HUNGRY GERALD

Among the blessings of HG/BSK’s life in New Mexico are the neighbors that surround HG/BSK. Film producers, historians, poets, artists, scientists, theater folk, etc.. All lovers of life, food and wine. HG/BSK had a splendid dinner with Fred (a scientist and Yachtsman) and Mary (a teacher and authority on theater arts). Appetizer was Marcona almonds and fresh radishes with coarse salt (HG knocked off much icy vodka). Dinner featured pan broiled lamb chops, a warm Middle Eastern puree of garbanzos, broiled tomatoes. Good red wine. Dessert was Mary’s Mom’s bread pudding custard. A wow. Later in the week had an unusual dinner with Karen K. (film producer) and David F. (historian/novelist/educator). Karen posed the question: “Why not have great breakfast food for dinner?” Her response was a dinner of blueberry waffles, plain waffles, rashers of thick cut bacon, New Hampshire maple syrup. All washed down with champagne and orange juice Mimosas. HG/BSK doggybagged some blueberry and plain waffles. Topped the plain waffles with poached eggs for breakfast and finished with blueberry waffles and blueberry jam. Morning joy. HG/BSK’s next door neighbors are Garry and Natasha G. Their acreage produces the best organic vegetables in New Mexico, There is always a long line at Mister G’s, their stand at the Santa Fe Farmers market. All is sold out in a flash. BSK managed to procure a few small heads of escarole that were picked that morning. That night BSK produced a pot of escarole cooked with chicken broth, onions, garlic, parsley, olive oil, red chile flakes. Crisp bacon was added plus lots of grated parmesan. Mister G’s escarole made a big difference. BSK’s kitchen wizardry gave the escarole a savory crunch.

Yes, HG is very fond of duck in all of the delectable bird’s cooked forms. Roast duck. Duck confit (a must in Paris). Peking duck. Barbecued duck in plain spoken Chinese restaurants. Decades ago when HG/BSK lived in spacious rent controlled comfort on New York’s Upper West Side, a foodie paradise, Sunday dinner was a roast duck fresh from the rotisserie in the Bretton Woods Hotel on 86th Street and Broadway. The juicy, crisp skinned quacker was accompanied by BSK’s salad of avocado, red onion and orange slices. An array of cheeses from Zabar’s with Z’s pumpernickel raisin bread. An abundance of red wine. Halvah with port. Sumptuous feast. HG/BSK revisited duck last night in the form of Thai Spicy Duck Salad (check out the recipe by Joshua Bousel on Google). The duck was a breast from D’Artagnan. HG scored the fat side of the breast (cooking left an abundance of duck fat, the perfect medium for lush fried potatoes). HG cut the meat in half and cast iron panbroiled it blood rare for HG and medium for BSK. The Bousel recipe calls for chunks of pineapple in the salad. BSK substituted slices of tangerine. At table, HG/BSK heated the dish up with daughter in law Exquisite Maiko’s Oni Sauce. Duck breast is pricey. Salad might be equally tasty using grilled chicken thighs or thin slices of pork. Will try since this recipe is a warm weather keeper.

The best cookie is Japanese. It is called “Cigare” (it is shaped like a cigar.) It is crisp but unctuous with a slightly sweet buttery flavor. The Cigare grows with intensity as you chew. HG was introduced tn this wondrous pastry by Exquisite Maiko, HG’s talented daughter-in-law and noted Japanese chef. The Cigares are packed in an elegant blue box (lucky HG is gifted with them by generous EM). They are produced by Yoku Moku. HG doesn’t know if this is a name of a person or company but it has a lulling sound and HG sometimes rolls the words around HG’s mouth as if they are an actual confection. Intrigued ? Go to Amazon and type in the words and you can order the Cigares. Warning: They are not cheap. But, worth it. HG consumes a Cigare with the last remnants of dinner wine. Also splendid with a cup of tea.

Last night, before dinner, HG sipped a glass of ice cold Provence rose wine accompanied by six carefully rationed Trader Joe’s Ridge Cut Salt and Pepper Potato Chips. The chips accounted for some 60 calories. Yes, you’ve got to be careful with these chips since they are addictive. They are the best chips in the world. They have the honest taste of freshly fried potatoes. Moreover, they are solidly constructed and the most efficient vehicle for dipping into guacamole, hummus, white bean dip (check out Zabar’s recipe), etc. BSK is disciplined about diet and snacking (one of the secrets of her good looks). But, BSK goes haywire over TJ’s chips. HG has been instructed to hide them in an obscure corner of the pantry to keep them out of BSK’s reach.

Many years ago, HG /BSK dined at Chutney Mary , an Indian restaurant in London. A revelation. Best Indian food ever. On Many subsequent visits to London, HG/BSK made sure to visit Chutney Mary. Never disappointed. One of the CM cooks was Paddy Rawal, then a young man. HG/BSK were unaware that Paddy, after other culinary posts, had moved to Santa Fe and opened a very well regarded restaurant, Raaga. Well, Paddy has continued the CM tradition but with an emphasis on vegetables plus a few southwestern touches. HG/BSK dined there last week with a friend and colleague from BSK’s Colorado environmental battles. (BSK continues to fight in New Mexico for Mother Earth). Meal was spectacular. Highlights were two extraordinary vegetable dishes: Fried spinach salad with warm yogurt dressing and crisp fried okra with pico de gallo (both hot and sweet and totally satisfying). Other vegetable dishes included cauliflower in a garlic tomato sauce (lassoori gobhi) and raaga tikki (an Indian version of eastern European potato “latkes.”). There was a meat dish. Three sublimely tender pink lamb chops in a masala sauce. They were as good as the lamb “popsicles” served at Vij’s, the great Vancouver Indian fusion restaurant. HG/BSK also had mahi mahi in a mustard infused Bombay curry. Great curry. Tasteless fish — the meal’s only flaw. Naan was the best HG ever ate. Drank a well priced malbec. Refreshing desserts of rasmalai and mango ice cream. Yes, followers of Hungry Gerald. There’s more to Santa Fe than green chile and robust Mexican cooking.

As a Bronx youngster, it was obligatory to belong to a SAC (Social Athletic Club). HG’s club was the Hurricanes, SAC. Lots of athletics (basketball, softball, touch football) but not many social activities,just a few modest parties. Members of the Hurricanes sported golden satin jackets with the name of the club on the back and the member’s nickname (HG’s was “Geejay”) embroidered on the front. Unlike the ferocious clubs from the East Bronx — The “Fordham Baldies, “The Golden Guineas”, etc. — the Hurricanes were athletic and studious. There were three future doctors in the club (one was instrumental in proving a one-a-day-aspirin aspirin routine was a heart attack preventive); There were also three future lawyers, a New York State Supreme Court Judge, a leader in the women’s shoe industry, a West Pointer prominent in California defense industries, a dealer in rare books.

As an adult, HG was sponsored by the legendary real estate developer, Samuel J. LeFrak and became a member of Lotos Club. Much enjoyed the historic clubhouse just off Fifth Avenue and the convivial bar and dining room. The Lotos Club was formed in 1870 as a gathering place for men (women were admitted in 1977, more than a hundred years later) in the arts, journalism, theater, etc. The name was derived from the Tennyson poem, “The Lotos Eaters.” The club motto: “They came to a land where it was always afternoon.” The Lotos Club (unlike most other New York “gentlemen’s clubs”) had long been color blind. The late Bobby Short was a prominent member as are jazz artist Wynton Marsalis, Former NYC Mayor David Dinkins and other distinguished African-Americans. Member Mark Twain called Lotos “the Ace of Clubs.” Present day literary members include Novelist/Journalist Tom Wolfe. Many folks from the theater including Renee Fleming, Angela Lansbury, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Christoper Plummer, Peter O’Toole and Elaine Stritch. Among the musicians are Yo Yo Ma and Isaac Stern. Early historic members included Andrew Carnegie and William Randolph Hearst. Since 1947, the Lotos clubhouse has been located at 6 E. 66th Street (a few steps from Fifth Avenue). It is a magnificent building with rich period details, designed by Richard Howland Hunt as a town dwelling for an oil heiress. HG held many festive office parties in its delightful surroundings. Quit when HG/BSK moved to Colorado. No club life until HG/BSK joined Sam’s Club last week. BSK said the Club offered big bargains on summer clothes. Turned out to be true. BSK scored some excellent pants and T-shirts as well as family gifts. HG bought bargain workout shorts. As HG strolled about the mammoth store, food (naturally) was on HG’s mind. Purchased a two-pound package of Member’s Mark Hardwood Smoked Pulled Pork. Modest price. Good natural flavorings. No chemicals, sugars, etc.. BSK cooked it last night. Flanked it with cheesy Geechie Boy stone ground grits and a chopped salad of spring onions and Kumatoes. The pulled pork was enhanced by splashes of Trader Joe’s Carolina Gold barbecue sauce (vinegar and mustard based). Hearty southern meal. Thanks, Sam Walton, for the tasty pulled pork. Thanks, Sam LeFrak, for The Lotos Club.

After Colorado:

BSK was a pioneer in the use of pesto with pasta. BSK made (and still makes) perfect pesto. Strikes the right balance of basil, olive oil, garlic, pignolia nuts and parmigiano. (At times BSK varies it by using flat leaf parsley and walnuts. At Babbo, the famed New York Italian restaurant, the chefs make a broccoli di rabe pesto and serve it with thick pork chops). Decades ago, BSK served spaghetti with pesto to SJ and his young friend. SJ’s pal looked at the dish and exclaimed: “Aa-a-rgh!! Green spaghetti.” Wouldn’t eat it. Last night, BSK defrosted a jar of BSK pesto and served with chopped Kumatoes and boiled fingerling potatoes. Solid, tasty eating. BSK followed it with endive salad in Gorgonzola/mustard dressing. Much green goodness.

SJ, EM, Handsome Haru and Teru, Princess of Cuteness (and artistic creativity), are back safely in Brooklyn after their happy New Mexico visit. SJ and EM regaled HG/BSK with culinary delights but in their absence, BSK is performing the usual wonders in the kitchen. Dinner last night was an example. BSK made HG’s favorite comfort dish: Stracciatella with baby spinach and orzo. This is Italian with a BSK twist. HG first tasted stracciatella at The Italian Pavilion restaurant (long closed) on Manhattan’s posh Upper East Side. The dish was simple. Beaten eggs stirred into hot chicken broth . The trick was to add the eggs slowly so “strings” of egg formed in the broth. The Italian Pavillion served it with parmesan toast. The waiter adorned the dish with grated parmesan and black pepper flakes from a big grinder. Quite lush. BSK adds a variation: Baby spinach, orzo and lots of parmesan are stirred into the broth and egg mix. This gives the soup a filling heartiness equal to a main dish. Thus, HG/BSK had small bowls as starters (the remainder will be tomorrow’s lunch). Main dish was BSK’s version of chicken schnitzel (as served at Santa Fe’s Compound Restaurant). BSK flattened chicken thighs into thin paillards (BSK is skilled in the use of a rubber mallet). Dipped the chicken in beaten egg and then panko crumbs. Fried them in sizzling canola oil. Made a wonderful sauce of virgin olive oil, butter, white wine, lemon juice, dijon mustard and capers. Poured it over the crisp (not greasy) chicken. Sublime.

The diminutive stick of culinary dynamic, HG”s daughter-in-law Exquisite Maiko, is HG’s favorite chef (as noted, her hubby, SJ, is also a dab hand in the kitchen). EM has been delighting fans of her creative Japanese cooking at Brooklyn Smorgasburg, a recent pop up in Manhattan and other venues. But, it is at home that EM’s artistry shines. So, last night EM took over the Viking range in HG/BSK’s New Mexico kitchen and produced a succulent fish dinner. EM started by crisping garlic slices and seaweed in olive oil. Removed them to a paper towel. EM sautéed Petrale Sole in the flavored oil. When lightly browned, EM turned the heat to low and let the fish steam for a few minutes in sake and a dash of soy sauce. Put the fish on a warmed platter. Moistened the filets with the the sake-soy-oil in the pan. Dotted the dish with the crisp garlic slices and seaweed adornments. Accompanied it with highly sautéed and steamed bok choy, spinach and oyster mushrooms. It was a fish dinner whose taste will long linger in HG’s memory.

It’s a delight hanging out with SJ and family. Among the pleasures are the magical dinners turned out by Exquisite Maiko and SJ. Yes, EM is a renowned chef (a star of Brooklyn’s Smorgasburg among other venues). But, SJ also has a mighty arsenal of culinary skills. SJ’s barbecue is splendid. SJ’s pasta dishes are exemplary. HG maintains SJ’s chicken gumbo is his parade dish. Much better than any gumbo served in New Orleans, Charleston, Savannah and other gumbo-centric locales. The basis of a good gumbo is the roux (the slow cooked mix of flour and oil). Burnt or too dark roux makes the gumbo bitter or inedible. SJ is patient and painstaking. His roux is the result of almost 30 minutes of constant stirring until it reaches a lush mahogany color. That’s the base. The other elements are the New Orleans “Holy Trinity”: Chopped celery, green peppers and onions/garlic. Chicken, of course. Stock. Carrots. Okra. Lots of spices. File powder (thickens the gumbo). Slices of Polish kielbasa sausage. Rice. HG has never observed the cooking process closely. SJ may have some secrets. In any case, SJ Chicken Gumbo was dinner last night. Succulent. Spicy. Full of complex and tantalizing flavors. Very filling. HG could only manage one and a half bowls. (Well, they were pretty big bowls).