Ending the year with food

The end of a year often signals several important developments: cold weather, holidays, and the tail end of football season. These seemingly unrelated things often collide to one activity in my household: cooking. So I figured; what better way to end the year, than to show some of the recent dishes/confections that have been brewing in the kitchen?

Fajita night! Sauteed steak with accompaniments (qtips not included!)

Assembled fajita. It was tasty.

Stir-fried Shanghai noodles, with chicken, shitake mushrooms,
and bean sprouts. Hm. Should have added something green, huh?

Instead of buying gifts for Christmas, I ended up making edible gifts for some friends. I had an idea to make a chocolate truffle lollipop; I was an old hand at making truffles, and thought it would be adorable if I put it on a stick. No problem, right? Then I had the bright idea of having a caramel center. Gooey, delicious, what could be better? At least... that was the idea. My caramel centers were certainly gooey... and had the darndest time staying on that stick. I ended up having to put the caramel in the freezer to harden up, and even then ended up with quite a few un-giftable results.

Caramel centers, chilling in the freezer

Pool of ganache

Growing lollipops

End product. Yayyy, they're so pretty!

On the other end of the spectrum, one the coolest gifts I received this year was also technically home-made. One of my friends in New York is involved with urban farming and actually had a couple beehives this year. I was thrilled and impressed when I got this:

New York honey from my friend Michael's
very own bees!

 Sometimes, I'm too lazy to cook. And it's so easy to bring this to a party!

My contribution to Christmas dinner. 24-month old prosciutto,
bresaola, and a nice hunk of parmesean.

Finally, I've been cooking up a storm lately, thanks to my parents gift: a Whole Foods gift card. Yay, groceries!

Two pieces of richly marbled ribeye steak

Sweet potatoes, being glazed in a skillet

Dinner is served!

Dinner #2. Pork tenderloin is seared over the stove before being
put in the oven for about 20 minutes

Tenderloin, sliced and served over a bed of couscous with
sauteed garlic spinach.

A mad scientist approach to brunch: layers of crispy pan fried potato
cubes, spinach, and sausage... topped with fried eggs and cheese. It
all went into the broiler for a few minutes to get melty.

Not the healthiest meal, but so very yummy.

Empanadas!

Wow, I have been completely neglecting this blog! Will try to be more diligent about posting.

Anyway, a friend and I spent yesterday assembling and making some really tasty treats. It was raining/sleeting/snowing outside with terrible gusty winds, so it was an absolute treat to be indoors cooking. There's really not much better than the smell of caramelizing onions on the stove, the feel of slippery tomatoes being chopped, and the comfort of good conversation!

We diced up potatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, and cilantro to cook up with some ground beef, and wrapped it all in a soft, masa (corn flour) based dough. Pop into some oil for about 4 minutes, and we have these lovely beauties!

Golden Brown and delicious

The corn dough had a crunchy/textured consistency that tasted more complex than the flour-based empanadas I usually have. The outer shell wasn't greasy at all, and the innards combo of potato and ground beef provided a hearty warmth.

Pretty presentation, along with vinegar-based dipping sauce

I'm pretty excited to have learned how to make this, and am already thinking up ways to tweak the fillings and flavors for my own purposes!

Mmm.... eggs

I recently read about a way to make eggs that I had never tried before! I mean, I know that eggs are pretty versatile (over easy, poached, scrambled, in a frittata, quiche...), but this dish sounded delightfully decadent and yet simple. And so... eggs en cocotte!

To start off, I buttered the insides of two individual-sized ramekins. I dropped a little cheese in there as well (traditionally done with gruyere, but can be done with any cheese available. I had a sharp Vermont cheddar), and put the ramekins in the oven to warm up.

Butter-y!

The warming up is actually a fairly important step. The more traditional way of making this dish involves cooking the eggs very slowly in the oven in a bain-marie (water bath), but heating up the ramekin first largely takes this step out of the equation. After everything got warm and bubbly, I retrieved the ramekins and dropped an egg in each. I then topped each egg with about a tablespoon of heavy cream, added some more shredded cheese, and sprinkled on a little salt and pepper.

Eggs and cream (no cheese yet)

I put the ramekins back into the oven, this time under the broiler. Now, my oven is OLD and doesn't even have temperature numbers, so I have no idea what temperature I cooked the eggs at, unfortunately. I just kept checking until everything looked about right.

I was looking for a slightly browned top (from the cheese), with the egg whites just set and the yolk still runny. I ended up taking the ramekin from the broiler to the oven for a few extra minutes just to make sure the egg whites were cooked. All in all, it took maybe about 7-10 minutes.

It is starting to look delicious!!

I ate this served with toast. Each ingredient made for a sum greater than its parts; the rich yolk, decadent cream, slightly salty cheese... all combined for a really fantastic bite of food. It was warm and somehow delicate tasting (even with the cream and butter!).

I think I'll definitely make this dish again. It lends to endless variations (add bacon, or herbs, or mushrooms, or tomato, etc), and is pretty easy to do in a larger, oven-proof container if I wanted a bigger serving. Yay, eggs!

Nom nomnom

Thanksgiving... chicken

I managed to fit in three big Thanksgiving holiday traditions into my day today... I watched football, I took an afternoon nap, and I had turk... I mean... chicken.

Both are poultry, no? :)

I brought out the slow cooker again, after brining and browning some chicken pieces. Everything was kept pretty simple, with just some mushrooms, onions, and garlic in the pot. 

In the process of filling the slow cooker

I ended up serving this on top of some couscous, along with mushroom gravy that was made from deglazing the browning pan. 

Finished chicken in pot.

Ech; evening pictures take on a really unattractive yellow tint... have to figure out how to fix this! As a result, no picture of the finished dish. It was decently tasty; I think I still prefer baking chicken in the oven, but this would be an easy way to prepare dinner if I didn't want to spend a few hours in the kitchen!

Pre-thanksgiving cooking

There's something about cooler weather that makes me bring out the slow cooker. Maybe because I like the warmth that it radiates, as it ever so quietly turns a cheap, tough cut of meat into something incredibly tender. Today, I made some pulled pork. It makes for a really versatile end product; I can easily make sandwiches out of it (mix with barbeque sauce, top with pickled veggies), I can put it in the oven with some potatoes and an egg cracked on top, or I can use it as protein in a salad.

To start off with, I bought about 2 1/2 pounds of pork butt. This fatty cut lends well to the slow cooking process, and a lot of the fat cooks out (I didn't keep much of the residual liquids). I rubbed the meat with a simple mixture (salt, brown sugar, pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme) before placing it in the slow cooker with chopped onions and a clove of garlic. 7 hours later, and voila! Dinner is served.

Warmth, inside and out

Some of the fondest memories I have in my life are related to food. No surprise there, huh? Not only of how the food tasted though, but of the people around me at that time. Our conversation, our laughter, the sharing of the food... these all add to my enjoyment. One type of meal I've always loved is hot pot. I liked that it was a slow meal; nobody ever rushed through one of these dinners. Even in the warm climate of Miami, I have memories of my uncles and parents getting together outside by the pool area in front of a big pot. And then as I got older, my university friends and I would stretch together a small budget to accommodate as much food as possible, and then throw in some rice to cook in the residual soup to make sure everyone went home full and happy.

So with the weather turning cooler in New York these past few days, we thought that it was the perfect time for the three Yuen siblings to go have some hot pot. I had found a great online coupon for a place nearby, and so off we went! The food was slightly pricey but of good quality, and we even got some free dessert afterwards!

Our assortment of meats and veggies

Our soup base seemed pretty healthy! There was ginseng, and red
jujube dates in a pork/chicken broth. Best part is, we got to take it
home afterwards! It's going to be great with noodles tomorrow!

Jon, looking in awe at the huge platter
of condiments placed in front of us.

Sibling time!

With the arrival of my sister to New York for the week, all three Yuen siblings are now under the same roof! Hijinks, adventures, and lots of food are sure to be on the agenda.

Today, we took advantage of a particularly beautiful Fall day, and headed over to Brooklyn Bridge Park. About 20 vendors were out in full force for Smorgasburg, an outdoor food event that takes place every weekend. Everything from Filipino spring rolls, to pizza, to Colombian arepas were being sold. We wasted no time and got down to business, buying up a veritable... smorgasbord... of goodies to eat!

Hungry visitors milling around food booths

Our impromptu picnic lunch! Glazed pork chop sandwich, Salvadorean
Pupusas, maple glazed bacon on a stick, and fresh pizza.

The weather was absolutely perfect; sunny and around 60 degrees. The view was pretty neat too; we found a spot right between the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. It was a great spot to have lunch, and to lay around for a little post-lunch nap!

We look happy... I think it was a bacon-induced high

Jon is saying, "If I pose for this picture, can I have more bacon?"

Don't we look great?! With view of Brooklyn Bridge as a backdrop.

YunNan Flavor Snack

The weather has been crazy freaky here the past few weeks. From a hybrid hurricane superstorm to an early nor'easter, this area has been dumped on by mother nature. We have continued to be very lucky; having heat and electricity is half the battle. The other half... is finding something really warm to eat!

One of my favorite places in the neighborhood is a tiny dumpy hole in the wall. There's about 12 different menu items, none over $5. The cuisine is from Yunnan (雲南), near the southwest corner of China. Although definitely Chinese, the food has a distinctly Southeastern Asian flavor to it. My favorite item on the menu is simply called "Dumplings in Hot and Sour Sauce" in English.

This bowl holds such a wealth of incredible flavors. There's a vinegary tang to the soup base, and spiked with a generous amount of chili peppers. The dumplings are very thin-skinned like a wonton, filled with pork. Combined together, the savory-sour-spicy combo hits you full in the taste buds, wakening your senses and clearing your sinuses. A light scattering of scallions and cilantro offers up a light herb-y freshness to the party.

To my knowledge, this is the only Yunnan eatery in all of NYC. Unique and packed with flavor, it is the perfect meal to warm you up on a cold, blustery, miserable day!

Skewers of Yumminess

Food on a stick is always appealing!

Which one to eat first?

Minimal damage

Whew! On Monday evening, Jon and I sat in our apartment watching the news as the wind howled outside. As Hurricane/Hybrid Superstorm Sandy came onto shore in New Jersey, we just crossed our fingers and hoped that we won't lose power.

News stories coming in were pretty dramatic: storm surges in Battery Park, Atlantic City being under water. The first fatality came not too long afterwards; a 30 year old man in Flushing was killed in bed when a tree fell on his house. There's an explosion at a power substation in Manhattan. Backup generators at an NYU hospital fails and emergency workers are frantically trying to get dozens of babies transferred to another hospital. We nervously look around whenever the wind picks up; I mentally brace myself for the electricity to suddenly cut out. I even receive an automated call from ConEd saying that they may cut power to the area preemptively.

And yet... the power holds up, even as the storm reaches its plateau and then oh so slowly starts to lessen. I wake up Tuesday morning, and we still have power! Yay! Looking at the news broadcasts today, I think we have gotten incredibly lucky. A stroll outside shows amazingly little damage to our neighborhood... we didn't even see any downed trees!

Picture of my block. Looks like someone swept the
sidewalk already!

A few downed branches at the park

This is probably the extent of the damage that we saw

We're not completely out of the woods yet though. All public transportation is still down, and it sounds like it will take days (if not longer) for full service to be restored. Luckily, the subway line near our apartment doesn't go through an underground tunnel into Manhattan (those are currently flooded with seawater); instead, it crosses via the Manhattan Bridge. So... hopefully that means service can be restored faster.

Still, it feels good to have escaped this storm unscathed, unlike so many other people who live in this area. Hopefully life will return to normal for them very soon as well.

Hunkering down

So my brother Jon has arrived in New York.... just in time for the hurricane!

IT'S COMINNNGGGGG!!!!

We're as prepared as we could be though; there's water, food, and snacks. Our neighborhood is inland, on higher ground, so the dreaded storm surges are not going to affect us. Also, our windows face an internal courtyard so I'm hoping that shields us from the worst winds. The main concern is electricity; really really hoping that we get lucky and don't lose it!

Fingers crossed!

Moving in, one box at a time

One of the best things about moving into a new place is decorating. It's so much fun to work with a new layout, and buy new accessories. For this apartment, I really had to start from scratch in a lot of cases, so it's been a really busy week! Multiple visits to Target and IKEA has resulted in plenty of exercise; I live on the 3rd floor and had to haul a lot of things up all those stairs!

Putting together the bed frame

Almost done; slats are used instead of a boxspring

Whoo hoo! I have a bed! (Yeah, I need to get a new
duvet cover; I've had the same one for years)

Making good use of the one closet!

New kitchen cabinets. So nice. So clean.

AND I have a new fridge! The cabinets are on the small
side, so I put up that bar for the pots. Faaaancy, no?

Now I'll have to decide on artwork. Since I didn't re-paint and kept the walls white, they seriously need something to liven the place up. Luckily, I have all sorts of things already... I'll post more pictures as the apartment evolves!

Apartment hunting

Barring any unpleasant last minute surprises, I have landed an apartment in New York! The rental market here moves extremely fast; I saw the apartment on Sunday afternoon, and signed a lease on Tuesday. The landlord is currently painting and making some improvements, and I will be moving in next Monday.

The apartment is located on the border of the Sunset Park/Borough Park neighborhoods in Brooklyn, about four blocks away from the closest subway station. It is a richly diverse area, with a Mexican population to the west, Brooklyn's largest Chinatown to the south, and an Orthodox Jewish population to the east. In other words, there is lots and LOTS of food.

The apartment is roughly where the yellow star is

And if you're wondering what's to the north... well, it's one of the largest cemeteries in New York City. It's actually a beautiful space with lots of trees; I sometimes visit and take a long peaceful walk on a nice day.

Greenwood Cemetery during autumn last year

The apartment itself is fairly small, but has a unique layout that will work since my brother Jon will be joining me in New York in a few weeks. Finding the right space has been a challenge because I wanted to stay extremely economical (apartments here are expensive!), and yet not compromise on getting some private space for each one of us. There were definitely larger apartments for the price, but this one contains two separate rooms, each with a door. Immediately upon entering the apartment, the kitchen area is right in front. To the right will be my room, and to the left will be Jon's room.

Kitchen area. The landlord is hopefully installing new cabinets now

My future room, about 10x12 in size. If you look through my door, you
can see straight into Jon's room, past the kitchen.

Jon's 8x11 room. No closets, so we'll have to get creative on
storage options.

A very cozy bathroom. The sink is about half of
normal size.

I'm really looking forward to moving in, and then setting up the place. Can't wait until it's ready for some 'after' pictures!