Megan Blocker

Damn Logan! Sorry to see your blog go Megan! I felt like I had someone to watch GG with! ← Eh...I'm kinda sick of Logan...I feel like everything about him was an excuse to have all sorts of fantasy enter into a relatively grounded world. Birkin bags, weekend trips to MV, a ridiculous apartment...I've never really liked him, and I like it best when Lorelai and Rory appear together. We shall see! Hey, I watch every week - so I'm still with you! ETA: And, more importantly, I'm almost sure to be eating something I shouldn't, as per Lorelai's eating habits, so feel free to join me in that, too!

And now, ladies and gentlemen, I present the final meal of this blog. When I got home I decided that the best drink to have with my "French dinner," especially since I was planning on eating it while watching Gilmore Girls, was hot chocolate. So, I combined some cocoa powder, sugar, water and a touch of salt, boiled it up into a syrup, and added some milk. I let it heat up while I cooked the rest of my dinner... First, I made the pancakes (the recipe from The Joy of Cooking) and stuck them in the oven on warm. Then, I made two hash browns with a couple of fingerling potatoes and a little grated onion... I cooked them up in a little schmaltz, and then drained them on paper towels, sprinkled them with some salt, and added them to the plate warming in the oven. Finally, I cooked the gorgeous bacon and plated it all with some maple syrup. I plopped down on the couch to watch my favorite girlish show, and things could not have been sweeter. This dinner was fantastic. It was the perfect accompaniment to GG, and it was delicious. I don't know why I don't do this more often. Yum.

I realized on the way home tonight that I didn't have any sliced bacon - only the lardons I use for carbonara. So I stopped off at Schaller and Weber, at 86th and 2nd, to pick some up! In addition to a great butcher counter and some really fun German speciality foods, this place has, hands-down, the most outrageous windows in the neighborhood. Steins, sausages, stuffed animals...and my favorite, the swinging garden gnome. They also have a delightfully 70's-flavored, kitschy interior. Check out that light fixture! I went inside and right up to the counter, where I ordered a quarter pound of sliced bacon. Ooooh, so good.

Last night I promised to get a proper greasy breakfast sandwich, but when I woke up this morning, I just couldn't do it. I'm so sorry, guys! I did, however, have a hankering for something, so I went around the corner to Pax and got a sesame bagel with peanut butter, and a medium coffee. In all honesty, while the bagel hit the spot, the coffee did not blow me away...it was really no better than what I can get at work for free. However, it was big, something the coffees at work are not. My day was pretty busy in the morning, with a couple of projects due and a few fires to put out, so I didn't get around to grabbing lunch till about 2:00. I was going to get a salad, as I mentioned above, but then I thought, "Come on, Blocker, give these people something more interesting than a salad!" So, for you, I suffered. I went to a lunch cart at 52nd and Park, right outside of the Seagram's Building (which houses the Four Seasons restaurant). It's called Rafiqi's, and their line is always long, so I figured the food must be pretty good! I checked out the menu while I waited on line... And decided to get a chicken platter - chicken with rice, lettuce, tomatoes and sauce - "white" and "hot." Oooooh, it was good. Nice and spicy, and the chicken was tender but not stringy. Very good for a $4.00 lunch - a salad would have set me back more than twice that. So, there you have it - a true New York lunch, right from a cart. Eating from gyro carts always makes me think of that scene in Working Girl when Harrison Ford and Melanie Griffith meet over gyros and walk down the street talking "business." Oh, so good...that's a great New York movie. Definitely one of the ones that made me think Manhattan was for me...that opening sequence, circling the Statue of Liberty and then zooming in on downtown Manhattan, then finally on the ferry? SO GOOD. Sorry, that was a bit OT.

Thank you so much Wendy!!! Well, there are a couple of different ways to have groceries delivered. One is to call up the store, place an order, and have it arrive either that day or later in the week. Another way is to order online...this became hugely popular in NYC thanks to Fresh Direct, an entirely online service that delivers all over the city (and to the Hamptons now, I think). Finally, you can do what I usually do, which is go do the shopping, pay, give them my address, and wait for the delivery to come a little later...usually within an hour or two. I like to do my own shopping and choosing, especially when it comes to meat and produce, so this is the method I typically use. I've been known to use Fresh Direct when cooking for a huge crowd, though. It's also a really nice service for people who live in neighborhoods where grocery stores are scarce, like Tribeca or the very far East Village.

So, I called my little bro (and fellow Gilmore Girls addict) to invite him to dinner tonight, but he has a play to go to (he's a candidate for an MFA in Theatre Management at Columbia - I'm very proud of his over-achieving ways). However, when I told him I was having "French dinner," he was really sad that he had to miss it. Then he asked, "Did you tell them about our childhood?" Literally. That is literally what he asked me. With those exact words. How effete can you get? He just wanted me to make sure to tell you all how much he loooooves breakfast for dinner. I'll be saving him some leftovers.

This picture is almost obscene...I love seeing the bubbling butter around the hunks of meat. Wowza.

As long as you don't expect a response, you're good to go.[...] ← Nah. It's more like, if you talk to yourself, you're guaranteed an intelligent conversation. Um, or something like that. (Also talks to himself.) So Megan, you are really making breakfast for dinner? ← Hell yeah, I am. It'll be good times. When I was growing up, this was one of the dinners my brother and I requested most often. Oh, we loved breakfast for dinner. We called it "French dinner," and for the longest time I thought this was because French people were constantly eating breakfast for dinner. Only years later did I discover the actual origin of the name...my au pair's mother's maiden name was "French," and it was her grandmother and grandfather who had loved breakfast for dinner.

Darcie, this is quite possibly one of the nicest things anyone has ever said/written to me. As a fellow pet-lover, I'm so sorry to hear about your cat. My thoughts are with you.

If you gave me a mic, this is what you would hear: "Damn it, Blocker." "OK, what should we do next?" "Ouch. Oh, f*$%." And a lot of humming and singing. Yes, folks, I talk to myself. A lot.

Oooooh, fresh focaccia! Would that I worked near a good bakery... One of the best meals anyone has ever made for me was in the middle of one of the oddest hot spells (in the 90's in April) on record in New York. We had fresh-baked focaccia, roasted asparagus and peppers, the most delicious aioli to dip it all in and spread it all with, and a gorgeous bottle of icy wine (don't remember what) to wash it all down. God, that was good. I'm off now to grab lunch at Europa Cafe, just up the street...may do a little window shopping, too. I think a salad is in order, given my breakfast (which I'll post tonight!) and the anticipated pancake-hashbrown-maple-syrup-covered-Gilmore-Girls themed food orgy I'm now undertaking for dinner. Wow, you people are terrible influences.

Tub o' funk -

So, Miles has just chucked me upside the head (virtually, via email) and reminded me that I'm thinking of the Conservatory Garden, not the Central Park Conservancy, which is actually the not-for-profit group that looks after the park. Oops.

You're very welcome, Jenny - I'm glad you're enjoying it! As for Easter, yes, we do have an Easter Parade. Here are some details for you to check out...basically, it's an opportunity for people to wear crazy-ass hats in public. There's also an egg roll in Central Park, which is probably really fun, and beautiful, given that it's near Bethesda Fountain, one of my favorite spots to have coffee on a spring morning. Oh, now I'm sad that I didn't take you all to Central Park... Definitely try for a Babbo reservation - they're relatively easy to get, especially in the middle of the week. Just try to call the first or second day they're available (they only book a month in advance), and you should be fine.

Definitely a possibility, Karen...the weather could have caused the delay, but it certainly shouldn't have caused the lack of change or the mess-up on the egg - and I also forgot one thing, which was that the food came without a receipt, and the delivery guy had to call the shop to find out what the price was. Given the incredibly high level of service I've experienced in their stores, my guess is that the kinks in the delivery service just haven't been worked out yet. I did call them to check on the delivery, and they were very nice about it...but no offer of a comp. Then again, I'm too nice, and would never let them know how mad I really was. That's the thick-skinned, overly proud Yankee in me.

Holy crap. I think I'd have to run that one by the cardiologist. And I don't even have a cardiologist. Yet. That said, I do have some fingerling potatoes left from Saturday night...so maybe a homemade hashbrown/mini-latke could be in the offing. Keep it coming, people, keep it coming. You guys are amazing.

Pop Tarts, of course! (Untoasted, in honor of season 1 when the toaster broke and Lorelei compared it to living in hell ...) Megan, this is a great blog. I'm enjoying looking at your life from up this way. You've got quite a gift! Your blog is making me miss a couple of things about being 25 again and one is the ability to whoop it up all night and recover in a few hours. Keep on going, girl! Fab. ← OMG, Pop Tarts!!!! Maybe those can be the starter... Thanks, FFB - next time you're in New York City, I'll be sure to share some recovery tips with you. Till then, repeat after me - water, ibuprofen, sleep, water, ibuprofen, Diet Coke. I'm telling you - magical.

Smith, that is such an awesome story...I mean, I love garlic, but I don't think even I could have eaten that fondue sauce. Thank you for the compliments. It's so nice to hear that you all think I'm on the right track. I have a tendency to think I'm way behind when it comes to most things in life, so if my cooking skills are doing ok, that's one less thing to worry about. And thank you, Lucy and Rachel - I've loved doing this blog, and I'm so glad you enjoyed reading it...both of you are such wonderful writers, and having both of you say you like what I've been doing is very flattering. And, Lucy, I'm glad you liked your chicken Milanese, too!

No probs, Susan...I actually have this model, which was a Christmas gift this year from my friends Nick and Louisa. I'd heard mixed things about it on eGullet, but it's worked perfectly for me. I love playing with fire! Actually, when I called Louisa to say thank you, she mentioned that she was a bit apprehensive about giving me the torch, because I have a tendency to be a little...accident prone. You might call it clumsy. In fact, I have had two clumsy moments since the beginning of the blog - I smashed a water glass on the first morning, as I was on my way out the door to meet my mother for breakfast. This is why I buy the $2.00 water glasses from Pottery Barn. Then, as I was cutting up the sweetbreads, I dropped my knife , but it landed, without incident, a few inches from my feet. I rarely cut myself while cooking, but I manage to break stuff (not bones - glasses, plates, etc.) all the time. It's funny, too - I feel so graceful and in control when I cook, and then it's all "blam!" There goes a wine glass...

Thanks, Ellen! And thanks, Danielle. I don't usually eat so much for dinner...don't know why I was so hungry. I think I stretched my stomach at Babbo. I'm off to bed now, but am thinking about breakfast tomorrow...an egg sandwich of some kind is in my future, I think. As per your request, of course. Anything people would like to see me eat for lunch or dinner tomorrow? I'm thinking of making breakfast for dinner tomorrow night, in celebration of Gilmore Girls - I feel like they would eat breakfast for dinner. Pancakes or french toast, people? Let me know what you think...

Dinner tonight was another one of my all-time favorites...chicken Milanese. I really love making it, even though it dirties more dishes than a lot of my other weeknight meals. I start out by pounding a chicken breast with my trusty rolling pin - the one I learned to make pie crust on! Since I freeze chicken breasts individually in Ziploc bags, I just pound it in the bag. I let the chicken hang out for a few minutes while I make the salad to go on top of the finished dish...it should be tomatoes, red onion and argula, but since I have three romaine hearts in the fridge, romaine it is! Usually I make a lemon vinaigrette for this dish, but since I still have dressing left over from Saturday's dinner, I just used that instead. Next up, I rinsed and patted the chicken dry, then dipped it in three things: flour seasoned with salt and pepper, egg mixed with a little water, and bread crumbs mixed with parmaggiano reggiano, minced parsley, and minced garlic. I cook the chicken up in a skillet with a little vegetable oil - it takes about two minutes per side or so to get nice and golden brown... I was feeling really hungry tonight (though I think my eyes were bigger than my stomach, since I'm now really full), so I made a small dish of capellini with garlic, olive oil and hot peppper flakes to go along with the chicken... I really do love this chicken - the hot chicken with the cold salad is just such a nice, satisfying combination. It's not too heavy, and yet it's the ultimate comfort food. Plus, it's all meant to be eaten together, and I really enjoy a mix of textures. And, since I have three leftover cremes hanging out in the fridge, I figured I'd better do a little brulee-ing! Here's the before: And the after... Ugh, so full...

How true, my teetotaling friend. I must have been thinking of someone else.

Ask and ye shall receive, my lovelies! See above!

So, when we left off last night, I was gobbling up the apple cake I'd purchased at Martha Frances yesterday afternoon. It was very yummy - not the prettiest cake ever, but tasty. The top had a nice, flaky crumb to it, and the cake underneath was dense and moist, but not cloyingly sweet. Not a bad way to end an evening. So, this morning it was off back to work...I had a bit of a train snafu (so much for the eG foodblog transit karma) and so ended up being five minutes late instead of the planned fifteen minutes early. So, no trip to the coffee cart this morning. Instead, I partook of the thoroughly average coffee at work. We have one of those brew-by-the-cup machines - I'm partial to the Columbian brew, which has a "Strength Level" of four out of five. Oh, yeah - it's a coffee lover's paradise. The best part of work-food is that the fridge on each floor is stocked with soda. You know how I feel about my Diet Cokes... For lunch today, as promised, I ordered delivery from Starwich! My colleague Madhurima ordered with me - she got the softshell crab BLT, and I got the duck confit sandwich. Madhurima is a nursing mother and is therefore forgiven for whisking her sandwich away before I could photograph it. Here's what mine looked like, all spread out on the desk: My sandwich was pulled duck confit, and was served on ciabatta with three-sprout salad, young pickles, and garlic-pommery mustard dressing (I don't like boiled eggs, and asked that they leave them off). I loved it - the pickles gave a nice crunch, and the dressing was delicious. The duck was moist and flavorful, and the bread had stayed resonably crispy and even warm on its trip over from Lexington. I was not surprised that the sandwich was so good, given my earlier experiences at Starwich. However. I was really disappointed with the service. We ordered at 12:30, and our sandwiches did not arrive until after 2:00. And when the delivery man finally arrived, he had no change whatsoever. I would much rather have spent ten minutes walking there and back than waiting an hour and a half for lunch. Plus, they put an egg on the sandwich, even though I asked for none - there was only one, and I get the feeling that whoever made the sandwich realized that the order said "no eggs" and took off what they'd put on, but missed one. I will definitely go back to Starwich, but I don't think I'll order delivery again. So, now I'm home and gearing up for dinner...which I should probably make soon, because I'm a starvin' marvin.

I would beg to differ ← Yeah, but you have, like, a hollow leg. I mean, I have a pretty decent tolerance, but Pegu can put me under the table pretty damn quick. Gets Mr. Deragon a little tipsy, too. Sorry, John (ducks and runs).