Pantry Clean-out

It has been awhile since my last posting... 5 months. Many things has happened since then and the most important thing is that my precious little munchkin Zoë was born in March. Today she is 12 weeks old ... time goes by so quick. Sleepless night, fussy crying, and endless feeding/nursing is the new lifestyle all new moms goes thru. Today, Zoe gave me the big present which is never expected... 3 hours nap. Amazing, this never happened before, she's a cat nap baby but today is a new day, i guess.

Since I rarely have anytime bake, cook, and clean, I've decided to clean my pantry. I had left over buttermilk from my disaster Buttermilk Baked Chicken recipe last night so I've decided to make a come-back with it. After researching online for my 1st half hour of Zoë nap time, i found the perfect recipe that will help me clean my pantry and it takes only 20 minutes to prep (a thumb up for busy new mom).

Buttermilk Bran Muffins, this totally doesn't sound yummy to me 'cause I'm not a bran person. When I see the word bran, immediate the word dry comes to mind. The recipe is from Epicurious but I've made some modification to it since I don't have everything it calls for...this always happen.

This is my version of Buttermilk Bran Chocolate-Cranberry Muffin:
No Wheat Bran ---- Oat Bran: Even better, more moist
No Applesauce ----- Mashed Banana: Not ripe yet, just put it in the microwave (but don't over do it or else i'll explode and you'll have a big mess to clean up.)
Reduce Sugar to 1/4 cup ---- Added 1/3 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Bonus --- Added 1/3 cup of dried cranberry.

Et Voila...

Best Pizza - Lucali

After being away for a year, I'm finally back. To start off the year right, my hubby and I went to our favorite pizza place in Brooklyn, Lucali. There is always a debate on the best pizza in New York... Lombardi's in Soho ... Gramaldi's Pizzeria in Dumbo. Both of these places are well-known because of Zagat, so it's mostly tourists that go there. In my opinion neither of these places can beat Lucali. People that have been to Lucali know that it's not easy to get a seat in this small neighborhoody place. It has been a while since we've been back because the waiting time is at least an hour or more. Sometimes when they're too busy, they don't even do take out. So the best way to get a table is to call ahead and wait at home for them to call you when a table is ready. For people who don't live close by, be prepared to wait outside the restaurant.


We usually order the simple pepperoni pizza with basil. The thin pizza crust is perfectly baked, never soggy at all. The pepperoni has a smokey flavor, the mix of 2 cheeses: buffalo and regular mozzarella are the perfect blend, and finally the pizza is topped with fresh basil = The Perfect Pie.

Carroll Gardens: 575 Henry St, Brooklyn (btw Carroll St & 1st Pl)

JGV - Last but not Least

To end my JGV Journey, I've selected the Matsugen for my New Year celebration with my group of great friends. Catching up with the latest news with friends and sipping down specialty cocktail after another, finally comes the food.
The Omakase, 7 courses tasting menu, and a few extra appetizers would be a great way to end the year 2008. Started the evening with some Grilled Edamame and Homemade soft tofu. The tofu was so soft and silky that it dissolves in your mouth to soya milk instantaneously. If you are adventurous, try the Bakudan. It's a mix of sea urchin, salmon roe, scallops, scallion, poached egg, natto-"fermented soybean", and nori-"seaweed". Its medley fishy flavors were not my favorite. Then comes the nice juicy chicken meatballs served with hot mustard, good way to cleanse my fishy palette. Followed by the sushi plate: toro, salmom, kanpachi, and fluke. The fishes were all fresh as expected from a high-end Japanese restaurant. Then comes my favorite black cod with miso, it was perfectly grilled with the crispy skin and moist flaky fish. Finally, Matsugen's well known soba. It was good, but the flavor was not that impressive and the dipping sauce arrived after I was done with my noodle. . hmmmm. For the sweet finale, I've ordered the Matsugen parfait and the vanilla caramel pudding. : fresh season fruits, green tea and vanilla ice cream, red bean, white mochi, and warabi mochi. It's said to say that the desserts were the highlight of the night, I enjoyed the desserts more then the Omakase.
I was disappointed after my visit to Matsugen because, personally, i would expect alot more from an overpriced 'top notch' restaurant.

Tribeca: 241 Curch Street, NY (x Leonard St)

JGV Day 3 - Soho Experience

Mercer Kitchen is located beneath the trendy Mercer Hotel. JGV was offering a winter promotion in most of his restaurants with a prix-fixed lunch and dinner menu. Since the world is in recession, we took advantage. Apparently when we made the reservation, the staff was not clear about prix-fixed being served only before 6:30pm. But I was very pleased that the chef made an exception to accommodate us.
Glazed salmon with ribbons of celery root, capers, and creme fraiche was a great choice to start off lite. Then followed by the Grilled pork chop and spiced pears with wild rice and mushrooms. The pork chop was perfectly cooked with the juice contained inside which kept the chop moist. And the spiced pear gave a hint of sweetness to the over dish. Last but not least, the Spiced cake with egg nog ice cream with pineapple-mango salad was a great way to fullfill my sweet tooth craving with a healthy fruit salad. The experience was good but not amazing enough to be unforgettable.

Soho: 99 Prince St, NY (x Mercer St)

JGV Day 2 - Asian Fusion Style

The Meat Packaging district is one of NYC food heaven hotspot and my JVG temptation has led me to the Spice Market. But without reservation, the wait can be at least an hour. Maybe because I was in my JGV quest, I was lucky enough to be seated right as I walked in.
On a not so hungry night, I usually order a few appetizers to get a variety of flavors instead of an entree. Started the night with the Black pepper shrimp with sun dried pineapple. Then followed by the Charred chili rubbed beef skewer with thai basil dipping sauce. And finally came the Spicy thai fried chicken wings with mango and mint. Wow...it was spicy. This was my second visit to Spice Market but I don't recall the dishes being this spicy. I really enjoyed the chicken wings in my first visit but this time, I was a bit disappointed. The wings were way too vinegary and spicy, quite unbearable! After the meal, my tongue was all numb and my lips were as plump as A.Jolie's. But this 1 time bad experience is not enough for me to out Spice Market on my 'No Go List'. I will give it 1 more chance.

Meat Packaging District: 403 W13th Street, NY (x Greenwich St)

Jean Georges Vongerichten Eating Journey

During the holiday season, I've treated myself a special JGV restaurant week as away to pat myself on the back for this year's hard work. My camera broke down right before my JGV journey so you will not see any awesome foodie pictures for a little while.
My JGV journey started out at the Nougatine on my birthday. I saw JG in the kitchen. OMG.... But I was too shy to go introduce myself.
I've started the meal with the Tuna tartare with avocado, spicy radish, and ginger marinade. A touch of ginger flavor enhanced the tuna's freshness and the avocado balanced out the spicy radish.
Next comes the Poached Lobster with fresh tagliatelle, passion fruit, and prawn butter. Wow... I have the say, the amount of lobster in this dish was very generous. The portion of lobster was impressive compared to to the amount of fresh pasta. I also ordered the Soy beef short ribs with apple-jalapeno puree and rosemary crumbs. The short ribs were so tender that it melts in your mouth. The apple sweetness and the spicy jalapeno makes the perfect combination.
The blend of French cuisine with a touch of Asian spice and flavor was refreshing -even if it adds a few extra calories.

Upper West Side: 1 Central Park West, NY (@ the Trump Tower)

Specialty Brunch

James located in Prospect Heights just started their Sunday brunch recently. The brunch cost a bit higher than the typical egg and bacon brunch you see elsewhere. The brunch menu was well worth the price.

Flying pig farm pulled smoked pork with cheddar scones topped with a poached duck egg. The pulled pork marinated with spices created the smoky flavor in the pork and accompanied with a side of coleslaw.Blueberry Stuffed brioche French toast was filled like a jelly donut with blueberry cream and topped with fresh blueblerry. The broiche was soaked into egg and toasted to its perfectly crisp.
Prospect Heights: 605 Carlton Ave, Brooklyn (x St.Marks Ave)

Udon

Sometimes trying a new spot might not always be a good idea. Udon West located on the Japanese strip of St. Marks Pl was a disappointment. After being seated, we were greeted by the waitress dressed in dirty stained yellow t-shirt. It was questionable the cleanliness of the kitchen if the waitress can't present herself with clean clothes. Since I'm here for the food, i should not make any judgement beforehand.
The marinated beef udon didn't look too appetizing at first sight. It seems that the beef was in the cooking pot over couple of nights and the texture was like a old tangled rug. The soup base tasted like beef stock directly from the can. All-in-all, the udon bowl was so bland that it's totally not worth another visit.
East Village: 11 Saint Marks Pl, NY (btw 2nd & 3rd Ave.)

Gourmet Slim Jim

Dogmatic Gourmet Sausage System is the new hotdog joint in the former -Mandler's Original Sausage space. The space was renovated with cool modern white tiles with a cartoonish mural of Union Square lining the walls around a big butcher block cafeteria like dining table. Even though the renovation has brought new life to this old space, the sausages are missing the Mandler's sausage magic.

Dogmatic has a new twist on the pig in the blanket. They grill the mini french baguette on hot pokers creating a hole for the gourmet sausage. The presentation is original but the taste is disappointing. The skinny sausages were jerky-dried like a Slim Jim. The jaw-breaking hard baguette was injected with so much of their blend of specialty sauce that it proceeded to ooze out the bun and onto your hands.Union Square: 26 E17th St, NY (btw Broadway & 5th Ave)

Sala 19 - Tapas

We're off to a good start at Sala 19 with some strong Sangria while sampling a variety of tapas they offer. As a start, we ordered the open face Magret de pato tosta: grilled sliced duck breast with balsamic vinegar, shallots, and a hint of soy. The duck was tenderly cooked, infused with balsamic vinegar and a touch of sweetness from the caremelized shallots.
Followed by the Alcachofas con jamon: artichokes from navarra sauteed with garlic and serrano ham. The artichoke flower develops into a large head with numerous triangular scales and only the small edible heart will be served onto our plate- yum! The finale, a grilled lamb chop. We waited for quite sometime for the chops to get served but I have to say it was worth the wait. The meaty lamb chops were perfectly grilled topped with salsa verde sauce. Salsa verde is a popular spanish sauce using parsley as the main ingredient for the vibrant green. The chops were so tasty that I was tempted to lick the dish clean but not in front of so many people.Gramercy: 35 W19th Street, NY (btw 5th & 6th Ave)