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That location is now called Morgenstern's Bananas, and it looks to be a soft-serve concept...

I'm sure it's (V L) good (though I've never tried it), and I can walk around the corner to one of their shops, but if I were to walk to their shop on Ludlow Street, I'd just walk another 1/2 block and have Il Laboratorio's gelato. My problem with Van L might be encompassed by this: Both McConnell's and Il Lab are still basically small company held.

Ice cream mentioned in above post...still some of our favorite, and available from a bodega around the corner.

Giving a couple of "modestly priced" Balsamic vinegars a try...these are IGP, not DOP, so while not top, top quality, supposedly quite good. The 3 gold medals - on the left: (tried this one last night on some Vanilla ice cream - it was quite good). Made from sweet, sundried grapes and aged in oak barrels. The aromas and flavors of plum jam and red fruits blend with hints of honey and vanilla, creating a dense and sweet product. Ideal as a fresh dressing for both savory and sweet dishes. The one on the right: Aged for a long time in acacia barrels, it offers a deeply aromatic flavor with scents of ripe fruits, accompanied by notes of tobacco, roasted coffee, and hints of wood and honey. Giusti

Spring Brings New Businesses to Commercial St.

I saw mostly 4 for $5 in my walk thru Chinatown yesterday, a slightly better price, but definitely smaller specimens. I didn't get over to the stands where your favorite stuff is (Canal?); I was only as far north as Hester Street.

The 4-packs of Ataulfo mangoes are nice quality (so far). And not bad at $6, as they are a nice size.

I always thought pasta was clean, no? Last night: Seared ahi tuna (saku block) from Great Alaska, ikura, avo, cherry tomato, gari over trfny rice (koshihikari).

This time and temp worked quite nicely...I thought the duck was moist enough, and quite tender. I crisped the skin in the steam girl for about 20 minutes. Served with baby lima beans and a salad. These were Moulard legs.

I think the strangest and most glaring omission from the Serious Eats article is that he takes no time distinguishing amongst the various types of duck available to us. D'Artagnan alone sells at least 4 breeds... Rohan Moulard Muscovy Pekin

According to the revised edition of Paula's book, she suggests: 180℉ for the following times, depending on what kind of duck one might be cooking... At least 8 hours for Moulard, 9 for Muscovy, and 5 - 6 for Pekin. In general: Muscovy ducks are larger, and the meat is more gamey with less fat. A Moulard duck is a cross between a Muscovy drake and a Pekin hen, and has a hefty breast. And from Serious Eats: Cooking Temperatures for Sous Vide Duck Confit 140°F (60°C) for 20 to 40 hours Firm texture across the time spectrum, more like roast duck. Good, but not like confit. 155°F (68°C) for 20 to 40 hours Incredibly silky and moist; completely fork-tender. The best were the 36- and 40-hour samples, which were difficult to distinguish. 170°F (77°C) for 8 to 40 hours The meat falls from the bone the most easily, but there's a noticeable chalky dryness in the 20- to 40-hour samples. Shorter cooking times produced duck that was slightly drier and less tender than the 155°F samples. A decent option if time-saving is critical; otherwise, not the best.

So, I have two duck legs, cured overnight, and I'm probably gonna do sous vide for, I dunno, 6 or 7 hours. Just read this piece, wherein the author does mention... I have both Wolfert books mentioned above (I'm sure I'm not the only one, and both are well tattered) and have often used Paula's method for sous vide confit, from the revised edition. But based on the Serious Eats piece, I think I'm gonna go for a temp in the 170 range, for 7 hours or so, and see what happens.

A couple of recent bottles... \ A lovely Nebbiolo that went well with a mushroom pasta. 2010 was considered a great year in Piedmont, and while I'd love to be drinking a Barolo, this Nebbiolo was just fine. With shrimp and scallops last night... Kermit Lynch is the importer, and you usually can't go wrong with those wines. A lovely Chenin, which is one of our favorite grapes.

Pan-seared wild Gulf (of Mexico) shrimp, Hokkaido scallops, salad. Rice, too.

Yes, the size of small cherry tomatoes, and around the size of a Goya Queen olive...