Pumpkin-Ricotta Pie

Another great recipe from Food Network. We always have pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, but I wanted to make it more interesting than the traditional pumpkin pie that I usually make. This recipe intrigued me because it’s half pure pumpkin and half ricotta cheese. It came out moist and delicious. The cream cheese crust is made from scratch—don’t worry, it’s not that complicated to make, as you will see if you try this recipe. 

Chocolate Pecan Pie

I made this easy-to-make but delicious dessert for our Thanksgiving dinner. It's adapted from Emeril Lagasse's recipe, and it's a welcome change from the standard pecan pie, which always tends to be cloyingly sweet. The addition of chocolate tempered the sweetness perfectly. The original recipe called for a caramel sauce for garnish, but I did away with it because it would have made the pie too sweet. Finally, I always try to make my crust from scratch because it's not really that difficult to make, but I have to admit that for this pie I used a pre-made crust, which I found in my daughter's freezer -- it wasn't too bad.

A Thanksgiving Dinner, Winchester, MA, 2011

What could be more comforting than sitting at dinner with your beloved family, with the table laden with dishes galore that you've been cooking for the past two or three days, and the whole house redolent with the  deliciously mingled aromas of all that food? This is what my family had for our Thanksgiving Dinner this year -- the recipes for some of them are already posted on this blog, and the rest I will try to post as soon as possible. My daughter did this brined fresh (not frozen) turkey, which was first roasted in their Egg Grill and then finished in the oven--it was incredibly juicy and so flavorful.

America Eats Tavern (Jose Andres), Washington, DC

[This posting is still in progress--thanks for your patience.]

America Eats Tavern

Penn Quarter 

Corner of 8th and D NW, between D&E 
Washington, D.C.
October 31, 2011/Dinner

 The following is quoted from the website of Open Table:  “A groundbreaking partnership between José Andrés' ThinkFoodGroup and The Foundation for the National Archives, America Eats Tavern features award-winning Chef José Andrés’ unique take on traditional American classics and celebrates native ingredients and some long forgotten regional dishes. This "pop-up" restaurant is a non-profit partnership which extends the exhibit “What’s Cooking Uncle Sam: The Government’s effect on the American Diet” that is currently at the National Archives through January 2012. The menu showcases the fascinating history of our nation one plate at a time. America Eats features a refined and elegant menu upstairs on the second and third floors and a similar but slightly more casual menu offered on the first floor. Open Table Reservations are for the upstairs dining rooms, while reservations for the first floor tavern area can be made by contacting the restaurant directly at 202-393-0812. Both menus are available for viewing at the America Eats website.”

Fig & Olive Restaurant, New York City

Fig and Olive - Fifth Avenue
10 East 52nd Street
New York, NY 18079

Tel. 212-319-2002

November 8, 2011/Lunch

 

It was the day after my son’s concert (“Suites by Sondheim” at the Lincoln Center, November 7, 2011), and some family friends from D.C. who came to see the show joined us for lunch at this wonderful Mediterranean restaurant in New York City.  As their website says, the Fig & Olive's signature dishes embody Executive Chef Pascal Lorange's passion for the best olive oils and cuisines from the Mediterranean region. And, as to be expected, olive oil was ubiquitous on the menu. I loved this place – the service was cheerful and super efficient, the ambience very bright but relaxed, and all the dishes we sampled were exemplary (great plating too!).

Cassava Bibingka (Cake)

Today I attended the monthly meeting of CHoWDC (Culinary Historians of Washington, DC). I love it that the group has this very nice tradition of members bringing a home-made dish or two. I decided to bring Cassava Bibingka, to give them a taste of Filipino desserts. This is another Chef Romy Dorotan recipe, from his and Amy Besa's cookbook, Memories of Philippine Kitchens (reviewed on this blogsite). I made a few minor changes, but basically remained faithful to the recipe--the bibingka was delicious, and they loved it (somebody even asked for the recipe). 

Today's guest speaker was Joan Nathan, the doyenne of Jewish cooking, and she gave a very interesting and informative account of the history of Jewish food, which is the subject of her latest cookbook (more on this in a separate blog posting).

Maharlika Restaurant, New York City

Maharlika Restaurant
111 First Avenue & 7th St.
646-392-7880
maharlikanyc.com

Maharlika is still young, having started out in January 2011 as a "pop-up" place serving only brunch on weekends at the Resto Leon (East Village), and then at the Alias Restaurant (Lower East Side). Their food earned consistent raves from critics, and now, owners Nicole Ponseca and Enzo Lim together with their Chef, Miguel Trinidad, have now opened their own place, also in the East Village.


I had heard a lot of good things about Maharlika, so I made sure we visited it on our next trip to New York. We came twice, for dinner and brunch, with a group so we could sample a good number of items on their funky and playful menu.