HUNGRY GERALD

BSK cooked a dinner that was so good it was repeated by BSK (for HG’s delectation) the next night. The centerpiece was boneless leg of lamb purchased at Trader Joe’s for a modest price. BSK butterflied the leg and trimmed away the fat. The result was two long pieces of lamb ranging in thickness from thin to thick. (This insures eaters have their choice of rare or medium slices). The lamb was marinated for hours in a mix sourced from Michael Field, the late, eminent cookbook author. BSK accompanied the beautifully broiled lamb (utilized half the lamb and saved the rest for dinner the next night) with roast potatoes and steamed sugar snap peas. The peas were gilded with a bit of butter. A delicious vegetable, yes, but the true revelation was the potato dish. BSK filled a Creuset roasting pan with tiny potatoes. Doused them with Sicilian olive oil. Adorned them with sprigs of thyme. Broke up two heads of garlic and topped the spuds with the unpeeled cloves. The result of this was a crisp, garlicky, herbaceous wonder. (Yes, the garlic crisps and you eat without peeling). Drank plentiful Argentine Malbec. No dessert. Just a mustardy green salad to climax a perfect meal. And, the repeat was just as splendid.

Thin rice noodles (often called rice “vermicelli” or “rice sticks”) are a staple of Asian cuisine and an HG favorite ingredient. Thai Kitchen makes a tasty and economical lunch dish—instant rice noodle soup (variety of flavors). HG likes to give the soup protein in the form of sliced tofu. Scallions or a handful of bean sprouts adds crunch. A dinner favorite is a home-cooked version of Pho, the heartening Vietnamese standby. BSK boils Whole Foods Pho broth and adds a plenitude of shredded chicken. HG plunges a big bag of rice sticks in boiling water. Takes it off the heat immediately, and lets the noodles steep until softened (10 to 20 minutes). Refreshes them with cold water while shaking them in a colander. They are added to the broth and chicken. Lots of garnishes on the table: Mint leaves, chopped scallions, bean sprouts, cilantro. HG/BSK like two unconventional toppings: Avocado slices and bean curd. Sriracha and soy sauce to taste. Nice East meets West (or Southwest) dish.

A highlight of HG/BSK’s holiday in Brooklyn/New York/ Rhode Island was a feast hosted by Restaurateur Daughter Victoria (Vicki) at her eponymous Italian restaurant, Vic’s, on Great Jones Street. Vic’s is one of Vicki’s four New York restaurants (the others are Cookshop, Rosie’s and Hundred Acres). Hillary Sterling is the chef at Vic’s and she turns out wonderful, creative, Italian food with an emphasis on local, very fresh ingredients. Comfortably seated in the sparkling dining room, HG/BSK and SJ were regaled with vegetable starters: Brussell sprouts with anchovies,chiles and lemon; squash with schmaltz (chicken fat), golden raisins and garlic; cauliflower with hazelnuts, harissa and bread crumbs. These were dishes that could turn a carnivore into a vegetarian. The veggies were followed by baby squid with pickled peppers (a glorious take on the classic Rhode Island dish) and a roasted duck leg. The pasta tasting course was original: Borsa (“little purses” filled with ricotta; Mafaldi; Tortellini; Spaghetti with clams and green chiles. Wow !! Much splendid wine and a grappa to finish. The next day, HG met Vicki for their traditional three hour holiday lunch at Balthazar. The duo had much to talk about as they dug into a giant plateau de fruits de mer: Oysters, clams, mussels, shrimp, ceviche, lobster. Fabulous. Bottles of Balthazar’s very good Muscadet. Vicki made a prior arrangement with Balthazar to pay the bill and then sent HG back to Brooklyn via Uber. Vicki, you are generosity personified.

Time for the annual holiday season visit to Chong Quing House in Seekonk, Massachusetts, for the
F & R family fiery Szechuan feast. HG/BSK, Massimo and Lesley R., granddaughters Arianna and Sofia R. (a brilliant and beautiful duo) were seated at a round table with a big “Lazy Susan” on top. HG believes CH is superior to any Szechuan eatery (hmmmm….says SJ) in New York and the holiday meal confirmed HG’s opinion. Starters were steamed pork dumplings and dumplings in hot oil. Faves of the young women, the dumplings were marginal. CH is not a place for dumplings. But, the food? Ah!!! Cumin lamb; family style bean curd, pepper and salt shrimp; sliced fish on a bed of hot peppers, eggplant in garlic sauce; pickled string beans with scallions. Bowls of fluffy rice plus Bass Ale and Samuel Adams Lager. Great, balanced meal. No doggy bags. Not a morsel remained on the platters.

Rhode Island is called (rightfully) The Ocean State. Lots of shoreline and lots of splendid, fresh fish, squid, oysters and clams. HG/BSK and Lesley R. lunched on sea treats at Hemenway’s, the very good seafood restaurant in Providence. Rhody clams and oysters are among the world’s best, so that was the first course. BSK and Lesley R. do not share HG’s love of raw clams on the half shell so HG had all of the delectable little necks while a variety of oysters from the Rhody shores (plus a few from Massachusetts and Connecticut waters) were shared. All were delicious and briny, full of sea pleasure. On the table were giant shrimp and a half lobster, not local but perfectly sourced and cooked. BSK had a big bowl (a small cup for HG) of Rhode Island clam chowder. This is the best chowder, relying solely on an abundance of chopped clams and clam broth (plus potatoes, onions, bacon and herbs). No tomatoes as in Manhattan clam chowder or cream as in New England clam chowder. Simple, pure clam goodness. Clams Casino and a bottle of chilled Muscadet completed the meal. No room for a Rhody specialty: Fried squid with hot peppers. Next time.

HG has mentioned in previous posts that a favorite guilty treat was the chow mein sandwich served at Nathan’s in Coney Island (or in the short lived branch near Times Square). It was simple. Traditional corn starch enhanced New York chow mein served in a small hamburger bun lined with crispy noodles. HG gave it a dash of soy sauce and managed to dispatch the messy sandwich without staining clothing. SJ recalled reading an article by the regional food mavens Jane & Michael Stern that this sandwich survives and prospers in the gritty mill town of Fall River, Massachusetts. So, the F & R clan set off to Fall River, once a great textile manufacturing center. Huge mills (now put to a variety of uses) still adorn the streets. First stop was Portugalia Market, a big, sparkling market that could be described as a Portuguese Zabar’s. Big selection of Portuguese wines (HG scored bottles of very good Pinho Verde Rose plus some Ruby Port). The group bought much Portuguese chourico, cheese, custard tarts, canned sardines, jarred tuna, figs, etc. All marveled at a semi-detatched bacala room with towering stacks of dried codfish. While the group lunched on toasted cheese and sausage sandwiches (they later went off to tour a battleship and submarine docked on the Fall River waterfront), HG and SJ were off to Mee Sum Chinese Restaurant to sample the chow mein sandwich served the same way since the 1920s. The duo sipped Pina Coladas in Tiki cups as they ate the very unusual and surprising sandwiches. The hamburger bun sandwich sat atop a generous bowl of crispy noodles (best ever) floating in a dark brown, Chinese oyster sauce based sauce laced with onions and celery. This was a knife and fork dish. Not a sandwich. HG loved it. Devoured it with gusto. SJ’s enthusiasm was more restrained. SJ posted a photo of the dish on Facebook. Comments were derogatory. Okay, HG admits that it’s a very special taste but a real regional specialty that deserves attention. In any case, Fall River is a great food town. Lesley R. picked up great little meat and vegetable pies at Sam’s bakery. There are lots of Portuguese restaurants featuring savory clam dishes and garlic laden Portuguese steak. For snacking, lots of hole in the wall Mom-and-Pop eateries feature Coneys (hot dogs) smothered in chili sauce and chopped onions. And, one can also snare slices of feta cheese pizzas. It’s a happy heartburn town.

The HG/BSK multi-ethnic clan (Italian, English, Welsh, Jewish, Belorussian, Japanese) celebrated Hanukkah (Handsome Haru lit the candles) by reprising their Christmas Eve feast of Jewish smoked fish (from New York’s Russ & Daughters). A delicious family custom was observed. SJ made a big platter of wonderful potato pancakes. Best latkes ever — crisp, light and not leaden with oil. Lesley R. added crepes. HG had potato pancakes covered with slices of sable, chopped onions, creme fraiche. SJ growled with pleasure as he covered his latkes with creme fraiche, wasabi tobiko and salmon roe. Crepes got a similar treatment with smoked salmon. The rest of the family did their own variations. HG drank icy vodka with beer chasers (early bedtime). Dessert was a wonderful flan provided by a lady of Portuguese ancestry. Topped with whipped cream, it was (HG had to admit) better than any flan HG had consumed in New Mexico.

Arrived in Riverside, R.I. a few days ago, and HG/BSK (and Handsome Haru) were greeted by loving Lesley, Massimo, Sofia and Arianna (plus Pip, the doggy with the high IQ). Lucky HG/BSK to have such a splendid family. Among the delights was a reunion with Toby, The Wonder Dog, unscathed after his lengthy voyage aboard United. There was ambiguity in Toby’s welcome of HG/BSK. After all, the duo had caged him and abandoned him to United Airlines. However, after a bit the furry little fellow let bygones be bygones and was indulged with numerous belly rubs. Wondrous Lesley R. served a dinner of spicy shrimp and grits (clams and grits for crustacean allergic BSK). Super yums. Platter of flavoful cheese and Harry and David pears. Vodka, red wine and limoncello enlivened HG (before inevitable drowse). Christmas food shopping the next day. Lesley R. had sourced (online) a home style Vermont organic ham smoked over corn cobs. Served it for dinner. Delicious. It was a ham from the past when ham tasted like ham and not meat infused with water, sugar, chemicals, etc. On the table were cole slaw, potato salad, pickles, a variety of mustards plus horse radish. HG, despite family disdain, opted for Whole Foods potato salad rather than the home made variety. HG likes WF’s mayonnaise infused version. However, when in Paris, HG enjoys the oil and vinegar flavored warm potato salad served with grilled saucisson. C’est la vie.

After a long day of exhausting travel, Holiday feasting began upon arrival at the Brooklyn home of SJ, Exquisite Maiko, Handsome Haru and enchanting Teru. Jolly welcome. HG/BSK found comforting warmth in bowls of SJ’s chickpea, rosemary and tomato soup. This soup is SJ’s creative take on the classic Marcella Hazan recipe. Rather than leaving the garbanzos whole, SJ adds real Spanish chorizo to the basic ingredients and blends the whole thing into a smooth and earthy soup, redolent of rosemary and finished with cubes of crisp guanciale. This was followed by an exuberant platter of varied cheese from the Fairway market and lots of red wine and vodka. Plus, splendid Tuscan salami and Spanish ham. Delight. Thoughtful SJ gave HG/BSK a bag of bagels and bialys plus Ben’s Scallion Cream Cheese (the best!) for breakfast in HG/BSK’s temporary Prospect Heights home.

SJ scored again with the traditional fish feast on Christmas eve with the usual Jewish twist. SJ, in his annual ritual, finished DJing at 4:30 am and headed right to Russ & Daughters so he could be first on line on Christmas Eve day. R & D is a New York landmark for herring and smoked fish and knowing SJ sourced a feast and motored it bak to the family gathering in Riverside, R.I. Here were some of the goodies: Nova Scotia smoked salmon; smoky New Zealand smoked salmon; Gaspe Nova smoked salmon, whole Dutch herring; pickled herring; wasabi tobiko; smoked yellowfin tuna; sable, whitefish salad, creme fraiche, wild Alaskan red salmon caviar; American hackleback black caviar. The fixings: Lemon wedges, chopped onion, thin sliced rings of onion, capers, scallion cream cheese, regular cream cheese. The breads: Bagels, bialys, buttered toast (for the American caviar); thinly sliced Baltic dark rye bread. Wow. To drink: Prosecco; white wine; rose wine; Tito’s vodka; Bass ale. Big time feast. Opened a few presents (that’s the family custom). No room for dessert. Off to bed for big time morning present opening and reprise of the evening feast (plus SJ’s super potato latkes). HG is convinced that no family celebrates the holidays with more joy and culinary delights.

Among the varied talents of HG’s beloved life partner (53 years) BSK is mastery of egg cooking. BSK introduced HG to the breakfast pleasure of “egg and soldiers” at the inception of their marriage. The dish is simple: A perfect soft boiled egg nestled in an egg cup. Dip strips of buttered toast (the “soldiers”) in the egg. Joy. Lately, some Parisian bistros are serving this dish as a starter. BSK’s poached eggs are perfect (hard to find good poached eggs in restaurants). For a hearty breakfast, BSK serves them atop butter and cheese infused grits or polenta. BSK’s creamy, soft scrambled eggs on toasted Thomas English Muffins are an indulgence, They scale gourmet heights when topped with red salmon caviar (from Zabar’s or Russ & Daughters) and sour cream. A perfect light dinner is a BSK omelet accompanied by a baguette, green salad and red wine. BSK’s omelets have crisp edges and lush, soft interiors. BSK folds these wonders around a variety of stuffings: feta cheese; bacon; pancetta, sauteed peppers, onions and zucchini; mushrooms; asparagus (when in season). Better omelets than New York’s fabled omelet shrine, Mme. Romaine de Lyon (long closed, alas). Mel Brooks wrote the screenplay for “The Producers” (Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder) while eating there. BSK’s omelets only inspire HG’s sparkling prose on hungrygerald.com.