Ernesto Neto at the Armory

Last night, Astrid and I finally made it to the Ernesto Neto installation, "anthropodino" at the Park Avenue Armory. It was absolutely worth the visit - a fantastical playground of art - that I would recommend everyone stop by while it is still up.


In the large, bare-bones space of the Drill Hall, Neto used a soft, sheer netting to cover a bone-like structure and create this whimsical playhouse. It is very skeletal--Astrid and I kept relating it to the dinosaur and whale skeletons at the Natural History Museum--but also very organ-like, because of the netting. When inside, it sort of felt like being on the Magic School Bus and going inside of the human body.


My favorite part of the installation were the hanging sacks of spices - each was filled with a different kind of spice, making the whole room smell beautiful. As you walked up to them, you could smell the individual spices (cloves, ginger, etc.). At one point Astrid reached up to touch one and smell it from her finger, but a guard warned us to stay away, as it was cayenne pepper! Wouldn't that feel lovely in your eyes...

The weak points of the exhibition, we both thought, were the play areas. There was a giant bean bag spot, a colorful rug area, and a tub filled with plastic balls to play in (sort of like at those McDonald's playhouses). Though many people were participating (particularly those with small children), it seemed a little forced, like Neto was trying maybe too hard to have an "interactive" exhibit. It seemed plenty interactive to me with just the space to wander through, and particularly as people came up to the spices to smell, inviting conversations with strangers about what type of spice was in each hanging net.


Overall, it was a wonderful experience and I am so glad I got to see it. The Park Avenue Armory is more known for its art and antique fairs than anything of this sort, and the drill hall is such a great, raw space, I loved seeing it used for a contemporary installation. The Neto piece will be up through June 14; for more details, see www.armoryonpark.org.

Summery Monday Dinner (I lied...)

Turned out that last night fell into the 2% category - Wright surprised my by bringing home melon and prosciutto instead of cheese!



Though startled at first, the minute I started cutting up the melon my mouth was watering! The combination of the juicy melon with the salty prosciutto is just heaven. A perfect appetizer for a warm summer day. (Well, I guess it's not technically summer yet, but it is finally starting to feel like it!)



On my way home from work, I picked up some fresh veggies to grill - zucchini, squash, tomato, red onion, and yellow pepper. Obviously, we don't have an outdoor grill, but the cast iron grill pan worked just fine. I sliced up the veggies into grill-able pieces, tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic, and grilled 'em up until they were soft and juicy. Then, I put a couple of dashes of balsamic vinegar, some more garlic, and some thin slices of shallots into the mix. So easy and delicious - plus, very colorful!



We served with a simple grilled ciabatta, the prosciutto and melon, and a cold beer. So easy and so flavorful.

The Art of the Cheese Plate

You may have noticed that in just about every image I post about dinner, there is a cheese plate lurking in the background. My love for cheese is perhaps surpassed only by Wright's love for cheese, so when we cook dinner together, there's a 98% chance of a cheese plate (exceptions might occur when eating say, macaroni and cheese, for the main course).

Adding to our obsession with cheese (oh yes, this is way beyond the soup obsession) is the routine we've fallen into for dinners. I'm making dinner, and on his way home from work, he stops into the (all too convenient) Murray Cheese stand at Grand Central and picks up 1 or 2 (or 3!) delicious cheeses, depending on his mood. They couldn't be nicer at the cheese stand (it is located in the Grand Central Market, on the east side of the main level, FYI), and they always allow you to try different cheeses before making your selection. Usually, Wright will also pick up some of his favorite Moroccan Almonds, dates, crackers, and the like to go along side the cheese. We take cheese plates seriously.



Ina Garten, the "Barefoot Contessa," has made some very good suggestions about cheese plates that I tend to think about when putting mine together. First, she recommends choosing three cheeses - a hard, a soft, and a blue. When it's just Wright and I, we usually just do a hard and a soft. Then, for arranging, she always puts the cheese facing outwards, so that they are easy to access. Sort of like in a circle. For hard cheeses, always cut a few pieces before serving, otherwise it is intimidating to guests. Obviously, Wright and I ignore this rule, unless there actually are guests, in which case, Ina Rules All. Then, she puts various fruits and nuts in the middle of the plate, sort of in and around the cheese, as well as the crackers. Voila! An elegant cheese plate, no matter how many or few accessories you've used.



Note in this picture, we stuck simply with the almonds, but used two types of crackers. Wright also has two types of knives, one for hard cheeses and one for soft. This is unnecessary for the simple homemade cheese plate, but as stated earlier, we are pretty into cheese.

If you live in New York and love cheese, I'd highly recommend spending some time at Murrays in the West Village. They have all sorts of classes about cheese and cheese pairings, and all of the staff really know a lot. A few months ago, my cousin and I took a tour of their underground cheese caves, built underneath their store to age cheeses. We got to learn about the aging process of many different types of cheese, as well as do a cheese tasting at the end of the class, comparing young cheeses to those that had been aged. It was delicious and super informative!

Cheese can definitely be expensive, so make sure that you try the cheese (if they let you) before you buy. Also, don't be afraid to start up a conversation with whoever is behind the counter. Many of my favorite cheeses were recommendations at the store, and it helps to tell the cheese experts things like what you're having for dinner, or to point out some of the other cheeses you've tried previously and either liked or didn't like. Some of our favorite cheeses are Humboldt Fog, Goot Essa Cheddar, and Grayson - mmm delicious! Okay, I'm off to make another cheese plate.

The Soup Obsession

I realized last night that I've made soup at least once a week for the past two months. It started as a simple curiosity with the immersion blender, and soon became a full-blown obsession (coinciding with warmer weather, oddly enough). Some of the reasons I love making soup are:

1) Once you get the hang of it, there are endless possibilities. See below for a basic recipe, but definitely start experimenting. Last night I made a carrot-ginger-sweet potato soup that was delicious, and I've gone everywhere from the basic chicken and veggies to leek-asparagus to heavenly butternut squash and apple.

2) It is so affordable! For example, last night I made a soup that cost under $10 ($8.23 to be exact) and it fed a dinner for 3 plus leftovers for my lunch today. What can beat that?

3) The leftovers are a major plus for soup, and probably one of the main reasons I've continued to make it. I bring my lunch to work every day, and having soup on hand makes that so much easier. I'll bring a small tupperware of soup with an apple or some bread and voila! Lunch in 1 minute. I tend to make a ton of soup so that it will last the whole week, not just for lunches, but for dinner side dishes and small snacks too. You can't go wrong with fresh soup.

4) It is good for you! Soup from a (eek!) can or even "fresh" from a grocery store is often loaded with salt and butter. I tend to use a little bit of butter and olive oil, but otherwise let the ingredients speak for themselves. Really, its just water and fresh veggies with some spices (and maybe a dollop of milk..).

5) It's easy. It really is. I promise, just start making it and you'll never stop.

OK so here are the basic steps to making a delicious soup:

You'll need:
- veggies (a pound or two - and you can mix and match. Let's go with potatoes for the basic).
- onion (again, you can mix this up by using leeks, shallots, scallions, or a mix).
- water (or chicken stock or vegetable stock. I prefer to make my own stock, but if you get store-bought, make sure to get low-sodium/unsalted)
- olive oil/butter (just oil is fine, but if it's a creamy soup I'll throw in a tablespoon of butter)
- salt, pepper, and any other spices you have in your cabinet.

To make the soup (For this example, let's do Potato-leek):
1. Dice one onion and one or two leeks (depending on how much you get--be sure to wash thoroughly!). Peel and cut up the potatoes into 1-inch cubes.
2. Heat up a large pot at medium heat, then add about a table spoon of oil. Maybe some butter if you want.
3. When the oil is hot, add the onion and leek. Add a little bit of salt to help them sweat. Let cook for about 5-10 minutes, until soft and translucent.
4. Add the potatoes and stir around a bit. Maybe throw in some pepper if you feel like it.
5. Add the stock (I'd use stock for potato soup to add flavor), enough to cover the potatoes and then some. If you don't have enough, add water to compensate.
6. Bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and let simmer for 30 minutes or more, until the potatoes are soft and cooked through.
7. Use immersion blender (or in batches in the regular blender) to make the soup smooth. Maybe since it's potato I'd leave some chunks.
8. Taste the soup. Add salt and pepper and taste again. Add spices, perhaps cumin or herbs de provence. Taste again. When it tastes really good, serve.
9. Cut up some chives for presentation and place on top. Serve with crusty bread.

So, for variations, you can use butternut squash and apples instead of the potato, or carrots or sweet potato or asparagus or anything really. Switch up your spices. Add ginger or garlic (about halfway through the onion sauteeing phase). Add chicken at the end (haven't tried to blend that, but chunky chicken and veggie soup is delicious). Don't blend it. Add cream. Add lemon zest. Do anything you want! It's lots of fun, I promise.

Airport Cuisine

Wright and I set a new record this weekend. All four of the flights that we took (New York to DC, DC to Nashville, Nashville to Charlotte, and Charlotte to New York) arrived EARLY. Can you believe it? Early. It was fantastic. Thank you, USAir, for making our Memorial Day vacation just that much better.

To go along with these early landings were two particularly long layovers (we decided to go for the cheaper, and therefore more awkward, flights). We had a three hour layover at Reagan on Friday night, and a 1.5 hour layover in Charlotte last night. Knowing this would require some serious meal-planning, I asked my resident airport expert (Dad) what his thoughts were when he dropped us off at the lovely White Plains airport Friday afternoon.

"First things first," he said, "there is only one small snack stand at the sole gate at White Plains, and it is a little known fact that they serve beer. I'll buy." Sure enough, as we wandered up to the peculiarly tiny snack stand, selling oreos and not even magazine, Dad's plan proved true. They had a keg behind the counter. After a cold Bud Light to offset to crowded gate, we were off and continued to put our food planning in Dad's hands.

Dad gave us two choices for Reagan, which were either the small, crowded sports bar in the terminal, or, with our three hours, we could venture out of security to the Legal Seafood in the main entrance hall of the airport. Since we arrived ten minutes early, making it a three hour and ten minute layover, and it was Friday night at 7pm, we decided to brave it and leave security.


It was definitely worth it. We ended up having a delicious (real!) meal at Legal Seafood, and totally stuffed ourselves. It was actually a pretty nice restaurant, and since it was outside of security, everyone was remarkably relaxed and kind. We went wild with the menu, ordering the crab cake (melt in your mouth!), a selection of raw oysters (for Wright), a delicious avocado, corn, etc salad with grilled shrimp, and the mussels. Everything was absolutely wonderful, and we kept forgetting that we were in an airport! It was a perfect Friday night date, and we made it perfectly on time back through security and to our gate.

Our meal on the return flight was not quite as glamorous, but we had an hour and a half to kill in the dreaded E terminal of the Charlotte airport (every time!), so I called up Dad again, and he immediately sent us to the Fox Sports bar, which was quite close to our gate. We had a couple of Carolina Blonde beers (go local!) and shared the chicken tenders. Hardly anything healthy, but after a nonstop weekend of fun and in the midst of a long night of traveling, anything fried is exactly what I crave. Particularly when dipped in a mix of honey mustard and ketchup.

Now, these airport food extravaganzas were only the bookends to a fantastic trip. Nashville was a lot of fun, and most importantly, it was great to see Billy and Winston and Wright's parents. Moral of this blog, though, is to call my Dad if you are ever in an airport and hungry. Apparently he's been there.