Sunday Plans

Just something to keep me on track.

And the red marker completely exploded on me.

Can You Believe This is My First Meal Today?

The day is almost done and I'm finally getting around to eating. I know... for someone who loves food to let the actual act of eating food pass her by... woosh. But I had myself a nice relaxing morning, went and volunteered early because I had a date with M.

The boy and some witches for a night of Broadway bliss. Loved Wicked, and our seats weren't that bad.

The show ended late, and eating options around Proctors were slim. So we ended up just going to Bob's. I went with the hamburger deluxe platter and M the No Meat breakfast. Decent enough, but I really wished there were more options late night.

Game Day Eats: The Roethliswiener

Okay, so I’m a little behind on starting this. But starting on week 3 isn’t too bad… right? I may not have talked about it too much on the blog, but I am a big Steelers fan. And on game days I thought it would be fitting if I tried to make some popular Pittsburgh foods to snack on for game time.

So, to start things off… my very loose interpretation of Jim Shearer’s Roethliswiener.

Albany Eats Potluck No. 2

We said there would be another potluck, didn’t we? Here are the pictures to prove it.

Coupon Clipping

This is nowhere near that extreme couponing, but whatever I can do to help trim that grocery bill. M has pointed out that none of the supermarkets in the Capital Region do double coupons [Edit: Price Chopper has since started to double coupons up to $.99 due, apparently, to the news that ShopRite that will be coming our way.]. The nearest Price Chopper that does is in Bennington. Hannaford from what I can tell doesn’t double, but will take competitors coupons and internet coupons, with certain restrictions.  No clue about Walmart, but I really try not to get groceries from there. Shoprite (which will soon be in Niskayuna!!) will double coupons, but I don’t know if they’ll keep it once they’re here.
I don’t know if coupons are really worth it – a majority of the coupons were for items I don’t even want. And the way it looks, you have to buy a lot to make it worthwhile (I could be wrong with that, but that’s what it looks like).
Meh… I’ll still give it a go and see how it pans out. Perhaps the biggest challenge will be to remember to bring my coupons when I go to the store.

Anniversary Dinner

My parents recently celebrated a wedding anniversary. They’ve been married for over 30 years… impressive, no?

Hard Choices

So here we are, Sunday… the morning after some good drinking with friends. And man, I am STARVING.

I only see three options for satisfaction:

1. Indian lunch buffet – Cheap, and plentiful.

2. Korean food – It’s calling out to me, and it’s been a while since I had it last.

3. Burgers (of the meat and non-meat variety) – Greasy, and always accompanied by even more greasiness (french fries). It has the power to sop up all that was wrong from the night before. Not to mention, it reminds you of things you completely forgot.

I’ll let you know what we pick.

Things To Do: Capital Region Jewish Food Festival

It’s looking like one of those spring days when you want to get out of the house and do something. And if you need some help with figuring out what to do, why not check out the Jewish food festival? There will be cooking demonstrations, plenty of food samples, and you’ll get to meet two local bloggers (Daniel B. - Fussy Little Blog; and Leah – Noshing Confessions)

Here’s the press release:

MEDIA ADVISORY

 
CELEBRATE JEWISH FOOD AND CULTURE
AT CAPITAL REGION JEWISH FOOD FESTIVAL

Schedule of events:   

12:30      Cooking Demonstration: Chef Gail Sokol will teach how to make Passover sponge cake
 
1:15        Cooking Demonstration: Identical twins Pam Wright and Sue Kimball (the cooking teacher at Congregation Gates of Heaven) will demonstrate how to make blintzes 
 
2:00        Meet the Editor and Sample Recipes: Joanne Caras, editor of the Holocaust Survivor Cookbook 
 
3:00        Cooking Demonstration: Chef Gail Sokol will share her healthy danish pastry recipe  
 
Additional festival highlights include: unlimited samples of traditional and modern gourmet foods (kosher style) prepared by area restaurants, caterers and synagogue members; live Klezmer music by the Kol Simcha Orchestra; meet and greet with local food bloggers, Daniel B. of the Fussy Little Blog and Leah of Noshing Confessions

Samples will include: hot pastrami sandwiches from Ben & Bill’s Deli, blintz soufflé from Gershon’s Deli, delectable dishes from the Glen Sanders Mansion, gourmet cheeses from the Honest Weight Food Co-op, Teriyaki Chicken Skewers from Old Daley Inn Catering, melt-in-your-mouth whitefish salad from Saati’s Catering, Falafel in pita from Phoenician’s, NYC-style bagel, bialys & lox, homemade chicken matzo ball soup, fresh-baked rugelach and knishes, kosher hot dogs, beef brisket, and so much more…
 
WHEN:              Sunday, April 3    Noon – 4:00 p.m.
WHERE:           Congregation Gates of Heaven   852 Ashmore Ave.
                         Schenectady, NY
 
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT MINDY HOLLAND OR SUE KIMBALL AT CONGREGATION GATES OF HEAVEN AT 518-374-8173

Not At All Food Related

Steelers are going to the Superbowl!!!

Fruit Platter

My parents made two large fruit trays for their church party. Luckily they bought too much fruit, so I get to snack on the leftovers.

Chevy's Flan

Aside from the guac, what my sister ordered

Blueberry Muffins

As much as I love these silicone cups, a muffin tin would have prevented this spillover.

21st Birthday @ Gilligans Clam Bar & Grill (Pomona, NY)

I was too busy eating to actually take pictures (plus they kinda sucked). My uncles, on the other hand, took the time out to snap photos, like the one above.

I am feeling a whole lot older now- two of my cousins turned 21 this month! One of them celebrated this weekend by inviting the family to dinner at Gilligans. I’ve driven by this place plenty of times, but never actually ate there. I’ve heard from people… who in turn heard from people, that it was a good place. And it must be, because on a Sunday night (after 7) it was packed. For a party of 16, we must have waited for about 45 minutes before they would set up a table for us.

We started with two calamari appetizers, which were two pounds a piece. It was pretty darn good, and didn’t last long. Dinner ended up being six lobster dinners for two. SIX. Lobsters were good, but on the small side. Just a few clams, and tons of mussels. I split it with my mom, which meant she barely ate one lobster and left the rest to me. And I did finish all of it, although not in one sitting.

For dessert, my aunt bought what I can only describe as a chocolate bombe cake. The cake was almost sponge cake-like, filled with whipped cream and fresh strawberries and bananas. It was frosted with whipped cream and coated in cake crumbs. The cake was light, and had just the right amount of richness. She bought it from B & W Bakery in Hackensack, NJ if you’re wondering.

Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery (Warwick, NY)

 

M surprised me with and visit, and we decided to take a drive up to Warwick. I kept talking about checking out the Renaissance Fair, but changed my mind after I saw the crowd of people going in.

Not sure where to go next, I just kept driving up 17A. I followed the signs toward Warwick and hoped something good would pop up. Sure enough, I spotted a grape sign for the Warwick Valley Winery. I continued to follow the grapes until we came across an even larger sign with an even larger arrow directing us to our destination.




Not exactly sure where to start, we went inside and checked out their selection. Turns out we went straight into the tasting room. Here you can buy their wine, ciders, and other food products. If you’re interested, they also have a wine  tasting which will only set you back five bucks and you get to keep the glass.


 

I’m not sure if they rotate the wines on the tasting list, but these are the ones we tried:

Pinot Gris
Gewurztraminer
Cabernet Franc
Black Dirt Red
Doc’s Draft Hard Pear Cider
Doc’s Draft Framboise Hard Cider
Bartlett Pear Liqueur/Sour Cherry Cordial

 

Most of these were dry, and I guess I could taste the fruit notes that the server kept mentioning… but not the kind of wines I’m into. M and I were more interested in their ciders. The pear was a bit too light, and you could just slightly make it out. The Framboise was my favorite- sweet, but not too overpowering, and you can definitely taste the raspberry in it.

We could only pick one of the liqueurs, and I picked the Pear while M went with the Sour Cherry. He had it on ice, and thought it was pretty good. As for my pear… I had a sip. Strong pear flavor, dry. I would have enjoyed it more if I wasn’t driving, so I gave the rest to M.

M ended up buying two bottles of the Framboise. Twenty-two ounces for $5.99, that doesn’t seem too bad. Definitely something we could give to his homebrewing sister and BIL.

Even though it is a winery, there are other things to do there that do not involve alcohol. There is a bakery and cafe on premises, which is only open on the weekends. According to their website, they strongly support sustainable agriculture and use products that were locally grown as much as possible. The menu is light, and mostly things you pair with a wine or cider.

They also have pick your own apple and pear trees, which is always a fun kid activity. On the weekends there is live music, and monthly evening performances. We didn’t walk around much, but according to their website there is a stage out in their orchard and they hold weekend long music festivals. In fact, this coming weekend (August 14-15) they will be holding a Grateful Dead Tribute Concert.


 

Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery
114 Little York Road
Warwick, NY 10990
(845) 258-4858
wvwinery@warwick.net

Tasty Mess

Grilled wedge salad from Chevy's

Hard Apple Cider

So R's been on my back about posting here for a long time. Problem is, unlike R, I'm just not that into food. I mean, sure, I eat it almost daily, but when I do -- it's mostly just to stay alive.

But this is different. Of all the things I care about in this world, very few lie above the glory of booze. Delicious, fizzy booze. And it just so happens that this is apple-pickin' season -- so I decided to make a batch of home brew hard cider.
You really can't get any more basic than this when it comes to home brew, but for those of you who may not be in the know, I will give a very generalized equation of the science of home brew...

Sugar + Yeast = Ethanol + Carbon Dioxide

Sooo, during alcoholic fermentation, yeast ferment the sugars found in cider and in return produce alcohol and carbon dioxide as waste.

In order to make your own you need the following items:

5 gallons of Fresh apple cider (see below) ***
2 6.5 gallon buckets (one to be used as a primary fermenter with airlock and lid - the other as a bottling bucket w/ spigot)
bottle filler
Racking cane and tubing
capper
bottlebrush
santizer
1 packet yeast (I used Red Star - Cote Des Blanc, which is a wine yeast, but there are many other options available out there.. just ask your friendly brewer at your nearby home brew store.)
2 lbs brown sugar
3/4 cup pure cane sugar
~55 clean and sanitized 12 oz. bottles

*** Make sure to get Fresh apple cider. That is, cider with No preservatives (sodium benzoate or potassium sorbate) and preferably UV pasteurized. Heat pasteurization changes the chemical structure of the apple lectins, causing them to precipitate out. It also effects the taste. Cider that contains preservatives can be used with limited amounts of success when using a starter batch of yeast, but for the sake of simplicity, I'm not going to go into that here.***

Sanitize all equipment prior to brewing. Wild yeasts and bacteria can cause all sorts of unwanted flavors to pop up. It can seriously be the difference between 5 gallons of hard cider and 5 gallons of apple cider vinegar. So please, sanitize. I used a trick I learned from my mom, watching her can fruits and vegetables. After scrubbing the bottles with a chlorine solution (I used LD Carlson no-rinse cleanser, but 1 tbsp bleach in 1 gallon water will do just fine in a pinch), I boiled a small amount of water in a stock pot and placed the bottles upside down to steam for 5-10 minutes. This may be overkill, but again, it can be the difference between sweet sweet hard cider and a useless vat of moldy apple juice.

Add 1 gallon apple cider to 12qt pot and heat to near boiling, but do Not boil (remember what I said about the lectins?) Add 2 lbs of brown sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Add 4 gallons of cider to primary fermentation bucket (let's just call this, bucket #1). Pour in cider/sugar mixture and allow to come to room temperature. Add yeast, then seal with an airtight lid w/ airlock). Place in a cool, dark area and allow to ferment for 2 weeks.

After the fermentation completes (usually within 2 weeks), the airlock will no longer bubble. Now it's time to bottle your cider. Boil 1 cup water and dissolve 3/4 cup sugar. Allow to cool for a few minutes then add to the bottling bucket (bucket #2).

Elevate primary fermenter (#1), taking care not to disturb the sediment that's accumulated on the bottom. Open and insert racking cane and tubing. Siphon the cider into the bottling bucket (#2). This will mix the saturated sugar solution and the cider.

Elevate the bottling bucket (#2) and attach the bottle filler. Fill the bottles to the brim by pressing the bottle filler down on the bottom of the bottle. When you remove the filler, it will leave a sufficient amount of airspace. Use the bottle capper to fit the caps to the bottles. Store for 3+ weeks in a cool, dark place. Then.. enjoy.

Kimchi Fried Rice

Kimchi, leftover ground beef, leftover rice. Tart from the kimchi (I dumped the rest of the jar into the pan) but satisfying.

Stove Free Sunday

Asian noodle salad. M's SIL had to help us out with making this.

Originally I wanted to make something similar to a Mallomar. So I figured shortbread cookies, fluff, and chocolate. M insisted it had to be a graham cracker. Well you can see who won that. Smore's breakfast = pretty darn good.