Chestnut Pasta Dough & A Long Week
This has been a long, long week of cooking. Lots of newness, and experiments, and some tride and trues. Right now, it is 3:45 in the afternoon on Monday, and I am still lying in bed. At 10:45 last night, I almost collapsed on top of my beige down comforter, refusing to brush my teeth, and shower away ten hours of cooking at Delancey, but I convinced myself not to be lazy. I slept for a full twelve hours, and have been watching trashy television, eating Amy’s frozen burritos and monster cookies from my amazing sister in law, while snuggling with the dog and playing around on Twitter.
My prediction is that I will be doing this exact same thing until tomorrow morning, leaving the responsibility of laundry and unloading the dishwasher until the sun rises again. Yes. It has been a long week. Read the rest of this entry »
Seven Yolk Pasta Dough + A Four Year Anniversary
My arms are tired, and it has nothing to do with my new commitment to work out. Yes, I actually have to make a commitment to myself to work out now that I don’t exercise for a living. Stop laughing. You know, your body goes to shit when you stop moving and then eat/cook for a living.
By. the. way.
I never thought it would get to this point, but alas…
Capellini, Plugra, Parmigiano Reggiano, Cracked Pepper
The bookshelf sat in the kitchen, in a sunny nook where the four person table and the golden retriever also shared it’s space. It was black metal, with inclining shelves that got shorter has they got further from the floor. Those shelves were packed with books. So, packed, in fact, that you would almost pull it over when you pried one out of its home. Read the rest of this entry »
Braised Lamb, Cranberry, Parsnip Puree + The Delancey Salad
Each day, I move farther and farther away from my life as a ballet dancer and more into the life of a cook. And, by “life of a cook” I mean getting up as early as 10am, never being hydrated, eating dinner around 12:30 at night, being left out of the socializing on Friday and Saturday nights with my friends, only cooking at home once a week, and being terribly, terribly out of shape.
But, I love my job. Read the rest of this entry »
Beef Short Ribs, Beer, + a Braise
Maybe it’s the weather? Or that my internal clock tells me that around this time each year for most of my life, I am programmed to dance to that proverbial Tchaikovsky score of the Nutcracker. Whatever it is, I am down. This should be a season of renewed energy, holiday baking (which I don’t really do, except this), and socializing like a rabid butterfly. I know I am in there somewhere, I am just lurking under a thin chocolate coated shell. I should be thrilled that for the first time in my life, I do not have to be stuck in a dark, cold theater listening to the same orchestra play the same score over and over… Read the rest of this entry »
Shrimp n’ Grits, Bacon Dashi, Brussels Sprouts
Quintessentially southern. Yes it was. Yet, the catch was that the recipe was inspired from my new Momofuku cookbook. The liquid used to cook the grits was not your traditional water, but a bacon dashi. Yes. I boiled a half a pound of bacon in water that had previously been steeping with two sheets of seaweed. It was odd, looked disgusting, but the taste…THE TASTE!
Risotto, Red Chard, Pancetta, Pomegranate
This summer, while sitting at the dock of Matthew’s beach, one of my chef friends said to me with great excitement, “I think I have constructed the perfect hamachi dish: grapefruit, lavender, fennel-saffron puree, fennel pollen”. I looked at him, wide eyed, and asked him how many times he had tested the recipe. He looked back at me, laughed a little due to my ignorance and said, “No, Stage. It is all up here” as he pointed to his thick head of black hair. Read the rest of this entry »
Pho, Flank Steak, Rice Noodles, Thai Basil
Today, I finally felt on the verge of a burn out. Yep. It finally happened to me. If I had worked today, it would have been two solid weeks without a break. That is just not healthy. While I laid in bed, tucked in my overstuffed down comforter, I texted my sous chef at Tavolata and told him that I would not be a good cook today, and I needed a break. Then I went back to bed for two more hours and dreamed that I made Pho. Read the rest of this entry »
Albacore Tuna, Green Lentils, Red Onion, Arugula
Tuesday, I got some shocking news. They need me at Tavolata, one of the sister restaurants to A&O, and I am starting today. No goodbyes. No one last shift. Just, DONE. I have been at A&O since June 18, so almost three months to the day, I am saying goodbye to my comfortable home on Capitol Hill and entering into the gourmet ghetto of Ethan’s restaurant in Belltown. Read the rest of this entry »
Salmon, Lobster Mushroom, Corn, Baby Tomato, Oregano
So, as you know, I can now claim myself to be a former ballet dancer. And, BTW, it feels freaking fantastic. And, can I be quite frank? I didn’t really know how I was going to react. I mean, I have been saying I am a ballet dancer for over a decade. I didn’t know if I would feel lost, like I was losing a part of myself to dethrone myself from the ballet world. But, I have only felt liberated and excited for what is next. The only trouble is, what do I call myself now? I certainly don’t feel like a Chef. Obviously.
