A Cheese to take Winter Away

The weekend before the coldest week thus far in Brooklyn, we went into Bklyn Larder, asking Liam as we made our way to the cheese counter, "what kind of cheese do you want?" and he replied, "a cheese to take away winter." We passed this on to the cheese guy, and because people at Larder are kind and fun and whimsical and love cheese, he gave us suggestions.

We started with a few that had been paired with Brandy recently - Wildspitz, a raw cow and goat that was funky and creamy and had the most delicious texture and weirdest aftertaste that we were immediately smitten. Following we tried Coolea, something about gouda style and Ireland and a rich orange glow that also ended up in our bag. Before we left, we made a quick swoop for some Gruyere, say, 14 oz of it, with visions of fondue in our heads.

On an evening with our electric heat on and darkness that fell at 4:50, Liam took the lead in heating the Austrian wine, shredding the gruyere (and emmental that we picked up later for texture), and stirring it all together to pair with the carrots and potatoes that I'd steamed earlier, along with local granny smith, a few cornichon and half of a baguette. Except for the part where we didn't get the Sterno and set up the pot and attempted to keep it from congealing in the pan pictured above, it was incredible - cheesy without being too boozy, creamy without being too stringy, covering the potatoes like the silkiest raclettes we had in France. It was delicious enough that I brought it to work the next day, sitting in a meeting with a spoon and knife fishing hunks of cheese out of the separated liquid and inspiring envy from my staff - just the way to take winter away.

Best Eats: Mid-Summer

With 3 weeks before I'm faced with a full staff of teachers and 6 until students, I figured it was time to capture the best eats I've had thus far this summer. Last week's Blue Hill dinner was, of course, fantastic, but there have been some other highlights as well.

Our return to Oakland was full of delicious bites - from eating Frog Hollow peaches and Recchuitti caramels on Becky and Chris' back porch to enjoying a glass of Sardinian white and a cheese plate at Adesso, good food and good friends. Jasmine and I had greatness at Commis, bar seating, with 6 courses of thoughtful dishes (beet soup with unripe pickled strawberries?), a return to the anchovy-amazingness of Dopo's house pie and her apricot dessert (along with Mat and Jennifer's cherry one) at our chilly 4th of July cook out.

By myself I've embarked on rediscovery, enjoying a grilled cheese with sun dried tomatoes, basil and caciocavello cheese at Ground Support, reading a Laurie Colwin book with a bag from Anthropologie tucked underneath the wide wood table. I've tried twice for Earl Grey at the Van Leewan ice cream truck and have come up with mint chocolate chip instead. After dropping an out of town friend off in Williamsburg, I parked illegally outside Saltie to get two chocolate nudges and a lavendar shortbread and we inhaled at the movies. Mornings find me sifting, whisking and enjoying Kama matcha with white toast and fresh butter.

Liam and I shared an old favorite, Fenton's Black and Tan (above) on the 4th and have delved into new and old favorites back in New York as well. One night it was banh mi, sweating upstairs at Num Pang, another, we slid into stylish seats at Balaboosta and dredged fried olives through labneh. This week, we re-visited the bigger and better Tanoreen and after gorging ourselves on our favorite mezze, ordered the "large" knafeh which is one of the best desserts I've had all summer. Shredded filo dough baked over two types of cheeses and comes to the table melting, crispy and just a hint of rosewater deliciousness. Dessert leftovers - the best kind!

My love affair with Pantaleo continues, and enjoyed it this week on a pole bean salad at Franny's, and hope to use it in salads for two gatherings here next week - which, looking at the forecast, will both involve salads -hopefully as good as the ones I had at Bebe's bday party in Pittsfield!

Vacation is over, summer hours continue, trying to soak in all of the heat and sun now so we can complain less come December, although today I think I just need to drink some water.

As we patiently await the arrival of spring, we're pretending in small ways - sitting in the car in the sun to pretend it's warm, cooking with canned tomatoes to try and create summer, and of course - eating ice cream. We've been frequenting a pan-asian coffee shop of sorts in Ft. Greene for Vietnamese coffee (my absolute smoky sweet favorite) and a pot of chai, and this visit we ordered ice cream sandwiches - one espresso with chocolate chip and two ginger with ginger. Amazing. The crunch of chocolate chips with espresso and the cool spice of ginger sent me beyond snow, snow and more snow and a bit closer to the sweaty nights in our building in the summer where I give in and turn the AC on all night. Almost.

Around the block this fall (favorites)

I knew it was bad when I turned on my personal computer and I hadn't run the virus thing since August 3 - which would also be the last time I'd listened to Good Food. Updated three months worth to listen to during the trip home and in the end, listened to just one.

Inspired by Fall Favorites, what I've been eating when I haven't been trying to get this whole school thing off the ground. We tried a new place in the neighborhood for breakfast (pictured), where the goat cheese and walnut frittate was pretty good and the cappuccinos decent as well. I've been spending a small fortune on each visit to Brooklyn Larder, especially on the quadra bufala cheese - buffalo milk from a talleggio-maker. Yum. Also picked up goat milk caramels with buckwheat (not "pretty," as they were described, but definitely interesting), fantastic fennel/parmesan cheese for Thanksgiving Day lunch (along with more cheese and meats for everyone else) and a semolina/fennel/raisin loaf that I toasted in its entirety within 12 hours.

Within a span of two weeks I ate the veggie dog at Bark no less than 6 times, most of the times accompanied by cheese fries. The buttery toasted bun, the mushroom topping, the pickled mayo, the hot dog that tastes like someone spent time making something delicious...it was worth it.

I've been cooking up whole grain foods to keep me going through the weeks thanks to 101 Cookbooks - whole grain chili, thai pumpkin soup, and caramelizing spicy popcorn to get me through the week.

Last weekend Sara and I went to New Amsterdam Market where we sampled our hearts out and walked out with a crispy crusted cranberry walnut loaf, a carton of white heirloom cranberries, cider jelly that's been made the same way for 100 years, a few hunks of cheese (tomme-style and cloth bound cheddar) and a belly full of sampled coffee, chocolate, and fat oysters.

We topped that off with lobster rolls to celebrate her birthday.

Ate my piece of leftover apple pie with cheddar today and just had a cup of matcha and extra sweet potatoes are roasting in the oven. Maybe that gingerbread from NYT. Maybe some cranberry muffins. Maybe back to Larder for more bread for toast.

Cafe Pedlar

Saturday now means Saturday School, children arriving in their uniforms but with the Saturday addition of sneakers, some with tea in their hands, some still with sleep in their eyes even though we start more than two hours later than a regular school day.

Saturday meant brunch with another principal to compare notes, a plate of jalapeno cheese grits with eggs and tortillas and black tea to cut the chill of the suddenly-fall day. We went separate ways and I remembered a foodie email about Cafe Pedlar.

I looked at my phone. I searched on my map. I realized I was standing right next to it.

Because I had no camera on me, just a bag with a computer, calendar and another full of reading assessments, I took the picture from the foodie email. Olive oil cake soaked in such grassy sweetness. A decaf cappuccino with milk rendered so artistically on top I felt twice as badly adding a dollop of turbinado sugar.

I left with a pretzel roll placed across the reading tests. Highly recommended in aforementioned email I was curious - my choices were sesame or poppy (I chose the former) and the whole thing was so slender I wondered about paying 2.50.

I bit into it last night and loved the absence of salt that takes over your mouth with an actual pretzel, although I yearned for a touch of it with the sweet roll and sweet cream butter, I almost wished I ate it with the smoky roasted cappuccino. It was taking the place of a lazy Saturday dinner though, so I ate it up and just drank water instead.

So good I'm almost tempted to hop back on the F train today to try it again, lest my weekends become a bit too predictable.

Belcourt Brunch

We missed brunch in Paris, trying to re-create it with courses of yogurt and muesli, pancakes, and some purchased croissants. It ended up looking more like Swedish breakfast. Our first week together in Brooklyn this fall, it was straight to brunch a few blocks from here.

Bellinis with maple, omelettes with squash and fresh cheese, biscuits and grits with it all, we were gladly American again.

As the months have passed, we've rarely branched out - who wants to travel further than a few blocks on a weekend morning (especially one peppered with snow or wind)?

Then I read on Tasting Table about a brunch place that had "reasonable" prices and took reservations. Somewhere in between the "house made labneh" and "home made biscuits with fresh ricotta, raw honey and preserves" I decided we would brave the slow Sunday F train to get there.

Early birds were there long before Belcourt opened, but despite the trek and snow flurries it met our highest expectations. Those biscuits were a definite, as well as the labneh, and Liam ordered Croque Madame while I had the salt cod hash with poached eggs and harissa pictured above.

It was like Paris - tarnished mirrors and tin bathroom walls and tight seating and harissa sprinkled in, but also with the luscious biscuits and ricotta and brunch feel that we missed.

I know, I know - it's been 8 months for me, and a few less for Liam - but we still feel really grateful for brunch. Even when it's not in Brooklyn.

Brooklyn Food Adventure: Middle Eastern Food on Atlantic Avenue

In between Urban Outfitters and Trader Joe's, there's a street of Middle Eastern grocers, pastry shops, nut and candy stores and fantastic cafes. Sara did the research and we enjoyed a morning full of old favorites (the pastry with the stringy cheese in the middle on top of a sev-like sweet soaked in syrup that you microwave that I first had on my Other Side of Palestine tour) and new treats (Yemeni food pictured above).

The Yemen Cafe was worth our wait (we had great Turkish coffee and Arabic tea across the street first). Molten hot pots of beans and tomatoes simmering, the largest hunk of fresh baked bread (pictured above), a smear of babaghanoush and cup after cup of a dark black, sage and sweetened tea, yum.

Our adventure ended with pockets full of fresh pitas, pistachio halva, and some date cream with almonds. One shopkeeper told me to eat the halva with a banana (new to me), which I haven't gotten to try yet, but look forward to.

For now, the goods are on the table for some Turkish-like breakfast each day.

Next up: Arthur Avenue for Italian and Jackson Heights for Indian.

Sara may need to quit her day job and start leading tours!