Posts categorized as Food

A few folks from the Beach 91 Community Garden reached out to me with a great question: “What can I plant in the fall?” There are many cold-weather crops we can plant for harvest before the frost, especially now in late September, as well as options for early summer harvests. It’s a common misconception that our growing season here in NYC is short.  Learning beyond the typical spring-summer vegetable plantings is a fun challenge. You will become a better gardener for it. Wanna give it a try? Make soups or sautées with […]

I made a new friend at Seany Pizza. Juliana Rodas is a self-starting entrepreneur who’s hardworking, energetic, kind, and a lot of fun to be around. In my first few weeks, Juliana helped me navigate the POS register – without judgment, sigh – I’m 20 years her senior. I had a hunch that working at Seany’s would open the gate to meet new people, like Juliana in my community that I otherwise wouldn’t cross paths with. It’s so wonderful! Photo courtesy of IG @for.the.love.of.bread During our hours crafting pies at Pizza World, I’ve gotten […]

Some years our garden harvest does better than others. Why? Many factors come into play, including weather, temperature, soil, planting time, pests, and the gardener’s consistency and effort. I’d like to share about what’s happening in my garden: The parsley in my plot overwintered. Other gardeners mentioned that theirs did too. It’s not the best sign as it means we had another mild winter. I use all parts of the parsley plant in my red sauce and in homemade dressings. This is a lovely dressing recipe from my friend and fellow gardener […]

I thought I smelled French toast but I walked into the narrow surf shack galley kitchen and it was a surprise to see eggs, strategically placed in the middle of sliced semolina bread. My friend Mike – over the stove – said his family calls the breakfast “surprise eggs!” It makes sense, as the over-easy eggs (if done correctly) are perfectly meshed within the bread, making it hard at first glance to know there is an egg hidden within. As you slice the bread, a golden river of yolk streams […]

The adrenaline turns on when I see 10 pies on the line. My arms are moving automatically. My thinking is sharp. I sauce and reach my fingertips for each fresh ingredient. The order you top is important because the flavors fuse in different ways under the 800-degree heat of burning wood. In April, I made the decision to push myself out of my comfort zone. I needed a shift. Where will it lead? I laugh, at 43 years old I’m slingin’ pies. I work in the pizza industry now. And […]

We saw woody thyme scattered throughout the Beach 91st Community Garden at season’s close last September, when the colorful camouflage of rich, red tomatoes, green peppers and the lanky yellow black-eyed Susans disappeared. It became visibly clear there were duplications of so many herbs. This sparked an idea – build a communal herb garden! My friend Katherine and I presented the concept at our monthly garden meeting last season, and everyone was on board! The objective of this project was to maximize growing space in members’ plots. Given the abundance […]

While browsing the dollar store for hair nets, for my new career in the pizza industry, the pincushions hanging on the wall nearby caught my attention, because a pincushion is a tomato. Did you ever think, “Why the hell is a pincushion a tomato?” I never did until this profound moment, where all the sound and busyness surrounding me in the store disappeared and it seemed as though there was a glorifying light around all the pincushions Photo credit, Pook & Pook, Inc. The history of the tomato pincushion is […]

For the majority of my life, I associated beets as the giggly mass with ringed lines that only appeared once a year on the Thanksgiving table. And the taste of the gelatinous red form wasn’t appealing – sweetness doesn’t always equate to palatability. As I evolved as a home cook, I felt compelled to explore foods that challenged me. Ahem, beets. I’ve tried incorporating the root vegetable in many meals over the years learning the flavor of fresh-cooked beets is quite good. In contrast to their canned counterpart, fresh beets […]

I’d like to revisit the topic of shelled nuts discussed in my column last week. Many of my Italian friends responded, mentioning their own childhood recollections surrounding nuts, family, and gambling. I’m delighted to hear that my words evoked memories of personal stories for others! My friend Ryan remembers being the official “nutcracker” kid. He said mostly the older folks ate the nuts. He did have a few here and there until one time at a party, he accidentally ingested a shell and almost choked to death. My girl Jodi shared, “We […]

Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, birthdays, and Sunday dinners at my grandparents’ house – the nuts and fanuk (fennel) were put on the table after supper. This was a “break” period from eating, before the dessert came out (even though you were still eating). It gave the women time to clean up in the kitchen and get the nice dishes out for the finale. When I say nuts, I mean shelled walnuts, almonds, pecans, and hazelnuts. At this time, 35 years ago, I don’t think supermarkets even sold de-shelled nuts, and if they did, […]