Local Links

November

Good morning and happy Monday. Yesterday was a stunning day, wasn’t it? Saturday? Not really. I spent it at a car dealer buying a car. How painful.

So when we got home in the dark and the rain Saturday night, it was nice to light a fire and cook together with our neighbors. We started with a sip (or two) of Doc’s Draft.

Have you ever had this? It’s from Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery and it is stunning. I’d put it — and the pear cider, too — up against any from Normandy. It’s a nice aperitif, too, because it’s only 5.5 percent alcohol.

We made a very fall dinner. After reading Doug’s post on Brussels Sprouts over on Hungry Travels, I was inspired to make the Brussels Sprouts recipe from the new Momofuku cookbook.

I had already pointed out the Gourmet version of the recipe to Doug, but there’s one thing in the cookbook that wasn’t in the magazine: fried cilantro.

That and the togarashi-spiced Rice Crispies made for a nice texture and depth of flavor. Of course the fish sauce vinaigrette was kickin’-good, too.

It was such a nice dinner and the Brussels played nicely with the sweet of the acorn squash and the maple brine in the pork. We cooked the pork roast according to Peter Kelly’s recipe from last year’s holiday countdown series:

The next morning we — and half of Nyack, it seems — headed to Didier Dumas Patisserie for brunch. It was so gorgeous we couldn’t help but sit outside. My neighbor’s quiche Lorraine:

So good. And the crepes are incredible. This is the sunnyside up one, with spinach and bacon inside.

We also had a ham and cheese and a nutella-banana. Mmmm. But the best thing about eating at Didier Dumas? Dessert, of course:

After a good bit of exercise at Rockland Lake, we settled in for some TV watching and relaxing. I’d had a hankering for potato skins ever since I saw the recipe in Sam Sifton’s column in the Times magazine a few weeks back. So….

Good for you? No. Delicious. You bet.

Only one regret from the weekend (besides spending Saturday inside buying a car): On Friday, I had bunch of honeycrisps about to be not-so-crisp and so threw them in a pan with some sugar and cinnamon. (I was out of lemons so I used a bit of vinegar instead. The applesauce came out great!)

If I’d had time, I would have also made this applesauce coffee cake a friend pointed me to on Martha Stewart. Oh well, next time.

So to recap, a couple great recipes in this post:
Doug’s recipe for Brussels Sprouts.
David Chang’s Roasted Brussels Sprouts recipe, as adapted by Gourmet for Epicurious.com.
Serious Potato Skins by Sam Sifton. (Say that 5 times fast!)
Applesauce coffee cake on Martha Stewart.com.
And the roast pork by Peter Kelly. The link to that one appears to have expired, so I’ll see what I can do about finding that for you later.

Meantime, since I skipped Local Links last week, this is the first I’ve seen the New York Times has changed its restaurant review ratings. What are your thoughts on this?

Last week: Emily says The Tap House in Tuckahoe is “worth it.” (NYT)
This week: MH says Flames in Briarcliff is “worth it.” (NYT)

With that, here’s what people have been talking about this weekend:
Emily goes to Provisions in Pelham. (NYT)
The new Lemon Tree in Dobbs Ferry. (CH)
Rinku visits said Lemon Tree. (CIW)
The new Il Castello in Mamaroneck. (CH)
New cheese shop in Bronxville. (CH)
A new Mexican coming to Hartsdale. (CH)
Sharon goes to Rangoli in New Ro for Diwali. (TGL)
More Indian: Doug heads to Khan’s in Thornwood. (HT)

This entry was posted on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 9:48 am by Liz Johnson.
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4 Responses to “Local Links”

David Hensley November 17th, 2009 at 9:10 am
Dear Liz,
What a great piece!
Home entertaining is definitly on the rise in todays times…and why not? It is always a more intimate and memorable time when surrounded by friends and family alike that are dear to us.
As far as the New York Times recent review policies go….
the “changing of the guard” and exit of Frank Bruni has brought out a new concept of reviewing that is refreshing and up to date in todays times.However,I do not think anybody will ever replace the charm that Craig Claiborne brought to the food world.
David Hensley
Chef
Morgans’ Publick House
Tappan NY
Diana Costello November 19th, 2009 at 10:59 am
oh my goodness—you had peter kelly cooking in your kitchen!!!
michele November 20th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
This has one of the most tasty images yet. The potato skins make me hungry everytime I see that photo. I had no clue that Didier Dumas served bruch. Is it weekends only? I will need to call. Thanks for the heads up on that.
Liz Johnson November 21st, 2009 at 6:24 pm
David and Michelle… Thanks for the compliments. The potato skins are unbelievably good. Thanks to Sam Sifton for that recipe…
Diana.. I know! Fun, right?

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