Local Links
Hi all and happy Monday. My family’s been in town this week — my sister from Texas and my brother from North Carolina. (And you wonder why I love barbecue?) We made Peter Kelly’s rack of pork for Christmas Eve dinner — though I used orange peel, thyme and fennel seeds into the brine. I seared two racks — one at a time — in a huge cast iron pot and then put both in a roasting rack in the oven. The pork was juicy and delicious. We served it with brussels sprouts and with roasted sweet potatoes.
Photo credit to my brother-in-law, Wilson.
For dessert we had a buche de noel from Patisserie Didier Dumas.
Chocolate with hazelnut cream. Oh my.
On Christmas night we followed an old Mexican tradition (my family is from Texas and I lived in Mexico for a while) and served tamales that my mother ordered from the Texas Tamale Company. My husband made some great refried beans and we tossed together a salad.
The tamales were great. I highly recommend ordering them. For dessert we had a molten chocolate cake that I made:
It’s easier to make dessert when you’re not making dinner!
It was a low-key and enjoyable holiday. And it was the first time my younger niece understood Santa Claus, which always makes for a fun morning.
With that, it’s been a busy week in the local food world:
The New York Times does a year-end round-up of dining:
MH reflects on reviews this year. (NYT)
Alice talks about chefs’ migrations and considers a few of her favorite tastes this year. (NYT)
Emily remembers three of her favorite dishes. (NYT)
The NYT’s 411 on the writers’ favorite places. (NYT)
The January issue of Westchester magazine is out. Here are the food stories:
The best fries in Westchester (BLT Steak in White Plains, Encore Bistro Francaise in Larchmont; Half Moon in Dobbs; Horsefeathers in Tarrytown; Le Jardin du Roi in Chappaqua; McArthur’s in P’ville; Vox in North Salem; X20 in Yonkers.) (DWT/WM)
More on potatoes: varities and how to store and cook them. (JH/WM)
Julia likes lunch better than dinner at Via Quadronno in WP. (JS/WM)
Hot drinks for winter temps. (JS/WM)
Morello opens in Greenwich; Fuel becomes Eau Rouge at Grand Prix NY; a sampler at Le Fontane in Katonah; Dream Dinners in Scarsdale; expanded menu at Ichi Riki in Elmsford. (JBT/WM)
Is gin the new vodka? (WT/WM)
Three places that serve rilettes. (DWT/WM)
Suggestions for a winter cheese plate. (WM)
Chicken vindaloo at Bengal Tiger. (WM)
And three from December that I somehow missed:
Tuna tartare at Haijime in Harrison. (DWT/WM)
Pate at Chiboust.
A shout-out to Adam Clyde Christensen on chowhound.com and links to his many explorations of the international food scene. (WM)
Some interesting posts on Chowhound:
Great sandwiches in White Plains.
New place in Yonkers: Route 100 Wine Bar & Grill, FKA Pasta e Pesce.
New owners at Dona Maria in Suffern?
Some discussion of Fire & Ice in the Palisades Center.
Looking for a butcher to do a standing rib roast in Rockland County.
Diners in central-northern Westchester.
And the rest of the food scene:
Doug visits Soupz in Larchmont. (HT)
The Wine Goddess goes over what the state budget proposal means for wine drinkers. (WG)
Eggnog rice pudding from the Blushing Hostess. (Hmm! We did Thai takeout on Saturday night and I’ve got a boatload of rice left and a couple cups of eggnog. I think I’ll make that!)
