My New Obsession...

I have always turned up my nose at Tofutti...I figured why mess with the perfection that is ice cream.  But when I saw Tofutti Key Lime Pie ice cream sandwiches in the freezer case tonight I just couldn't resist.  And am I glad I took the plunge into Tofutti heaven...YUM!

picture from tofutti.com

 Are any of the other tofutti cuties as yummy?

cookies galore!

Every December my mom, my aunt and I spend a whole day baking cookies in preparation for the holidays.  The last two years our day was dedicated to biscotti, but this year we decided cookies was the way to go.

We started with sicilian wine cookies from Carole Walter's Great Cookies:

We then made Rosemary and Pine Nut Cookies (these cookies are seriously delicious, this amazing combination of savory and sweet!):

Then Hazelnut Shortbread Sticks from Bon Appetit's cook a day album:

And of course, classic sugar cookies (from a family recipe) decorated with festive red, green and white sprinkles:

And finally Chewy Ginger Spice Cookies, which are a holiday classic in my family:

These cookies will make a perfect little holiday treat for friends, family and colleagues!  I have plans for a couple other holiday cookies over the coming weeks...so keep posted!

Ardesia

Thursday night I checked out Ardesia - this adorable little wine bar on 52nd Street between 10th and 11th.  Not only do they have a fairly extensive wine list, but delicious snacks to nosh on...they recently received Time Out New York's Critics' Choice Award for Most Ambitious Bar Food!

picture from wall street journal

We had Artichoke and Crab dip (complete w toasted slices of Amy's Bread, which is just down the street), Caramelized Brussel Sprouts (which I thought were yummy, but I am a brussel sprout fiend) and Homemade New York Style pretzels.  The pretzels are AMAZING, they are served with a spicy Dijon mustard and a cheese sauce, which as our waiter told us, you could just eat with a spoon (and I agree!).  We rounded out our meal with a homemade ice cream sandwich, which actually was more like 2 thin slices of cake with ice cream in between...yum!  AND, to top it all off, they have an awesome happy hour special - $6 glasses of wine.  

I will definitely be frequenting this neighborhood gem often!

Top Chef All Stars Finally Starts!

As you will soon realize I am obsessed with Top Chef...I have been counting down the days until All Stars premiered.  Not only are many of my favorites (cough cough, Angelo) returning, BUT they are back in NYC!  What could be better!

Photo: David Giesbrecht/Bravo

Who are you rooting for?

Happy Hanukkah to Me!

Last night was the first night of Hanukkah, so to honor my Jewish half (and I mean that literally, my dad is Jewish and my mom Catholic...so I get to enjoy ALL holidays and ALL holiday foods!) I celebrated by making a fresh batch of Latkes!  

It is funny how food brings back such strong memories.  When I was a little girl, my parents and I had dinner with my grandparents almost every Sunday at the Kosher Nosh.  Now at that time I wasn't the adventurous eater I am today (in fact I hated meat all together), so every Sunday I had Latkes...and they were glorious!

This recipe is slightly time consuming (took me about an hour and a half from start to finish), but believe me it is WELL worth the time!

my delicious Hanukkah dinner

Traditional Latkes

4 small Russet potatos

1/2 cup coarsely chopped onions (I love onions so my 1/2 cup was heaping!)

2 chopped whole scallions

2 egg whites

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Take a sheet pan and put a cooling rack over it.

Mix egg whites, flour, baking soda, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.  Set aside.

Peel and wash potatoes.  Place potatoes in cold water while you work, so they don't turn brown.  Pat one potato dry with a paper towel and shred with big holes on grater.  Repeat until for all potatoes. Mix onions into shredded potatoes. 

Pick up potato mixture by the handful and squeeze out excess moisture over the sink.  Place on a double layer of paper towels.  When all of potato mixture is on the paper towels, place another doubled up paper towel on top and pat any remaining moisture out.  Add potato mixture to egg mixture.

Heat skillet.  Add oil so that it is about a 1/4 in deep.  When oil is hot (a piece of potato will bubble immediate when dropped in), carefully put a 3" long by 1/2" deep patty into the oil.  Add the next patty after about a minute.  Depending on the size of your skillet you can add as many patties as fit without touching each other.  

an ice cream scooper is the perfect size to make your patties

Check the bottom of the first patty after 4 to 7 minutes.  The bottom should be gold brown (some white showing through is okay).  Turn it over and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes.  When the patty is done, remove it from the skillet and place on the cooling rack.  Repeat until you have used all the potato/onion mixture.

frying away

Place baking sheet in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes.  Latkes will get a turn a darker brown, become more crispy and cook through the middle.

Serve hot as they are, with a side of sour cream or my personal favorite applesauce.

Helpful Hint:  if you have any latkes left over you can freeze them and reheat in a 350 degree oven.

As Always, Julia

Julia Child and I happen to share a birthday, so I think I was destined to be in love with cooking. For those of you who love Julia as much as I do, check out this book (released today!): As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis Devoto by Joan Reardon.

picture from goodreads.com

Getting Creative

I love Ladies' Home Journal's new spin on classic holiday decorations!

picture from lhj.com

What is your favorite way to decorate for the holidays?