Cooking & Recipes Circle
50 Shades of Rosé…
Last night we drank a bottle of 2017 Bermejo Listán Negro Rosado from Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. I can only describe this as a Rosé that drinks like a Red. Such wonderful complexity, nuance and balance - with a unique minerality from the volcanic soil. The environment there means that di...
It’s like being kissed by a lusty mermaid…
You can keep the necessities; it's the luxuries I cannot live without! Planning for our August Champagne & Caviar event, I was on the phone yesterday with the producer of the Osetra caviar. They offered me a wholesale account, which I accepted immediately. 1,000 grams (about 34 oz.) of Cla...
An afternoon of Global Flavors…
We had a lovely event on Sunday, the theme being Global Flavors. The chef learned her craft by working in kitchens and reading cookbooks - no formal culinary training whatsoever. She supports my theory that apprenticeships hold much more value than "formal" education in many fields. Learning b...
TOTW20: Three foods you would take to a desert island…
This is a tough one. How warm does it get on this hypothetical island? I'm a seasonal diner, so if the temperatures are really high I tend towards lighter fare. But perhaps I'm over-thinking this? #1. Cassoulet! Beans, sausage, pork, duck confit, onions, garlic, tomato, etc. All wonderful t...
Springtime in NYC…
As I awoke to snow falling this morning at 6:00AM, it certainly doesn't feel like Spring. Or April, for that matter. Especially when it's a lovely 72°F in North Carolina. At least I am looking forward to a cassoulet on Wednesday at a little wine bar & bistro on 33rd Street. Yesterday's fli...
TOTW12: My food epiphany at 8 – Cassoulet…
"Cassoulet, that best of bean feasts, is everyday fare for a peasant but ambrosia for a gastronome, though its ideal consumer is a 300-pound blocking back who has been splitting firewood nonstop for the last twelve hours on a subzero day in Manitoba." – Julia Child Cassoulet is one of those dishe...
Busy, busy, busy…
Well, we survived a dinner party of 18 on Friday night, followed by a Valpolicella wine tasting Saturday afternoon. The weather has been chilly and damp, so I am looking forward to getting to Miami on Wednesday, as it is 30°F warmer there at the moment! That enjoyment will be short-lived, as ea...
Coffee…
My staff knows that you don't address me with more than a, "good morning", until they have seen a cappuccino or espresso in my hand. Forgetting this rule can result in defenestration, or, at the least, unemployment. There is a reason that there is an espresso machine on the console immediately ...
The tenacity of Winter & a Recipe…
Winter seems determined to hang onto the northern hemisphere this year! Venice was the recipient of a surprise snowstorm yesterday. San Marco (above) always looks lovely, but I'm sorry I missed it before the footprints marred the pristine white surface. Two weeks ago, San Marco was thronged wi...