Meat

Steak

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Steak

DeR 2

A few words on how to cook a steak…

Steak misc

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Sear the fatty edges

 

Porterhouse Peter Luger Style

Porterhouse, the king of steaks, has a strip steak on one side of the bone and a tenderloin on the other.

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  •  Sprinkle with lots of salt and let it (1 ½ to 2 inches thick) sit at room temp. Heat skillet very hot with a little oil. 3 minutes on one side and remove to board, crust side up.
  •  Cut the loin and sirloin in thick slices straight down and perpendicular to the bone but leave ends attached to the bone.
  •  Dot with lots of butter and put it back together in the pan curst and butter side up.
  •  Place under a preheated broiler for 3 minutes.  Spoon melted butter over it and remove from pan or it will continue to cook.

 

Roasted Tomahawk Steak

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Ingredients:

  • 1 -2 ½ to 3 inch thick tomahawk steak *
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Preparation:

  • Blot room temperature tomahawk dry with paper towels and season with pepper and lots of salt; let rest for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400°. Dot roasting pan with 3 tbsp. butter.
  •  Put1 tbsp. oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When it’s good and hot add steak to skillet. Cook until seared on all sides (including edges), 2–3 minutes per side. Transfer to the roasting pan. Roast in the oven, turning halfway through cooking and basting with the melted butter, Cook for 10 minutes for rare.
  •  Place in a serving platter and pour the melted butter fron the pan over it. Cover loosely with foil and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving. Serves two.

* A tomahawk steak is a rib steak with the entire rib bone intact.

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Done well but not well done

 

 

Drinks

Ramos Gin Fizz

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Ramos Gin Fizz

Ramos Gin Fizz
Ramos Gin Fizz

We first tried this exceptional cocktail in New Orleans on my father’s recommendation. For the whole story click here – The Elusive Ramos Gin Fizz.

Ramos Gin Fizz ingredients and equipment
Ramos Gin Fizz ingredients and equipment

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz gin
  • ½ oz fresh lemon juice
  • ½ oz fresh lime juice
  • 1 oz heavy cream
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 4 drops orange flower water
  • Seltzer or club soda

No substitute for any ingredient.

 

Preparation:

  • Put the gin and lemon & lime juice in the glass half of the shaker and the cream, egg white, sugar and orange flower water in the metal half.
  • Fill the glass half way with cracked ice and then add the metal half ingredients over the ice.  Shake for two full minutes. That’s very important to get the meringue-like head.
  •  Strain from the glass to the metal and then strain again into a Collins glass with no ice.
  • Top with a spritz of seltzer and let the foam rest and settle, tapping the base of the glass.  When it settles add another dash of seltzer/club soda so the head comes up a bit above the brim.
  • Serve with a spoon & straw.
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It’s only a glass of milk  and not a Ramos Gin Fizz that Cary Grant is about to serve to Joan Fontaine, but it glows like one.

 

Seafood, Vegetarian

Fried Little Fish

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Fried Little Fish

 

Fried Little Fish
Fried Little Fish

 

They may not really be smelts although that’s how they’re sometimes labeled. They’re between 2 and 3 inches long and you can find them in an Italian or Chinese fish market. Some people call them bait fish, shiners or Kellies, I call them the potato chips of the sea. My Aunt Vicki used to make them on Christmas Eve. She called them “fried little fish.”

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Floured and ready to fry

 

Rinse ½ pound thoroughly in a strainer under running cold water. Leave them head to tail, fins and scales. Spread them out on paper towels and blot them as dry as you can. Put 3 tablespoons of flour and some salt and black pepper in a bag, add the fish, shake until they’re coated and then spread them out again.   Put about an inch of light oil in a pan and add the fish when it’s hot. Make sure to separate them before putting them in the pan because they’ll stay stuck together – a little tedious but worth it.

When they’re done add salt. Eat them while they’re hot with white wine or beer like potato chips. A great snack for guests hanging around the kitchen while dinner is cooking.

 

Lunch/Snacks, Vegetarian

Tuna and Lemon Sandwich

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Tuna and Lemon Sandwich

Uncle Charlie and me at his summer house on Lake Mombasha in Monroe New York
Uncle Charlie and me at his summer house on Lake Mombasha in Monroe, New York

A tuna and lemon sandwich was one of my Uncle Charlie’s  standard late night snacks.

Ingredients:

  • 1 can or jar of imported tuna packed in olive oil
  • 1 fresh lemon
  • 1 small red onion
  • A sprinkle of olive oil (infused with chilies if you have it)
  • Salt and black pepper
  • Crunchy seeded Italian bread

tuna sandwich

Preparation:

Drain the tuna and arrange it on the bread.  Add thinly sliced red onion and thinly sliced lemon (include skin). You’ll need a very sharp knife for this.  Sprinkle with plain or chili infused olive oil, salt and black pepper Add some Romaine if you like. This combination really works.

Restaurants

DeRobertis Pasticceria

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DeRobertis Pasticceria

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At DeRobertis – coffee, orzata…

I have some sad news. DeRobertis Pasticceria is closing. They’ve been on First Ave. between Tenth and Eleventh Streets in Manhattan since 1904. And I’ve been going there since, well, I remember tagging along with my father on Sunday mornings to get pastry for after dinner – biscotti, cannoli, babas and sfogliatelle to go with our Anisette and black coffee. At Easter their pizza con gran couldn’t be beat and at Christmas they had the best struffoli.

The owner said the “new” local people expect his pasticceria to be more like Starbucks. (See Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York) Too bad they don’t know what it is that they have. And that it will be gone soon.

After dinner at Lanza's we went next door to DeRobertis for dessert
After dinner at Lanza’s last month, we went next door to DeRobertis for dessert

Click Yelp for more photos

Seafood, Vegetarian

Tuna with Vinegar and Onions

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Tuna with Vinegar and Onions

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My sister Rochelle

This is an old recipe that Rochelle has kept alive. Our mother used to make it on Christmas Eve.

Ingredients:

  • 2 large onions, sliced
  • ½ cup olive oil divided
  • Salt and black pepper to taste
  • 2 lbs tuna steaks, at least 1 inch thick cut into 2 by 2 inch pieces
  • ½ cup red wine vinegar
  • ¼ cup finely chopped mint

Preparation:

  • Fry onions in ¼ cup of oil on medium heat until soft, translucent and slightly browned, about 20 minutes. Remove onions and add the rest of the oil to the same pan.
  •  Season tuna with salt and pepper and lightly brown on both sides leaving the center rare. Return onions to pan, mix with tuna, increase heat and add the vinegar. Cover and let steam for 3 minutes. Oil, vinegar and liquid from the tuna will create a light sauce.
  •  Place in a serving dish and sprinkle with the mint. This dish can be served hot or cold.  Serves six.
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Tuna with Vinegar and Onions

Desserts

Struffoli

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Struffoli

Nicki
My sister Nicki

December is coming so here’s Nicki’s recipe for a Christmas standard.

“Struffoli or as my family calls them, Ceci, are made for the Christmas Holidays.  Time consuming to make, but well worth it.  They are a delicious treat.  They are especially good for breakfast on Christmas day; float them in your coffee cup and scoop them up with a spoon.  So good!” – Nicki strufolli 1

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups flour, plus extra for dusting
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ cup Crisco (see The Great Crisco Robbery)
  • 3 eggs
  • Crisco for frying
  • 1 cup Honey + ¼ cup water
  • Powdered sugar and color sprinkles for decoration

Preparation:

  • Mix the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, the 1/4 cup of Crisco and eggs in a mixing bowl.  Work the dough with your hands.  Then turn the dough onto a floured board.  Knead the dough until pliable.  Form it into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  • Flour the board.  Cut the dough into ½ inch strips.  Roll the strips into rope-like pieces about 8 – 10 inches long.  I prefer rolling the dough in my hands but you can roll it on the board.  Leave each roll to rest on the floured board as you roll the others.  Cut each roll into ½ inch pieces.  Roll each of these pieces into balls the size of a ceci (chick pea).  I roll them by hand and can do two at a time. (Practice makes perfect).  The board should be sufficiently floured so that the Struffoli do not stick together.
  •  Put the Crisco (about four inches deep) in a large heavy-duty pot over medium heat.  Drop in one ceci to check the heat of the Crisco.  It should brown in a minute or two.  Fry the dough in batches until golden.  Remove them with a slotted spoon or a spider spoon and drain them on a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
  • Heat the honey and water in a pan until it blends. Add the ceci and toss and coat. Arrange in a serving bowl and dust with powdered sugar and sprinkles.
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Breakfast !

 

Restaurants

Ayurveda Café

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Ayurveda Café

Lunch at the Ayurveda Cafe
Lunch at the Ayurveda Café

Ten items that include all six tastes:  salty, sweet, sour, bitter, astringent and pungent. That’s what you get at Ayurveda Café. It’s vegetarian Indian cuisine served thali style. I’m by no means a vegetarian as you can tell be some of my posts (beefsteak, lamb’s head) but their meals are tasty and satisfying without meat. It might be the warm climate spices. That’s the difference between southern and northern cuisine – New Orleans vs. Boston, Sicily vs. Tuscany. I confess I don’t know much about southern Indian cooking but some dishes remind me of southern American standards like red rice and beans or southern Italian giambotta, both made without meat but still savory and hearty.

The Ayurveda Café has no menu but four vegetable dishes plus dessert are varied every day along with standard rice (white or brown), salad, nan and  chutneys. If you’d like some more of anything you just have to ask for it. For beverages, in addition to various teas and lassis they serve beer (Kingfisher) and wine.

The Ayvurda Café at 706 Amsterdam Ave., NYC
The Ayvurda Café at 706 Amsterdam Ave., NYC

Drinks

7Up and Chianti

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7Up and Chianti

7Up and Chianti - a match made in heaven
7Up and Chianti – a match made in heaven

When I was growing up, we started drinking wine with dinner at an early age. We didn’t drink very much and didn’t drink it straight either. Our parents mixed it with soda. Some of my friends preferred Coke, and others, cream and even orange soda – go figure!

 My choice was always, and still is 7Up. Some sweetness, some citrus and a bit of bubbly fizz with a rich Chianti can’t be beat. I wouldn’t attempt to order it at a restaurant but I still sometimes have it at home. It’s comfort food that really brings me back.

All the ingredients you'll need
All the ingredients you’ll need

It’s a simple mix – about half and half. Younger kids get a little less wine and older kids, a bit more.

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Drinks

EGG-HOT

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Egg-Hot

I found an interesting old cookbook called, A PLAIN COOKERY BOOK FOR THE WORKING CLASSES. It was written by Charles Elme Francatelli in 1861. He was ‘Maitre d’Hotel and Chief Cook to Her Gracious Majesty Queen Victoria,’ – pretty good credentials. A recipe that caught my attention was for Egg-Hot. It’s a sort of unusual beer cocktail. Here it is verbatim: Egghot I didn’t think this was something I could order at a local bar so I tried it myself. I tried it more than once. I made it with Brooklyn Lager and Sam Adams Boston Lager – both worked very well. I don’t think a beer like Corona or Bud would stand up to this recipe. I used a small sauce pan to heat the beer and a stoneware mug for the mixing. Adding ‘a drop of beer’ tempers the egg so it stays liquid and doesn’t scramble. I followed the instructions precisely and finished with a hearty mixture that was almost a meal. I think it would make a great winter drink comparable to Irish coffee. egghot 3

Reveries and Recipes