I think I have fully shed my city skin this past weekend and become a true living off the land girl. I even went so far as to liken myself to Laura Ingalls Wilder. What else can a Brooklyn girl do when she is skipping through a strawberry patch with a little cardboard basket? Last summer I caught the strawberry picking fever as Greg and his parents took me to Bishop's Orchard and I knealt down in the dirt and plucked my very first gorgeous red strawberry. In fact, the photo I use for this blog comes from that very day.
On Saturday we went with our lovely friends, Tom and Meaghan, to a different farm, Jones Farm, which is known for its colassally beautiful yet fairly pricey Christmas trees. First the Berry Ferry (which is a big truck thing you would imagine would be used for hayrides) took us out to the fields...a mere 72 seconds away...and deposited us among the rows upon rows of strawberry bushes. We knealt down migrant worker style and begin plucking away and dropping our treasures into the cardboard basket provided. As it was the end of strawberry season, many of them were going through the stages of decomposition, but we did manage to fill our basket to nearly overflowing. All in a day's work.
The other wonder of Jones Farms is Jones Winery!!! Heck, we were thirsty farmers and deserved some cocktails! We drove the three minutes to the winery and it was a sight to behold! The tasting area was a beautiful open sunny room with a long counter for tastings. Unfortunately the tastings were over when we arrived but they did let us have a few samples. Greg tried the strawberry wine called Strawberry Serenade. It was 65% grape wine and 35% strawberry wine and was carbonated so it was like a strawberry champagne....so refreshing and such a burst of strawberries in your mouth. I tasted the apple pear wine called Harvest Time, which was dry and crisp and tasted like biting into a tart apple with notes of sweet pear. We purchased Strawberry Serenade and Tom and Meaghan purchased Harvest Time. When we emerged we noticed the outdoor patio sitting area...oh my god! Small iron tables and chairs were set up where you can sit and sip your wine and look out onto the vineyards. Greg said that if we had taken a photo of it people would think we were in Italy and I concur. We swore we'd be back soon to do the tastings and sit on the patio.
We ended the beautiful afternoon by picking up groceries at a local organic market in Hamden, CT, called Thyme and Season which we are huge fans of. They carry amazing produce, local baked goods by a company called Judies which makes fantastic breads, and fabulous organic cheeses to name a few things. We went back to Greg's house and proceded to have our own episode of Iron Chef and the secret ingredient is....strawberries! As Tom is a chef, as well, we attacked Greg's little kitchen and prepared several dishes for dinner. Tom made a wonderful flatbread with fresh mozzarella and strawberries macerated in blueberry infused balsamic vinegar. I made a salad of red leaf lettuce, feta cheese, toasted pecans and can you guess????? Strawberries! My dressing was made with raspberry infused balsamic vinegar and olive oil. We also had some potato pierogies we picked up at a market and some of Judy's amazing bread. We opened the two bottles of wines and toasted to a fantastic day.
What was so satisfying about the day was that we knew where everything came from that we were consuming. The next day we shared our strawberries with Greg's parents and his mom made a wonderful shortcake by immersing them in heavy cream and then spooning the mixture onto slices of pound cake. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon. I remembered how my grandmother used to serve strawberries in cream in her little yellow Depression glass bowls.
Anyway, I must run. If I don't make the remainder of our strawberries into jam today, they will be goners. Check out Jones Farms at www.jonesfamilyfarms.com. Happy picking!
Love,
Robina
Monday, June 27, 2011
Thursday, June 9, 2011
The Simple Kitchen
Hello, friends!
Please forgive me for my tardiness in writing a new post. I suppose I can blame it on spring fever. Doing cartwheels through fields of dandelions has apparently addled my brain! No...no....I joke....that is what I do!
But anyway, I am back and I won't abandon you all again....promise. Honestly, I am looking for willing souls who will pay me to cook, write about or do just about anything with food.
I have had a few conversations with friends lately about vegetarianism versus veganism and how at times these two camps go to war like bitter enemies. A few tweets went around after the Vegetarian Food Festival about how veganism is the only way to go and vegetarians are evil for eating dairy and it is all very militant. I know alot of vegans that are very happy. In fact, my friend's twelve year old daughter is a staunch vegan. But once you introduce judgment into it, I can't help but wonder one's true motivation. I read things about the dairy industry that make me feel awful for those poor cows. Apparently, cows are given hormones to trick them into thinking they are pregnant so they will produce milk. Once they get older and start producing less milk they are no longer useful and god knows what their fate is. I do try to drink almond milk or soy milk as much as possible but I really do like milk in my coffee and I love cheese. The bottom line to this whole diatribe is this...it is a personal choice and you have to be true to what you believe in. It is a lifestyle and we all do the best we can each day. It is important to know where your food comes from and what happens before it arrives at your market and in some cases, it truly is a house of horrors. Now I will get off of my biodegradable soap box and tell you about an amazing restaurant I just discovered.
It is called "The Simple Kitchen" and I had lunch there yesterday. It is an organic cafe in Chelsea which serves biodynamic and organic wine, as well as fantastic food. What is biodynamic, you ask? I have no freakin idea...but I have looked it up and here is the definition: a method of organic farming that emphasizes holistic development without the use of artificial fertilizers or pesticides. Sounds good to me and it seems to work because the ingredients were beautiful. It's a small sunny space with limited seating. There is a big farm table in the middle for communal seating, two small tables and a counter along the window. Most people seem to get take away so it was pretty empty when I walked in with my friend, Dizery, but we took a seat at the farm table. You order what you like and they bring it to you. In the refrigerated area, it was stock full of prepackaged salads such as Poached Chicken salad, Shaved Cabbage salad with baked tofu and Golden Beet and Quinoa Salad. There were entrees such as Vegetable Curry with brown rice, Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs and Beef and Broccoli Rice Bowl, which my dear lunch companion chose. She made a happy plate so I know she enjoyed it. I had the Seasonal Hummus Wrap and it was perfect! I am still thinking about it and want to have it again asap! There was creamy, flavorful hummus cradled inside a wrap with mesculin greens, cucumber, shredded carrots and came with a tahini sauce which I loved! Tahini is something we see everywhere but there was something about this tahini that was so addictive. It had a subtle sweetness from locally grown honey and gave you such an explosion of flavor. The vegetables were crisp and fresh and I loved the lemony hummus. We decided to sample one of their desserts so we shared a slice of carrot cake. It was more spice-cakey than carroty and I love that kind of cinnamon, cardamom flavor almost as much as I do chocolate. Then you take into consideration the cream cheese frosting (another fave of mine) and it was a beautiful end to a beautiful meal. Not only was I satisfied from eating fantastic food but I felt good about where it all came from. The meats are humanely raised and free of antibiotics and hormones. If my friends are going to be carnivores I would rather they eat it this way. I once heard Alicia Silverstone say on Oprah that she would want to meet the cow or chicken and see that he was raised happily, and I totally understand that. But until we can actually do that, this is a good start. They also offer a weekend brunch although it is a fairly limited list of brunch items.
The Simple Kitchen is located at 361 West 17th Street. It is reasonably priced and you can check out their website at http://simplekitchencafe.com/.
So go out there and enjoy the beautiful spring and eat really good food! Please let me know your thoughts and any questions or requests you may have for a topic.
Love,
Robina
Please forgive me for my tardiness in writing a new post. I suppose I can blame it on spring fever. Doing cartwheels through fields of dandelions has apparently addled my brain! No...no....I joke....that is what I do!
But anyway, I am back and I won't abandon you all again....promise. Honestly, I am looking for willing souls who will pay me to cook, write about or do just about anything with food.
I have had a few conversations with friends lately about vegetarianism versus veganism and how at times these two camps go to war like bitter enemies. A few tweets went around after the Vegetarian Food Festival about how veganism is the only way to go and vegetarians are evil for eating dairy and it is all very militant. I know alot of vegans that are very happy. In fact, my friend's twelve year old daughter is a staunch vegan. But once you introduce judgment into it, I can't help but wonder one's true motivation. I read things about the dairy industry that make me feel awful for those poor cows. Apparently, cows are given hormones to trick them into thinking they are pregnant so they will produce milk. Once they get older and start producing less milk they are no longer useful and god knows what their fate is. I do try to drink almond milk or soy milk as much as possible but I really do like milk in my coffee and I love cheese. The bottom line to this whole diatribe is this...it is a personal choice and you have to be true to what you believe in. It is a lifestyle and we all do the best we can each day. It is important to know where your food comes from and what happens before it arrives at your market and in some cases, it truly is a house of horrors. Now I will get off of my biodegradable soap box and tell you about an amazing restaurant I just discovered.
It is called "The Simple Kitchen" and I had lunch there yesterday. It is an organic cafe in Chelsea which serves biodynamic and organic wine, as well as fantastic food. What is biodynamic, you ask? I have no freakin idea...but I have looked it up and here is the definition: a method of organic farming that emphasizes holistic development without the use of artificial fertilizers or pesticides. Sounds good to me and it seems to work because the ingredients were beautiful. It's a small sunny space with limited seating. There is a big farm table in the middle for communal seating, two small tables and a counter along the window. Most people seem to get take away so it was pretty empty when I walked in with my friend, Dizery, but we took a seat at the farm table. You order what you like and they bring it to you. In the refrigerated area, it was stock full of prepackaged salads such as Poached Chicken salad, Shaved Cabbage salad with baked tofu and Golden Beet and Quinoa Salad. There were entrees such as Vegetable Curry with brown rice, Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs and Beef and Broccoli Rice Bowl, which my dear lunch companion chose. She made a happy plate so I know she enjoyed it. I had the Seasonal Hummus Wrap and it was perfect! I am still thinking about it and want to have it again asap! There was creamy, flavorful hummus cradled inside a wrap with mesculin greens, cucumber, shredded carrots and came with a tahini sauce which I loved! Tahini is something we see everywhere but there was something about this tahini that was so addictive. It had a subtle sweetness from locally grown honey and gave you such an explosion of flavor. The vegetables were crisp and fresh and I loved the lemony hummus. We decided to sample one of their desserts so we shared a slice of carrot cake. It was more spice-cakey than carroty and I love that kind of cinnamon, cardamom flavor almost as much as I do chocolate. Then you take into consideration the cream cheese frosting (another fave of mine) and it was a beautiful end to a beautiful meal. Not only was I satisfied from eating fantastic food but I felt good about where it all came from. The meats are humanely raised and free of antibiotics and hormones. If my friends are going to be carnivores I would rather they eat it this way. I once heard Alicia Silverstone say on Oprah that she would want to meet the cow or chicken and see that he was raised happily, and I totally understand that. But until we can actually do that, this is a good start. They also offer a weekend brunch although it is a fairly limited list of brunch items.
The Simple Kitchen is located at 361 West 17th Street. It is reasonably priced and you can check out their website at http://simplekitchencafe.com/.
So go out there and enjoy the beautiful spring and eat really good food! Please let me know your thoughts and any questions or requests you may have for a topic.
Love,
Robina
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