With this trip being our first time staying in Brooklyn (our previous locales were Gramercy Park, The Piers, Central Park, Garment District, Madison Square Gardens, Jersey City and Queens), we set out to explore DUMBO (aka Down Under the Metropolitan Bridge Overpass).

I imagine that travelers ordinally gravitated to the area to see the Manhattan skyline, but as you can see the fog had rolled in with the persistent rain.

Many people chose this street to get their selfies in front of the bridge (us included-please ignore my rained on hair). We did some browsing at the weekend flea market but were soon looking for sustenance. It turned out that resulting lunch, was my favourite meal of the entire trip!

D had discovered it just around the corner from the flea market. It was an inauspicious little place but as soon as the aroma wafted from the open door, we knew that we were in for a treat.

This magazine feature taped to the wall by our stools indicated the success that was had when Jeremy Dean flipped his vegan bodega into a noodle house!

This decadent starter was assembled from mixed mushrooms, black garlic and yu choy dumplings. Absolutely stellar!

This noodle dish was named after the restaurant and were the silkiest, I have ever eaten.

We also tucked into a fried rice dish in a cardboard take out container, just because we wanted to eat with chopsticks right out of the carton like everyone does in shows and movies about NYC!

We had a lengthy subway ride back to the Theatre District for a matinee that we had gotten tix for in the Broadway lottery, but we were too early for curtain. So we spent some time in our favourite Bryant Park, our destination with every trip to the Big Apple.

Here is a reflection of the Empire State Building. One of many lovely aspects of this trip was because we had already done all the touirsty things on previous trips, so we could relax and return to our favourite spots.

There is always a point when I have been in New York, that I crave home-not my city house so much as our lake house. This is why.

The best thing about the Broadway play that we saw, were our great seats. Otherwise, I won’t even mention it.

We had dinner reservations at a place called Becco on Restaurant Row which was close to the Theatre District, so we first enjoyed a tea and pastry in the hood and then happy hour beverages, when we were still too early. D would say that Becco was well worth the trouble.

Lidia Bastianich and her son Joe, both of Food Network fame, are collaborators of the restaurant, so my sights were pretty high. D said that his choice of Cesar salad was the best he had ever tasted.

I very much enjoyed the anti-pasto, sharing the nibbles with D. My favourite taste prior to dinner was skinny little breadsticks rolled in course salt.

I am guessing that the proximity to the theatre district must have created their pasta tasting menu. Piping hot selections were served from skillet pans delivered by wandering chefs/servers. One was of el dente broccoli in a light sauce and the above was torn sheets of pasta in a seafood sauce with little morsels of more seafood peppering the dish. D loved both and had to decide which dish to have seconds of because the pasta came around and around until you yelled “Uncle!”

I loved the mushroom stuffed ravioli in an equally decadent mushroom cream sauce. We passed on desert and decided that a stroll through Times Square would be a great idea. D was doing some souvenir shopping for the kids and grandkids at home. He didn’t have the correct change for a t-shirt vendor, so the kind gentlemen said “Take the shirt and come back and pay me after you find an ATM”! We were so touched by his kindness.

Kath’s quote: “One belongs to New York instantly, one belongs to it in five minutes as equally as five years.“-Tom Wolfe

Love never fails.

When my mom moved into a personal  care home, we went to work cleaning out her house and doing some renovations in preparation for sale. It was challenging because it was pretty full of stuff, and for me and some of my siblings it was the only home we had ever lived in as a family. There were so many memories created in that place and it was full of items that reminded us of those sweet times. I was very happy with how hard everyone worked and how smoothly the division of moms things went. Everyone was able to find items that were sentimental to them and there were no items that anyone bickered over. I had asked all my siblings, in-laws, nieces and nephews if there was anything in particular they would like. Only one item was requested by two people, mom’s white chenille bedspread. But while sorting through the linen closet I discovered that she actually owned two of them. Problem solved!  

Mom wasn’t a hoarder or anything but having grown up during the depression she sometimes had a hard time parting with things she felt were of value. Also a product of growing up in poverty, she had a tendency to stock up on food items on sale and prepare lots of things for the freezer and pantry. Her deep freeze was full of meat and her homemade perogies, bread and cinnamon buns.

Her pantry was well stocked with dry goods, flour, cans of soup, tinned fruit and vegetables, and her homemade preserves. I have wonderful memories of making all kinds of jams and pickles with my mom but I have to confess that I have not since done any “canning” as mom would call it. Part of the reason is a dear friend of mine makes all kinds of things In jars and gifts me with her salsa, jalapeño jelly, cranberry jelly, and turmeric pickles every Christmas. 

The closest thing I do to preserves these days is escabeche, a delicious quick pickle of vegetables I first tasted in Mexico. Here’s my recipe for these super easy veggies.

3 x 16 ounce Mason jars (or any sealable glass jar)

1 cup carrots, sliced

2½ cups cauliflower florets

1 bunch radishes, sliced

2 jalapenos, sliced & seeds removed

6 garlic cloves

3 bay leaves

1 tablespoon sugar

1¼ teaspoons sea salt

1 teaspoon peppercorns

1 cup white vinegar

2 cups water

Divide peppercorns and bay leaves between the three Mason jars. Peel garlic cloves but leave whole and divide between jars.* Layer carrots, cauliflower, radishes, and jalapenos in jars.

In a pot, combine vinegar, water, salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil on the stovetop then simmer until the sugar has dissolved, about 30 seconds. Pour vinegar mixture over vegetables and allow to cool for one hour before sealing and refrigerating.

Escabeche is ready to eat as soon as it’s chilled but it’s best to allow the flavors to develop for a full day.

Escabeche will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

If you aren’t into spicy pickles, cut back or eliminate the jalapeños. Also know that the garlic can turn a funny blue colour, but it’s a completely normal reaction to the vinegar. 

Kath’s quote: “On a hot day in Virginia, I know nothing more comforting than a fine spiced pickle, brought up trout-like from the sparkling depths of the aromatic jar below the stairs of Aunt Sally’s cellar“. — Thomas Jefferson

Love never fails.

Since Covid, my Food Musings topics have drastically changed. We have a favourite restaurant that we visit often, but as far as other local dining experiences, the occurrences of visits are very rare. Living at the lake for six months a year, doesn’t help either.

J1 and J2 have a favourite place in their Wolseley neighbourhood that we have wanted to visit for a very long time. When they presented us with a Gift Card as thanks for watching the Wee Ones, we held on to it for a special occasion, that being our wedding anniversary.

We commenced with a refreshing beer from Low Life and a sublime glass of wine. I typically shy away from Tuscan wines as they are usually too robust for me, but this one that our server suggested from Montepulciano, where we once visited, was as smooth as silk.

Walnuts, fresh mint and pomegranate molasses sounded like a strange way to serve olives, but it absolutely worked in this appetizer in a jar, to get our juices flowing.

When I make meatballs at home I tend to make them from ground turkey as it is affordable and good for our heart health, so Bonnie Day’s combination of beef, pork and veal was a luscious treat. Their tomato sauce sparkled and smearing everything onto a toasted baguette was perfection.

J1 suggested we sample the kale Caesar salad but spying this deconstructed chicken salad on the menu, we couldn’t resist. The skin on the quarter chicken absolutely burst with flavour and it was very hard to resist a nibble of skin with every chicken morsel.

But the piece d’ resistance for us was the whipped feta pizza. J1 suggested we sample the whipped feta as an appetizer but we thought “why not go all the way?” with this delicious entre, and we were so glad we did. The pie was sauceless, which was a welcome thing as the cheese was so decadently delicious. After our other noshing and the richness of the feta, we could only manage a piece or so each. Two days later though, served as a cold snack, it was just as scrumptious as day one! I am a truffle lover and the promise of truffle oil on the pie really sparked my interest. My only complaint of the evening was the lack of that bold flavour on our entree.

This gorgeous wall paper adorned the front entrance of the restaurant and really made a statement of what to expect of the decor. It was vintage and yet trendy at the same time. I loved the mismatched china that they utilized as their dinnerware and now I know where I will donate my china when the time comes.

As we left that evening, we walked through the deserted patio. Every time we drive past the restaurant, the patio was always packed but on Sept 2, you may recall, a blast of hot, humid air made one last appearance to our prairie city. Much as Winnipeggers embrace the heat when it comes, the cool restaurant was very much appreciated by all the diners on this evening.

If you get a chance to visit Bonnie Day, do so. The service is educated and attentive which is not a surprise in the Wolseley neighbourhood.

Kath’s quote: “A little among neighbors is worth more than riches in a wilderness.”-Welsh Saying

Love never fails.

This time of year there is often a plethora of zucchini. Our three now adult children, had birthdays in May, July and September. The latter was always a tough time for us financially as it is for many families. I once shopped at Costco for items to make school lunch making a bit easier. My check out tally came to $500 and then my cheque bounced! How embarrassing. Luckily for our household budget, J1 (our son) requested my Zucchini Chocolate Cake Recipe each and every year.

Ingredients:

2 c flour

2 t baking soda

1/2 t baking powder

1 t instant coffee (why? because cofee enhances the depth of the chocolate taste)

1/2 t salt

1 c canola oil

1 c sugar (I often substituted Stevia with good success)

3/4 c packed brown sugar

4 large eggs (room temperature)

1/3 c sour sour cream (or plain yoghurt or vinegar and milk)

2 t vanilla

3 c grated zucchini (don’t hand grate-use a food processor!)

1 c semi sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a silicon bundt pan with canola oil. Whisk together all the dry ingredients, set aside. In a food machine beat oil, sugars, eggs, sour cream, zucchini and vanilla together. Pour in the dry ingredients and mix until moistened. Add the chocolate chips. Batter will be thick. Pour into bundt pan and bake for 35-45 minutes, testing with a toothpick after 35 minutes. Allow to cool, invert to a serving plate. I always iced mine with a chocolate cream cheese icing.

Hmm maybe that is why they liked my zucchini cake so much…

Sister #3 made a new zucchini treat this year.

If you would like the recipe for her zucchini cheese bread, leave a comment for us.

Have you ever tasted fried zucchini blossoms?

Kath’s quote: “The first zucchini I ever saw I killed it with a hoe“.— John Gould

Love never fails.

Around this time every summer, BOOM, an explosion of tomatoes! My plants are slow to produce, (with the exception of my cherry tomato plant that currently has about 20 green tomatoes hanging from its tiny branches), but my more green- thumbed friends are gifting me with bushels of tomatoes. At the moment I have three romas, two hearty beefsteaks, and a 2 quart basket of heirlooms that are bigger than cherry but not quite the size of romas. 

Growing up, I was never a huge tomato fan. I would occasionally have a slice on a burger, or on toast with some bacon and melted cheddar, but those were rare occurrences. My mom was a big tomato lover. While my Mom was living in care she would often pass up the PCH meal in lieu of a toasted tomato sandwich. Well, since my Mom has passed I have acquired an uncontrollable desire for tomatoes! Like her, I love a toasted tomato sandwich with mayo and salt and pepper. I pretty much have one a day, all summer.

That’s the thing about tomatoes, they need to be fresh from the garden to show off their true flavour. Unfortunately, here in Manitoba we have to tolerate hot house tomatoes for much of the year as we have a very short growing season.  

One of the many reasons I take off to Mexico every winter is pico de gallo. I can’t get enough of it!

Here is my recipe:

Pico de Gallo

3 tbsp finely chopped white onion

3 large ripe tomatoes (seeded and chopped)
1/2 small Jalapeno pepper (finely chopped)
2 tbsp minced cilantro
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

salt & pepper to taste or Tajin which I buy in Mexico

Last summer, I discovered the perfect way to turn my tomatoes into a yummy appetizer for happy hour. I rolled out and baked a sheet of puff pastry, being sure to pierce it with a fork, (except around the very edges) so it does puff too much. Once cool, I spread cream cheese to which I had added some chopped fresh herbs. Next came the tomatoes. The bigger the variety, the better. Top it off with salt and pepper and voila, the perfect summer appy. 

Last fall my sisters and I had the pleasure of visiting Malaga Spain. The October tomatoes were sweet and juicy. We were staying in an Airbnb and didn’t have a lot of groceries, but we had some staples. So I decided to make “Pan con Tomate” which translates to bread with tomato. It’s a traditional dish that Spaniards eat for breakfast. I brushed sliced baguettes with good olive oil and toasted them in a pan. I used a box grater to break down the tomatoes, skin, seeds, and all. Next, I drained off some of the excess liquid, then adding some more olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. To eat it, you cut a clove of garlic and rub it on the crostini, then top with a healthy spoonful of tomato. Wow, que rico!  

So the moral of the story is, when life gives you good tomatoes, eat them!  Just keep it simple and enjoy these red orbs of sweet juicy perfection. 

Kath’s quote: “A world without tomatoes, is like a string quartet without the violins.”-Laurie Colwin

Love never fails.