buhg1b
17 years ago
Gwyneth's Ex-Chef Serves Faux Duck at Broadway East: Food Buzz
By Ryan Sutton
More Photos/Details
April 22 (Bloomberg) -- There's a Chinatown restaurant that serves Peking duck with no duck. It makes cracklings without pork, chorizo with no sausage, and cheesecake with no cheese. The chicken, however, contains chicken. That's a very tasty exception.
Welcome to Manhattan's Broadway East. Expect mostly vegetables. The diet comes courtesy of Lee Gross. He's been trained classically and macrobiotically. He used to be Gwyneth Paltrow's personal chef, and now he's feeding the rest of us. But is this what we want to eat?
Broadway East has a bias. ``Are you vegan, vegetarian or none of the above?'' asked a waitress. I told her I consume everything. She was pleased. Then she recommended dishes without meat, dairy or eggs.
That's not a bad thing. Per the advice of Michael Pollan and other outspoken omnivores, our health would be well served if we ate less animal flesh and fat. It's just that I'm suspicious of places like Broadway East where some of the plants pretend to be meat.
When my kosher and herbivorous friends ask where to dine, I steer them toward flora-friendly venues that let vegetables be vegetables. My favorites are Per Se, Blue Hill at Stone Barns and Craft. They epitomize the modern American obsession with hyperseasonal, picked-from-the-farm-this-morning produce.
Broadway East, at first glance, reminded me of the other style of American vegetarianism, as a fad, a diet. Get healthy with meat-free burgers.
Al Gore-Friendly
A press release says the venue ``utilizes green practices.'' Is that why the lighting is so dim? Staff uniforms use organic vegetable dyes. Shrubbery covers the rear wall. Junglelike lounge music (bongo drums, rain sticks) plays softly.
Then you try the fake chorizo. It's pretty good. Doesn't taste like sausage. More like crispy falafel. Mix it with fragrant fennel, bitter blood orange, and you have yourself a salad.
That's the brilliant side of Broadway East. Simple veggies with restrained use of faux meat. Try the mushroom terrine. The fungi form a silky, earthy patty flanked by a cool gelee.
Pair it all with a Dr. Frank Rkatsiteli, an unusual wine from the Finger Lakes. Many say it evokes a riesling; our bottle was a dead ringer for a dry, fragrant, Loire Valley white. Broadway East deserves kudos for its New York-heavy wine list.
Skip the oysters gratin. Too many breadcrumbs. Fried cauliflower? Batter's too heavy, too greasy. Butternut and chickpea b'steeya? Bland. Yuba cracklings? Not as much flavor as pork cracklings. And too heavily seasoned.
Cheese Sans Fromage
Read the menu carefully. Three dots mean a dish is vegan. I didn't see that symbol next to my cheesecake, which was made with tofutti. Truly worth avoiding.
Try the chicken. It's rolled around kasha; its skin is crisped into a crunchy, fatty goodness. An intense horseradish jus makes the dish destination-worthy.
Peking-style tofu lacks the rich depth of flavor that the poultry version is known for. But if you don't eat meat, order it. Toothsome yuba surrounds two types of tofu: firm and snow- dried. The goal is to mimic the textural contrast of the bird and its skin. It works -- kind of.
Broadway East isn't for everyone, but Gross does make a good case that vegetarians don't have to eat only vegetables. They can also pretend to eat meat.
Broadway East is at 171 E. Broadway at Rutgers Street. Information: +1-212-228-3100 or http://broadwayeast.com/.
Oink
A famous Japanese restaurant chain has made its debut in Manhattan's East Village. It's called Ippudo. Now let's make this simple: Its ramen with pork belly renders a similar dish at Momofuku Noodle Bar completely irrelevant.
The noodles are firmer. The broth is richer. The pig is more succulent. The wait is longer. Ninety minutes on a Friday night.
No need to order anything else. The pork rolls are horrific. The space can get hot. The fried chicken is tasty, not crispy. The tofu blancmange is too sweet and rich. The sake cocktails are saccharine. Just get the ramen. Trust me.
Ippudo is at 65 Fourth Ave., near 10th Street. Information: +1-212-388-0088 or http://www.ippudo.com/ny.
(Ryan Sutton is a writer for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)
To contact the writer of this story: Ryan Sutton in New York at rsutton1@bloomberg.net.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aYPLzPljBDKk&refer=muse
buhg1b
17 years ago
Passover meals are made easier with products now on store shelves
Traditional dishes are given a contemporary twist in new cookbook produced by Manischewitz.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
By JANE MILZA
STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- For 120 years, the name Manischewitz has been synonymous with carefully prepared Jewish holiday foods. The company's ever-growing line of food products have influenced the way families cook for generations. The same will be true when Passover begins this Saturday evening.
In time for Passover and in line with the food producer's year-long anniversary celebration, the company is marketing an anniversary tin of Passover matzoh as well as such new items as family-size potato pancake mix and Italian herb coating crumbs as well as other products that are expected to come in handy all year long.
As part of the celebration, consumers can log onto www.manischewitz.com each day through May 18 for a chance to win an anniversary commemorative Matzoh Tin, which traces the history of the family founders, and also have an opportunity to share their memories with others who have grown up with the food products. The new book, "Manischewitz: The Matzoh Family," also is availalbe online at Amazon and at Barnes & Noble. as well as in Judaica stores. FAMILY FAVORITES
Recipes that have become family favorites through the years were compiled for "The Manischewitz Passover Cookbook" in 1969. In honor of the 120th anniversary, many of those recipes now have been updated by Sarah Lasry, chef/owner of Tastebuds Gourmet Cafe in Howell, N.J., and author of "The Dairy Gourmet."
While Seders at the start of the Passover may be reserved for family gatherings, the eight-day season offers families many opportunities to entertain and share favorite dishes. This recipe for Double-Stuffed Veal Roll will be appreciated for a family dinner at various times during the Passover season.
The Passover Banana Split Ice Cream Cake, meanwhile, is based on a cookie recipe that appeared in the '69 cookbook. Now, as a full-fledged cake, it might come in handy when friends stop by for a mid-afternoon coffee and sweet. DOUBLE-STUFFED VEAL ROLL WITH GLAZE (Serves 6-8) 1/2 chopped onion 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms 1 tomato, sliced in very small chunks 1/2 teaspoon salt teaspoon pepper 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped 1 pound chopped chicken or beef, uncooked 3 pounds boned breast of veal 2 matzohs, such as Manischewitz, finely broken, or 1 1/2 cups matzoh farfel 1/4 cup hot water Cooking string For Glaze: 2 cups ketchup 1/4 cup condensed chicken broth, such as Manischewitz 1/4 cup dark brown sugar 1/4 cup golden honey
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Over medium-high heat, sauté the chopped onions in 2 tablespoons olive oil until they start turning translucent. Add sliced mushrooms and tomatoes. Mix well and continue to sauté until mushrooms soften. Season mixture with salt and pepper. Add chopped chicken or beef to mushroom mixture. Sauté all ingredients for about 5 minutes while mixing with a wooden spoon until the chopped meat sizzles and browns.
Reduce the heat and add the matzoh and hot water to meat mixture. Combine thoroughly and sauté for 5 or 6 minutes more. Remove from heat, add parsley and let stuffing mixture cool for later handling.
Meanwhile in a separate bowl, make the glaze by mixing together well the ketchup, broth, brown sugar and honey. Set aside. Lay veal out on a flat surface. Spread the stuffing meat mixture over veal, leaving a one-half inch margin on all sides. Roll up and tie with cooking string to hold veal roll securely. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a Dutch oven and brown the veal roll on all sides.
Remove from heat and generously pour the glaze over the browned veal roll, making sure to fully cover the meat. Cover and place in preheated oven and let gently cook for 2 hours. After 2 hours, increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees and uncover veal. Let cook for an additional 40 to 45 minutes, or until a nice thick glaze has formed over veal. Remove from oven and let veal roll stand for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing. BANANA SPLIT ICE CREAM CAKE 4 eggs separated, at room temperature 3/4 cup mashed bananas 1/4 cup peanut oil 1 package (12 ounces) Passover sponge cake mix, such as Manischewitz 1/2 cup chopped nuts 8 ounces bitter sweet chocolate, melted 2 bananas, thinly sliced Parve tofutti ice cream, slightly softened
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Using a mixer, beat yolks with mashed banana and peanut oil until light and fluffy. Add sponge cake mix gradually and beat very thoroughly. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff. Fold egg whites and chopped nuts into the batter gently, but thoroughly. Pour batter into a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and bake in oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Set aside cake and cool completely.
Meanwhile, melt chocolate over double boiler and let cool partially. When cake is completely cooled, pour chocolate over top of cake, spreading evenly. Place sliced bananas in melted chocolate evenly.
Place cake in freezer for 25 minutes, or until chocolate has hardened. Remove from freezer and spread a thick layer of vanilla ice cream over top of cake -- refreeze for an additional 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from freezer and serve with drizzled chocolate sauce.