|
Mark and I are taking a few days up in the Finger Lakes region of New York to celebrate three years of marriage. Here’s a repost of our trip from our last Finger Lakes trip. I’ll let you know if anything has changed when we return home: October 19th, 2008 Day 1 Continue reading Hitting the Road to the Finger Lakes  As I write this, my husband is in the backyard, in the evening on a Friday, trying to figure out the best way to humanely put down our Red Star chicken, Mrs. Farquar. I poured him a big glass of bourbon and after much deliberation, decided that I didn’t want to be part of Continue reading In Memoriam: Mrs. Farquar  I bought this Black Sea Bass at the Union Square Farmers market for $7.99 a pound. The same fish, already filleted, was twice that much money! A few simple steps and you can create a dramatic dinner presentation that’s cheap, healthy, summery and cooks in minutes. You also get the added bonus of eating Continue reading Whole Fish 101  Who turns on the oven when its 103º in the shade? This chef does! I had my reasons though, and I figured, its already this hot, I won’t even notice that I’m standing over a hot sauté pan in front of a preheating oven! Well, I did notice. Even got a little lightheaded for Continue reading Rainbow Chard Quiche  Have a wonderful Independence Day Weekend! Here are three recipes from a rerun of a July 2008 article to enjoy! I’ll be back next week with some fresh ideas for you! Clams just might be the ocean’s perfect food. Simple, self-contained little animals that don’t put up too much of a fight. They’re luscious and Continue reading The Happy Clam Reprise  I hate to admit this to you, but I have a minor confession to make. I know I’ve spoken endlessly about cooking your own food and growing whatever you can. I know I’ve been all the way through culinary school and am a culinary instructor myself. I also know, that I am human and Continue reading Blackened Fish & Grilled Vegetable Salad  This weekend, we drove out east on Long Island to adopt four hens from my brother’s landlady who wanted to thin out her flock. After a short ride in my father’s truck, we loaded them up into the backseat of my car and they were off on the most exciting adventure of their lives! They Continue reading The Chickens Came Home to Roost… Sort Of.  Back when I was a restless, pierced teen, I was fascinated by the cultural flux of the last century. I desperately wanted to have been a flapper. To have lived in the Roaring 20′s, with those hats and dresses and Art Deco broaches! Not to mention the speakeasies and that the homemade films that Continue reading How to Make Strawberry Jam  There is a saying about learning to cook that goes something like “you don’t learn how to cook in culinary school. You learn to cook by getting in a kitchen.” I think there is a similar proverb waiting to be coined which would explain how you learn to build a chicken coop: By setting Continue reading How to Build a Chicken Coop – Part 1 I recently taught a sold-out class on just this subject. I met a group of home cooks at the Tompkins Square Market on an unseasonably cold Sunday morning and the first hour of the class was a walking and shopping tour. We talked all about availing oneself of all the market has to offer Continue reading Nine Ways to Finesse the Farmers Market Nothing says more to me that, yes, spring is here, and no, it won’t be snowing again for a very long time, than the arrival of asparagus at the farmer’s markets. I hated asparagus as a kid. HATED! Much to the annoyance of my parents who started growing it in the backyard garden when Continue reading Asparagus, Greens & Fresh Herb Stir Fry Tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the year, and as such tonight feels like the eve of something fun. Tomorrow, we set our clocks ahead. I almost used an exclamation point there, but am reserved for a few reasons: 1. I hated George W. Bush’s presidency. Everything about it. If you stop reading Continue reading Fish Stew with Fennel and Potatoes for the Rainy Days of Spring  This morning began early. (Side note: I’ve been asked a lot recently what I’m planning to do. I’d like to figure out a work day that consistently begins and ends at the same time. This whole work late, work early thing is wearing me out!) Anyway, it began early, running around the apartment gathering Continue reading From the Farmer’s Market to White Manna Burger I have fallen in love with cooking greens. The beef and the sweet potatoes? Those are kind of easy to be successful with. But greens… There is a window between fibrous and grey mush that you have to hit just right to make them sing. In a nutshell, greens cook really quick, so get Continue reading Roasted Filet of Beef, Braised Greens and Roasted Sweet Potato Cubes  I have a Halloween story for you. Read the whole whole post, as its intertwined funny and natural; weird and supernatural. To start, apparently I have some verbal tics. On film today I learned that I start pretty much every sentence with “so, ok” and I discovered this in my first real live video Continue reading The Big Video Shoot  Mark and I just returned from Farm Camp, a weekend near the Adirondack Mountains in New York, spent with other people from the culinary world, hosted by the wonderful Jen and Mike, owners of Flying Pigs Farm. Mary Cleaver, owner of Cleaver Company and The Green Table, a pioneer in the sustainability world and Continue reading Farm Camp  I want to share with you a group that has really touched my heart, both the chef-heart and the teacher-heart. My instructor, colleague and friend Neal Bermas has created a restaurant and training center in Vietnam to educate the street kids there in the hospitality and tourism industries. From the STREETS website: STREETS INTERNATIONAL (“STREETS”) is a Continue reading STREETS International Beginning Wednesday July 8, I’ll be the demonstration Chef at Community Farmer’s Markets in New York City and the Hudson Valley. I’ll keep you posted with dates and will post recipes after each demo. If you are in Croton-on-Hudson tomorrow, I’ll be cooking and handing out samples from 4-6pm. Stop by if you are Continue reading Chef at the Market Begins Tomorrow!  Standing in the newly renovated Astor Center, I met Chef Eric Ripert of Le Bernadin. I was nervous, this being my first official interview, but as soon as the Chef, smiling, relaxed in jeans and a green button-down shirt, walked in looking for me, I was put at ease, in that oh-my-god-I’m-interviewing-Eric-Ripert kind of Continue reading On the Line with Eric Ripert  by Mark Peterson We met Stranahan’s Whiskey at the IACP opening night Gala at the Denver Art Museum. They were there, on the first floor, right when you walked in the door serving up something called a Colorado Cooler, a local mint julep of sorts, cold and refreshing. We were told that the museum frowned Continue reading Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey 
Mark & I have just returned from the International Association of Culinary Professionals’ annual conference and I am profoundly moved, inspired and changed by the people and plates that I met along the way. From the Denver’s mayor to fellow bloggers, cookbook authors, teachers and travelers that I had lunch with everyday, from as Continue reading IACP Conference in Denver  Traditionally, peas get planted on St. Patrick’s Day in our neck of the woods. They take about 80 days to harvest, which means they’ll be done in time to plant tomatoes, eggplant, cucumbers and other heat loving vegetables. Peas and beans also magically “fix” the nitrogen in the soil. There are little nodes that Continue reading Sweet Peas  In case you haven’t seen the cover in your neck of the woods (thank you Clustrmap.com!) The Village Voice gave prime real estate to foie gras production in the Hudson Valley. Dear Sarah, I am a student at the Institute Continue reading A Great Article on Foie Gras  Mark & I are antsy for spring. We’ve got all of our seed catalogues and spend evenings pouring over heirloom herbs and vegetables to soon be planted in our backyard. Until the 50 degree days are here to stay (and turn into 70, 80, 90 degree days after that) we’ve been working hard to Continue reading Weekend Diary of the G&P  Yesterday, I went with Mark to the Northeastern Organic Farmer’s Association (NOFA) annual meeting at Rutgers in New Brunswick, NJ. I wasn’t going to go. I love farmer’s as much as the next foodie, but I had a perfectly good Saturday to stay home and read/knit/sleep/cook/eat/whatever. I realized though that Mark would be taking Continue reading Hanging Out With Farmers *If you don’t want to know where your food comes from, avert your eyes. I came across this today and am… at a loss for words*. Go ahead, click on the link, it’ll open in a new window. Take a read and come back. … So, shockingly Hershey’s was at one time in recent history making a Continue reading Food for Thought  Clams just might be the ocean’s perfect food. Simple, self-contained little animals that don’t put up too much of a fight. They’re luscious and salty, cheap by seafood standards and super versatile in the kitchen. Enter any restaurant with seafood on the menu, and you are nearly guaranteed to find a dish featuring clams. Little Continue reading The Happy Clam We went to our favorite farm stand at the Grand Army Plaza Farmers’ Market this past Saturday: Bradley Farms, home of Ray Bradley, and bought some chicken. We love the vegetables from Rays farm but his meats, when available, are even better. We purchased two packages with two legs each. The first pack was Continue reading Ray’s Spring Chicken This is a secret recipe from the dinner over which The Gourmand & The Peasant fell in love. There is a wonderful mushroom called the “Hen of the woods” or maitake. The first step to winning your love is to find a great source of mushrooms. All of our best mushrooms have come from Continue reading How to Roast a Mushroom Like a Chicken The Gourmand & the Peasant are stepping out! On Thursday May 15, Mark & I will be showcasing “cooking in small spaces” at Barrette in Brooklyn. The four courses we are preparing will be paired with four Peak Brewery organic beers. Details Continue reading Mark Your Calendars People!  |
 |
|
|
Copyright © 2010 The Gourmand & the Peasant - All Rights Reserved |
||
