NYC Visit

I haven't blogged in a bit, because I was on a little NYC vacay. It was amazing to see my friends, hang out at some of my old haunts and snack on some of my favorite food. Here are some highlights:

 

Uncle George's Diner in Astoria.

Lamb kebabs skewered with onions, green peppers and tomatoes, grilled to medium rare (the best for lamb, in my opinion), with tangy lemony potatoes.

Eggplant Parm Hero at Salumeria Biellese. The best, in the world, ever! They heap layers of eggplant Parmesan on a crusty portion of a loaf (the bread is magical, I can't help but get a large), sprinkled with more parm cheese and a dousing of marinara. Ask for extra marinara and many, many extra napkins.

 

Like I said, extra napkins.

My friend Marion's Sausage and Pepper Hero at Salumeria Biellese.

Yum Duck Salad (spicy fried crispy duck tossed in lime juice with tomato, chili pepper, pineapple chunks, red onion and ground peanuts at Yum Yum Bangkok.

I love this place because it's down the block from my first New York apartment (ah, nostalgia). My friend Dani and I hit up Yum Yum as often as we can.

Heaven on rye - Pastrami at Katz's Deli. I'm a purest when it comes to pastrami, so yellow mustard is all I'll add. This is by far the best 2 am drunk snack in NYC.

 

Complimentary pickle plate.

  

Beauty of a sammie, with potato pancakes in the background.

Harissa Falafel at Taim Falafel & Smoothie Bar. One of the more popular falafel shacks in the city, after a bite, it's easy to see why this Israeli owned spot often has lines overflowing out the door. A rather perfect version of a falafel sandwich, it has a contrast of flavors and textures - the harissa falafel spicy and slightly sweet, airy and crisp, covered in smooth tahini, crunchy tangy white cabbage salad and a tart cucumber, tomato Israeli salad. I drizzled mine with their skhug Temani, a piquant blend of coriander, peppers, garlic and vinegar.

  

We went to an all-you-can-drink brunch at the newly opened Sunburnt Calf, part of the Sunburnt Cow chain. I indulged in far too many greyhounds, as well as the Queen Adelaide, Poached eggs, smoked salmon, slice of avocado on an English muffin topped with a heafty drizzle hollandaise.

 

On my last night, I went to my favorite pizzerias in the city, Arturo's. Despite being in the heart of the village, it feels warm, friendly and makes me feel like I'm at home. Also, the live jazz sure doesn't hurt. My friend Jill insists that they have the only coal oven in the city, which makes the airy, slightly charred crust magically memorable. Our pie was topped with artichokes, sun dried tomatoes and basil.

Tom Ka Gai (Coconut Chicken Soup)

I was feeling like Thai, but not feeling paying for it, so I decided to try making Tom Ka Gai. It was rich, aromatic, robust and exactly what I was looking for.

5 cups chicken broth
1 chicken breast, thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled and chopped into 1" discs
1 1/2 cups chopped Chinese cabbage
1/2 cup straw mushrooms
2 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
3/4 cup large roughly chopped peppers
1 small onion cut into wedges
3 tbsp crushed lemongrass
1 tbsp raw ginger cut in strips
1 cup coconut milk
juice of one lime
1 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp granulated sugar
1tbsp cilantro
Siracha to taste

Combine broth, chicken, carrot, lemongrass, ginger and sugar in pot. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, tomatoes, mushrooms and onion and cook for another 5-7 minutes. Add lime juice, peppers and cabbage and cook for 5 minutes before adding lime juice and coconut milk. Depending on how hot you like it, add Siracha to taste. Top with cilantro and serve. Such amazing comfort food!

Crazy Noodles at Mint Cafe in Cleveland

Every Thanksgiving I head to my hometown, Cleveland, to visit my family. People talk a lot of shit about the "mistake on the lake," but I must say, I'm quite fond of it. There's all kinds of delicious foods to be had (way more than my current digs, Columbia, MO).

Today I caught up with a friend at Mint Cafe in Coventry, a really cute area of Cleveland Heights. I got really amazing, greasy, delicious crazy noodles, which is pretty much a different name for standard drunken noodles. I was particularly thrilled because noteworthy Thai food is hard to come by in Columbia, thus my standards have been lowered significantly since leaving NYC in August.

Crazy noodles met my NYC Thai food standards and were fucking delicious, if i do say so myself. The soft wide rice noodles were stir-fried with chicken, shrimp, egg, onion, carrots, broccoli a chili laden soy sauce and basil leaves. They went a little heavy on the onions, but that was cool with me. All in all, my lunch was a delight.