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The holidays seem to be coming at an increasingly rapid pace these days — wasn’t it just Thanksgiving? Between work parties, friends’ celebrations, and family gatherings, craft fairs and of course the lights and holiday music on Myrtle Ave in nearby Ridgewood, I’m beginning to feel the urge to celebrate. For me, this time of year means one thing — Potato Latkes. Commonly associated with Eastern European food, they’re also traditionally eaten on Hanukkah to commemorate the “miracle of the container of oil,” which held only enough oil for one day but lasted for eight. Of course, no matter what religion or non-religion you are, I think we can all get behind a holiday that celebrates fried food.
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This year, I was put in charge of my parents’ Thanksgiving menu with the guideline that the food must be traditional fare with a little punch. Since my tiny Bushwick apartment is completely unequipped for turkey experimentation or having more than 1 pot on the stove at a time, I decided to begin playing with the dessert portion of the meal. A pumpkin something is always great, and everyone loves chocolate, so I put the two together and gave mini pumpkin-chocolate cheesecake a try. As usual, everything was purchased at my local Food Dimensions.
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Pumpkin Ravioli, by Kara Naylor
Today, I had to layer my outerwear, a true sign that fall is completely and officially here. So instead of just wishing I lived in a warmer place, I am going to embrace all things fall. I decided to cook up a delicious homemade pumpkin ravioli with brown butter sauce. I cannot tell you how worth it is to make your own pasta from scratch, it’s a hundred times better, but if you really don’t want to, you can use those won ton wrappers instead. I did a little research, but couldn’t find the recipe that matched my ingredients on hand (grocery shopped BEFORE looking for a recipe…not too smart!)…so I made my own recipe based on a generalization of those available on the web. Everything was purchased at the Food Dimensions and Mr. Kiwi’s.
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My PE teacher in elementary school always sang a song about Halloween and the last line was “Don’t be late, don’t forget to be home by 8 and check your candy.” As the suburban legend goes, people were trying to poison our treats, and candy apples were on the top of the list of Things You Can Put Razor Blades In, so I never tried one. So for the Halloween edition of Bushwick Cooks, I’m suggesting this confection — they’re easy to make but slightly messy, and of course, you get to control the amount of poison/sharp objects you put inside.
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Paige’s camera broke, so… here’s a photo from amy_eggsonsunday’s flickr stream
Homemade Ricotta (with Campanelle, cherry tomatoes, garlic and olive oil)
I’ve always heard that making ricotta was a simple process, so this week I decided to give it a go. For anyone who loves pasta and cheese, this is an exciting way to spice up an old standard. All you need is whole milk, buttermilk, a thermometer and a sieve (if you can find cheese cloth, that’s preferable, but since they didn’t have any at Food Dimensions, I bought a large sieve instead).
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Jamaica Me Hungry — photo by Kara Naylor
Bushwicker Kara Naylor plans to send recipes for food she’s making at home — as always, all the ingredients can be found in Bushwick, most at local bodegas.
Back from my vacation in Jamaica, and not happy about it, I decided to cook up a Jamaican Feast for dinner to help ease the post-vacation blues. I had picked up a little jar of jerk seasoning and some Appleton Rum at the duty free, so I had my start. On the menu:
Jerk Shrimp, Golden Fried Plantains, Jamaican Style Rice and Peas, Simmered Cassava Root, Appleton’s Spiced Tea
There ended up being quite a few dishes to wash, so I recommend inviting a friend over to “cook for” so they feel obligated to do the dishes for you.
I researched recipes and techniques a little online, combined that knowledge with what I had been eating and seeing in Jamaica, and came up with this: it ends up being enough for 2, with leftover rice and peas for lunch tomorrow.
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See more tres leches cupcake photos>>
Last weekend, I went home to Jersey to attend a cupcake seminar with my mom. All though the class itself was pretty much a bust, I learned maybe 2 new tips, but mostly was inspired to finally use my Kitchen Aid mixer (I received it as a graduation gift 5 years ago, and was just too scared to use it). The first thing I did was make rugelach for a Rosh Hashana celebration (Happy Year 5769!) and I was practically giddy at how easy it was to make dough with the mixer.
Thursday I was invited to a Biden/Palin debate party, and my host was serving chili, so I figured the best thing to do was bring Tres Leches cupcakes with me to soothe the palates and sweeten the moods of my fellow viewers — and get more use out of my Kitchen Aid.
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See more photos of döner kebab prep>>
Last year at this time, I was living in Berlin and having an incredible adventure filled with cooking, bike riding, brunching, Pass Kontrol shows, beer drinking….oh, that sounds a lot like what happens in Bushwick, too! Anyway, there’s a very special place in my heart for that city and the time I spent there, and as the weather in New York turned a little crisp and grey earlier this week, I turned entirely wistful for one of the best street food experiences a Berliner can have — Döner Kebab.
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One of my favorite things about living in New York is that you can get brunch on both Saturday and Sunday — but sometimes that’s just not enough for me, and when the brunch craving hits on a weekday, it can only mean one thing for dinner: Croque Monsieur and Oven Home Fries.
There are a few ways to make this fancy ham & cheese sandwich — including a lively debate over whether or not it includes a Béchamel sauce, but for me, unless it’s a special occasion I tend to leave the “mother sauces” to the professionals.
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Bushwick Caprese salad
The other day Jessica asked me a very serious question: what do you do when friends are coming over and you want to serve them a little snack, but only have time to run to the Associated around the corner for supplies? She likes to buy frozen shrimp, defrost it and serve it up with cocktail sauce. My favorite thing to make is the always satisfying Caprese salad. This week, I’m offering that up as my best solution, along with a quick home-made onion dip for veggies, and a very simple avocado toast. I’d love to hear what you serve when entertaining in a pinch.
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