Dosa Do
When you do something enough times, eventually your hands can execute the job without involving your brain. Just a few years ago, when I started trying to teach myself how to play the guitar, I could barely form chords. The notion of being able to transition from one chord to another in any sort of musical way was laughable, at best.
But like all things, the more you do it, the easier it gets. Eventually, it gets so easy, one might even forget it was hard in the first place.
This past weekend I went to take a class on making dosas. For those who are unaware, these are an impossibly thin and crispy south Indian pancake that is typically filled with spiced potatoes. The instructor was a little flabbergasted that anyone would be interested in learning such a dish, because she considered them to be so easy.
I look forward to the day when making dosa is as easy for me as scrambling eggs. But when left to my own devices, what I learned almost led to disaster.
Wine & Cheese
Cheese and wine are two of my great loves. To most people the two are a natural combination, like peanut butter and jelly or milk and cookies. And I recognize how amazing it can be when a wine and cheese come together in perfect harmony, each making the other better than it would have been on its own.
But I must confess, I generally avoid cheese when I’m drinking wine. And if there is a cheese that has captured my desire, most likely I’m enjoying it without wine.
The thing about these two items is that each one actually changes the taste of the other. When I’m drinking wine, I want to experience what the winemaker made, I want to taste the flavors that are in the bottle. Cheese will take away some of the edges, soften some of the tannins. And this can result in a sublime experience, but it’s a different one than what I’m after.
Today’s post is actually not about creating or avoiding these pairings, but rather two unique opportunities to learn more about cheese and wine independently of each other. The best way to learn is always to taste. And there are some great tasting events on the near horizon in the Capital Region.
Read more…
Easy Teasy
Just yesterday I heard that my cousin in Philly got his first iced coffee of the year. With sun and warmer weather, people are finally starting to dig out from winter. Kids are playing outside without their coats and gloves. Seasonal soft serve joints are open.
It’s finally starting to look more like spring. I know, I probably shouldn’t say that too loud. Maybe I should knock on wood. What else can one do after tempting fate?
But I’ve been waiting for the weather to warm up just a wee little bit to share something I learned over the winter. It was so incredible that when I first read about it, I thought it couldn’t be true. And then after testing it out, it was so easy and delicious I felt compelled to share it with the world.
Now that it’s starting to warm up, it’s high time you learned this foolproof way for making the best iced tea you’ve ever had with virtually no effort at all. And no, it’s not sun tea.
AskTP – Fatty
There’s a distinct possibility that I’m in the best shape of my life. It’s a good thing, too, because one of the current household staples is pints of ice cream from Halo Farm. We just recently discovered Peanut Paradise, which is vanilla ice cream with a peanut butter swirl and chocolate covered peanut pieces. Damn, that’s good.
Mrs. Fussy finished it last night. The kids are not going to be pleased.
But I also have a couple cups of clarified butter, some home-rendered lard, and a cup or so of olive oil infused with the flavor of Tonno del Chianti. I’ve been roasting root vegetables in the latter, and man are those good. Oh yeah, and I just finished up the bag of lard chips.
The big question will be if I can keep up this exercise thing when I get back to Albany, or will I revert back to my old ways? Speaking of questions, it’s been a long time since I’ve answered any on the blog. You do remember that I’ve committed to answering all questions asked in the comments section of the blog, provided they use proper punctuation.
So let’s get on with another installment of Ask the Profussor.
Nominations for the Tour de FroYo
Maybe it doesn’t feel like spring, but that probably makes it the perfect time to start thinking about the spring tour. Every year around this time a bunch of FLB readers set off to try and find the best frozen treats the Capital Region has to offer.
At first it was seasonal soft serve, where On the Farm in Latham stole the show. The following year we tackled homemade hard ice cream, and The Ice Cream Man in Greenwich was triumphant. Last year we finally got around to the Tour de Gelato where Villa Italia edged out some seriously good competition.
Now we can finally get to the serious business of comparing all the new fangled FroYo joints.
We’re not interested in the soft frozen yogurt options at seasonal ice cream stands. This isn’t about the homemade frozen yogurt that can be at places like the Snowman either. No. These are the newly tarted up places, many of which are more redolent of discotheques than snack bars, where you can fill an impossibly large cup with tangy yogurt and a dazzling assortment of toppings.
But before we can go any further, it’s time to open up the floor to nominations (and I’m also going to solicit input on a date for reasons I’ll explain in a moment).
The Sweet Taste of Nearly Spring
As long as winter is hanging around and thwarting what could be an otherwise lovely spring, why not make the most of it?
One thing I think some people forget is that these doldrums of winter are high season for maple sugaring. It’s not much of a comfort, I know, when your bones long to be warmed in the sun. But despite the herculean amount of labor involved, more sap equals more syrup, and higher supply invariably helps to keep costs in check.
Maple has become such a staple in our house these days I would hate to think of the financial impact of a bad harvest.
Still, maple isn’t the only thing sweet to be found in the last days of winter’s transition into spring. That is, providing you still have some hardy carrots rattling around in the bottom of your root cellar. Just last night I used this technique to impress one of Little Miss Fussy’s school friends who went back for seconds because my old wintery carrots were “as sweet as sugar”.
Hope Springs Eternal
What’s a long endless winter without a little bit of death and despair?
Earlier this week I heard the tragic news that Caffe Vero will be closing shortly. When they opened their doors a few years back, this was the first and only place to find a reliably decent shot of espresso. All of their shots were double ristrettos, and they knew how to properly texture milk with an abundance of microfoam.
Sure, they made drinks to their own standards. That meant those looking for a traditional macchiato or cappuccino might be put out by the volume of microfoam. But they had all the right components, and their macchiato never failed to put a smile on my face. That’s no easy task.
Since then, other shops have opened to answer the call of espresso lovers in the Capital Region. Tierra makes a mean cortado and the Lucas Confectionery is putting their classic machine to good use pulling shots of Blue Bottle beans.
But with Vero’s closing, there are a few great opportunities for those willing to seize on them.
The Hoagie List
Eating isn’t something I do for sustenance. It just happens to be an additional side benefit. Eating is something I do for adventure. It’s something I do for camaraderie. But at the end of the day, it’s all about pleasure.
There are lots of healthful ways to find pleasure in food. Knowing where your food comes from and meeting the people who grow it adds to your pleasure. Creating a plate of vibrant colors, representing the local seasonal bounty of produce is certainly pleasurable too.
But there is no debating the raw power of human physiology when it comes to the effects of fat, salt, and carbohydrates on the pleasure centers of the brain. Here in Princeton, there is no better way to satisfy these cravings than with a trip to Hoagie Haven. They take all that is terrible for you and shove it into a crusty white Italian loaf.
All of their sandwiches are disgusting. But some just weren’t quite worth their calorie load. So I decided to sit down with their menu and create a list of sandwiches that took the best of their raw ingredients to shove into a roll of my own.
I’ve been literally keeping this list in my back pocket for the past two months, and periodically stop in to try one of my creations. Yes, it’s a problem. That means I’m compelled to share.
The Roll of the Sandwich
Next time I’m going to invite more of you out to dim sum in Flushing. The problem was that I didn’t have that much time, and it was good to spend it with my downstate family.
On Albany Jane’s recommendation we went to Jade this past weekend. Good place. Hands down they served the best har gow I’ve had in a long long time. Should you decide to go there, hold out for a table in the main dining room downstairs. Even if that means they will seat you with another party. That’s where the action is, and where a few of the specialty carts tend to remain.
Our time in the city was so short that we didn’t even stick around for dinner. However, the sting of our departure was soothed by promises of banh mi in New Jersey. The place was called Baguette Delite and I really should hop on Yelp to write up something positive.
I was encouraged early on when I learned the name of the restaurant referenced the roll required for their signature sandwich. Because the role of the roll is absolutely critical.
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