- A Meal at the Playboy Mansion by Kelly Senyei
- Where to Go for Gonads by Jane and Michael Stern
- What (and How) to Eat Naked by Geoff Nicholson
- Libido-Killing Food by Lexi Dwyer
Gourmet Live Blog
05.16.12: The Sex Issue
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Tagged Gourmet Live app, sex and food, the sex issue
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Image of the Week: Salt and Vinegar Grilled Pork
Pork belly is like the dessert of all meats. It’s rich, fattening, and utterly decadent. Hiding beneath a thick layer of fat is a belt of tender-sweet pork, so soft and melt-in-your-mouth you’ll want to make sure any marinade that dare touches it is only an afterthought. The Hungry Giant keeps the sauce simple and secondary with a balanced salty-sour marinade of white cane and apple cider vinegars, peppercorns, and a splash of fish sauce.
A Nifty Cooking Tip From Jamie Oliver
Photo: Kemp Minifie
Succulent nuggets of eggplant are the key to a good Pasta alla Norma, the iconic Sicilian dish that, while it consists of only four main ingredients—pasta, tomato sauce, eggplant, and ricotta salata cheese—manages to taste far more complex than the sum of its parts. The classic way to deal with the eggplant is to cut it into cubes and fry it. Some authorities salt it first to draw out any bitterness, but plenty of others don’t. My job was to streamline a recipe for Gourmet Easy Dinners, available on newsstands June 12, so salting was out.
So was frying: It turns the cubes into little sponges of oil. Roasting was an alternative I found in several cookbooks, and the results were better, but I still wasn’t entirely happy.
Luckily, I stumbled upon Jamie Oliver’s recipe for Pasta alla Norma in Jamie’s Italy. He quarters large eggplants lengthwise and cuts out the “seedy fluffy centers,” leaving shells, which he slices crosswise into “fingers.” For me, cutting the eggplant into eight wedges made it even easier to get rid of the seedy parts. If it freaks you out to remove so much of the innards—the shell you’re left with is about ½- to ¾- inch thick—don’t worry. The flesh that’s left is firm and meaty. When tossed with some olive oil and roasted in a very hot 475°F oven for 20 to 25 minutes, the eggplant turned out meltingly tender and not at all greasy—the best I’d ever cooked. Continue reading
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Tagged Cooking Tip, eggplant, Jamie Oliver, Kemp's Kitchen, Pasta alla Norma
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Food Blog of the Week: Cooking with Books
Name: Marnely Rodriguez
Blog: Cooking with Books
Location: Edgartown, Massachusetts
What is the first meal you ever cooked?
I don’t recall a first meal exactly, but I do recall my first cake. And who can say that cake isn’t a meal all on its own? It was a simple chocolate cake and I remember my mom making the Italian meringue for me to use to cover the cake, so you can imagine the sticky mess!
If you had to blog about one ingredient every day for a year, what would it be?
It would definitely be rice in all its varieties and with a world of possibilities for add-ins, as well as liquids to cook it in. But I’d never make rice pudding, which brings me to the next question…
I will never eat:
Neither rice pudding nor Okra. Ever.
What’s your favorite restaurant and what do you order there?
Since I was born and raised in the Dominican Republic, I’d have to say Adrian’s Tropical. Set on the waterfront, this place has the best mofongo (garlic mashed green plantains with pork rinds) and it’s a tradition to eat sancocho, a rich and hearty seven-meat stew, on New Year’s Day morning after the celebrations have ended.
Is there a food you used to hate, but now love?
Berenjena, which is Spanish for “eggplant.” It was always presented to me steamed, which made it a brown, mucky color and odd, soft texture. Now, I’m in love with it! One of my favorite casseroles is composed of layers of roasted eggplant, fried sweet plantains, cheese, and marinara sauce.
What’s your go-to quick and easy dinner?
Orzo. Its shape is comforting already, and quickly tossed with any leftover meats (grilled chicken, ground beef from burgers, etc.) and vegetables available. Topped with butter, it’s such a quick dinner.
Who would you love to have over for dinner?
Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs. I fell in love with Amanda’s writing before entering culinary school through her book, Cooking for Mr. Latte. Not having Merrill at that dinner would be like having food52, without the 52!
Posted in From the Food Blogs
Tagged Cooking with Books, food blogs, From the Food Blogs
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What We’re Cooking: Mother’s Day Breakfast in Bed
When I was a child, every Mother’s Day I would wake up before dawn and whip up a “surprise” breakfast in bed for my mom. This proved challenging since I had to make breakfast in such a hurry before she was lured awake by tantalizing smells from the kitchen. I remember several years where I had to order Mom back to bed just so I could bring up her a perfectly set tray. At first the tray only featured a bowl of cereal, but then I quickly moved onward and upward to eggs, toast, and pancakes.
This year when my mom visits, I’m making a special brunch in her honor. I’m starting with her favorite: waffles. I’m choosing to make Cardamom Sour-Cream Waffles topped with generous spoonfuls of lingonberry preserves and dusted with confectioners’ sugar. Then I’m turning to something savory and substantial with Kemp’s Eggs on Toast with Dandelion Greens, which is the perfect rendition of the classic eggs on toast I used to make for Mom. I’m finishing Mother’s Day brunch with a “dessert” of Cherry-Apricot Yogurt Sundaes, in which cool, creamy Greek yogurt is topped with a fragrant cherry and apricot syrup.
What’s your favorite Mother’s Day breakfast?
Posted in News & Events
Tagged eggs, Mothers' day brunch, waffles, what we're cooking
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Now In the Store: Our Moms’ Favorite Meals
Add flavor and fun to your spread with recipes from the Our Moms’ Favorite Meals collection, now available in the Gourmet Live Store.
Make it a day full of food and fun by starting with a wedge of Raspberry Buttermilk Cake served as breakfast in bed, and then continue the celebration with Glazed Chicken with Porcini and Crisp Potatoes. One more sweet treat in the form of Chocolate Pudding Pie is guaranteed to make for a memorable Mother’s Day.
Download the free Gourmet Live app then head to the Library to access the Store for the Our Moms’ Favorite Meals collection.
Helping Moms Out On Mother’s Day
- Feeding America has created the Give a Meal program. This organization, which comprises 200 food banks across the country and feeds 37 million Americans, can provide eight meals for $1. As the organization notes, for millions of mothers their biggest worry isn’t their own hunger but rather being unable to feed their children, or having to choose between rent, medicine and groceries. Make a donation in your mother’s honor and send her a personalized Give A Meal e-card letting her know the difference she’s helped to make.
- The Food Bank of New York will also send your mother an e-card if you make a donation in her name. An astonishing 75% of New York households with kids struggle to afford food, so making even a small donation will feed a family for days.
- Women for Women International, which helps mothers in war-torn countries from Afghanistan to the Sudan rebuild their lives, has already helped almost half a million. With a donation (and an e-card) today, you can make a that number climb ever higher.
- Our sister site, Epicurious, found 10 charitable gifts for Mother’s Day, none as pretty as the handmade wavy mugs that benefit UNICEF. A set (pictured above) costs only $25 and is dishwasher and microwave safe. Even though she won’t get it in time for Sunday, she will always remember you when she takes a sip of coffee or tea.
Weekly Roundup: Strawberry Sensations
- It doesn’t get more decadent than Strawberry Shortcake from The Candid Appetite, in which layers of sponge cake doused in boozy syrup are held together with whipped cream and fresh strawberries (pictured above).
- Strawberries meet a new companion in this adventurous Avocado, Strawberry, and Goat Cheese Sandwich from Edible Perspective.
- In Sips and Spoonfuls Strawberry and Pistachio Cake, fragrant strawberries are nestled in a bed of nutty, tender cake.
- The classic Strawberry Spinach Salad makes a comeback in Stick A Fork In It’s version tossed with a poppy seed vinaigrette.
- Chasing Delicious gives the scrumptious strawberry-rhubarb duo a crown of Italian meringue in Strawberry Rhubarb Meringue Pie.
- Strawberries lend a hint of sweetness to smoky Strawberry Barbecue Sauce from Feral Kitchen.
- Oh My Veggies creates Strawberry Mimosa Cupcakes with ingredients from our favorite extravagant pair: fresh strawberries and a bit of bubbly.
Posted in From the Food Blogs
Tagged strawberries, Strawberry Shortcake, summer fruits, weekly roundup
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The Musical Pasta of Italy
Photo: Luisa Ghetti (Fuzgu on flickr)
You’ve got to love the Italians for the whimsical nature of their pastas: Farfalle are named for the butterflies they resemble, penne for the quills of old-fashioned feather pens, and fettuccine for ribbons. My favorite are radiatore, or radiators, because they look like the clanking radiators in my childhood home.
Gourmet Live’s Music Issue reminded me of a terrific example of the influence of music on pasta: maccheroni alla chitarra. Chitarra is the Italian name for a guitar, and maccheroni alla chitarra is ingeniously formed by forcing a freshly rolled-out sheet of egg pasta—made with hard durum wheat, not soft wheat—through tightly-spaced parallel wires, strung taut like guitar strings, along the top of a long shallow wooden box. You lay the pasta sheet on the wires and when you roll a rolling pin over the dough, the wires cut it and the strands drop onto the bottom of the box.
Not only do the wires of the chitarra box look like guitar strings, but restaurateur and author Carlo Middione surmises in his excellent book, The Food of Southern Italy, that the name chitarra probably comes from the fact that you also have to strum the strings like a guitar to loosen the strands that fail to be cut clean by the rolling pin. What you finally end up with looks like squared-off spaghetti.
Maccheroni alla chitarra is a specialty of Abruzzo, the region just below the calf on the Adriatic side of Italy’s boot, where it’s usually tossed with a smoked pork-infused tomato sauce or a meaty ragu. De Cecco makes maccheroni alla chitarra, but if you’re itching to make it yourself, you can buy your own chitarra. Who knows, maybe it will make music beyond what’s on your plate.
The Julia Child Centennial Celebration: Rolled Omelette
You can join in on the celebration with all of the latest updates on the Julia Child Facebook page, as well as on Twitter (@JC100 or #JC100). Don’t forget to check back in each week as we round up a few of our favorite posts, beginning with this week’s featured recipe for Julia’s timeless rolled omelette.
- Taste As You Go shares a kicked up version of the classic starring caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, and your choice of cheese.
- Toronto Tasting Notes discovers that butter is best for making the eggs slide straight out of the pan.
- Baked by Rachel adds chopped bacon and sharp cheddar to her light and fluffy creation.
- Knit & Nosh turns to a trusty steel pan for a perfectly pale exterior and creamy, goat cheese-filled center.
- Epicurious draws inspiration from a classic Julia Child video showcasing the star’s timeless technique.
Just Like Mom Used to Make
Photo: Romulo Yanes
We all have that one food that brings us right back to our childhood. My mom would always make me French toast when I was little. To this day that classic breakfast dish reminds me of my mother. But, we want you to tell us:
What food reminds you of mom the most?
This Mother’s Day treat mom to a midmorning trio of dishes the whole family will enjoy!
Posted in Reader Polls
Tagged Gourmet's Modern Menus, mother's day, Mothers' day brunch
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Food Blog of the Week: A Thought For Food
Name: Brian Samuels
Blog: A Thought For Food
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
What is the first meal you ever cooked?
This is a hard question to answer because I used to help my mom out all the time when I was a kid. She’d let me put everything together once it had been chopped and cooked. One memory I hold close to my heart is when my parents decided that it would be fun to make homemade shrimp shumai. I got to peel and clean the shrimp, mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, and then we all gathered around the table and folded the filling up into the wrappers. I think that’s the moment I fell in love with cooking.
If you had to blog about one ingredient every day for a year, what would it be?
Fresh herbs. If it had to be one, though, I think it’d be cilantro. People seem to have a love/hate relationship with cilantro and I don’t have strong feelings towards it, but I think it’s an incredibly versatile herb and I’d like to explore that.
What’s your favorite restaurant and what do you order there?
The restaurant I’ve been to the most (and is consistently excellent) is Bistro Jeanty in Yountville, California. I always get their tomato soup and I adore their buttery, garlicky escargot.
Is there a food you used to hate, but now love?
Mushrooms. I think it’s because my sister used to love them and I decided that I didn’t like them because of that. Now, I’m obsessed.
What’s your go-to quick and easy dinner?
Pasta with pesto is so simple and really delicious. I’ve started making shakshuka (baked eggs in tomato sauce) recently and that’s pretty easy and very satisfying.
Posted in From the Food Blogs
Tagged A Thought For Food, food blogs, From the Food Blogs
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05.09.12: Mom’s the Word
All hail the first lady: Mom. Meet the wisecracking mom of comedian Kathy Griffin, join road-food experts Jane and Michael Stern at Mom’s of Salina, Utah, and Mother’s of New Orleans, and dig into a scrumptious Mother’s Day brunch menu in our Mom’s the Word Issue.
Download the free Gourmet Live app for access to all of the issues and recipes, and visit Gourmet.com to read this week’s issue in full, including:
- 10 Questions for Kathy and Maggie Griffin by Kelly Senyei
- Gourmet Modern Menu: Maple Apricot Granola (with video)
- Gourmet Modern Menu: Eggs with Cream, Spinach, and Country Ham (with video)
- Gourmet Modern Menu: Strawberry Dulce de Leche Tart (with video)
- A Tale of Two Mothers by Jane and Michael Stern
- 10 Unbeatable Brunch Spots In Partnership with BlogHer
Image of the Week: Double Blueberry Cake
Some foods are just simply comforting. Take, for example, Buttered Up’s Double Blueberry Cake bursting with lush, textured blueberries and topped with a deep violet blueberry sauce that turns to a soft magenta at the edges. This cake, baked in a loaf pan, is more like a sweet, dense quick-bread, while the drizzle of sauce has the concentrated blueberry flavor of pie filling. It’s enough to evoke nostalgia for Grandmother’s old cookbooks or rainy days in spring that will give way to luscious fruits.
Mother’s Day: A Mom’s Top Five Kitchen Rules For Her Kids
Photo: Gourmet/Romulo A. Yanes
I’m blessed with two daughters, but if I’d had sons, the rules wouldn’t have changed. When my girls were in their teens, my kitchen rules were considered unasked-for advice, which meant the list was more irritating than helpful. Now that they’re in college and cooking in order to save money on food, they’re receptive to any kitchen guidance.
BAREFOOT IS BONKERS: Sandals and flip flops are out, too. It is essential to wear shoes when cooking. You want to protect those precious toes from dropped knives and wayward dribbles of hot fat. I don’t care which ones you choose, as long as your feet are covered. If you want to be chef-y cool, go for clogs or crocs.
HONE YOUR MULTITASKING TALENTS: The kitchen is the one place you can multitask successfully. Begin by tuning in to National Public Radio while you chop and sauté. You can keep track of several items on the stove and learn about the latest world events, while simultaneously washing dishes. How’s that for efficiency?
CLEAN AS YOU GO: Please don’t pile up dirty dishes in the sink. Keep the sink clear for those emergencies when you need cold water. The recipe direction, “stirring occasionally” should be your cue to start washing. Who knows, because your study-brain is taking a break, the opening line to that blasted term paper just might come to you in a thunderbolt. Continue reading
Posted in Kemp's Kitchen
Tagged Kemp's Kitchen, kitchen rules, kitchen tips, mother's day
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Food Blog of the Week: Sandwicherie
Name: Karolina Wiercigroch
Blog: Sandwicherie
Location: Warsaw, Poland
If you had to blog about one ingredient every day, what would it be?
Potatoes. They’re beautiful, delicious, and versatile and they are the love of my life. My blog, Couch Potato, would permit me to spend the whole day working my potato magic. Sweet potatoes and red potatoes, russet potatoes, and blue potatoes, young potatoes, and even regular potatoes would be craftily turned into purées, French fries, baked wedges, loaded skins, crispy crisps, gratins, casseroles, soups, salads, pies, and, obviously, sandwiches. I do have one potato sandwich on my blog, but there are hundreds yet to come.
Is there a food you used to hate but now you love?
Like many young minds of my generation, I was a victim of the anti-spinach propaganda. Kids were expected to hate spinach, so I decided it could never come anywhere near my mouth without even tasting it. Now I enjoy spinach, especially when paired with blue cheese. Also, I used to be afraid of chanterelles, which seems completely absurd given how astonishingly beautiful and breathtakingly delicious I find them now.
Who would you love to have over for dinner?
John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, the eponymous inventor of the sandwich. Genius. Probably the most brilliant man in human history. And Goethe, who, according to a completely fictional story by Woody Allen, was Earl Sandwich’s consultant and significantly improved hamburgers by suggesting to serve them on buns. And Woody Allen, too. And I do realize that most of these people are dead, so it would be just me and Woody Allen, surrounded by sad, empty chairs.
What is your favorite restaurant and what do you order there?
SOLEC in Warsaw. They only use local, seasonal ingredients from organic farms. Their truly innovative approach to Polish culinary tradition results in unexpected combinations, like chicken livers in orange syrup or beetroot horseradish whipped cream. The menu changes daily, so I don’t stand a chance to order the same thing twice. I particularly enjoy soups (like white wine-infused bread and cheese soup, or celery cream soup with caramel and rosemary).
What We’re Cooking: Miso
Bold and versatile, this popular Japanese condiment should be a staple in kitchens across the globe. Similar in flavor to a soy sauce, miso is made by fermenting grains like rice and barley with soybeans, salt, and a fungus called “koji.” The paste is becoming ubiquitous enough now that you can even find soy-free versions made with chickpeas. Be forewarned: Miso is extremely salty and pungent, so go easy on any additional seasonings.
For inspired grilling or roasting, shiro miso gives Marinated Salmon with Citrus and Shitakes a meatiness, while zesty cilantro, lemon, and orange keep the level of umami in check. I like to keep this creamy Miso Dressing on hand for topping grilled vegetables and burgers or tossing with shredded cabbage for an Asian-style slaw. And for a quick side, miso- and scallion-based compound butter rounds out nutty, pale-fleshed Roasted Japanese Sweet Potatoes.
How do you like to cook with miso?
The Restaurant Report: Danji & Harper’s Restaurant and Bar
Photo: CheeryVisage
In the last month, I’ve been to two unassuming places that follow this philosophy: Danji (pictured above), on the outskirts of New York City’s Theater District, is a tiny Korean spot with a big heart. With only 36 seats, and decor comprised of spoons and strung lights over communal tables, Danji excels with a very focused menu. Chef/owner Hooni Kim, formerly of Daniel and Masa, prides himself on doing these few things very well: Homemade tofu, with a crunchy exterior but soft interior, is dressed with a ginger-scallion vinaigrette; double-fried vegetable dumplings are filled with sprightly herbs; sliders come packed with braised spicy pork belly or beef; the dish of the moment, chicken wings, are coated in honey and chiles before being roasted. And then there’s the kimchi–piquant, pungent, and powerful, this is what cabbage is made for. (346 West 52nd Street, New York City; 212-586-2880)
Twenty-five miles up the Hudson River is Harper’s Restaurant and Bar. Focusing on farm-to-table cuisine, enhanced with artisanal cocktails that would be at home in any Williamsburg, Brooklyn bar, this sophisticated Dobbs Ferry restaurant stands apart for its commitment to freshness. Chef Christopher Vergara lives the locavore ethos as much as possible, serving up ultra fresh chicken liver with shallots and walnuts; goat cheese ravioli with golden beets; crispy duck with white beans and caramelized onions; and wild greens from the area. This is served up in an old tavern with a farmhouse feel–distressed wood, wallpaper made from old newspaper ads, and a gorgeous blue room that makes diners feel like they are sitting in a Van Gogh painting come to life. (92 Main Street, Dobbs Ferry, NY; 914-693-2306)
Weekly Roundup: Cinco de Mayo Favorites
I celebrate Cinco de Mayo every year with a fiesta filled with south-of-the border-inspired bites. Start off your feast with crispy chips and dippers, slow-cooked tacos, fruity salsas and more. ¡Salud!
- Pair smoky roasted tomatillos and olives in Foodie Crush’ Roasted Tomatillo and Green Olive Salsa (pictured above).
- Pull out the slow cooker for Bakeaholic Mama’s cheesy seven-layer Corona and Lime Chicken Bean Dip.
- The Tomato Tart’s Strawberry-Rhubarb Salsa makes for a sweet and sour seasonal dip.
- Simple and mild, One Lovely Life’s Pineapple Guacamole gets a fragrant, floral hit from this juicy tropical fruit.
- Top the Turntable Kitchen’s tender, pull-apart Slow-Cooked Beef Tacos with smooth avocado and crunchy pickled radishes.
- Scarletta Bakes’ creamy corn salad esquites, or Corn Cups, are tossed with a zesty cilantro, lime, and queso fresco-based dressing.
- Don’t throw away used lime rinds! Instead, fill them with Brit & Co’s creative Margarita Jello Shots and keep the fiesta going long past appetizers.
Salted Caramel: A Problem Solved
Photo: Romulo A. Yanes
Salted caramel anything—sauce, ice cream, candy—has been the rage for a while, and I doubt it’s going to melt away. So I was screaming, “Eureka!” this morning, when I suddenly solved a problem with caramel that’s been vexing me for years.
I was making a salted caramel sauce, which means you begin by caramelizing the sugar. There are two ways to do it, one with water, and one without, known in culinary lingo as a wet or dry caramel. Plenty of colleagues prefer the wet method, but it takes longer, and I’m a tad impatient. I prefer a dry caramel because it’s fast, and it only requires sugar and a super-dry pan.
Whether you’ve made a wet or dry caramel, the real action begins when you add the cream, because it immediately bubbles up and the sugar hardens into a stiff mess. To get to a smooth, happy sauce, you have to continue cooking the mixture, stirring all the while, until the caramel dissolves. Continue reading
Posted in Kemp's Kitchen
Tagged Caramel, Cooking Tip, desserts, Kemp's Kitchen, salted caramel
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