Author: Emily Keith

hic rhodus hic salta

The Worst Pies in London

On By Emily KeithIn hits and misses, unsolicited adviceLeave a comment

Last month I finished reading the trilogy of Ruth Reichl’s food novels.  The first book in the series,”Comfort Me With Apples”, includes a vivid tale of Pasta Carbonara and in true Reichl style the recipe is included among her prose.  Yesterday I started reading the wildly popular “Eat Drink Pray” by Elizabeth Gilbert.  I’ve seen a tremendous amount of people, mostly women, reading this book in coffee shops and airports so I asked Aaron to bring home a used copy from his work.  Pasta Carbonara is the first dish Gilbert eats in Rome and it launches a four month excursion into Italian digestible delights.

Tonight I made Pasta Carbonara for the first time. 

This will not ignite a four month joy ride into gluttony but I’m so glad I splurged on this dish.  I’ve devloped a small obsession with hot carbohydrates that cook sunny raw egg yolks.  The Korean Bi-Bim-Bap is a great example of this terrific technique.

Update: I wrote this immediately after consuming the Pasta Carbonara.  A few short hours later my significant other and I were NOT pleased about this dish.  It made us ill, very very ill.  I’m not sure what happened.  Perhaps we are not accustom to the gluttonous conxumption of bacon, or perhaps the illness was unrelated (doubtful). My best guess is that the raw egg is the culprit.  Thank goodness my siginificat other has a sense of humor about these things!  I used a recipe from a rescpected food blog.  However, over the past month I’ve been quite dissapointed by some of the food blog recipes that I have tried.  I now plan to peruse the food blogs that I love but I will only prepare edited and tested recipes from published cook books or magazines.

A List for Amanda and Neil

On By Emily KeithIn solicited advice, travelLeave a comment

My great friend Amanda and her awesome boyfriend Neil are taking a long vacation to  NYC and Montreal!  They have a calling card full of great musical acts to witness.  Also, Amanda quit smoking two months ago so she will need things to do other than, you know, stand outside and smoke.  I surf the internet too much and have a food rolodex in my head as annoying proof.  Amanda and Neil live in Asheville, NC and this is very important from a food perspective because they can always get their hands on fresh produce and N.C. staples, like barbeque.  So I’m ommitting these food trends from the list.  But hey, there is apparently a place called “Pies and Thighs” under the BQE in Brooklyn that will serve you chicken biscuits and collards if you find yourselves suddenly and inexplicably homesick. Here is a list for Amanda and Neil about restaurants and other food related activities that I recommed, based on what others have recommended.  Haha.

City Bakery

3 W. 18th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue, Flatiron District

Near Subway Stops: 4,5,6,L,N,Q,R,W at 14th Street

I’ve hear great things about this place.  It’s won awards for its breakfast, weekend brunch and veggies.  It’s also relatively cheap, $8 – $15.  It looks like it is open from 7:30 – 7:00 and brunch is served all day on the weekends. They are famous for their pretzel crossaint,  I know it sounds strange but it is supposedly divine. 

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Pearl Oyster Bar

18 Cornelia St. (near Bleecker St.)

Near Subway Stops: A, B, C, D, E, F, V at 4th Street, Washington Square

 This place is FAMOUS, a little pricey $18 – $27, but oysters are in season so why not.  Lunch from 12 – 2:30 and dinner from 6 – 11:00 closed on Sunday.

 Vegetarian Dim Sum House, Chinatown

24 Pell Street

Take the N, R, of 5th Street train to Canal Street Station

Open from 10:30 a.m. – 10:30 p.m. 7 days a week. Cash Only.

I’ve heard amazing things about this place, and as with all dim sum you can either drop a forturne or be choosy with the menu and grab a few cheap options.  I hear great things about the mock duck.

 Bahn Mi Saigon Bakery

138 Mott St. between Grand and Hester. Open Tues. – Sun. 10 – 7.  This is also close to the Canal Street Station.  They have a vegetarian option for Amanda, but Neil should try this one. . .

Bahn Mi

Shake Shack

This is the burger shack in Madison Square Park (not Central, oops) that comes with a jalapeno popper inside. They are open from 11 – 11 and here’s a picture of the burger in question. . .

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Good lord, that looks good.

Okay, now on to Brooklyn!

This bar is not to be messed with, they have cask ale for crying out loud. The owners also opened a barbeque place across the street “Fette Sau” that is supposed to be awesome, but once again, why bother eating barbeque in NY when your coming from NC.

Marlow and Sons I love this website, this place also has oysters, though I don’t see them on the menu. 

Vegan Fast Food At Foodswings on Grand St. in Brooklyn.  I hear great things about something called a “tank shake”.  I dare you to get the Vegar Pu-Pu platter.

Queen’s Hideaway by what I gather from message board chatter, this place is a well kept secret and the website gives you very little information (but look at it anyway because it has a helpful little map). I know it’s BYOB and the lady who runs it is from Portland, OR and this place has been really well received.  Here is a more helpful review.

Whew, I’m exhausted and very hungary.  I’ll post some Montreal links tomorrow.  I’m so jealous excited for you two!  Also, Amanda Smith is the best thing since sliced bread (food blog pun intended) so cheers to that too!

Homegrown Tacos

On By Emily KeithIn in the kitchen, miscellanyLeave a comment

My mother (Sue) is the proud planter and tender of a very exstensive garden.   Sue left the state last week and asked if I would stop by her house on a daily basis to tend and water the plants in the backyard, the plants on the deck, the herb garden by the driveway, the flowers next to the chimney, the vegetable garden and it’s surrounding flowers, the natural area, the rose garden, the flowers planted along the front of the house and the potted plant on the front porch.  I am not exaggerating.  I tended and watered the yard and garden because I like flowers/vegetables and I love my mother.  For the record I hate yard work.  I HATE YARD WORK.  I’m so happy to live in an apartment where small gnomes come in the night to cut the grass and trim the hedges.   Here in the South some of the leaves are experiencing a premature autumn due to drought and I harbor a wicked elation when I watch the falling leaves and dodge responsibility for raking any of them. 

 Anyway,  I’ve helped my mother in her yard for as long as I can remember so one more week was no big deal.  Besides I made delicious, tasty, mouth-watering vegetable tacos with the excess bounty from her vegetable garden.

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Zucchini, squash, green peppers, purple peppers, and garlic in the skillet.  All vegetables from my mother’s garden. . .except the garlic.

Note: Please pardon the absolutely horrid camera pictures.  It’s almost unforgiveable but I promise that my posts will be accompanied by real pictures in the near future.  Well, I guess I can’t promise that but I certainly hope it’s true.

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While tending my mother’s NUMEROUS tomato plants I could not stop thinking about that scene in Steel Magnolia’s when “Weeza” gives away bags and bags full of tomatoes and explains, “Well I suppose that is what old Southern women are supposed to do!  Wear funny hats and grow tomatoes!”  However, the similarities between Weeza and my mother stop at “southern” and “tomatoes”.  My mother has a great attitude and she is not old and I don’t think she owns any funny hats.  I could say a lot more about the South, women, hats and tomatoes but this is a food blog not a journal or memoir.

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Here is an awful picture of limes, copped homegrown tomatoes, onion, and a little pile of freshly grated parmesan origiano.  My idea for this meal came from reading about elote – a Mexican street food of corn, mayo, chayanne, lime and a chees called “cotija”.  I could not find any cotija for this endeavor but I read that it is similar to parmesan origiano so that is what I bought.  For elote, some people eat the toppings on the cob or you can eat the loose corn from a cup with the toppings mashed around it.  Who knows?  I’ve never even tried it!  I decided to make “elote” tacos with fresh veggies and then I forgot to cook the corn.  Anyway, here is the final product and a recipe.  Oh and by the way, parmesean is not just for Italian food anymore it brought an awesome nutiness to this dish.  Really!

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 Homegrown Tacos

 Raid your mothers vegetable garden. Grab everything you can including the tomatoes.

Chop the vegetable (excluding the tomatoes) and heat them up in a skillet with some garlic and maybe a pinch of pepper.

 While the veggies heat through chop the tomatoes, cut up a lime, grate some parmesan.

Scoop the veggies on to a tortilla (I prefer Pepitos)

Garnish with a pinch of cheese, a dash of your favorite hot sauce, a smattering of chopped tomatoes, a wedge of lime and a some fresh cilantro.

 Delish!