Walker New York Eats

Walker New York Eats http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/ A cooking blog by Kim Walker featuring restaurant reviews, cooking tips and simple recipes you can make for one or two people with just enough leftovers to take to work the next day. en-us Copyright 2007 Sun, 19 Aug 2007 15:36:12 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification A Happy Accident There was a moment when I was making this that my heart sank, "Oh, no. I can't deal with a baking failure today. I'll blow it all out of proportion." Because I am not on an even keel today, and I know it. I thought baking something might make me feel more relaxed, but I forgot that things can go wrong. But the emotional funhouse was all worth it when I opened the oven door and this browned beauty smiled back at me. I had set out to make Mark Bittman's blueberry cobbler, substituting 4 cups of peaches for the blueberries and using cornmeal for half the flour. What I ended up with was like a peach upside down cornmeal cake that was light on the cake and super-heavy on the fruit. The cornmeal topping covered the fruit and had a crust crunchy with cornmeal and sugar. Four cups peeled, diced peaches (I used UFOs) tossed with 1/4 cup sugar in the baking dish. Mix 1/4 cup each flour and cornmeal in a bowl, add 1/2 teaspoon baking powder and a pinch of salt. Cut in 1 stick (1/2 cup) cold, unsalted butter. Then mix in 1/2 cup sugar because you forgot to add it with the flour. Use a spoon to mix in 1 egg and a dash of vanilla. (This is the point at which I panicked. It did not look like biscuit dough, but rather a spotty, lumpy yellow mush.) Drop over the fruit in tablespoonfuls and don't spread it. The baking will do that, 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven.]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/a-happy-accident.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/a-happy-accident.html Something Sweet Sun, 19 Aug 2007 15:36:12 -0500 Grow Your Own So this is my appeal. Andrea has proposed a grow-your-own-athon and invited her readers to cook something that uses homegrown ingredients and write about it before August 29th. She's given those of us with brown thumbs a loophole, too, saying that if we don't grow anything, we can get something from a friend. So now I have to find a friend out there who grows something. Not easy to do when we're all apartment-bound, but I have hopes that Kelly's growing some herbs or Terry still has a few figs. Anyone? Anyone in the area have something to offer? I've been getting stuff from the CSA every week, so I feel like an entry would embrace the spirit of the law if not the letter. But it is a fun challenge to try to track down something.]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/grow-your-own.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/grow-your-own.html Events Thu, 16 Aug 2007 14:59:32 -0500 Dinner Diary Update Uh-Oh, Tomato (chicken cacciatore) A Little Different (pork chops, broccoli and pasta) Presto (linguine with shrimp and pesto) What Do We Have? (taco-ish salad) Take a Dip (French dip sandwiches)]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/dinner-diary-update-1.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/dinner-diary-update-1.html Fri, 10 Aug 2007 21:54:13 -0500 Dinner Diary Update Uh-Oh, Tomato (chicken cacciatore) A Little Different (pork chops, broccoli and pasta) Presto (linguine with shrimp and pesto) What Do We Have? (taco-ish salad) Take a Dip (French dip sandwiches)]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/dinner-diary-update.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/dinner-diary-update.html Fri, 10 Aug 2007 21:54:13 -0500 The Lazy Baker What happens to your zucchini muffins when you halve a recipe that calls for 3 eggs, but instead of 1 1/2 you use 2? Nothing too terrible, if you're lucky. I thought that extra half-egg might do something wonky to my muffins, but they turned out just fine, moist and fluffy. "They" always warn against messing with baking recipes, and I do believe that you do so at your own peril. But it can turn out just fine. I've also become a very cavalier flour measurer since finding out how varied the actual weight of flour can be when you use a volume (like a cup) measure. I figure, if there's variation built into the system, I can be less careful, not more. Does that make sense? These were made from this recipe over at 101 Cookbooks. She does some very funky things with hers, and I tried out one of them, the poppy seeds, with great success. The gentle crunch was at first a mystery, until I remembered I added them. I omitted the ginger, lemon peel and curry powder, so ended up with a zucchini-walnut-poppy seed muffin. (Oh, and clearly I used a 12-cup muffin tin instead of 2 loaf pans and halved the recipe.) I just love 101 Cookbooks because she makes it clear how much you can fiddle with a recipe. Now, the egg thing was a risk, but things like spices and add-ons like nuts or chocolate chips (which I have also used in this recipe) are fair game.]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/the-lazy-baker.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/08/the-lazy-baker.html Something Sweet Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:07:31 -0500 Dinner Diary: Another Two Weeks Summer Stew Lunchtime Combo A Fresh, Crunchy Salad Softie Tough Stuff Baked Codfish (Ahem) Airport Trials Pork Albondigas On the Road We're Leaving]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/07/dinner-diary-another-two-weeks.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/07/dinner-diary-another-two-weeks.html Sat, 28 Jul 2007 21:41:25 -0500 Two Weeks of Cooking Hel-lo Grill! More Great Grilling Black Bean Salad Redux From the Freezer Hot Enchiladas The Ugly Duckling Bite-Sized for the Grill Do You Love the Char? Leftovers I tried making Splenda brownies for my diabetic dad this week, and it was a miserable failure. But I know why! And I will try again! So maybe I'll get around to writing about that sometime.]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/07/two-weeks-of-cooking.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/07/two-weeks-of-cooking.html WD Sun, 15 Jul 2007 08:23:54 -0500 Dinner Diary: A Hot Week Happily Wed TV Carbonara Hot Weather, Slow Cooking Salad Days, Part 1 Salad Days, Part 2

]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/07/dinner-diary-a-hot-week.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/07/dinner-diary-a-hot-week.html Mon, 02 Jul 2007 14:51:06 -0500 Alone in the Kitchen Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant. I admit I devoured it once I got my hands on it; it's almost voyeuristic to read about these private dining moments (in front of the TV? At the kitchen or dining room table? With some reading material or the computer?) It's so stripped-down; I feel like you could extrapolate a lot about a person by how he or she eats when alone. For instance, Todd orders takeout or forgets to eat altogether if I'm not around to feed him. It's just not that important to him; he is far too passionate about other things to bother much with food.

I, on the other hand, relish the free reign I have when the only one I have to please is myself. Every once and a while August is so exhausted, or so full from a big snack, that he takes his nap before we have a chance to eat lunch (we usually eat together). Then I make mushrooms or greens, combine Cheddar and apple butter, goat cheese and fig jam. A pumpkin muffin loaded with sunflower seeds, raisins and cream cheese. A baked egg sprinkled with fresh herbs. It's usually very easy to prepare, because that's one gift I give myself, rarely includes meat or fish, almost always has cheese and some kind of bread. Todd would never consider it a meal; I guess it's girly food. This picture is a perfect example. Sauteed beet greens on toast with thin slices of cheese broiled over the top. I usually do have a magazine, book or the computer to read. Lately I watch old episodes of The Office or Grey's Anatomy on iTunes. I'm curious. What do you do when you have no one to feed but yourself?]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/alone-in-the-kitchen-1.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/alone-in-the-kitchen-1.html Wed, 27 Jun 2007 22:19:21 -0500 Alone in the Kitchen Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant. I admit I devoured it once I got my hands on it; it's almost voyeuristic to read about these private dining moments (in front of the TV? At the kitchen or dining room table? With some reading material or the computer?) It's so stripped-down; I feel like you could extrapolate a lot about a person by how he or she eats when alone. For instance, Todd orders takeout or forgets to eat altogether if I'm not around to feed him. It's just not that important to him; he is far too passionate about other things to bother much with food.

Noodle and Carrot Soup (with Chicken) An Ambivalent Fish Pasta Even My Husband Can Love Break Out the Takeout So now I'm trying to plan menus for next week and I'm experiencing performance anxiety. I guess also because I'm working in a vacuum, with little idea of who's reading and what they want. Well, on to Week 4. Wish me luck.]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/dinner-diary-week-3-falters.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/dinner-diary-week-3-falters.html Sat, 23 Jun 2007 14:44:12 -0500 Interview Andrea's Recipes for only a couple of months, but I find so much of interest on it that I'm already a fan. She's a mom of young ones, too, so I love to read those little hints about what life's like for her. She was recently part of kind of a backward meme; it's an "interview," and if you read the meme on someone else's blog you can request that they "interview" you. So I asked her. And here's what she wanted to know: 1. You've been blogging for several years now. Have you ever had trouble finding your muse and what do you do to keep things fresh on your blog? The time I had the most trouble finding the impetus to write was when I was pregnant and terribly nauseated basically all the time. Then I had a baby, so I felt like I never cooked. But now that he eats what we eat, it's kind of brand new. I'm cooking a lot more now, but it's kind of mundane stuff. I feel challenged to not fall into a rut, to try to maintain some of my standards about how we eat. 2. How did you get started writing the Dinner Diary for Women's Day? I worked there as a copy editor for almost 5 years, and during that time I always gravitated toward the food department. My experience in the kitchen (which is not extensive, but is more than a lot of my Manhattan-living coworkers) helped me to mentally walk through the recipes, which I think made me better at that aspect of my job. So I've been doing a little freelance for them since I left to stay home with my son. The editor of the web site has been reading my personal blog all along, so she approached me with the idea of a daily dinner blog. It's still a little daunting. I feel like I have to edit what I make for dinner even more now. For example, I'd like to make a big pot of chicken soup with some leftover chicken tonight, but it's not really chicken soup weather. Do I do it anyway? I think I might, but there's more to the angst now than just serving my family hot soup on a hot day. 3. I think everyone has an emergency meal, that meal that you can whip on a busy weeknight knowing that you'll almost always have all the ingredients on hand. What's yours? Pasta with broccoli florets from the freezer (always Cascadian Farms; they're the right size and cook up just mushy enough for August to eat), good olive oil and grated Parmesan or locatelli. 4. Describe your favorite comfort food. Toast, but always with some kind of topping and some kind of cheese. So any variation on an open-faced grilled cheese; for example, today it was sauteed beet greens and Cheddar (because that's what I had on hand). Or, of course, ice cream. I'll only eat one serving at a time, but I'll keep a whole pint to myself and finish it in exactly four days. 5. Name three of your favorite restaurants. This is so pathetic, but things change when you have a kid, if you let them. Nick's Pizza in Forest Hills: charred, thin crust, fresh mozzarella, gruff familiarity that makes every regular feel special. Market Cafe near Port Authority: looks like a diner, but the food's a couple notches up. Cucumber slices in the water carafe they leave at your table, small dishes like one fat seared scallop on mashed potatoes, terrific (really) chocolate cake. I might have to stop there. No other places are quite so obvious to me as favorites. Oh, maybe Eddie's Ice Cream Shoppe. Maybe. So if you'd like me to send you some interview questions, send me an e-mail with your name and blog url.]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/interview.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/interview.html Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:56:36 -0500 Dinner Diary Roundup #2 A Super-Quick Microwave Fish

Seeing Green (Braised Greens and Beans) At Least Everyone's Happy (Roasted Chicken Caprese) Kitchen Sink Minestrone Antipasto 3 Ways]]> http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/dinner-diary-roundup-2.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/dinner-diary-roundup-2.html Fri, 15 Jun 2007 22:05:02 -0500 Cornmeal Cake with Peach-Apricot Syrup I made one of my favorites, a cornmeal cake from an Epicurious recipe, to take to a friend's on Sunday night. But instead of the rosemary syrup, which is really good, I used some peaches and apricots on my counter to make what ended up being kind of a homemade "peaches canned in light syrup." (Forgive the quote marks.) This grainy cake is a wonderful sponge that soaked up all that peachy syrup. I started with a simple syrup: 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar boiled and stirred until the sugar dissolved. Then I added peeled, diced peaches, which hadn't gotten very ripe, and tried to cook them into submission for a few minutes. Then I added the apricots, which had ripened, and set the whole mixture in my fridge overnight. The next day I made the cake: 1/2 cup butter and 1 cup sugar beaten until fluffy (although it just got kind of fluffy-clumpy). Add 1 cup cornmeal, 3/4 cup flour, 2/3 cup milk, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 eggs, 1 egg yolk, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and mix it all together. Bake in a 8-inch pan in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes (mine took 50). Let it cool a bit, then brush on about 1/3 cup of the peach syrup. Serve the rest, including the fruit, with the cake at the table. http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/cornmeal-cake-with-peachaprico.html http://www.walkernewyork.com/eats/2007/06/cornmeal-cake-with-peachaprico.html Something Sweet Mon, 11 Jun 2007 21:54:36 -0500