Category Archives: Great Finds

Scrumptious Snapshots from New York, Part II

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What you get when you cross a croissant with a pretzel.

NEW YORK, NY — Yesterday, you got a glimpse of my savory adventures. Now, get a taste of the sweet side:

City Bakery

City Bakery has really fun, original baked goods, including a fabulous pretzel croissant. Yes, a flaky, slightly denser version of the traditional French pastry, only here it’s coated in seeds and a sprinkling of salt just like a pretzel. It’s addicting.

The buttery, pull-apart "baker's muffin.''

So is the “baker’s muffin,” a sort of monkey-bread in muffin form that’s showered in powdered sugar. It’s buttery and tastes like a cinnamon candied apple.

Levain Bakery

We bought three cookies (chocolate chip walnut, dark chocolate chocolate chip, and dark chocolate peanut butter chip) at Levain Bakery and boy, did our arms get a workout as we carried them around.

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Scrumptious Snapshots from New York, Part I

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Eating my way through New York, including this pasta at Eataly.

NEW YORK, NY — Yes, the hubby (aka Meat Boy) and I sneaked off to New York last week for one of the first real vacations we’ve had in a long time.

By that, I mean it was a trip that didn’t solely revolve around my work as a food writer. Instead, it was merely for relaxation and enjoyment — plus lots of good eats, of course. To make sure I actually did take time off, I wasn’t allowed to lug around my usual heavy camera, but only a tiny point-and-shoot. I had to ration my shots, too. After all, it’s not really a vacation if it’s viewed only through the lens of a camera and not the full spectrum of your own eyes.

Hope you enjoy the highlights:

When in New York, you've gotta have a bagel. Or two. Or...

Barney Greengrass

After taking the red-eye from San Jose to New York, we caught a couple of hours of shut-eye at our hotel before venturing to this 100-year-old institution. If you’re in New York, you’ve got to have a bagel or two, right? And what better place than at Barney Greengrass, famed for its smoked sturgeon.

Grab a table where you can at this tightly packed store flanked by deli cases.

My famished husband tore into a plate of smoked sturgeon scrambled with eggs and onions ($18.50), plus a bagel on the side, while I noshed on a sesame bagel stuffed with cream cheese, capers, onion, tomato, smoked sturgeon and Nova Scotia salmon ($20.75). Hello, New York!

BaoHaus

Chinese steamed buns filled with all manner of inventive fillings is the bill of fare at the shoebox-size BaoHaus started by the irreverent, lawyer-turned-street food-restaurateur Eddie Huang and his brother, Evan.

The zany artwork at BaoHaus.

Steamed buns filled with fried chicken (back) and pork belly (front).

The “Chairman Bao” ($2.99) is a fluffy white bun caressing juicy braised pork belly, cilantro, crushed peanuts and a hit of Taiwanese red sugar.

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Fun Finds

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Seared fresh garbanzos. You'll eat the entire bowl-full.

Have you ever had a fresh garbanzo bean?

I’m not talking the hard, yellow ones out of a can.

I mean the far tinier ones still encased in their fuzzy, papery green pods that you can find — if you look hard enough — in markets such as Whole Foods and Berkeley Bowl at this time of year. The latter is where I bought mine for $3.29 a pound.

Tender and nutty tasting, the beans, once steamed or blanched, can be made into pesto or tossed into salads just like you would edamame or peas.

The fresh pods with the tiny beans inside.

My favorite way to enjoy them is one of the easiest. Just rinse them under water, shake dry, and place in a saute pan with a little olive oil. Put a lid on and cook for 5-8 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally so they don’t burn.

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Wild About Ramps

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The love affair with ramps.

For the longest time, I’ve had serious ramp envy.

You see, when spring hits, chefs and foodies throughout New York go bonkers for ramps, otherwise known as wild leeks. They feature them in all manner of imaginative dishes and preparations. In West Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina, there are even annual festivals devoted to the pungent allium that has broad green leaves sprouting from a fuchsia -tinged stalk and a white, scallion-like bulb.

But in the Bay Area, they’re a scarce commodity.

And so, for the longest time, I just sighed at this time of year, knowing a prominent part of the country was indulging lustfully in an ingredient I just couldn’t get my hands on.

Until last week, when I ventured into Berkeley Bowl and nearly jumped three feet in the air when I spied ramps in the produce section. I took a whiff and was met head-on with a most assertive garlic aroma. I was hooked.

The ramps, from Oregon, weren’t cheap at $12.95 a pound. But I just had to have some.

Armed with a bounty I’d never seen before, let alone used, I was momentarily perplexed at what to do with the ramps now that I clutched them preciously in my hands.

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Made in Brooklyn, Baked at Home

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The "Dumbo Delicious'' loaf. And boy, is it ever delicious.

With its barbecue joints, hipster flea market, vibrant DIY food culture and slightly more affordable housing prices relatively speaking, Brooklyn is the “it” city these days.

Thanks to Baked Better, you can bring a taste of Brooklyn home with you. The company, founded by two friends, sells fabulous organic bread mixes that make baking fresh, warm loaves as easy as can be.

I’m not always a fan of mixes because so many of them are not only pricey, but require you to add so many other ingredients that you might as well just make the whole darn thing from scratch. Not so with Baked Better mixes, of which I had a chance to try samples.

You just add water, salt and a sweetener like sugar, honey, molasses or agave nectar to the contents of the bag, along with the enclosed yeast packet. Stir with a wooden spoon, then pour into a greased loaf pan to let rise for half an hour. Then, bake in the oven for an hour.

What emerges is a loaf of bread on par with those at an artisan bakery — moist, tender, very hearty and suffused with a developed grain flavor.

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