eG Foodblog: phaelon56

[phaelon56]

Saturday lunch - didn't eat one. Headed to Rochester, 90 minutes west by car, to meet with a friend for coffee and dinner. Had latte and rugalah at the Spin Cafe on Park Ave. Way better than average latte - apart from using cups that are a bit too large for the proper espresso/milk ratio, these guys really have their act together. Just order some extra shots or request less milk as I did. The rugalah had an apricot and mini chocolate chip filling. The twain should never meet. Bizarre - we did not finish it.

Dinner at the new Mamasan's location. Thai-Viet food and I think they've gone downhill just a bit. My entree was ordered spicy and was mild at best. No shredded pork included in the fresh spring rolls (huh?) and the iced coffee with condensed milk was brought to the table premixed. Worst of all.... sour curry is no longer on the menu.

Fresh Spring Rolls

Sweet and Spicy Vegetables with Pork

Finished off the leftovers from last night's pint of Edy's vanilla ice cream late tonight with a bit of butterscotch syrup and lots of what germ piled on top. Mmmmmm.....

[phaelon56]

My early morning nosh this Sunday was a banana. I'm out of espresso beans and won't roast until this afternoon. Might need to make a trip to my local microroaster for a half pound - have company coming for dinner with Italian influenced food in mind - have GOT to have cappuccino's for after dinner!

I'll make a proper omelet a bit later but in the meantime.... here's what my kitchen and dining room REALLY looks like. Not so humongous as the realtor's super wide angle lens made it appear in the first photos but it is a really nice space to work in. The previous owner enclosed a seasonal porch at the rear of the house and opened the wall - it added eight feet of depth to the space. He then removed the wall between the kitchen and dining room, put in French doors (excuse me... those would be "Freedom doors"... ahem) on the rear wall of the dining area and added a deck that they open onto. The peninsula cabinets have loads of space and it's topped by a 30" x 70" butcher block top salvaged from an old restaurant kitchen prep table. The dishwasher is tucked away next to the fridge - it's an odd bird - only 24" wide 'cause that's all that would fit.

The space between kitchen and dining area was a load bearing wall - a steel support column was required that extends from the header beam down to the basement floor. It was encased it in a recycled old wooden column - needs a bit of refinishing just as the butcher block top did but it's a nice touch. Just as well that he played it safe with wall support - this house was built in 1925 and is still darn close to plumb and square on the inside - no sense letting it start to settle now.

There's an abundance of halogen lighting - cheesy looking track light cans but they do the job. Very cool is the fact the space where my stove sits was actually crafted for a commercial range! At some point, if I can swing it, I'll get a much better range but a duct hood is the first thing on my list - the stove is on an outside wall so this won't be too difficult to accomplish. I may sacrfice the window on the wall and a bit of counter space if I pursue my plan to add a master bath upstairs and a first floor laundry below it as the addition will be in that back corner area.

In the meantime... I'm having a ball cooking in a real kitchen after four years in a place that had 30" of counter space and an old harvest gold 24" apartment size gas range.

View from the dining room into the kitchen

View towards the rear of the kitchen

View towards the work area - this is where the real action takes place - espresso preparation!

By the way.... yes that's an oriental rug in the work area. Can you tell that I no longer have children in the house? (she comes to visit but she never cooks!). I just love the way it looks with the wooden floors and I'm tidy enough to have no concern about spillage issues with the rug. It's a machine made wool job from back in the day when the machine made rugs were nicer than the ones available today. I'll be adding a larger used Bokhara ( a real one) that matches it in order to have some cushioning in the large empty floor area towards the rear of the kitchen. That expenditure is further down the long list.

[phaelon56]

I don't know where the rest of y'all are but I'm done with breakfast and off to do some food shopping, paint a room and all that good weekend stuff.

I had company for all the previous meals on this blog but breakfast this early AM was a serene solo affair. Cooked up thick cut slices of the Sweet Grass Farms bacon I bought yesterday at the farmer's market. Hickory smoked, grass fed, no nitrates or preservatives and no antibiotics or hormones. I overcooked it a tad but it's the best bacon I've ever eaten - can't wait to buy some ribs from these folks when smoking season is here.

Roasted up one of the red peppers in the broiler (they were 2 for $1 at the market - Wegmans is getting $3 per pound!). Most of it went into a garlic, olive oil and caper mixture for later use but I sliced up a few pieces along with some broccoli and super sharp cheddar (this one is 3X - not the 5X I bought yesterday). Tossed it all in an omelet. Haven't made one in awhile and due to a combination of overstuffing and rusty technique - busted it wide open when flipping to the plate. It was tasty enough but I like bolder flavors to complement the eggs - herb flavored feta crumbled feta with caramelized onions and a smidgen of flaked lox is my favorite.

That's maple cream on the toast - a consistency about like cool room temp butter or just a bit firmer. It's very sweet but very tasty - best spread very thin.

In the pan

On the plate

[jogoode]

That's maple cream on the toast - a consistency about like cool room temp butter or just a bit firmer. It's very sweet but very tasty - best spread very thin.

Hey, that sounds really good. What's in it, just syrup and cream?

[Suzanne F]

:jealous: Beautiful kitchen and dining!

:jealous: Great photos of the market! :jealous:

[docsconz]

Owen, Greaat job! I particularly like the market pics and discussion. That breakfast doesn't look half bad - actually quite good.

Maple cream doesn't actually have any cfream in it. It is maple syrup boiled down to a thicker, spreadable consistency. Boiled further it becomes maple sugar and candy.

[Squeat Mungry]

Great-looking breakfast, Owen! Even the split in the omelet looks elegant. Thanks for the great blog. I'm consumed with jealousy of your home. Even at non-wide-angle, I think my entire tiny apartment could fit in your kitchen!

Thanks for the photos of the Farmer's Market, too. At those prices, I think you should consider building the master bath/laundry addition out of potatoes!

Cheers,

Squeat

[phaelon56]

Quick Sunday afternoon update:

Did some food shopping and returned home. Unpacked the very last item - a two pack of some special much higher than average grade EVOO from Bertolli. It was a BJ's Club "limited edition" (supposedly) and at a great price - one bottle of filtered and one straight unfiltered, both cold pressed. I pulled off the plastic wrapper and one bottle had leaked a bit around the neck - slid straight through my hand and smashed to bits on the hardwood floor - insert multiple expletives here.

After an extensive cleanup.... I rewarded myself with a small bowl of Cape Cod Sea Salt and Vinegar potato chips. I tried eating the Lay's Baked chips for awhile and reached the conclusion that I'd rather eat really good regular chips in smaller amounts much less frequently than tolerate the fakeness of the "baked" product. My typical beverage between meals is just water - we happen to have really good tap water here - as good or possibly better than the tap water in NYC. I do like to put about one third cranberry juice in the glass to spruce it up on occasion.

Quick trip to Freedom of Espresso to get beans. They opened as "Federal Espresso", were taken to court by you know who.... changed the name to "Ex-Federal Espresso.... off to court again.... and the name is now quite apt. I'll visit there on the way to work a few mornings this week.

Notice the white streaks in the pic? That's snow coming down in a 25 mph wind.

Wegman's: those of you in the Northeast have likely heard of it or shopped there but for those unfamiliar with it, the biggest, newest Wegman's location are way above average in terms of selection and quality for a mainstream grocery store. Even in a small city like Syracuse you'll find an incredible selection of both regular and organic produce.... some less than common items like white truffles ($199 per pound - is that a good price? I have no idea).... an artisan style commercial bakery.... and the list goes on. I attempted to discreetly snap some pics but was shut down by an employee - it's strictly verboten.

Outside the store - yes it's snowing like heck on March 21st - winter lasts about five months in Syracuse - it's no wonder houses are so cheap around here! (my entire house cost less than some eGulleteers spend on a kitchen remodel).

The entrance opens into a huuuuuuge produce department - my favorite part of the store.

Here's the front end of the bakery. Good focaccia and rustic breads - the brick oven comes from italy and they bring Italian tradesmen over to assemble these. Too bad I got shut down by the pastry and dessert case - they have some really nice stuff.

[Jake]

Looks like a great grocery store!

I'm with you on the chips. I'd rather have the real full taste version of anything in smaller amounts than try and be satisfied with a lesser imitation.

(Written while eating some lovely guacamole and full fat chips.)

[phaelon56]

(Written while eating some lovely guacamole and full fat chips.)

If you haven't already tried them... check out the "Golden" tortilla chips. I think they're either Dorito or Tostido brand. I had a party awhile back and put out two bowls of chips with the guacamole - one "Golden" and one baked (which are actually way better than baked potato chips although they're better with salsa than with guac). End of party: Golden are long gone and no one ate the baked.

[Jake]

Never tried them -- but I will now! Thanks.

[fifi]

Those "golden" tortilla chips make the best chilequiles. It is a texture thing. I got hooked on chilequiles for breakfast while doing some work in the Tampico area and their corn tortillas are thicker than normal. For the Jaymes quick method for chilequiles, goldens rock.

I wonder what the deal is with not allowing pictures? I am wanting to take some pictures in this awesome Fiesta Mart here and intend to go talk to the manager about it before I do anything.

Cool blog.

[suzilightning]

owen

great food pix.

where in 0cuse is the farmers market? i would kill for some of that cheese...

i work with a guy from there and at his house warming party he introduced some north jersey neophytes to salt potatoes. also syracuse is the furthest east you can get commercially produced kummelweck for beef on weck(luckily i so know how to bake 'em myself).

love wegmans. have actually eaten in the original store in greece - actually dragged john there and you should have seen him when we walked in...

most stores do not allow photographing, taping - audio or video in their stores. don't know why but just about all down here have a notice posted at the front entry.

unfortunately any of the regular chips set off john's ibs so he has learned to enjoy pretzels and baked chips - particularly if i can find the kind with kc bbq sauce on them. then he is a happy man

looking forward to the next entry

[phaelon56]

The farmer's market is at the Regional Market near the Carousel Center mall adjacent to Rte 81 and the new Transportation Center (combined bus and train station).

We do have the Lay's baked chips in KC barbecue in this area but another type that some folks really like is the Wise ripple Dinosaur Barbecue chips.

Had a sort of Italian theme for dinner today and watched the Sopranos afterward with my guest.

Appetizers: Marinated roasted sweet red peppers and mini baguette with herbed dipping oil and green olives

Salad: Baby arugula mix with extra watercress, dijon vinegarette and toasted almond encrusted goat cheese medallions.

Pasta: Linguini with fresh basil pesto

Main: Eggplant rollatini with hybrid sauce - fresh plum tomatoes and herbs thinned with a bit of Merlot and some Barilla marinara from a jar. Sauce was terrific but the stuffing of the rollatini was a bit dry. I use a mix of part skim ricotta with small curd low fat cottage cheese to keep the fat grams under control. This time I added 1/3 tofu but used the firm style - should have used the soft. Regardless... it was tasty and not bad for my first attempt at rollatini (I winged it and just used my typical lasagne cheese mixture).

After dinner: keeping it light - a latte for each of us and a few pieces of maple sugar candy. Mmmmmm....

I will be so sorry when the blog is over because I just never eat this well this often at home!

[phaelon56]

Monday breakfast:

I don't usually eat more than a banana or a quick bowl of cereal in the early AM but with this being my week in the spotlight, as it were, something a bit more interesting seemd appropriate.

Stonyfield Farms lowfat plain yougurt with half an orange diced and some Polaner real fruit preserves (no sugar added - just fruit juice for sweetener). I throw in some toasted wheat germ for crunchies and it's really good. Using the plain yogurt gives some control over the sweet/tart ratio and I can keep some zing in the bowl - it's not too sweet.

Tonight: coffee roasting

Later in the week: a trip to my favorite local Vietnamese restaurant, Polish restaurant, Pasta's Daily Bread...... drum roll please.... Dinosaur BBQ!.

[docsconz]

I was going to ask if you eat like this all the time, but you beat me to it!

[alacarte]

Owen, your lattes look just divine. And I love your espresso corner in your lovely new kitchen.

(P.S., my kitchen is about the size of your espresso corner!)

"Freedom of Espresso" is a clever name for a coffee shop!

The greenmarket is lovely. When visiting a friend in Albany recently, he took me over to the indoor greenmarket in Troy -- they have nothing on your market.

But they did have a farmer selling emu meat.

[JennyUptown]

Lucky guest (re: Sunday)! Your meal looked lovely.

I have been trying to arrange an Italian-themed Sopranos-watching potluck party for a few weekends from now.

[phaelon56]

Yeah... after two dinners at my house, my guest has now offered herself up as a guinea pig for an and all new recipe ideas I want to try out. That works for me as I just dont' get around to cooking like this when it's just for myself. I thought of making eggplant lasagna with garlic tomato sauce but the rollatini idea won out (mostly because the lady standing next to me when i was buying the eggplant suggested it).

Eggplant garlic tomato lasagna:

Peel, dice, salt and drain a few eggplant - rinse and then bake on cookie sheets spread out at 350 until it's nicely browned and reduced to almost a creamy texture - stir frequently

Broil a bunch of split plum tomatoes until the skins are charred and fall off easily - throw them into a blender

Add to the blender a big bunch of roasted garlic - dont' be shy on the amount. Blend until smooth.

Layer some "ready to cook" lasagne noodles with the eggplant, the sauce and your cheese mixture of choice and then bake.

It's even better reheated the second or third day than it is on the first. The eggplant and the roasted garlic-tomato sauce arre so pungent and rich that I think one could use some seasoned soft or silky tofu instead of cheese and make a very passable vegan dish with this recipe.

[Jake]

Judging by the menus I don't think you'll have any problem finding guinea pigs!!! Great blog.

[ankomochi]

Owen! It's great blog!! I cannot believe how much cooking you have done so far. Your kitchen is so nice and huge! It's bigger than my apartment.

so, what is the Dinosaur BBQ chips? I have never heard of it before.

What's dinner tonight?

[arbuclo]

Pasta: Linguini with fresh basil pesto

phaelon56, tell me about your pesto. It looks nothing like mine. Just wondering if you make it differently or if it's just because I smother my pasta in pesto when I make it b/c I love pesto so much.

I usually toast pine nuts and throw them into a food processor with olive oil, chile (my own special touch b/c I'm a chilehead), basil, parmesean, salt and sometimes a smidge of lemon juice to keep the colour bright. So I get a paste that I blend through pasta.

[phaelon56]

so, what is the Dinosaur BBQ chips? I have never heard of it before.

They are ripple style potato chips with a BBQ coating that is from a Dinosaur barbecue flavor recipe. Dinosaur BBQ is a very popular local restaurant that ios soon to open a NYC location. I think Wise is the brand and Wegman's sells them in this area. They're not as refined a chip as something like the Cape Cod product but they're the only BBQ chip I've had that doesn't get very tiring after the first few chips. Keep saying all those flattering things and I may just bring a bag to NYC for you

I suppose my pesto isn't real pesto but it's very light. I just used what I had around - some pine nuts, fresh basil and garlic. Toasted the nuts in the skillet, added chopped fresh basil and some olive oil, sauteed for a bit and then added some garlic to wilt it to just before the browning stage. In goes the linguine for a quick toss. It's the first time I've made this but the small chunks of basil, garlic and whole pan toasted pine nuts make for an interesting complement of flavors. It's not the intense experience of pesto paste - this is a more subtle thing with some discreet flavor notes that mingle and jump in and and out. Next time I'll likely triple the amount of basil and leave in the same amount of other ingredients.

[phaelon56]

Monday dinner - finally a visit to the Dinosaur BBQ! Most folks who've been to Syracuse in recent years have made a stop here as it's on most "must do" lists for visitors. The restaurant had its genesis with a few guys who cooked barbecue for their biker friends on occasion and grew that endeavor into a full time business. It still has some biker bar aura in the trappings and any summer night is sure to see a fair number of bikes in front but it has a broad appeal. It would be unfair to categorize the crowd, as Syracuse is a bit too diverse for pigeonholes of that nature. Their appeal seems to cut across all lines and despite having now been around for some years and grown to the point where they do a substantial volume (in a remarkably small space), they still turn out very respectable barbecue.

Success has brought them national distribution for a full line of their own barbecue and hot sauces (I'm particularly fond of mixing the Wango Tango 50/50 with the standard issue Slathering Sauce). I'm no 'cue expert and not in a position to make authoritative judgements on the food but most everything I've had has been to my liking. The ribs and chicken are nicely smoky, the sides and specials are consistently good and the pulled pork is outstanding. It's the best pulled pork I've ever had and remains my favorite item. I tried the barbecue beef brisket on this visit and loved the smokiness but it didn't edge out the best briskets I've had in Texas. Then again... Texas is a few thousand miles away and I'm a picky SOB! In all fairness, I think long time Texas 'cue guys probably have direct connections to some cattle ranches as a source for brisket cuts that just aren't readily available here in the Northeast (a guess on my part).

I suppose I just had to make a very minor nit pick on something lest you think that I'm a shameless shill for the Dino (not that that would be such a bad thing).

Their recent selection to be the catering provider for the annual barbecue event at the Beard House in NYC this summer should speak volumes about the quality and consistency of their food. Good news for NYC eGulleteers - the uopcoming Manhattan location is well on its way to completion in the target location at 131st and 12th Avenue.

It is indeed a small world.... Dino office manager Abigail happens to know me from my time at Coffeegeek, where I helped her out with some info during her exploration into espresso gear. I gave her a heads up about my visit to the restaurant today and I got the VIP treatment - a visit to tableside from her and owner John Stage. I was awarded the dubious title of "That Coffee Guy" (I'll settle for that any day over "Coffee-Boy!). John became attuned to the pleasures of great espresso on an Italy trip not too far back - I think that with a bit of nudging he could cross over in the realms of the espresso-addicted where I happily reside They are both aware of and peruse eGullet from time to time. They even admit to being fans of Fat Guy (it appears that people in Syracuse simply have no shame I'm working through the initial steps of getting John to do a Q & A spot here on the gullet and will keep all posted as we progress on that front.

We had a nice chat; John and I reminisced a bit about the old days of drinking at the N & H grill, which once occupied the exact same spot the Dino now sits in. It was home to the last 25 cent bar pool table in the city, 50 cent drafts and plenty of cheap shots (of the liquid variety - what little conversation took place was friendly enough but it was a drinking man's bar - not a social spot!).

The exterior:

The bar area: (where the original N & H grill used to be)

The front dining room: (where the N & H Luncheonette was - a greasy spoon diner that was connected to the original bar)

The infamous Men's Room graffiti (I'm sure the Ladie's Room is equally well decorated). It's all part of the charm.

Appetizer: Cajun style fried green tomatoes with a buttermilk ranch style sauce to pour on (if desired). These were outstanding - the best rendition I've ever had - peppery coating with just the right amount of crunch and the sweet/tart contrast was remarkable. It just doesn't get any better - at least not for me!

Dinner: Rib sampler (four ribs) and a beef brisket sandwich (I removed the bun but make your own call on this), BBQ beans and Cajun corn as sides.

I was making progress.... I really was....

but a moment later the waitress arrived with a comp item from my new heroes John and Abigail (hey - it's my blog and I can puff up anyone I want to!).

This was a generous sampler of the daily special - chicken that was... if I recall correctly.... brined, done with a jerk style rub, smoked/grilled and then topped with a light peppery, fruity jerk sauce. The larger pieces were deboned before serving and the skin had a gorgeous brown crispiness. It wasn't blistering hot like a Jamaican jerk but offered a great blend of contrasting flavors and textures. I ended up chowing down on this and took home most of my remaining brisket and ribs for the freezer.

Hustled right out afterwards to see "The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind". Incredible movie - funny, romantic and philisophically deep at the same time. It offers some profound observations on the nature of love, remembrance, redemption, forgiveness and acceptance. All that human condition stuff that would come across as heavy handed or angst ridden in lesser hands was entertaining and compelling. See this one and do NOT miss the beginning of the film - it's a necessary precursor to pulling together some final elements.

[JPW]

Phaelon,

Thanks for the visit to Dinosaur. It's one of the few things I miss from my time in upstate NY. (Others being the finger lakes vineyards, cheap molson and cheap golf). I would usually end up in Syracuse (and Dinosaur) about once a year and searched out Dinosaur at whatever local festivals I went to. IIRC, they always showed up at the Utica Blues Fest.