A Hearth Pictorial

No new pictures this time around — because I haven’t been to Hearth in over a year, since the economy tanked. That being said, I’ll probably stop in sometime in the next couple of weeks. They’ve been doing something called ‘La Cucina Povera’ for some time now. Three courses for $35, with wine pairings for $15. Those prices are quite gentle for a two-star establishment in NYC. An equivalent restaurant in the Midwest would be something like $30 for the whole deal. Can’t beat that.

Here are a selection of pictures that were taken at various times over the course of the past three years. Enjoy.

Big Eye tuna, capers, pickled mushrooms, vitello tonnato sauce

Copper River salmon, mussels, parsnip, chanterelle mushrooms

Sweetbreads, pickled cauliflower, shallot marmalade

Saturday Market Gallery

It’s high Indian summer here in New York City. So hard to believe that heirloom tomatoes are still on offer. The days grow increasingly shorter; time to take advantage while they’re still around.

Icicle and French breakfast radishes

The thermometer foretold seventy degrees this afternoon. Truth be told, it felt more like fifty-five.

Carpe diem indeed.

Tomato Season 7

Pan-glazed heirloom tomato salad served over roasted fingerling potatoes

Click here and here for high-resolution versions of these pictures.

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When I began foodblogging in earnest, I decided that I wanted to have a vegetable-focused foodblog without making the crossover to vegetarianism. I like chicken, butter and eggs too much to ever consider giving them up entirely. That being said, these days I eat much less red meat than I used to, although I won’t say no to a nice piece of steak every now and then.

Dinner menu for Sunday, October 4, 2009:

Peperonata and zucchini omelette
Heirloom tomato salad served over roasted fingerling potatoes — (see recipe below)
2006 Anthony Road Pinot Gris (Finger Lakes, New York)
Fromage blanc with ginger-lemon confiture

Chicken Dinner

Sometimes simple is best.

Roast chicken; sautéed peppers and green beans, Tuscan style; steamed rice and heirloom tomatoes

Click here for a high-resolution version of this picture.

One measure of a good cook is roast chicken. These days, I prefer Thomas Keller’s method for mon poulet rôti. It’s the essence of simplicity, a philosophy that underlies most of my cooking. Pat a chicken dry with paper towels, sprinkle with salt and pepper throughout (and in its cavity), truss with kitchen twine, then roast in a pre-heated oven at 450 F for one hour. The result: juicy, tender meat paired with stunningly crisp chicken skin. The skin alone is worth the price of admission. It’s delicious with a capital “D”.

I should mention that the chicken was bought at USGM this past weekend. Its provenance is from Flying Pigs Farm in Shushan, New York. The flavor blew me away. There’s simply no comparison to regular supermarket chicken. Score one for local food and sustainable farming.

The best part is a week’s worth of leftovers. Chicken sandwiches, chicken fried rice, chicken pot pie. Long after tonight’s dinner, the carcass gets reborn as the base for chicken stock, some of which will go towards congee, the rest for soup or whatever might strike my fancy. Very little gets wasted in Spamwise’s kitchen.

September Greenmarket

The seasons might have changed this past Monday but there was precious little evidence of that judging by what was on offer at the Greenmarket today.

Seckel pears — Developed in the early part of the 19th century, seckel pears are a variety of heirloom pear with a dull green cast and red highlights. The fruit is very sweet with a somewhat grainy texture since it is a hybrid of European and Asian pear. Seckel pears are the variety most often found in home orchards.

White peaches — White peaches were known in Europe as early as the mid-17th century, although they were so delicate compared to yellow peaches that they nearly disappeared from commercial orchards. Since the 1980’s, white peaches have enjoyed a resurgence in popularity, and newly developed later-ripening varieties have extended the white peach season to nearly match that of yellow varieties.

Indian corn

Breakfast for Dinner 2

When you’re making an omelette, you want two conditions: enough cooking fat and a thoroughly heated skillet.

This is about 1 tablespoon butter. If you don’t have enough cooking fat, your eggs will stick to the bottom of the pan. If they stick, the omelette can break apart and lose its shape.

Ideally the pan should be hot enough but not so hot that the butter begins to brown. If your pan isn’t sufficiently heated, the eggs won’t set and it’ll take longer than usual to cook. On the other hand, if you wait too long, the butter will burn. As you can see in the bottom pic, I waited 30 seconds too long before adding the eggs. A perfect omelette should be light and golden throughout without any visible browning.

Allow the butter to sizzle and the foam to subside, then add 2 to 3 beaten eggs and let them sit for about 30 seconds to a minute. With a fork or spatula (assuming you’re using a nonstick pan), draw the lightly cooked egg toward the center of the pan. As you do so, tilt the pan so that any uncooked beaten eggs flow into the bare part of the pan. Repeat this process as you work your way around the pan. After a few seconds, there should be just a little moist egg remaining. Add your filling, if any, then tilt the pan away from you. Tap the handle lightly; the far edge should fall back on itself, then turn the pan over a plate so that the folded omelette falls out.

For the pan-glazed tomatoes: Take a handful of small grape or pear-shaped heirloom tomatoes and toss them onto a hot pan along with some melted unsalted butter or other cooking fat. Cook until the tomatoes wilt slightly and/or begin to burst, about 30 seconds. Remove pan from heat; garnish omelette and serve immediately.

Omelette with peperonata filling, pan-glazed heirloom tomatoes

Click here for a high-resolution version of this picture and here for a closeup shot.

Breakfast 1

Heirloom tomato and mint salsa

As far as salsas go, this one is pretty basic. 1 cucumber, diced; 3 heirloom tomatoes, diced; 1/2 red onion, finely chopped; juice of half a lime; pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper; 4 tablespoons olive oil; handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley and mint. Toss to combine. Can be made up to an hour prior to service.

Fried eggs, sunnyside-up, with heirloom tomato and mint salsa, served over crispy sourdough toast

This is one of my favorite ways to eat breakfast. It’s also relatively quick. This took about 20 minutes from start to finish (including making the salsa). Can’t beat that. I haven’t included a recipe because it’s so elemental that almost anyone can make it.

Click here to view a high resolution version of this picture.

Saturday Market

You can definitely tell that autumn is on the threshold.

There’s a chill in the air; carpe diem while you can.

Yellow plum tomatoes

Golden nugget potatoes

Apples

Tomatoes and Oysters

Back before Mario Batali became a big star on The Food Network, he owned a restaurant named Po, located on Cornelia Street in Greenwich Village. One of Chef Batali’s signature offerings was white bean bruschetta — cannellini beans kissed with a touch of garlic, balsamic vinegar and herbs and spooned atop hunks of toasted Italian bread. I remember having dinner there shortly after my 25th birthday. It was the first time I had had bruschetta, and it was a taste revelation.

According to Wikipedia, bruschetta is a food the origin of which dates to at least the 15th century from central Italy. It consists of grilled bread rubbed with garlic and topped with extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Variations may include toppings of spicy red pepper, tomato, vegetables, beans, cured meat, and/or cheese. Bruschetta is usually served as a snack or appetizer.

One of the more familiar and popular recipes involves tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil and olive oil. For myself, I prefer tomatoes, salt, pepper, some kind of herb (mint, tarragon, basil or even celery leaves), some acid (a teaspoon or two of white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar or lemon juice), shallots or Vidalia onion and good quality extra-virgin olive oil. No cheese — I feel it throws off the balance of the dish. Ditto for garlic.

One other thing — when you make bruschetta, you should strive to use the best and freshest ingredients possible. You’ll definitely taste the difference in the end.

Heirloom tomato bruschetta

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3 small to medium ripe heirloom tomatoes, chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
pinch of kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon mint, cut into a chiffonade (1)
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Italian bread or sourdough bread, sliced

In a bowl, combine all ingredients except the bread. Mix well.

Toast the bread until lightly golden. Spoon the tomato mixture atop the toast and serve immediately.

(1) — Chiffonade is a cooking technique in which herbs or leafy green vegetables are cut into long, thin strips. This is generally accomplished by stacking leaves, rolling them tightly, then cutting across the rolled leaves with a sharp knife, producing fine ribbons.

Recipe and demo for the oyster stew after the jump.

Tomato Season 3

Blue Hill could mean either Blue Hill at Stone Barns or Blue Hill Washington Square, two restaurants in New York that epitomize the philosophy of market cooking.

Tonight’s meal was inspired in part by a menu at Blue Hill many years ago where the main ingredient in each course was tomatoes. I am unable to find notes online regarding that menu, probably since the menu in question was in September 2002. On the other hand, here are a couple of pictures from a meal I had in 2007 that might give you an idea of the kind of inventiveness that regularly makes its appearance in Chef Barber’s kitchen.

Left to right: heirloom tomatoes seasoned with fleur de sel and a touch of olive oil, tomato “burger” and tomato water

Summer fruits — grilled apricot, plum, heirloom tomatoes, watercress, tomato foam, tomato sorbet

Now, a dinner at BHSB or even at BHWS regularly costs upwards of about $125, not including wine. I’ve cut back drastically on my spending these days. As far as I’m concerned, the next best thing is doing something similar at home.

Recipes and pictures after the jump.