Internet Radio Broadcast and a Recipe

Last week we were plagued by some faulty equipment and technical problems during our live broadcast from Nargila Grill (1599 York Avenue – between 84 and 85th Streets on Manahattan’s Upper East Side). Today I did a makeup broadcast where I summarized what everyone said during the discussion we had on the Jewish cuisine, as a record of our history, dispersion and culture.

Our group consisted of Alessandra Rovati (dinnerinvenice.com), Geila Hocherman (kosherrevolution.com), Kim Amzallag (Kosher Inspired/Mishpacha Magazine) Levana Kirschenbaum (levanacooks.com), Marlene Mamiye (thejewishhostess.com) and Suzannah Raff (koshershopaholic.wordpress.com/)

Palov - Photo by: Kim Amzallag

After some mild and spicy salads, hummus, and more we were served palov – a Bukharian rice and beef dish. It was delicious but I couldn’t get the restaurant to share its recipe, so I was forced to go online to search for it. Here’s what I found on about.com:

Bukharian Rice - Plov

My 12-year-old son, who is by far our family’s pickiest eater, came home from his friend’s house singing praises about this amazing rice dish. The song went something like this, “It was the most delicious dinner I have ever eaten in my whole life!” Of course I immediately called Ilanit for the recipe. I was happy to discover he was talking about a rice, chicken, vegetable combination prepared in one pot. Without further ado, enjoy Ilanit’s Bukharian Rice recipe.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 onions, chopped
• 6 carrots, grated thick
• 5 Tablespoons oil (enough to cover bottom of pot)
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 2-3 pounds (1-1.5 kilo) boneless chicken breast, cut into small bite-size squares
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 1/2 cups rice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt rice
• 3 1/2 cups boiling water (enough to cover the rice by 1/2 inch or 1 cm)

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a pot. Add onions, and then carrots. Stir in the sugar. Cook until the onions are translucent.
2. Lay the chicken on top of the onions and carrots. Don’t stir in order to maintain a layer of vegetables and a distinct layer of meat. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the chicken. Cook the chicken, gently turning the pieces over in the middle, until the chicken turns white.
3. Add rice on top of the chicken. Don’t stir because the layers of vegetables and chicken should remain undisturbed, but distribute the rice evenly over the chicken. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Add boiling water. Turn the heat down to low and cover.
4. After about 15 minutes, scrap down the sides and poke a few holes through the rice to the bottom of the pot with the handle of a wooden spoon. Cover and cook for another 15-25 minutes, until the water has been absorbed and the rice is tender.
5. Serve in reverse order of the layers. Put the rice, then the chicken, then the vegetables onto the plates.Yields: 6-8 servings.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy. We did!

CS

Shavuos Recipes

The Shavuos Recipe Contest, which we announced on May 12th, has so far netted only 11 entries. Come now, gentle readers, we know there are some great cooks out there, please send us your favorite dairy recipes for a chance to win a nice selection of cholov Yisroel cheeses.

Meanwhile, having attended Lévana’s delicious Shavuos themed Dinner and a Show this past Monday, she graciously agreed to share two recipes:

Photo by: levanacooks.com

Cold Watercress Soup Recipe

Cold soups would always be a thrill if only they were made with full-bodied and full-flavored veggies, as they are here. No stock or broth whatsoever! Bouillon cubes? Let’s not even go there!

There are several variations you might enjoy on this theme, keeping as always a short and sweet ingredient selection: Broccoli, spinach, kale, asparagus instead of the watercress and zucchini; potatoes, turnips, parsnips, cauliflower instead of the celery root. Play with all the possibilities!

The immersion blender is a wonderfully nifty tool, inexpensive and portable (it will fit in a drawer), that allows you to blend your soup directly and in one shot right in your pot. No transferring, no mess. Just make sure there are no bones in the soup, or you will break your blade.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 4 large leeks, sliced
• 1 large celery knob, diced
• 2 large zucchini, cut in large chunks
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 quarts (8 cups) water
• 2 cups dry white wine
• Salt to taste
• 4 bunches watercress, stems and leaves
• Good pinch nutmeg
• 4 cups cold milk or non-dairy milk
• Pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pot. Add the leeks and sauté until translucent.
2. Add the celery, zucchini, turmeric, water, wine and salt, and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, 30 minutes.
4. Stir in the watercress and cook only a few seconds, until wilted. Turn off the flame.
5. The remaining ingredients and cream the soup with an immersion blender. Adjust the texture and seasonings.
6. Chill the soup.

As a kid growing up in Montevideo, Uruguay, I had to contend with two major handicaps:

• The first neighborhood we lived in was mostly Italian and we were the only Jews in our building, the lone Jewboy was a natural target…
• I was extremely overweight and couldn’t run too well, that much better for the nabe’s bullies.

My saintly mother (aleha Hasholom!) decided she’d become the best Italian cook in the neighborhood. Why? So that everyone would want to be invited over for a meal and thus, out of pure self interest, stop beating up the very fat Jewish kid… One of the favorites was polenta, here’s Lévana’s own version:

Polenta Casserole au Gratin Recipe

Please ignore those insipid cooked polenta rolls you find in the supermarket: Making the polenta base takes minutes, and is the bulk of the work for this delicious dish, which will serve a good dozen guests! Au Gratin just means it is topped with a crust: Yum!

This is only one of the wonderful polenta possiblities: You will love to explore them, as it is not only delicious but very nutritious, and gluten-free to boot. You can:

• Eat the polenta as is, hot and un-assembled (in other words, only the first step of the recipe) as the grain for a main course.
• Thin it with a little water, garlic and minced basil, maybe a couple diced tomatoes for a great soup
• Cut the cooled polenta in cubes or triangles and put it right under your broiler flame
• Make other fillings: Roasted diced vegetables (mushrooms, eggplant, red pepper, fennel, artichoke hearts, etc…..
• Make it dairy-free. Cook it in water or dairy-free milk, and/or substitute some white wine for some of the water or milk.

Ingredients

• 9 cups milk, low-fat OK
• A few drops olive oil
• Salt to taste (remember the cheese is salty, so very little please)
• 3 cups coarse cornmeal
• 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan or other strong cheese
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 cup basil leaves, packed
• 1 large red onion
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 5 cups canned crushed tomatoes
• Good pinch dried pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste

Topping

• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs, gluten-free OK
• 3 tablespoons butter

Directions

1. Boil water, oil, and salt in a large pot. Add the cornmeal and stir until thick. This should take about ten minutes.
2. Stir in the cheese.
3. Pour the mixture into a greased cookie sheet, in a layer no more than half an inch thick. You might fill one and a half cookie sheets. Let the polenta cool.
4. Preheat oven to 425°F.
5. While the polenta is cooling, make the sauce: in a food processor, coarsely grind the garlic, basil and onion. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the remaining sauce ingredients.
6. Grease an 11-by-14-inch lasagna pan. Make one layer polenta, making sure you leave no blank spaces. Add half the sauce.
7. Repeat: one layer polenta, one layer sauce. Bake the casserole for about 45 minutes, or until the dish looks bubbly and hot.
8. Mix the bread crumbs with the butter, and sprinkle over the dish. Bake another 10 minutes.
9. Let cool slightly before cutting into squares. Makes a dozen servings.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy AND don’t forget to send us your favorite Shavuos recipes (there is a nice selection of cholov Yisroel cheeses as the prize for the best!) to:

kosherscene@gmail.com

Meanwhile, check out Lévana’s pages for more Shavuos delicacies.

CS

RELATED POSTS

shavuos recipes – part 2 

————–

shavuos recipes – part 2

shavuos recipes – part 1

and for prize winning cheese cake recipes: and the winner is…

Roasted Peppers

For Shabbat and Sunday I was in Providence, RI, for a grandson’s bar mitzvah. My daughter, who invited mostly out of town guests, had me stay at my dear friend Irving Schild, photographer extraordinaire. I arrived mid morning on Friday and soon discovered that Irving not only excels in his chosen profession but he’s also a very good cook.

Among various side dishes he was preparing for Shabbat, as he was helping his wife, was one I always wanted to taste. Easy to make, superbly delicious, it was a dish of Roasted Peppers.

Ingredients

• 3 large red peppers
• 5 garlic cloves, crushed
• salt and pepper.
• olive oil

Directions

1. Place peppers on a cookie sheet. Put cookie sheet in broiler.
2. Broil until the skin has blackened and blistered.
3. Take out and let it coll until it can be easily handled.
4. Pull of the stem, and peel the peepers.
5. Cut into strips of desired size.
6. Place in a bowl over crushed garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste
7.  Add enough oil to lightly coat.
8. Serve at room temperature.

You’ll find these are delicately flavored, they can be enjoyed by themselves – as I did – or as a side dish.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Date and Nut Bread

I had some dates from Israel and decided to use them in a recipe, I was intrigued by the following one from Elizabeth Wolfe-Cohen‘s Perfect Jewish 

Delicious!!!

Date & Nut Bread

Yields: 12 slices

Directions

• 1 1/2 cups self rising flour, plus a little more for dusting
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 – 1 tsp ground ginger [SYR used 1 tsp]
• 1 1/3 cups chopped dried dates [SYR did not use dried ones]
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda [baking soda]
• 2/3 cup boiling water
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tsp butter or margarine, softened [SYR used margarine to keep it pareve]
• 1 cup chopped walnuts, pecans or almonds [SYR used walnuts]

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Grease a 4″x8″ loaf pan. Line the base and and sides with nonstick baking parchment paper to come to 1″ above the sides. Grease again and dust with flour. Sift the flour, salt and ginger into a bowl.

Put the dates into a large bowl with bicarbonate of soda. Pour over the boiling water and leave to stand for 5 minutes.

Stir the egg and butter [or margarine if you prefer it pareve] and flour mixture into the date mixture and beat with a wooden spoon until well blended. Stir in the nuts. Pour the mixture into the loaf pan, smoothing the top. Tap the pan gently on a surface to expel any air bubbles.

Bake in the center of the oven for 1 hour or until set and well colored and the bread begins to pull away from the sides of the pan; a knife inserted in the center should come out clean.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes , then leave to cool completely Using the paper as a guide, carefully remove the bread from the pan. If not serving the same day keep in the paper to prevent drying out.To serve, remove the paper from the base and sides, slice thinly.

Prep time: 20 minutes – Bake Time – 1 hour

The bread came out very aromatic, it tasted subtly sweet, we had it with some cholov Yisroel Mascarpone cheese made at Pomegranate Supermarket‘s kitchen and recommended by their resident cheese expert, none other than our good friend Elizabeth Bland. We washed it down with a Herzog Selection Chateneuf 2009, a white semi dry with a fresh, fruity bouquet. The bread was delicious, the Mascarpone just right, and the wine proved a perfect pairing!

CS

Bourbon Chicken

[Bourbon Chicken is a flavorful chicken dish named for the bourbon whiskey ingredient. The dish is commonly found at Cajun, Chinese, and American BBQ themed restaurants. The various recipes includes soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, and bourbon in the base, and the chicken is marinated in this sauce.]

Yesterday we cooked with red wine, today we’ll use bourbon. This is a superb chicken recipe from Food.com!

Photo from Food.com, by: Caroline Cooks

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 4 chicken breasts, chopped into chunks
• 1 red pepper, sliced thinly (about 200g)
• 1 carrot, cut into sticks
• 0.55 lbs. broccoli florets
• 2 green onions, sliced thinly
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 teaspoon ginger, grated
• 1/2-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (add to your personal taste.)
• 1/3 cup apple juice (just over a 1/4 cup)
• 1/2 cup bourbon (when I use bourbon for cooking, just as when I use wine, I prefer a quality bourbon, something I would normally like to drink, like Blanton’s or Maker’s Mark)
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cornflour

Directions

1. Heat a little oil in a pan, cook chicken in batches, until browned all over, set chicken to one side.
2. Heat a little more oil in the same pan, add pepper, garlic and ginger, cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring.
3. Add red pepper flakes, juice, bourbon, water, soy, sugar, ketchup and vinegar, stir to combine, bring to the boil.
4. Return chicken to pan with carrot and broccoli, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 Min’s.
5. Mix a little water with the cornflour, add to sauce and stir until mixture thickens.
6. Serve over rive and sprinkle with green onions.

Yields 4 servings; Prep time – 10 minutes; Total time – 35 minutes

An Unusually Delicious Brisket

Growing up in Uruguay, brisket (pecho) was a staple at every major festive occasion in my parents’ home and my mother’s brisket was served at least once, usually twice, during the sedorim. Aah, my mother’s brisket filled the house with its aroma, I remember the anticipation with which I waited to have itagain and again… Over the years I tried to find different versions of this old favorite and found many succulent variations, but last night’s version served at Lévana’s cooking demo far outshines most! Here she adapted her famous brisket to Passover by changing her deservedly famous recipe. She used honey instead of the usual molasses and brandy instead of bourbon Lévana has graciously agreed to share her recipe, notice the unusual ingredients:

Brisket in Coffee Brandy Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 large onions, sliced very thin
• 1 brisket. 6 to 7 pounds, first cut. Rinsed and patted thoroughly dry
• 3 tablespoons instant coffee powder, decaf OK, mixed with 2 cups warm water
• 1/3 cup brandy
• 1/3 cup honey
• ¼ cup vinegar
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Scatter the onions in a pan just large enough to fit the meat.
3. Place the brisket on top of the onions.
4. Combine all remaining ingredients in a bowl, and pour the mixture evenly over the meat. Cover tightly with foil, and bake 2 hours.
5. Turn the brisket over, and bake uncovered 1 more hour.
6. Transfer the brisket to a cutting board and wait about 10 minutes before slicing.
7. Meanwhile strain the cooking liquids into a small sauce pan, pressing hard on the solids (and discarding them), and reduce on a high flame to about 2 ½ cups. Let the brisket cool slightly.
8. Slice thin against the grain. In places where the brisket is very long, cut across first before slicing. Pour the gravy on top.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy! I most certainly did and will again.

CS

Cooking With Class — Susie Fishbein at Pomegranate Supermarket

Pomegranate Supermarket has been running a cooking demo series called Cooking with Class. Their guest Chef, this past Monday, was award winning cookbook author Susie Fishbein. In a friendly and entertaining manner, she demonstrated three fish dishes.

• Miso Glazed Cod
• Blackened Tilapia or Red Snapper
• Sole en Papillote

Answering a question from the audience...

She explained how to ensure that the fish, whether filleted or whole, is absolutely fresh as that would guarantee a non fish smelling or fish tasting dish. After each dish was done (and all three were done in minutes!), samples were given out for the audience to savor. Those of you who have been following these pages for a while, know that I’m not a fish fan (until just over a year ago I’d always refused to get near a fish dish). On Monday,  like the rest of the audience, I savored these delicious finned creatures… because they neither smelled nor tasted fishy!

Now, get ready to taste it!

Of the dishes demonstrated, my favorite was the second one and Mrs. Fishbein graciously agreed to share the recipe.

Blackened Tilapia or Red Snapper

This dish is an authentic Cajun, mouth-on-fire delicacy. Blackened refers to the spices, not the lack of cooking prowess. If you are worried about the heat, only coat one side of the fish with the spice mixture, although it will still be hot. I like to make a batch of the spices and keep them in a baby food jar so that dinner preparation on this dish (it’s also great on thinly pounded chicken breast) is a snap. If you have a cast iron skillet, it is the way to go. If not, use a nonstick frying pan and get it very hot as well. Warn your guests, pour a big pitcher of ice water and enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 4 (6 ozs) tilapia or red snapper fillets
• 4 medium fresh tomatoes, each cut in half, trimmed tops so they seat flat
• oregano
• sour cream

Directions

1. Spray a large frying pan or well-seasoned cast iron skillet with nonstick cooking spray. In a flat plate combine the onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, white pepper, paprika, thyme, oregano and basil. Mix well.
2. Dredge each fillet in the melted butter, then coat with the spice mixture in one or both sides. reserve the melted butter.
3. If using a cast-iron skillet, get it very hot. If not, heat the frying pan over medium -high heat until very hot but not smoking.
4. Carefully place the fillets in the skillet and sear about 3-5 minutes or until blackened. Pour 1 tablespoon of reserved melted butter on each fillet. Flip the fish over and pour 1 tablespoon of of melted butter over each fillet and blacken the other side, about 2-3 minutes. If you only spiced one side the second side won’t get black, just cook the fish through until it’s done. Remove fish to dinner plates.
5. Brush the tomato halves with the melted butter and sprinkle with oregano. sear the tomatoes in the frying pan about 3 minutes or until soft. Flip the other side and cook 1-2 minutes longer.
6. Serve each fillet with a big dollop of sour cream and two tomato halves.

Yield: 4 servings

The finished dish, as seen on one of the two giant TV screens

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

Mrs. Fishbein will be back at Pomegranate on Tuesday, March 8, to demonstrate how to cook Grouper and Mahi Mahi and again on Monday, March 14 to demo her techniques for Halibut. Can’t wait to learn from her!

CS

Events for the Week of February 27 Through March 5

Once again we have some great events. It all started last evening with Lipa‘s free concert at Pomegranate,

Monday, February 28th

Meet and Greet Susie Fishbein

Meet, Greet and Join Celebrity Chef, award winning cookbook author Susie Fishbein for a Cooking Demonstration Series at Pomegranate (1507 Coney Island Avenue – corner of Avenue L – Brooklyn, New York 11230; Tel: 718.951.7112). She will be demonstrating fish cooking techniques:

Cod

• Miso Glazed Cod
• Cod, Potatoes and Sun dried Tomatoes

Snapper

• Blackened Red Snapper
• Snapper in Parchment

The demo will start at 11:30am

Lévana’s Dinner and a Show

This week it will be held in Lévana’s house at: 210 West 101st Street, Apartment 9L (in Manhattan, between Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway). The subject of tonight’s class will be: THE LEAN LATIN FEAST. She will demonstrate the following:

• Tilapia with green tomato sauce
• Spicy pumpkin corn soup
• Chicken breasts with chipotle sauce
• Cabbage, cucumber and jicama salad with “yogurt” cilantro sauce
• Café con leche pots de crème
• Sangria

The Demo runs from 7:00 to 9:00 followed by dinner, classes cost $45.00 for one session, $120.00 for 3 sessions or $200.00 for 5 sessions and a signed cookbook. Make your reservations at: http://www.levanacooks.com/kosher-cooking-classes/weekly-classes/

Boerewors And Biltong

Boerewors is a South African sausage, the name is made up of two Afrikaans words: boer (farmer) and wors (sausage). Biltong, is a cured meat, also of South African origin. This past week I got to taste both, after I found them on an expatriate’s website. Joburg Kosher, makes them both and is certified Kosher Glatt by the OU

David Libesman, arrived in the US in 1989 from Johannesburg (“Joburg”). Unable to find either Boerewors or Biltong, with the taste and texture he was used to, he finally decided to make his own. With the recipes given him by his father, perfected over forty years as a butcher, he finally produced these delicacies. His family and friends loved them and Joburg Kosher Foods, LLC came to be.

Nice texture, very tasty

These Boerewors are marinated and seasoned, made from beef (including the edible casing!). The package includes four sausages, I grilled them in the oven and found them superbly delicious and very juicy. With a beer they were a perfect meal. I ordered their Traditional flavor, next time I’ll try the Peri-Peri and the Garlic flavors.

Next I tried their Black Pepper Biltong. Biltong‘s look is reminiscent of beef jerky; it is typically made from raw fillets of meat and unlike beef jerky it is never sweet, the seasoning also differs. Biltong is made up of two Dutch words: bil (rump) and tong (tongue).

Great as a snack, great in salads.

I had the Biltong by itself and liked it, I also tried it in a salad where it gave it a little kick that greatly enhanced the overall taste. I found both Joburg Kosher products very tasty and will order them again and again.

CS

Kosher Food & Wine Experience 2011 – Part 1

It was billed as bigger than its preceding shows… it was, it was billed as better than its preceding shows… it was! This was one of those rare occasions when hype and truth actually walked in locked step. The food, the wine, the liquors, all added up to a wonderful evening, an epicure’s dream come true.

SYR and I went in at 4:00pm, we saw and met many friends, magazine editors, fellow foodies and bloggers. We delighted in some products we’d already raved about on these pages, we discovered the new and revisited some great restaurants. As we spoke to favorite chefs, we  were happy to hear their craft was more than just a job, their passion for food, their creative juices continue unabated. Chef David Kolotkin of Solo and Prime Grill, Chef Jeff Nathan of Abigael’s and his wife Alison, Chef Mark Green of Glatt A La Carte, Jose Mireilles of Le Marais were among old friends showing off their creations.

Pomegranate had a large booth serving up some dishes that could have been made at any top restaurant.

Chef Emilio getting ready to hand out some delicacies.

Shana Wendel and staff presented Pardes‘ fares…

Lamb Meatballs with Turnip and Olive. Juicy, succulent, beautiful to look at... unmistakably Pardes!

Dr Alan Bronner and Chef Jack Silberstein of Jack’s Gourmet were serving  Chorizo Tacos, Pepper and Onion Soup with Sweet Italian Sausage and Bratwurst Sliders. We sampled all three and and loved them, here is an easy recipe they shared with us:

Bratwurst Sliders

Ingredients

• 1 package (4 links) Jack’s Gourmet Cured Bratwurst Sausage sliced 1/4″ thick on an angle
• 12 slider buns (4 burger buns can be substituted instead)
• 1/2 cup sauerkraut
• 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
• 4 tablespoons grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves

Directions

1. Combine the sauerkraut and caraway seeds and reserve.
2. Combine the mustard and tarragon leaves and reserve.
3. Heat a saute pan over medium heat with 2 tablespoons oil. Add sausage and cook until golden brown, about 3 – 5 minutes.
4. To serve, slice the buns in half. Spead a small amount of mustard on the bottom half of each bun. Top with sausage and sauerkraut and place other half of bun on top. Secure with a toothpick if necessary.

Some other friends with a great product are Valerie and Robert Groper from My Brother Bobby’s Salsa. SYR finally got to taste their salsas, she fully agrees with me they are superb. Can’t wait until they are available in Brooklyn!

Shalom Bombay was there as well, I had a selection of their Chicken Pakoras, Chicken Biryany and the Chicken Tikka Masala liberally sprinkled with the Mint and Tamarind Chutney and loved the whole combo. Noi Due still makes the best Espresso I’ve ever tasted in the US.

A new discovery was got cholent? Inc. I had their Moroccan Dafina and the Polish Cholent (just like my mamma used to make!!!). They have 16 different types of cholent, wish I could taste them all… The same people folks also own Gemstone Catering and we were very impressed with their Eve’s Apple and Hickory Wood Smoked BBQ Pulled Brisket Sliders. Tammy Polatsek from Aristocratic Design Co. told us these guys make superbly delicious food, well… they do!

There were so many restaurants to choose from, so much looked, smelled and tasted great I could write a very long post extolling the virtues of each, suffice it to say that the choice of eateries and caterers represented was tops. We also talked to cookbook authors Chef Lévana Kirschenbaum, Chef Jeff Nathan, Chef Susie Fishbein, Chef Jamie Geller. All in all a delightful evening, amidst delightful people.

CS