recipe, I found out it won the Whole Foods contest. I am thrilled and honored and so appreciative of your support.
Thank you again!!
Meatloaf Plain and Simple WF Winner Best Meatloaf
Oct 19
When I first saw the post from Suzie whose wonderful blog Two Dogs In The Kitchen outlined a chain of events that had recently transpired my heart sank for her. Suzie was elated at the birth of her first grandchild but the joy was clouded by sudden and unexpected health problems. Please read the link to her blog, you will see what has happened to her. Suzie’s good friend Veronica knew that she needed help, she didn’t ask for help, but Veronica knew she needed it.
She came up with a brilliant idea to have an online bake sale, the proceeds will help defray the catastrophic cost of her medical care, I donated a cake (my apple cider applesauce cake)that will be auctioned in November and other food bloggers, bakers and friends have also donated items. If you would like to donate a baked good for the sale please contact Veronica (links are below). Suzie recently lost her job and is uninsured ,we all know how high the cost of medical care is, it can literally bankrupt you. She needs surgery to remove her gall bladder once she recovers from Pneumonia.
If you would like to donate baked goods or buy something from the online auction it would be greatly appreciated here is the link to her blog, Veronicas Cornucopia you can leave a comment or email her directly, vraklis@yahoo.com this will help Suzie pay for her mounting medical bills. All you talented and wonderful cooks have to do is let Veronica know what you will donate and after the auction you will be told where and to whom you will send it to. Very easy and this will help Suzie a lot!!
We food bloggers are a generous and tight knit community, all you have to do is bake and we all love to do that, right? Thanks so much and even if you don’t donate or purchase something from the online bake sale, send your well wishes to her she is amazingly cheerful despite the circumstances. Thanks so much!
Oct 18
Thank you!
You know what, these awards may not be James Beard awards but because they are awarded by fellow bloggers, culinary birds of a feather, at least to me it means a lot. What does it mean, well, someone reads or browses or notices my little blog, for that I am so grateful. it also means that someone may like what I am doing and that makes me feel good. So I want to thank Julia, from In a Small Kitchen whose lovely blog always inspires me and awarding to me the Very Inspiring Blogger Award.
I have to admit I am not always good at following up on things and in the past others have given me these awards, I am thankful, but unfortunately forgot to post it and for that I am sorry. Sometimes things happen, I get busy and things slip my mind, that doesn’t mean I am not grateful just forgetful.
So here are 15 bloggers I admire and am in turn awarding this to, but really there are much more than 15. More than likely most of you have received this before but thats ok, just know that you are followed, appreciated and read.
So it’s more than 15, I admire so many I couldn’t stop!!
Here are 7 things about me that you may not know (or maybe you do):
1. I work in Real Estate, primarily Historic homes in Brooklyn, NY
2. I am an animal lover and advocate for animals
3. I am hopelessly disorganzied at times
4. Love to cook but because I live alone I don’t cook that often for myself (I do cook every day for my dogs though).
5. I travelled extensively in Europe and Africa, living in several different European countries
6. I hate unloading the dishwasher, but like loading it (Weird right?)
7. I LOVE horror films my absolute favorite genre!
NOTE: The bloggers named above are not required to re-award unless you want to, have the time and feel compelled.
Sep 11
Fox News Photo Of American Flags 9/11/2012
Sitting on my stoop in Brooklyn I have a beautiful view of the Tribute in Lights, it’s awe inspiring. It feels like yesterday when we were attacked and so many innocent people were murdered. I saw the Towers in billows of smoke on that day and every September 11th I re-live it. I count myself lucky that I wasn’t in Manhattan working when it happened but it still rips my heart out every time I think about it, for hours that day I didn’t know the whereabouts of my daughter. On that day she had to go to Battery Park City in the shadow of the World Trade Centers. There was no cell phone service that day and for what seemed like centuries I could not reach her. She left for work late that day, we both watched in shock and horror as a plane hit the North tower, at that time it was speculated by the media that it was just an accident, a small plane must have lost control and flown into the Tower. After she left I found out the sad truth about what happened. Her train stopped mid station, just short of the WTC station that was damaged. It took her hours to get out, they had to evacuate the train and in the dark the passengers were guided by MTA employees, FDNY and NYC Police to the station and then had to make their way out to the street. Imagine the chaos in that station and then on the street. The South Tower had collapsed when she got out and you couldn’t see anything at all. A friendly hand on her shoulder guided her to some light and she started to walk home. She walked over the Brooklyn Bridge to her friends house and called me. When she got home she was covered in soot and you could see the hand print on her blouse, it was a Fireman who helped her. Today I am thankful, but still sad for all the lost lives and how our country has changed as a result of this terrorist attack.
I tried to take a picture of the Tribute in Lights from in front of my house but my iphone just couldn’t pick it up well enough, this is my picture, you can barely see the two blue lights and the tree’s in front of my house but they are there.
Here is what it really looks like, this is from Google pictures:
Tribute in Lights
Aug 28
A Bounty of Fresh Vegetables
Today was a whirlwind, my pugs, Izzy and Nando have had some medical problems and today I had to take Nando for a biopsy. My Veterinarian’s office is Upstate, New York. It’s a 62 mile drive one way but totally worth it for me. Once you find someone you trust implicitly as I do Dr. Seo distance has no meaning. I had to be there by 9AM, left my house very early Izzy and Nando in tow. To say I was nervous and worried is an understatement. The “C” word came up when Nando was examined last week and I feared the worst. You see, I have been through this multiple times with my other pets and no matter how many times you go through it doesn’t get easier. Luckily, Nando was scheduled as the first procedure so I knew I would not have to wait long for word on how he was. Rather than sit in the waiting room I decided to go get a cup of coffee with Izzy and my friend Steve who kindly drove me and the pugs upstate today. We have been there many times and each time we notice signs across the street from the vets office for a farm stand, fresh corn, tomatoes, squash and eggs. I thought it would be nice to wander over there and see what they have. As we walked up the driveway and passed the quaint beautiful little house we noticed the rows and rows of corn and other vegetables growing. It was idyllic and beautiful, but I could not figure out where the farm stand was. A car pulled into the drive way so we asked him where we could buy the vegetables and he pointed to a covered stand in back of the house, he said the farmer who owns the stand is not there and we can take what we like on the honor system. There is a box to put the money, just weigh what we want and leave the cash in the box. I think I looked at him like he had two heads, being from Brooklyn, and living in the city that is unheard of. I made my way to the little stand and there were rows of fresh tomatoes, corn, squash, peppers and other vegetables. On the side was a cash box with a simple hand written sign directing you to slip the money in the slot and a cup filled with change and bills and a sign that told you to use it if you need to make change. I carefully picked the vegetables I wanted, weighed and recorded the amount for each on a piece of paper, I slipped my money into the slot and left. As I was walking away I felt like I had been transported back to a kinder gentler time. This man trusted people to do the right thing, and I am sure most would do exactly that. It made me feel good that he trusted his fellow man enough to leave his farm stand full of produce, a cash box and cup full of money out there. I wish I had thought of taking pictures of the stand but my mind was elsewhere, but I’m sure you get the picture.
When I walked back to the office Dr. Seo was walking around outside looking for me, he said Nando was fine, he is cautiously optimistic about the results and I will know possibly the end of this week. I felt relieved and still remain optimistic that the biopsy results will be benign,
Izzy and Nando together as always in docs office.
Aug 13
Bake Together Buttermilk Panna Cotta
First let me say I LOVE panna cotta, and I was so happy to see this bake together didn’t involve a hot stove, not that I don’t enjoy baking, I do, really do, but it’s been so hot this is a welcome change.Abby’s Ricotta Panna Cotta with Raspberry Syrup is divine, the use of ricotta is brilliant.
The lovely people at Marx foods sent me a bottle of Mosto Cotto and I have been toying with idea’s on how to use it and the first thing that came to mind when I received it was somehow incorporating with panna cotta. First let me explain what Mosto Cotto is, it’s an Italian syrup naturally sweetened, made from Montepulciano grapes and Amarena cherries, it’s complex and utterly delicious. Tasting it, I thought it would go nicely with a tangy panna cotta. Instead of using heavy cream and ricotta I used some full fat buttermilk,sour cream and a little heavy cream, a little less sugar than the original recipe called for and some fragrant vanilla. I saw some beautiful champagne grapes at the market and thought they would go very nicely in the syrup. The resulting dessert is a little tangy sweet and fruity. If you don’t have this syrup you can make a cherry syrup using fresh cherries, I do recommend it though, it’s so delicious. Thank you Abby for the inspiration as always.
1 cup full fat buttermilk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp gelatin
1/4 cup water
Add the water to a pyrex measuring cup or ramekin, sprinkle gelatin on the water and set aside until the gelatin blooms.
Add buttermilk, sour cream, cream, sugar and vanilla to mixing bowl and whisk until everything is blended, there are no lumps and sugar is dissolved.
When gelatin has bloomed heat in microwave for a few seconds to liquify, whisk into the buttermilk mixture.
Pour into serving glasses or ramekins (NOTE: if using ramekins that will need to be un-molded, oil the ramekins with cooking spray or neutral oil). Pour into glasses or ramekins, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
Mosto Cotto Champagne Grape Syrup
1/2 cup Mosto Cotto Syrup
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup champagne grapes
zest of half a lemon
2 tbs good Italian red wine (OPTIONAL) A slightly sweet and fruity wine is good. I used Il Conte Montepulciano d’Abruzzo
Add syrup to small saucepan, now add lemon zest and sugar and heat until sugar dissolves, add the grapes and cook for a few minutes, I cooked for approximately 3 minutes on med heat (You don’t want the heat too high). the grapes will start to break down a little. Remove from heat, pour through a sieve mashing the grapes (add optional red wine now) and refrigerate until ready to use. You will probably have leftover syrup, make some drinks, it’s wonderful with sparkling water served ice cold.
To Serve:
Pour cold syrup on top of the panna cotta and serve. If un-molding ramekins, put a few inches of hot water in the sink and sit the ramekin in the sink for about 5 seconds run a small flexible offset spatula or butter knife around the panna cotta to loosen the sides. Invert onto serving plate and spoon syrup over panna cotta.
Aug 1
Thank you Jasline
Let me first say that I love Jasline’s beautiful blog Food is my life, I have especially enjoyed her series on the recipes of Jamie Oliver. She has featured delicious recipes that are easy to make and nutritious. I am honored to have been nominated by Jasline for the Versatile blogger Award and want to take this opportunity to urge you all to visit Jaslines blog, the photography ,recipes and writing are top notch and I know you will enjoy as much as I do. Thank you Jasline for the nomination I really appreciate it and I want to pay it foward by nominating some of my favorite blogs for this award. These awards are affirmation and a nod from fellow bloggers and that speaks volumes in my opinion. I count so many of you as friends I have never met, but we all have the same passion and interest. Thanks again Jasline I look forward to many more posts on your gorgeous blog.
Most of these wonderful blogs probably already have this award but I am re-nominating them sometimes we just need a hug. I love so many blogs and follow them daily I can’t possibly name them all, I wish I could. Just click on each to see amazing recipes, great writing and beautiful photography. Enjoy! I would add the award to the side bar but I can’t figure out how to do it, anyone know???
apuginthekitchen 