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Monthly Archives: October 2011

The History Of … Halloween & Trick-or-Treating

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Maddie Donnelly
Candy Bar

Condé Nast Digital Studio

All around the country, kids dressed as superheroes and Disney princesses are currently dreaming of the mountains of sugary goodness they’ll rake in tonight. But how did October 31st come to be the Super Bowl of candy? Let’s take a quick look at the history of trick-or-treating.

Halloween, which has its roots in the Celtic celebration Samhain, has always been associated with food. Celts lit bonfires and set up banquet tables filled with edible offerings for visiting spirits. The poor dressed as ghosts and demons and performed antics in exchange for some of the food and drink in a practice known as mumming. Continue reading →

Posted in Food History | Tagged , , , , |

Last-Minute Halloween Cupcakes

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Kemp Minifie
Ghost Cupcakes

Photo: Kemp Minifie

Need a quick showstopper dessert for your Halloween party tonight? These ghost cupcakes will do the trick, and they’re a cinch to make. Bake your favorite cake batter in 1/2-cup muffin pans lined with fluted paper cups. I used the Double Chocolate Layer Cake recipe from the restaurant Engine Co. No. 28 in Los Angeles, but grab a cake mix if you’re short of time—I’m no saint when it comes to homemade everything.

The frosting is the fastest marshmallowy meringue I know: Dump 1 large egg white—or the equivalent in reconstituted powdered whites—1/3 cup each confectioners’ sugar and light corn syrup, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt in a deep bowl and beat it with an electric mixer on high speed until thick, stiff, and white, 3 to 5 minutes. Amazing, right? Continue reading →

Posted in Kemp's Kitchen | Tagged , , , , |

What We’re Cooking: Pumpkin Seeds

Posted on October 30, 2011 by Megan Steintrager
Pumpkin Flan recipe from Gourmet

Photo: Gourmet

So you’ve scooped out your pumpkin for Halloween, and you’re looking for some pumpkin seed recipes. But before you start cooking, know that most recipes involving pumpkin seeds — including Gourmet‘s Pumpkin Seed Brittle, Pumpkin Muffins, and the Pumpkin Flan with Spiced Pumpkin Seeds pictured above — are best with hulled green pumpkin seeds (also known as pepitas). Continue reading →

Posted in News & Events | Tagged , |

Now In the Store: All Things Pumpkin

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Kelly Senyei
All Things Pumpkin

Transform the quintessential flavor of fall into seven sweet and savory recipes in our All Things Pumpkin collection, now available in the Gourmet Live Store.

Start with a warm and creamy bowl of Pumpkin Soup with Red Pepper Mousse then make your way to the dessert tray for a slice of Pecan Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Ginger Cheesecake Pie, and more.

Download the free Gourmet Live app then head to the Library to access the Store for our All Things Pumpkin collection.

Posted in New on the Gourmet Live App | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

A Not-So Creepy Cocktail

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Brie Schwartz
Not-So-Creepy Cocktail

Photo: CN Digital Studio

As a tyke, pre-packaged and store-bought Halloween costumes were banned from my home. While the coolest girls in grade 6 were clad as pink Power Rangers and off begging for candy, I was waddling between houses in a cardboard box fashioned as a TV, or tottering behind my mom’s car as an unwieldy Christmas tree (OK, that was last year). With the exception of the time in college when I was cajoled into dressing as a sexy lighthouse, Halloween has always been about fostering ingenuity.

In keeping with the Halloween tradition of invention, I called upon Jasper Soffee, the lead mixologist at NYC’s Mulberry Project, which is the “it” bar for bespoke, creative cocktails. Bartenders at the Mulberry Project use fresh, locally sourced ingredients to tailor-make drinks for each guest. Essentially, they’re the antidote to the vodka soda (with all due-respect to my gateway drink). For a Hallo-weekend beverage worthy of your bunnies and goblins, Soffee recommends the Jackalope, which combines pumpkin and tequila (yes, tequila). Suspicious? Step out of the shrink-wrapped kitty costume and sip on something a little more daring. Continue reading →

Posted in Cocktails, Wine & Beer | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

The Making of The Real Bloody Mary Cocktail

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Kelly Senyei
The Real Bloody Mary Cocktail

In this week’s Tricks & Treats issue of Gourmet Live I wrote about my recent trip to Kenya, where I discovered the Samburu and Masai tribes’ blood-based drink in The Real Bloody Mary Cocktail. The article details the six ceremonial types of the blood and milk blend, which I researched while learning about the country’s vast culinary scene.

Upon my return to New York City, I had a few follow-up questions while writing the piece, so I hopped on the computer for a series of video chats with two of my Nairobi-based sources, William Carr-Hartley and Lbukshash Lepeta. After writing the story I knew we needed a striking visual to really capture the imagery behind the article. The next day I made a stop at my local supermarket and Halloween shop and assembled the ingredients for the ultimate bloody milk mustache.  Continue reading →

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Weekly Roundup: Halloween Snacks

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Alessandria Masi
Witches Finger Bread Sticks

Photo: Chris Gentile

There will be tricks and treats this year for Halloween with these deceptively delicious snacks. From Cheesecake Brownie Tombstones to a cup of Witches Brew, celebrate the spookiest day of the year with our picks for the perfect party fare.
  • The Peach Kitchen uses hot dogs, ketchup and tortillas to make Severed Fingers, the perfect Halloween party snack.
  • Delicieux’s Cheesecake Brownie Tombstones won’t make anyone roll in their graves.
  •  Make your own  Witches Brew with Very Culinary’s recipe for a mocktail or rum-spiked cocktail.
  • The Secret Life of a Chef’s Wife shares her tips and tricks for the perfect Ghost Meringue Cookies.
  • Gourmand’s Witch Hat Cookies look so real they’ll bewitch you into forgetting they’re made with ice cream cones and Oreos.
  • Decorate your daring desserts with Bakingdom’s Dead Man’s Toe, a toe complete with white chocolate bones, skin made of cake, and candy nails.
  • A healthier Halloween is in your cards with The Bakery Spot’s Frankenfeet ham and cheese sandwiches.
Posted in From the Food Blogs | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Recycling Your Jack-o-Lantern Into Pumpkin Purée

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Kemp Minifie
Pumpkin Purée

Photo: Kemp Minifie

With East Coast pumpkin patches wiped out by Hurricane Irene, carving your jack-o-lantern is a pricier project this fall. When you shell out a small fortune for this Halloween ritual, you can’t afford to let it rot after trick-or-treating is over. Recycle it into pumpkin purée for bread, muffins, pie, or my buddy Kelly Senyei’s Pumpkin Turkey Chili.

Bakers will tell you that the pumpkins grown for carving aren’t as tasty as the sugar and cheese pumpkins preferred for pie. But hey, your jack-o’-lantern, after the melted wax is scraped out and the soot washed off, is still an edible squash and shouldn’t be wasted.

Continue reading →
Posted in Kemp's Kitchen | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Creepy Kitchen

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Kendra Vizcaino-Lico
Unique Foods

Photo: Gourmet

Uncommon foods and organ meats can be scary to try for the first time since they often have textures we are not used to, and can be slimy, fuzzy, and sticky. I recently tried beef tendon, and I loved it! But, I want to know:

What’s the most unique thing you’ve ever eaten?


Posted in Reader Polls | Tagged , | 5 Comments

10.26.11: Tricks and Treats

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Kelly Senyei

Gourmet Live: Tricks and Treats

We’re giving you something good to eat in this week’s Tricks and Treats issue of Gourmet Live.  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:

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Image of the Day: Thenkuzhal Murukku

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Alessandria Masi
Thenkuzhal
Diwali, also known as the “festival of lights,” is an important celebration in Hinduism where families and friends celebrate all that is good by lighting lamps and candles to fend off evil and darkness. This year, celebrate Diwali with Rak’s Kitchen‘s version of Thenkuzhal Murukku, a crunchy teatime snack made with rice flour, urad flour, and sesame seeds. These treats may seem daunting to make at first look, but Rak’s Kitchen provides step-by-step instructions and photos for simplifying this age-old recipe.
Posted in From the Food Blogs | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

New Momofuku Milk Bar Cookbook

Posted on October 25, 2011 by Patricia Reilly
Momofuku Milk Bar Cookbook

Photo: Gabriele Stabile

Christina Tosi’s debut cookbook—Momofuku Milk Bar, named for Tosi’s four New York City bakeries—hits stores today. Known for a signature recipe named Crack Pie and a way with sweets that’s frequently dubbed “addictive,” the pastry chef is unleashing her temptations nationwide with this Clarkson Potter release and a both-coasts book tour with “suitcases full of cookies” in tow, Tosi told Gourmet Live.

“I think the Chocolate Chip Cake is the best, knock-your-socks-off recipe, and it’s the one I’m currently snacking on,” said Tosi last week.  It’s also got a straight-up ingredients list (not that freeze-dried corn powder isn’t a revelation, Kemp Minifie discovered), as does Tosi’s Cornflake Crunch, “a great snack and a great gateway for cookie and pie recipes, too.”  If you caught Susan Chumsky’s profile of Tosi in Gourmet Live‘s Rising Stars issue last month, along with a preview recipe for Crack Pie (“one taste and you’re mainlining it”), consider yourself forewarned.

Posted in News & Events | Tagged , , , , |

Food Blog of the Week: Hunter Angler Gardener Cook

Posted on October 25, 2011 by Brie Schwartz
Hunter Angler Gardener Cook

Name: Hank Shaw
Blog: Hunter Angler Gardener Cook

Location: Northern California

What is your all-time favorite recipe from your blog?
I have some recipes that cannot be easily repeated, and these dishes hold a special place in my mind as emblems of a particular time, and a particular place. But if you are asking me about a recipe I make over and over again, it would be my version of Spanish chilidron, a red pepper-based stew with rosemary and mushrooms. The stew is so good with almost any meat, red or white, that I make it with whatever is at hand: rabbits, squirrels, venison, wild boar, etc.

If you had to blog about one ingredient every day for a year, what food it be?
I could cheat and say fish, as there are so many it would give me an easy way to keep things interesting all year. But I’d probably say pasta. Pasta is so simple in concept, yet so complex in execution. There are endless shapes, doughs, flavorings and sauces. It would be easy to do a different pasta dish every day for a year and not repeat one of them. Continue reading →

Posted in From the Food Blogs | 1 Comment

A Spice for Meaty Vegetarian Meals

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Megan Steintrager
Smoked Paprika

Photo: CN Digital Studio

When I was a Smiths-listening teenage vegetarian, I had no problem getting the flavor of meat: I simply ignored—or, rather, simultaneously ignored and enjoyed—the bits of bacon in my mom’s green beans. Frankly, with all the bacon, fatback, and ham hocks used to season the vast majority of vegetables and legumes in my North Carolina hometown, I probably ate more pork products as a so-called vegetarian than I do now as an omnivore. After all, I had yet to really start cooking for myself or to discover my now favorite vegetarian meaterizer: Spanish smoked paprika.

I use pimentón, which is available in both sweet or hot varieties, to give the smoky flavor I associate with cured pork to a wide range of food, including kale, lentils, white beans, and eggs.

Are you a fan of smoked paprika? Try some today in one of the following vegetarian recipes, to mark Meatless Monday and Food Day:

Smoked paprika is great in meat dishes, too, as Kemp Minifie’s recent Grass-Fed Beef Meatloaf in a Bacon Blanket from Gourmet Live’s TV Dinner Menu demonstrates.

Posted in News & Events | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Greens Galore for Food Day

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Kemp Minifie
Collards

Photo: Kemp Minifie

It’s Food Day today, and my idea of a great way to celebrate is to cook up a bunch of dark leafy greens. Kale and collards are in their prime in the fall, becoming their sweetest after the first frost. Even though I didn’t grow up eating greens, I’m crazy for them now.

For many years, I stripped the stems and center ribs out of kale and collards and threw them away, assuming they were way too tough to eat. Was I ever wrong!

The lightbulb went on for me when I was getting ready to cook some collards the Brazilian way—my favorite—thinly sliced and quickly sautéed. As usual, I was in a hurry and wondered, how bad can the stems be if they’re thinly sliced? Continue reading →

Posted in Kemp's Kitchen | Tagged , , , , |

What We’re Cooking: Pesto

Posted on October 23, 2011 by Alessandria Masi
Pesto Olive Torta

Photo: Romulo Yanes

With fall in full swing, it’s time to take one last look at the garden before the oncoming frost. Crushing garlic, basil, and pine nuts and blending the trio with pecorino, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and olive oil will give you a basic pesto sauce perfect for drizzling over your favorite pasta.

If you’re a pesto fanatic and want to add the fresh herb sauce to more than just pasta and pizza, opt for Shirred Eggs with Pesto, a dish that’s easy enough for weekday mornings and delicious enough for weekend brunch. If fall weather keeps you inside and you have a little more time, try our Pesto, Olive, Roasted Pepper Goat Cheese Torta as the ultimate appetizer or vegetarian-friendly main dish.

Where are your favorite ways to use pesto?

Posted in From the Food Blogs | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Now In the Store: Awesome Apples

Posted on October 22, 2011 by Kelly Senyei

Awesome Apples

Celebrate one of fall’s freshest fruits with seven standout recipes from our Awesome Apples collection, now available in the Gourmet Live Store.

Slice into the ultimate combination of sweet and savory flavors with Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust or keep it cool and refreshing with Celery Apple Granita. And for the ultimate in individual indulgences, assemble towers of fresh flavor with Dried-Apple Stack Cakes.

Download the free Gourmet Live app then head to the Library to access the Store for our Awesome Apples collection.
Posted in New on the Gourmet Live App | Tagged , , , |

Savor Your Drink: The Michelada

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Brie Schwartz
Michelada

Those who prefer elderflower to brine may not have acquired the taste of the savory cocktail, but salt-aholics rejoice, you’re not alone. This year, one of the biggest bar trends we’ve seen involves mixologists ditching the simple syrup in favor of less cloying alternatives. The dirty martini is a natural choice for anyone who enjoys a nice olive garnish, and of course there’s the ye olde Bloody Mary, but these aren’t the only cocktails with a kick. Bartenders are using peppers, herbs like tarragon and thyme, and even bacon (I can’t personally advocate that one) to make the transition from sweet to salty.

The Michelada, or a sexed up Mexican beer, is among the most accessible drinks in this category. It’s easy to make at home (you probably have the ingredients already, minus the Tecate). This recipe, published in Gourmet, is a good basic version of this thoroughly refreshing zinger, but if it’s too piquant for your tastes, you might want to play with the hot sauce and Worcestershire ratios. Continue reading →

Posted in Cocktails, Wine & Beer | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Weekly Roundup: Sensational Sauces and Spreads

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Alessandria Masi
Carrot Cake Jam
Dress up any autumnal meal with our top picks for sauces and spreads, from Pumpkin Butter to Boozy Bacon Jam. Get cooking for your holiday meal or bottle up a batch for the ultimate homemade gift.
  • Café Sucré Farine transforms a classic dessert into a spreadable jam by combining carrots, apples, pineapples, and pecans for Carrot Cake Jam (pictured above).
  • La Kocinera’s version of hummus substitutes traditional chickpeas for black beans and tops off the mix with jalapeños for a spicy Black Bean Hummus.
  • Keep a Sunday afternoon free this fall to try Mmm…Is for Mommy’s Sunday Gravy, which becomes a meal in and of itself with the addition of Italian sausage, flank steak, and pork ribs.
  • Torview spices up Sweet Mango Chutney with subtle hints of chili powder and ginger.
  • Give your breakfast sandwiches a double-dose of bacon with Spoon Fork Bacon’s Boozy Bacon Jam.
  • Share My Kitchen’s Pesto Rosso kicks up the traditional sauce with the addition of tangy tomatoes.
  • Go gluten-free and vegan with Life Tastes Like Food‘s Pumpkin Butter, which is perfect for slathering on French toast, bagels, or crispy crostini.
Posted in From the Food Blogs | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What Kind of Eater Are You?

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Kemp Minifie
TV Dinner Tray

Photo: CN Digital Studio

Reminiscing about the frozen TV dinners of my childhood got me thinking about the separatists—those who insist that each element on the plate stand alone, without touching one another, versus the moosh-it-altogether types, who pile a bit of everything onto each forkful. The divided trays were obviously necessary for frozen dinners, not only for production purposes, but also to ensure an appealing presentation. Ditto for airplane meals. Let’s face it. We all know the food is going to end up in a jumble in our stomachs, yet whether we are separatists or mooshers, we still like those boundaries that show us how much of each item is going to go down our gullets. Certainly the manufactured lines of demarcation were, and continue to be, a boon for the separatists. How many kids and adults do you know who demand rigorous order on their plates? I began to wonder if my love of TV dinners was a sign of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Continue reading →
Posted in Kemp's Kitchen | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments
 
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