June 2011
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06/30/11Vesica Vodka: It's Organic!Liquor & Wine Depot on Mt. Moriah is a my go-to neighborhood liquor store. It’s close to my house, and the store’s friendly staff and great prices are a winning combination. The cashiers also offer to carry my purchases to the car, which is a nice courtesy in 100-degree heat.On a recent visit, I asked for recommendations on organic wine as I’ve been worried lately about the amount of pesticides used to grow grapes. (Imports are particularly worrisome, but California wines aren’t exempt.) An employee directed me to Orleans Hill, which makes a nice combination red called Our Daily Red and a better white called Alexandria. Both ring in under $10 a bottle, and the white is particularly good, combining Muscat and French Colombard into a clean, crisp summer... |
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06/29/11Homemade: Two CSA Shares in OneSince I spent last week eating my way around New York City, I held my CSA share from Whitton Farms for pick up this week. That meant instead of one full veggie share, I got two.I was feeling quite righteous as I toted my two (very heavy) bags of produce to the car, but as I spread out it out on the kitchen table, I was overwhelmed. Trust me on this: Two full CSA shares is a mess of vegetables. More specifically, the countdown goes like this: two leaves of bread, six large tomatoes, six onions, six plums, six peaches, two DOZEN ears of corn, two bunches of carrots, four beets, four cucumbers, eight zucchini, and 10 yellow squash.I tried to figure out how many servings of fruits and vegetables this would make for my two-person household, but I couldn’t do the math. So I started... Posted at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments: 1 |
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06/23/11Five Leaves in Brooklyn: Best Burger Ever!Brooklyn has many unique and lively neighborhoods, but my favorite these days is Greenpoint, where I spent Saturday afternoon in foodie heaven.We started the afternoon at the farmer’s market in McCarren Park, a year-round market that is bustling with people, produce, and locally sourced products like Ronnybrook Farm’s cinnamon toast butter. I assumed vegetables would be more expensive in Brooklyn than in Memphis, but was surprised by the reasonable prices. These beautiful radishes were only a dollar a bunch.Carrots rang in at two.After our stroll through the market, we headed for Five Leaves, located two blocks away on Bedford Avenue. Cramped and stylish in that Brooklyn way, Five Leaves describes its food as “simple Australian fare,” which for my daughter... |
06/22/11Chef David Tanis Starts New ColumnBe still my heart: Chef and author David Tanis has started a weekly column in The New York Times called City Kitchen, and it’s about cooking dinner, not only at home, but in a small space.Tanis has worked for more that 25 years at the celebrated Chez Panisse in Berkeley, but he’s leaving in November. The weekly column in the paper’s Wednesday dining section is part of his new focus. City Kitchen appears online as well, and that’s great news for us, as Tanis has an easy and relatable writing style that mimics his approach to cooking.Here’s how he describes his column in his introductory blog post: “The column will feature simple dishes for seasonal cooking, designed for a busy cook. We’ll also take trips to forage for food, venturing beyond the... |
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06/17/11Farm Girl Food GardensSince August temperatures have arrived two months early, I’ve been wondering if it’s too hot to plant tomatoes. So I asked my food growing guru Mary Phillips, and here’s what she had to say: “It’s always a good time to plant food, and it’s not too hot to make good things happen.”While it’s a little late to plant summer vegetables from seed (although I just planted okra, so we’ll see), transplants such as tomatoes and winter squash will do fine as long as they are well watered, Phillips said.The former manager of Urban Farms in Binghampton, Phillips knows a thing or two about growing food. (She is pictured, left, in her bee-keepers veil). These days, she serves on the board of the Cooper Young Community Farmers Market and is a... Posted at 03:54 PM | Permalink | Comments: 2 |
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06/14/11Homemade: Black Radish Leaf PestoWhen Tony walks in on my cooking and says, “I’m not eating that,” I pretty much know I’ve left my comfort zone in the kitchen.Such was the scenario Sunday evening as I tore my way through a mound of radish leaves from the spooky looking black radishes pictured above. I bought two bunches Saturday from Delta Sol Farm at the Cooper-Young Farmers Market. I couldn’t resist trying a black food or Brandon’s enthusiasm. Brandon grew the radishes and was quite proud.Called gros noir d’Hiver in France, where the radishes originated in the mid 1500s, black radishes have a finely grooved black skin, but the peppery flesh inside is pure white. I’m hoping to pickle the radishes (more on that later), but I decided to make pesto first while the leaves... |
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06/13/11YoLo Frozen Yogurt Opens in Park PlaceFirst off, a few admissions: I’ve never liked frozen yogurt, and despite the buzz, I hadn’t been to YoLo until Friday night.My daughter, on the other hand, is crazy about the stuff and had read about YoLo even though she lives in New York. Back in Memphis for a visit, she talked me into stopping by the new YoLo in Park Place. It’s next to Amerigo’s in the former Cold Stone Creamery space.Turns out, it was opening night for YoLo’s sixth location, and Anna’s longtime pal, Emily Centko, was hard at work along with store manager Lauren Times. (That’s Emily and Lauren behind the counter in the photo above.)At first, I was dazzled by the store’s colorful retro tile but put off by the remarkable buffet of toppings. (Decision-making is hard... |
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06/10/11Urban Farms Outdoor Market: Stop By!My friend Victoria loves a promising upstart, which is why her Saturday mornings this summer include an early morning stop at the Urban Farms outdoor market on Tillman and Broad. Last Saturday, along with two sleeves of wild and cultivated flowers, she bought salad greens, locally produced Italian sausages, white radishes, and green, white and purple peppers.“I like Urban Farms, because it’s in a neighborhood that deserves to be revitalized,” she said. “I’m trying to help it along as much as possible.”While there are more than a dozen seasonal farmers markets in the Memphis area, none has more heart than Urban Farms, which in addition to the outdoor market includes a fresh food corner store in the heart of Binghampton. Working under the umbrella of... |
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06/07/11Homemade: Spaghetti With Cauliflower, Butter, and PepperThis is sad but true: I don’t buy cauliflower too often, because when it comes to preparation, I’m pretty much stuck in the ’70s: Clean it, break it into florets, and dip it in ranch dressing. But last week, I couldn’t resist the absolutely gorgeous cauliflower available at local farmers market. Vendors had heirloom varieties that were tangerine and purple. I opted for purple at $2 a head.Despite my enthusiasm, the cauliflower sat in my fridge for more than a week until I happened on a recipe in Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Every Day, a date book with recipes. I keep this book on my coffee table, not as a calendar for appointments but as an easy reference for seasonal cooking. Typically, Madison’s recipes sidestep the heavy cheese approach so common... |
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06/03/11Wally Joe Opens Acre in East MemphisAfter one visit, this pretty much sums up my opinion of Acre, Wally Joe‘s gorgeous new restaurant in East Memphis that opened this week. It was worth the wait.Nestled midway in the block of houses behind Theatre Memphis, Acre is the result of a two-year long renovation that at times moved painfully slow. “We wanted to get it right,” Joe said Wednesday night, with his million-dollar smile. “We have a great crew, and we are very excited.“You couldn’t possibly meet a nicer person than Joe, and if you doubt me, consider the staff he has pulled together. His executive chef at Acre is Andrew Adams, Joe’s chef de cuisine at the Brushmark and at the former Wally Joe Restaurant in Memphis. In addition to Adams, there’s a constellation of other... Posted at 04:32 PM | Permalink | Comments: 2 |
