Apartment Dining

I had an intense smoked meat sandwich today from a new Brooklyn delicatessen called Mile End. The options for the sandwich are not a choice of meat varieties but a choice of fat level: lean, medium, or fatty. It was a delicious, heart-stopping, and slightly overpriced meal that drove me to finally join the gym this evening. And yet, I don’t regret my lunch choice because I’ve been enjoying lighter vegetarian meals the rest of the week.

A prime example is the butternut squash pasta I made on Sunday. It was easy to make and it used almost five ingredients, but a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese put it over the top. I’m placing it under my “Five Ingredients” category anyway because the amount of cheese is minimal enough to count as a seasoning. » Read the rest of this entry «

My friends Angela and Sean hosted a small gathering Sunday afternoon to celebrate an a match made in culinary heaven: grilled sandwiches and beer. They gathered an impressive array of meats, cheeses, mustards, and more, and were ready with some fantastic combinations. More photos and combos after the jump » Read the rest of this entry «

My senior year of college was a scramble to cram as much of the “college experience” into my days as possible. This involved a lot of assisting— I was an assistant music director at the radio station, a teaching assistant for a creative writing class, and an intern for a professor finishing his first book. I sang in a co-ed a cappella group (let’s keep that piece info just between us, though), and I held down a coveted job as Subway Sandwich Artist to help fuel my addition to overpriced coffee and clove cigarettes. Fifteen hour stretches would go by with only a few minutes to stop by my on-campus townhouse to switch books or change into my work uniform.

This year of limited time and funds lead to an equally limited diet. I existed on frozen pierogies and Subway sandwiches, but I would occasionally indulge with baba ghanouj from the Mediterranean Bar at the local supermarket. After days of running around, I would find a moment to pull out some pita bread, sit down on the couch, and enjoy bad television and an eggplant spread.

Despite my love of baba ghanouj, I didn’t try making it until this afternoon when I found myself with two beautiful eggplants and a bit of time. Here’s the simple recipe: » Read the rest of this entry «

I recently heard an interview with the authors of a book called What We Eat When We Eat Alone, and while I haven’t read it yet, I think it’s a fascinating concept. What do you eat when no one is around? I for one eat spoonfuls of Nutella with a peanut butter chaser, simple turkey sandwiches from a Polish deli near my apartment, and the occasional BBQ pork banh mi. It’s not always take-out and jarred food though.

Ramsey spends a few nights a week in meetings for his sketch team, so depending on his schedule, I will make dinner for just myself from scratch. The ingredients are always a combination of anything fresh from the fridge or kitchen cupboards, but the results are (usually) healthy and delicious.

My stand-by combo is bean, green, and onion + rice + egg. Here’s the simple recipe with a very descriptive name: » Read the rest of this entry «

Happy Cinco de Mayo! To celebrate the holiday I’ve turned my attention to flan, a caramel-topped custard dessert that you can prepare with just five ingredients. I consider it to be the under appreciated cousin of crème brûlée, often overlooked because it doesn’t require the pageantry of a butane torch (nothing says “fancy” quite like a controlled fire in the kitchen). You can easily flavor it with chocolate, coconut, or just about anything else that can be added to or infused into custard, but I decided to go for a basic flan with just a touch of vanilla. » Read the rest of this entry «

There are two basil plants thriving on the mantle in my bedroom. I picked them up at the farmer’s market in February and they have not only been a great help to my recipes, but my wallet as well. Rather than spending two dollars for a small box of fresh basil leaves at the supermarket, I just walk ten feet, cut a few leaves off of the plants, and I’m ready to go.

The plants recently reached a stage of being weighed down by the amount of leaves that have sprouted. For the good of the plants and my dinner plans, I decided to have a basil harvest this week. It started with a simple Tomato and Basil Pasta. » Read the rest of this entry «

I’ve been trying to keep food bills to a minimum the past few months, so Ramsey and I have been eating a lot of chicken and pasta. There are endless pasta variations that can be easily improvised, but I’ve been searching for more ways to prepare chicken beyond my standbys of roasting and pan-searing. A quick flip through my cookbook library yielded a technique I had never tried in my kitchen before: braising. It calls for searing meat and/or vegetables in a bit of oil, then slowly simmering them in flavorful liquid until they’re cooked through. It’s easy, delicious, and best of all, it’s cheap.

» Read the rest of this entry «

As I was caramelizing onions for a goat cheese and puff pastry dish I was testing out a few weeks ago, I started looking for other vehicles for one of my favorite flavors. I am not a huge fan of raw yellow onion, but with a little olive oil and some time in a skillet, they become tender and gain just a hint of sweetness. This sandwich is a simple blend of caramelized onions with four other classic flavors: steak, Dijon mustard, mayo, and a crusty baguette. » Read the rest of this entry «

Oh, potatoes. Although many wage war on carbohydrates, I embrace a serving of starch in potato form at least once a week, sometimes more. I can’t think of a form that a potato takes that I don’t enjoy, save for bad fries (the flavorless steak variety that lack seasoning, often served with sub-par burgers at pubs). They’re my quintessential comfort food, barely beating out chocolate cake and the Pork Belly Buns at Momofuku Ssam Bar. 

In my pre-Thanksgiving rush to clear out my kitchen, the perfect pairing for the small white potatoes I had was a pile of shallots, fresh rosemary sprigs, and little else. » Read the rest of this entry «

I’ve decided to challenge myself by creating a dish every few weeks that requires five ingredients or less (not counting salt, pepper, and olive oil). It tends to save time, and as we continue to slog through these tough economic times, recipes with sprawling ingredient lists are becoming much less appealing. 

The first installment in this series is mushroom tacos. They are a satisfying and quick meal, especially when paired with some Spanish rice (not counted in list of five ingredients). » Read the rest of this entry «