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I’ll be selling jars of my homemade “Nutella” at the Greenpointers Valentine’s Day Market next Saturday! I’ll have Original, Bourbon and Spicy for $7 for a 4oz jar. Come by and pick up something sweet for your sweetie (or for yourself)!
Greenpointers Valentine’s Day Market
Saturday, February 9th, 2013
From The Source
69 West St., Greenpoint Brooklyn
Noon-6pm
Over the weekend, my friend Whitney and I took the 7 train to Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens to explore the structures left behind from the 1964-1965 World’s Fair. The Unisphere is still in good shape, but the observatory towers and pavilion are rusting away and being taken over by stray cats.
I was under the impression that the World’s fair expositions ceased to exist after a certain point, but apparently they still happen: The next one’s in Milan in 2015.
Butternut Squash & Gorgonzola Galette with Caramelized Onion and Crispy Sage Galette
I’ve been laying out my goals for 2013 and I must say I’m pretty excited about what’s to come for The Bored Veg in the next several months. Some things are already in motion, some I’m still working on (hey, it’s only January 2nd). One area I want to focus on is incorporating more baking into the blog. It sounds silly, but baking has always intimidated me. It’s so exact and… scientific. So much of what makes a delicious baked good is ingredients reacting with one another, temperature etc. Not to mention the fact that my convection oven is a giant POS and it’s difficult to evenly cook anything. Anyway, my point is that 2013 will be the year of baking. Or slightly more baking. This galette was the perfect way to get things started.
Dough (recipe from Smitten Kitchen)
1 1/4 cups Flour, chilled in freezer for 30 minutes
1/4 tsp Salt
8 Tbsp (1 stick) cold Unsalted Butter, cut into pieces and chilled again
1/4 cup Sour Cream
2 tsp fresh Lemon Juice
1/4 cup Ice Water
Crust Glaze
1 Egg Yolk beaten with 1 tsp Water
Whisk together flour and salt in a bowl. Add chopped butter and use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour until the butter pieces are no bigger than a pea. The flour should be a meal consistency. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, ice water and sour cream. Add to the flour & butter mixture and mix together with your hands until the dough forms into large lumps. Pat the dough into a ball, being careful not to overwork. Wrap in plastic and chill for an hour in the refrigerator.
Filling
1 small Butternut Squash, peeled and slice thin (about 1/4 inch thick)
1 small Red Onion, sliced thin
1/4 cup Gorgonzola, crumbled
15-20 fresh Sage Leaves
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Canola Oil for frying
Salt & Pepper to Taste
Preheat oven to 350. Toss butternut squash with olive oil and spread on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and roast in the oven, turning occasionally until the squash is cooked through. In a saute pan, heat 1 1/2 Tbsp of olive oil. Add onion and toss in olive oil. Saute over low/medium heat for a few minutes and then sprinkle onions with salt. Continue to cook over low/medium heat until onions caramelize (up to 30 mins). In a saute pan, add a couple of inches of canola oil and heat over medium heat for about a minute. Test a sage leave - it should crisp up in about five seconds. Be careful not to brown the leaves. Fry all sage leaves and drain.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Remove dough from the fridge and roll out into a 12-inch circle on a well floured work surface. Transfer onto an ungreased baking sheet. Leaving about 2 inches around the edge, layer the butternut squash in a spiral towards the center. Spread the caramelized onions over the top. Fold over the edges of the dough, pinching together where needed so that it partially covers the filling. Brush the crust with the egg yolk mixture. Bake in the oven about 30 to 40 minutes until the crust is a golden brown. Turn off the oven, pull the galette partially out and sprinkle with cheese and sage. Return to the oven until the cheese melts slightly. Remove from oven and transfer to serving plate. Cut into wedges and serve.
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Creamy Sweet Potato & Apple Mash with Mascarpone & Brown Sugar Whiskey Sauce
It’s peak sweet potato season… and whiskey is in season all year round.
1 large Sweet Potato, peeled and cubed
1 Apple, peeled and cubed
1/4 cup Heavy Cream
4 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
3 Tbsp Whiskey
Salt & Pepper (to taste)
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add sweet potatoes and boil until soft. In a pan, melt 2 Tbsp of butter. Add add apples and saute until slightly soft, but not mushy. Drain sweet potatoes and put back into pot. Add sauteed apples and cream and mash until potatoes are smooth. The apples will retain their shape. Salt to taste and keep warm as you make the sauce. In a saute pan, melt remaining butter. Add brown sugar and whiskey and whisk together over low/medium heat until it reduces a bit. Serve sweet potatoes hot topped with mascarpone and drizzled with whiskey sauce.
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Poached Egg over Lemony Kale with Asiago and Crispy Shallot
While I have your attention, have you liked The Bored Vegetarian on fb? You should! It’s a lot easier to interact that way. Almost like real life, except not at all.
1 Egg
2 cups fresh Kale, chopped well
1/2 Lemon
2-3 Tbsp Asiago Cheese, finely grated (Bear Flag and Vella Cheese make rennet-free asiago)
1/2 Shallot, chopped in rounds
Cooking oil
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper to taste
In a bowl, whisk together 1 Tbsp juice & zest from the lemon with the olive oil. Toss with the kale until coated evenly, seasoning to taste. Pile into the bowl you’re going to serve it in. In a pan, heat cooking oil to between 365 or 375 degrees. Toss in shallots and fry until they begin to crisp and brown. Carefully remove (I used a fork, not the safest method) and place on a paper towel or paper bag to drain some oil off and cool. Next, follow these instructions to poach an egg! Once egg has been drained, place on top of kale. Season with salt & pepper and top with a pile of crispy shallots. Serve immediately.
Why You’d Want to Live Here
LA and I have had somewhat of a contemptuous relationship since it stole away two of my closest friends a few months ago and have yet to return to them to Brooklyn, but as it was one of the cities I had yet to explore in my adulthood, it was time to go. The weather didn’t quite behave (those who say it never rains in California lied…) but we got to explore tons of neighborhoods and most importantly, eat a lot of delicious food. I came back feeling pretty inspired foodwise, which is one of the best things one can ask for.
Nickel Diner (Downtown) : Try the strawberry donut.
Little Dom’s (Griffith Park/Los Feliz) : Eggs Fungi Poached with Roasted Mushrooms, Grilled Bread, Fennel Pollen Hollandaise; Fried Potatoes
Cafe Gratitude (Venice, thanks for the recommendation, Nicole!) : Warning - their way of ordering (I AM ____________, to which the waitperson replies YOU ARE _________________) is a bit pretentious and off-putting, but it’s the most delicious vegan food I’ve ever had.
I AM VIVACIOUS: Live marinated Kale Chips with Hempseed Ranch
I AM HUMBLE: Indian Curried Lentils over Quinoa with Sauteed Seasonal Vegetable, Sweet Potato and Spinach, drizzled with Spicy Mint Chutney & Sweet Tamarind Sauce
Huckleberry Bakery & Cafe (Santa Monica) : Quinoa, Butternut Squash, Rutiz Kale with Sunny-Side Up Eggs (pictured above); All of the baked goods (we had blueberry ciabatta and roasted fig flatbread)
Jitlada (Hollywood) : Tom Kha Soup; Freshy Rolls; Native Fruit Green Curry with Coconut and Tofu
Wurstkuche (Downtown/Arts District) : Vegetarian Smoked Apple Sage (apples, yukon potatoes & rubbed sage)
The Pie Hole (Downtown/Arts District) : I forget which we had, but it was tasty!
Other highlights:
The Varnish (in the back of Cole’s, Downtown) : Delicious cocktails
Cosmos (Little Tokyo, Downtown) : Karaoke with a 2 drink min., tiny stage and rules like “no jumping, no gum.”
Point Dume : Beautiful state beach (pictured above)
Disneyland : Weird, nostalgic feeling (and a Dole whip)
(special thank you thank you to Brooke, Mads, Mei and Joel for showing me a good time)
Where do I go next? I’d like to plan a trip abroad and at least one in the US for 2013… advice?
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Brie & Dijon Mustard Apple Slaw Sandwich
2 slices of bread (I used a baguette that was leftover from Thanksgiving)
3-4 slices of Brie
2 Tbsp Grained Dijon Mustard
3/4 cup Apple, cut into matchsticks
1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
In a bowl, whisk together mustard and apple cider. Add apples and toss together with the dijon vinegar mixture. Layer bottom piece of bread with brie. Pile with a generous amount of slaw. If there’s any leftover liquid, pour on to other piece of bread and make a sandwich with the brie side. Grill in a pan, flipping once one side is brown and cheese begins to melt. Serve hot.
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Kale & Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes
2 lbs Potatoes, skin on (optional)
5 ounces Goat Cheese
2 cups Kale, raw, stems removed, leaves chopped thin
3 Tbsp Butter
1 1/2 Milk
4 cloves Roasted Garlic
Salt & Pepper to taste
Cut potatoes into 1-2 inch pieces and put in a large pot. Cover with water and add a few pinches of salt. Bring to a boil and cook potatoes until very soft. Drain and put back into the pot. Add 1 cup milk and 2 Tbsp butter and mash with a potato masher. As the potatoes start to get smoother, add goat cheese, garlic, remaining milk and butter. Mix in chopped kale. Warm on low heat until kale wilts. Seasonal with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
