Here’s something I found out about at Taste of the Nation. Thanks to Friends Health Connection and the Mercer County Community College Hospitality Club (they had a table at Taste with brownies and adorable red velvet cupcakes), celebrity chef Cat Cora visits our area on June 2, for a book signing and tasting event at the Hamilton Manor. … Continue reading
Meringue & Marjolaine
The kid in me loves meringue. This big one, with cocoa in it, is from Whole Foods Market; they often have them in the bakery, and I can see splitting them and topping them with berries for a summer dessert, much like a Pavlova. (Sometimes Rory Philipson at Blue Bottle Cafe in Hopewell has a Pavlova … Continue reading
Mother’s Day at The Frog and The Peach
It used to be that nice restaurants were closed on holidays like Mother’s Day (May 9 this year). I was never sure why, but it seemed that the only places to eat out were big buffets or “food mills,” where the food was lousy and you felt taken advantage of to boot. But, with the downturn … Continue reading
Roasted Spring Onions
I wrote about this recipe, from the new edition of Canal House Cooking (Vol. No. 3), a few weeks ago. In that post, I said I’d be haunting the produce section of Whole Earth Center to find these young onions, and, sure enough, when I remembered to check one day, they had gorgeous red ones. … Continue reading
Eggsactly!
Once again elements restaurant impresses, this time at Monday’s Taste of the Nation. (Thank you to all who came out and participated!) What’s in that egg? It was spaghetti carbonara; a classic Italian pasta dish with a creamy sauce with bacon & sometimes peas. Chef Scott Anderson made this version with asparagus foam instead of peas though, … Continue reading
Poussin From Griggstown Quail Farm
This is half a roasted poussin from Griggstown Quail Farm Market. I buy them pre-marinated in herbs (there’s also a soy-ginger version), and they are reliably tender and juicy. I often keep one in my freezer, and it’s enough for 2 servings. I roast the poussin for about an hour (to 165°) on a bed of … Continue reading
Creative Food Writing Workshop in Assisi, Italy
Be still my heart. When I win the lottery, I may do something like this. Paulette Licitra, the publisher and editor-in-chief of Alimentum-The Literature of Food, a publication I’ve mentioned before, is giving a two week creative food writing workshop in Assisi Italy this summer (a one-week option is also available). Here’s some of the information I … Continue reading
Cookie Time
I’m always going on about how delicious the cupcakes are at Sugar + Sunshine bakery in Plainsboro. But their cookies are also excellent. I took this photo a couple weeks ago, and the cookies disappeared so quickly, I didn’t even take notes on what was in each one. (I’d gone there for some cupcakes for my … Continue reading
Penang
Now that my review of Penang Malaysian & Thai Cuisine has appeared in the Packet TimeOff, I wanted to share some photos I took at the table during my dinner. At left you see the Golden Fried Eggplant, it was quite delicious, addictive, really, with a good hit of heat from the chopped chilies sprinkled on … Continue reading
Kudos to Olive’s Princeton
Good work Olive’s! Olive’s did some catering at an event I ran this past weekend, and they did a great job. The baked-in-house breakfast items were very good, especially an excellent crumb-topped coffee cake. At lunch, the sandwich trays held a wonderful variety, including one with delicious eggplant. The potato salad was a hit, just the way I like it, with plenty of … Continue reading
NJ SPICE 