Appreciating What We Have

Today is Memorial Day, and I know many of you are griping that you cannot celebrate the holiday the way you would like. There will be no large family gatherings (at least, there shouldn't be) or neighborhood block parties (again, there shouldn't be), or gatherings of clustered maskless folks in enclosed spaces (once more--there shouldn't be). Honestly, I don't care what your state tells you is ok, it's most likely not. (I welcome you to come back in 6 weeks if there hasn't been a spike of cases and tell me I was wrong.)

This whole situation has been going on for ten weeks now, and honestly I have gotten pretty used to spending 80% of my time in my own dining room with no company other than my husband and our dog. Last week, however, we had the opportunity to get out of the house and socialize. It was Dara's birthday, and she invited friends to come over and sit on her lawn, 6'+ away from each other, to enjoy cake and company. We were to arrive in shifts, and fortunately our shift overlapped with that of other friends, the Keefers, whom we have not seen at all in 2020. We spent a good hour or more discussing life after Covid, the current season of Top Chef, and the local restaurant industry. I haven't had such a good time in, well, at least 10 weeks! And I realized that such simple pleasures--sitting in the sun, talking with friends--are among the most important things in life. Not haircuts and manicures or going to bars.

Stay well, readers. See you on Thursday for our next recap.

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Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - A Quick Trip to NY

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on August 2, 2011.

Earlier in the month, I had a crazy week scheduled in which I was pretty much booked solid: Fancy Food show Sunday through Tuesday, media dinners on Wednesday and Thursday, and a trip to NJ-DE-PA on Saturday. Then I received an e-mail from one of my oldest and dearest friends, Felicia, whom I had not seen in about eight years. She was visiting her sister in New York and could I possibly get together with her? During that crazy week? After I explained my schedule, she resorted to bribery: a trip to the Met to see the Alexander McQueen show and dinner at Prune, an East Village restaurant that I've wanted to visit for a while now. I thought about it for 30 seconds or so and put in a leave slip to switch my days off work. When I got home, I ran my rearranged schedule plans past Mr Minx, who advised me that I would have more fun with Felicia than I would have at a food show.

He was right.

We met at Momofuku Milk Bar Midtown and started off the day with some blackberry Kaffir lime soft serve before heading up to the Met. We waited in line for 45 minutes, but it was well worth standing around. The show was magnificient; I loved seeing both the genius of McQueen up close and the amazing curation. For more info, and photos, check out the Met's blog.

After the show, we went to Mario Batali's all-Italian food court, Eataly. While perusing the various mostardas, fresh and dried pastas, sauces, and other imported products, we sipped glasses of Prosecco. I managed to control myself and come away with only two bags of pasta and some brown carnaroli rice. Unfortunately, the fizzy wine + lack of food made me a bit dizzy; suffice it to say that this did not make for a fun rush-hour subway trip to our next destination: Prune.

Chef Gabrielle Hamilton has been in the news recently because of her well-received memoir, Blood, Bones & Butter, which is on my must-read list. After settling ourselves at a two-top in the front of her tiny restaurant, Prune, and guzzling down a couple of glasses of ice water, I was ready for some sustenance. The menu at Prune is short and sweet, but it still made for a difficult decision. Because Felicia is a vegetarian, we tried several veg dishes, all of which were simple yet fantastic.

Dandelion greens with mastic and feta

Smoky eggplant with flatbread

I'm not sure I actually tasted the mastic in the dandelion dish, but the combination of olive oil-drenched greens and creamy feta was completely delicious. As was the eggplant dish, although it could have been smokier. The flatbreads were corrugated, which made for lots of crispy surface area, and I loved their toasty flavor.

Suckling pig with pickled tomatoes, black eyed peas, and chipotle mayo

I was torn between ordering the grilled quail and the suckling pig, and when I realized that I'd probably have to eat the quail with my grubby NY-ed fingers (despite having been thoroughly anointed with hand sanitizer), I went for the pork. The meat was simple, well-seasoned, tender, but the standout item on the dish was the pickled tomatoes which were redolent of chile and coriander. Oh, and the chunk of crackling. Mmmmm!

Parmesan omelette

Felicia enjoyed the Parmesan omelette, which she said was fluffy and cheesy. I took her word for it because I'm just not a fan of browned egg yolk. While the dish looks austere, she gussied it up a bit with the leftover mastic-flavored olive oil from the dandelion dish.

Celery salad with bleu cheese

While I'm not a huge fan of celery, the celery salad served with a hunk of brie-style bleu cheese on buttered bread was a lovely bridge to dessert. The cheese was outrageously creamy and I wish I had noted the exact brand and variety (I'm thinking Cambozola). Finally, we had dessert - a simple scoop of very firm mascarpone ice cream topped with lightly candied shreds of lemon zest and a shot of espresso, meant to be poured over top, on the side.

Mascarpone ice cream with espresso and candied lemon

This is known as "affogado" or "drowned," and what a way to die!  I loved the combination of coffee and candied lemon (a proper espresso should be served with lemon) and thought this was the perfect ending to the meal.

Compared to other somewhat exotic New York restaurants in which I've dined, Prune is a plain Jane, but in the best way possible. All the dishes we had were very well thought-out, perfectly seasoned, and a meal there was a pleasant way to end a perfectly lovely day in New York.

Prune
54 E 1st St
New York, NY 10003
(212) 677-6221
www.prunerestaurant.com



Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

The Brewer's Art

Although The Brewer's Art has been around for a number of years, Mr Minx and I had never had the opportunity to dine there until now. Friends from out of town, the very drole Cliff and his partner Doug, was going to be in Baltimore for a few hours en route to D.C. Originally we were going to eat near BWI (giving us very few choices) but when Cliff mentioned that they planned to take the MARC to their final destination, I realized that eating in Baltimore would open up our field of possibilities considerably. The Brewer's Art is less than three blocks away from Penn Station, so it seemed like the perfect destination for the occasion. Plus the current menu, listed on their Web site, had several choices that piqued my interest.

We were extremely early for our reservation and had to cool our heels in the shockingly noisy bar with a couple of the house brews. Eventually we were led to our table in the much quieter dining room. I was a bit worried that the noise would carry, considering there was no carpet or drapery to dampen the sound, but it was not a problem at all.

Once seated, it didn't take very long for us to make up our minds about dinner.

Doug had the chilled asparagus soup with house-smoked Scottish salmon tartare. I didn't get a taste but Doug seemed to enjoy it very much.

Mr Minx chose the house-made artichoke ravioli with Meyer lemon butter and pistachio-mint pesto. The butter sauce was outrageously good - rich and luscious and completely decadent over the tender pasta. One of those things one wants to pour over everything - chicken, vegetables, people....

Cliff and I both chose the roasted Berkshire pork belly on a sweet potato biscuit with grilled spring onion-fig jam, strawberry-basil salsa, and natural jus. While the individual elements of this dish were excellent - the pork was succulent, the salsa was tangy, the jam was pleasantly figgy - serving it assembled as a sandwich in a pool of jus made the soft biscuit soggy and somewhat difficult to eat. It was a bit large for an appetizer portion as well. Personally, I'd deconstruct the dish with mini biscuits, swap out the jus for a thicker, drizzle-able, reduction, and serve a dollop of the jam on the side. Keep the flavors but alter some of the textures.

On to the entrées. Cliff had the rabbit pot pie which contained the braised leg and roasted saddle in a Madeira-thyme velouté, wtih fava beans, morels, heirloom carrots, country ham, and buttermilk mashed potato, all topped with a puffed-pastry bunny "lid." I didn't get a taste, but judging by the way Cliff hoovered up the dish, I think it was a smash hit.

Because my app was so large and meaty, I went vegetarian with my entrée and chose the nettle and ricotta gnocchi with asparagus, fava beans, spring greens and Fontina cream, topped with bread crumbs and pickled spring vegetable salad. Light as air but as rich as sin, I could only eat about half of this decadent creamy concoction. Not having eaten nettles before, I wasn't sure what they were supposed to taste like, but I am happy to report they did not sting. The bits of asparagus and greens added some texture to the fluffy gnocchi, and the pickled salad of salicornia (sea beans) and onion added some tangy zing to the dish. The topping of stemmy watercress, however, was a bit awkward to eat.

Both Mr Minx and Doug chose the Ozzy-brined Giannone chicken with hash of caramelized fennel and fingerling potatoes, green olives, grilled Meyer lemon, and a Limoncello sauce. The chicken was perfectly roasted with a delicately crisp skin, and the sauce was richly chicken-y with a hint of lemon. Mr Minx was momentarily worried that the Limoncello might make things too sweet, but that was not the case at all.

Unfortunately, I don't have the full descriptions for our desserts. Doug went for the chocolate rum cake...

Mr Minx had the chevre cheesecake, which despite being a sweet cheesecake had a nice savory aspect from the goat's cheese. I enjoyed my bite and really should have sneaked another one. Or two.

I chose the coffee pot de creme. The first time I ever had a pot de creme, it was a baked custard, and that's what I expect every time I order it. And every time I am disappointed by something the consistency of pancake batter. This was no different. Under about half a cup of sweetened whipped cream I found an equal amount of coffee-flavored glop. This is not pot de creme, people. It tasted fine and the crunchy chocolate biscotti (which weren't really biscotti-textured) helped, but I was still disappointed.

Not bad to have only one disappointment in the evening, huh? Cliff thought his meal was "astonishingly good," which is quite a high compliment. I agree that overall it was a very fine meal and that my quibbles are pretty minor and really only based on my personal preferences. And the service was terrific - quiet, prompt, unobtrusive. I'd eat there again in a heartbeat.

The Brewer's Art
1106 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
410-547-6925

Dining Influences

Top Chef Masters host and food journalist Kelly Choi tweeted recently: "Tru or false? Who I hang out with has a major influence on what I eat. (Feel free to elaborate)"

As elaborating will take far more than 140 characters, I'm going to answer the question right here.

Once upon a time, I would say that statement was true. When I was a kid, the people I spent the most time with were my family, so my diet consisted of the American-style stuff my mother cooked for dinner (pot roast, meatloaf, Shake 'n' Bake), Grandma's Polish food (kielbasa, kotlety, barszcz), and the Italian food my Aunt Stasia learned from her in-laws (braciole, pasta), with occasional excursions outside the bubble for fast food and Chinese.

I didn't have a lot of friends in grade school; it seemed that as soon as I got close to someone, she transferred elsewhere. In any case, my over-protective mother wouldn't have let me stray away from home (or even cross the street) to share meals with other kids' families. But on the very first day of high school I found a Best Friend.

Because I took two buses back and forth to high school, my mother had less of a hold on my wanderings; once my BF had access to a car, she lost all control. Mom was lucky though - BF was incredibly boring. Excruciatingly so. We took being "good girls" to an extreme. A hot night on the town for us usually involved a PG- or G-rated movie or duckpin bowling. Or mini golf. And fast food.

Not only boring, BF was also a bit controlling. We did what she wanted to do (I hate mini golf!) and ate what she wanted to eat. I suppose I was so happy to have a regular friend who wasn't going to disappear at the end of the school year, I didn't care. So I didn't complain that our diet consisted of Burger King and pizza. Burger King, because she could have it her way and her way was two plain hamburgers. "Plain" as in no condiments whatsoever, just a bun and a thin disc of a meat-like substance. Personally, I've never cared for the faux grill flavoring at BK, and if I must eat a fast food hamburger I prefer Wendy's or even McDonald's; when out with BF those were options only if there was no BK around for miles. On those rare occasions when happenstance forced her to eat non-BK meals, BF would complain about having to wait for her plain burgers, or that they contained too much gristle, which she would pick out and flick at me from across the table. (OK, maybe she was a little abusive too?)

As for the vast amounts of pizza we consumed, need I mention that it was also plain? Maybe she'd go a little crazy and order extra sauce, but pepperoni, sausage, and mushrooms were never options.

I ended up spending the night at BFs house on many an occasion, in my zebra-print sleeping bag on the hideous, smelly, orange shag carpeting in her bedroom. Her mother was a decent, if limited, cook. Her vegetable soup was incredibly good, and her pot roast - although vastly different from my mother's - was tasty as well. We also ate hamburgers and pork chops, and that's about it. If there was anything vaguely ethnic about a food, it was not served in that little house off Harford Road. Excepting pizza, of course. Astonishingly, despite her love for that cheese-laden Italian-American staple, my BF had never eaten spaghetti...because her mother did not like it. Nor had she eaten Chinese food, nor any other ethnic cuisine, for the same reason. Later, as an adult, during a dinner at Angelina's (she would eat crabcakes) and after a lot of coaxing, BF tried a bite of the ravioli I had ordered and seemed astonished that it tasted good to her. One small step for mankind, one giant leap for her.

BF and I went to different colleges and eventually started spending less time together. Almost immediately, I started making friends who appreciated food. Eventually, the love of food became a near-requirement for my friendships. All of my current friends are fairly adventurous eaters, except one, but I will allow her to blame it on various digestive disorders, even if it drives me bonkers (and I am skeptical).

Although at this point in my life I am now in many cases the influencer rather than the influencee, the answer to Kelly Choi's question is still "true." What else would be the reason for eating mostly Chinese food with one friend? For not preparing lamb or anything with sour cream when Dad comes over for dinner? (Or for contemplating making duck if I know his duck-hating GF will be around?) I also avoid cooking with or eating peanuts before and during visits with my highly-allergic brother. Of course one's company affects what one eats! Sharing meals is a hugely important part of human socialization. Through food, we get to know one another, whether we realize it or not, and if we do realize it, that may come years later.

BF and I parted ways fifteen years ago now. On one occasion I didn't say "how high" when she said "jump" and was abruptly cut from her life. After reflecting on our relationship, I can't say I miss her, although I do find myself wondering what her life is like now. Somehow I doubt she's broadened her culinary horizons very much, but hopefully she has moved past mini golf and duckpins and maybe even allows a spot of ketchup to sully her hamburger from time to time.