Sweet Revenge

There is no shortage of cupcake places in the village, but Sweet Revenge has a leg up on the others--they have a bar. You can get your cupcake paired with either a wine or beer, or just pick a la carte. I've had the coconut, the red velvet, the fleur de sel, and the eponymous "sweet revenge" (pictured). This cupcake tastes like a nutterbutter--creamy, peanut butter buttercream frosting over a peanut butter cupcake with a gooey chocolate center; they're decadent.

The frosting is amazing over the great little cakes. They are pretty rich, so I recommend splitting one unless you are especially hungry. It's a great place to meet in the afternoon, or after a light dinner. You can have a couple of drinks and matching cupcakes. It's in a cute little store on Carmine with French doors and a tile floor and you can either sit at a table or up on a stool at the bar. My niece Grace loved it so much she was licking the spoon we ate it with long after the cupcake was gone.

Gourmet Fries

Other than steak frites or truffle fries, french fries can seem out of place on a dinner party plate. I was watching Martha Stewart the other day and Ben Ford--son of Harrison Ford--made polenta fries. Polenta is so versatile because if you flatten it out and chill it, it becomes a blank canvas. You can cut it into shapes, grill it, braise it, fry it, sear it... They turned them into fries. I was making a simple dinner for Jamie and needed another element to make it enough food, and I happened to have some polenta in my pantry, so I tried them.

It couldn't have been easier. I mixed 1 cup of milk with 1 cup of chicken stock (from bouillon cubes I had in my kitchen) and brought it to a boil. Then I whisked in 3/4 cup of polenta with a pinch of salt and stirred it until the polenta pulled away from the sides--about 3 minutes. Then I grated in some Pecorino Romano cheese (which I prefer to Parmesan, but use whatever you like.)

I put some parchment paper over a cutting board and spread the polenta on top. Then I wet my hands and pushed the polenta into a rough rectangle about half an inch thick and threw it into the fridge.
Once it chilled--about an hour and a half--I cut it into 1/2 inch wide and about 4 inch tall strips. I heated some ghee (clarified butter) and olive oil in a skillet--you can use regular butter. While it was heating up, I rolled the polenta strips in flour seasoned with salt, pepper, chilli powder and cumin. I put them in the skillet and cooked them for about 20 seconds on each side, or until they got a little brown on each side. Then I took them out, drained them on a towel, and doused them with salt.

They were crispy and delicious, and I have a little flat polenta left over so they might be on the menu again tonight.

This was more than enough for 2, but if you're making it for 4-6, I'd say double the recipe.

Meat Lover's Paradise

I've mentioned Faicco's before, but I don't believe I've given it my proper and usual laud. This "Italian Specialty Store" is right down the street from me and I'm in there about 5 times a week. It's not very big, but you can find almost anything you need for great, Italian fare. When you walk in, on your left is a wall lined with shelves of Strozzapretti and orecchiette and bucatini next to Rao's sauces and jarred peppers and olives and imported flours and olive oils. I always go in and get the Italian 00 flour--this makes homemade pasta light and fluffy and amazing, and works wonders on pizza dough.

To your immediate right is a counter filled with pre-made foods like chicken francaise and veal Parmesan. Following that is an enormous counter filled with all sorts of meats and sausages. Here you can find steak, osso bucco, braciole, thick sliced bacon, ground veal, ground beef, chicken, pork chops, veal scallopini... They also have several types of sausages including spicy Italian, sweet Italian, sweet Italian with fennel, parsley and cheese, and chicken sausage.

Straight ahead is the deli counter. Here you can get sandwiches (I recommend the Italian special, but split it with someone because it's enormous) and a large range of cured meats. I am particularly fond of the prosciutto di parma, the hot sopressata, and the hot capricolo (all of which are present in the Italian special sandwich). Their fresh mozzarella is delicious, especially lightly breaded, sauteed, and served with their marinara sauce.

If you're having people over for dinner and want great hors d'oeuvres that are easy and cheap, go to the back counter and ask for 5 slices of a couple kinds of meat--which will only cost you around $5--and just neatly spread them onto a plate.

Faicco's is at 260 Bleecker street, at Cornelia and next to Murray's cheese. They close at 6, so you've got to stock up on the weekends or, if you live nearby, run in before you head to work.

Clog those arteries

Last year in the food section of the Times they had a recipe for this bacon explosion. I looked at it and turned up my nose a little, thinking it was a heart attack on a plate. (Not that I don't love a greasy bacon cheese burger with a mountain of fries every once in a while, which is probably worse for me.) The basket weave of bacon looked pretty and interesting, but it was stuffed with sausage and more bacon. I'm still thinking of some other combination of stuffings for this beautiful lining.
At my boyfriend Jamie's super bowl party, he made this giant log of bacon and sausage--and it was delicious. It was sliced into inch-wide pieces, so it was really like a hamburger or large breakfast sausage helping with a little bacon. You slather it with barbecue sauce before you serve it--he used Stubbs. It was great. This just goes to show, don't judge a recipe by how fattening it is--just don't eat it daily.

Here's how you make it if you have some big hungry men to impress:

Pan fry some bacon until it's crispy and put it on paper towels to drain out some grease.

The make a basket weave of bacon. On top of the bacon, put loose sausage (out of its casing). Jamie used a combo of parsley cheese sausage and spicy Italian sausage (both from Faicco's). Then sprinkle a little spice rub over the sausage, pat it down, and crunch the cooked bacon in little bite sized pieces on top. Then drizzle a little BBQ sauce over it and roll it tightly.

Put it on a tin-foil lined baking sheet and cook it at 225 for an hour per every inch of thickness of your "pork log" as Jamie lovingly calls it. When you take it out, spread some bbq sauce on top and slice it as thick or as thin as you want.

Cappucinos at home

If you're young in New York, you're probably wasting more money than you'd like at Starbucks. My guilty pleasure is getting a big bowl cappucino at Le Pain Quotidien. I just got a big, bowl-style latte cup on sale at Pottery Barn to help me accomplish this satisfying indulgence at home. I already have a coffee maker, so all I needed was this amazing little contraption from Bed Bath and Beyond. (You may be able to find it elsewhere, but that's where I got mine.) You don't need a giant, annoying espresso machine for frothy milk. Get one of these little Bodum milk frothers for around $20. If you don't yet have a latte cup, you can just use a cereal bowl. I like to sprinkle some sugar in the bowl/mug first, then pour the hot coffee in so it dissolves quickly. Then pour in just a little skim milk into the frother, pump it for about 30 seconds until it at least doubles in volume. Then I like to throw the glass container of the frother into the microwave for 30 seconds. (It makes the foam stiffen a little bit.) Pour it on top and voila, a perfect cappucino or latte.

FISH

In glowing neon letters on Bleecker street is a simple "Fish" scrawled out in illuminated script. It took me a while to realize that was actually the name, not just the fare. If you're ever going out for drinks in the West Village, or dinner and want to meet for a drink first, Fish is a great find. For only $8 you can get either 6 oysters or 6 clams on a half shell and your choice of a glass of Chardonnay, a glass of Merlot, or Pabst Blue Ribbon (on tap). I had some people over for dinner the other night and before eating, we went down the street and tried out this deal. We all got the oysters, and they were fresh and tasty and served with a great mignonette sauce and lemon wedges. While you await your oysters, you can also help yourself to the giant bowls of peanuts resting on the bar. Next time I go, I may just get 2 or 3 orders of the oysters and call it a meal.

Fish is at Bleecker and Jones, near the 1 subway and the ACE and BDFV.

Make your own Mia Dona

I don't know if any of you have eaten at Mia Dona, but if you're in the 50s or 60s on the East Side with a craving for good Italian, go! They've changed the menu a little bit, but it's still delicious, and it's not expensive. On the old menu they had a ricotta gnudi which was absolutely delicious. Gnudi is like gnocchi, only much lighter. In one cookbook, they say gnudi is the filling of the ravioli with no wrapper, so it's nude. Luckily for us, Michael Psilakis loves to share his recipes and I found this particular gnudi recipe on Epicurious. It's a litte more time consuming than most pastas, but it's definitely worth it and it's very impressive for dinner. The dash of truffle oil makes it extra luxurious and the sauteed procsuitto makes me want to switch out my weekend bacon for this extra crispy treat. Here's the recipe:


Gnudi

• 1 pound fresh ricotta cheese*

• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about 1 ounce) plus additional for serving
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Large pinch of ground white pepper
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour plus additional for coating

Sauce and garnishes

• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 6 thin prosciutto slices
• 12 whole fresh sage leaves

• 2 pounds fresh wild mushrooms (such as crimini, oyster, and stemmed shiitake), sliced
• 2 large shallots, chopped
• 6 fresh thyme sprigs
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
• 2 cups low-salt chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon black truffle oil*
• 1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) chilled butter, diced

• *Available at some supermarkets and at specialty foods stores and Italian markets.

For gnudi:
Line medium bowl with several layers of paper towels. Spoon ricotta cheese into bowl. Let drain at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
Beat egg, 1/3 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, salt, and white pepper in large bowl to blend. Mix in ricotta. Sprinkle 3/4 cup flour over and stir gently to blend. Cover and chill dough 1 hour. Do ahead Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
Line rimmed baking sheet with plastic wrap. Place some flour in bowl. For each gnudi, gently roll 1 heaping teaspoonful of dough into ball. Add to flour; toss to coat lightly, shaping into short log. Place on baking sheet. Do ahead Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover; chill.
For sauce and garnishes:
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large pot or extra-large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 prosciutto slices. Cook until beginning to brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to paper towels. Repeat with remaining prosciutto. Add whole sage leaves to pot; sauté until crisp, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to paper towels.
Heat remaining 4 tablespoons oil in same pot over medium-high heat. Add all mushrooms, shallots, thyme, and chopped sage. Sauté until mushrooms brown and liquids evaporate, about 12 minutes. Transfer mixture to bowl. Add broth to same pot and boil until slightly reduced, scraping up browned bits, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat. Add 1 teaspoon truffle oil and mushroom mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. do ahead Sauce can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
Cook gnudi in large pot of boiling salted water until very tender, about 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, rewarm sauce. Add butter; toss until blended. Using strainer, transfer gnudi to pot with sauce. Toss over medium heat until sauce coats gnudi. Season with salt and pepper.
Transfer to large shallow bowl. Crumble prosciutto over. Top with sage leaves; serve with additional Pecorino.


Good luck!

Pork Buns

I love pork buns. I've had them in Chinatown, at Momofuku, at Fatty Crab... I've even made them myself. I think they are absolutely delicious. Perfectly savory pork belly oozing with umami wrapped in a sweet and fluffy steamed bun. I went down to Baohaus last week to try their pork buns. They were cheap and pretty tasty. They dipped them in brown sugar before serving them, and had really tasty little accouterments inside. They didn't have a dipping sauce, which was a draw back. They did have great tea and boiled peanuts, and really tasty fried bread of some sort for dessert. Momofuku's pork buns are legendary, and definitely worth a visit to the noodle bar for a taste. The pork buns that reign supreme, in my humble opinion, are those at Fatty Crab. They serve the buns with a spicy cilantro salad that you stuff inside. Then the dipping sauce is hoisin with a bullseye of Sriracha in the middle. They have the sweet and savory flavor of the others, plus the fresh perk of cilantro and a great heat from the sauce and the Sriracha. Hit all three for a pork bun trip around downtown.

Invent your own ice cream

I've been trying to get down to Lulu and Mooky's for months. I was finally in the neighborhood last Thursday and after a delicious pork bun lunch at Baohaus, I indulged in some ice cream. It's a teeny hole in the wall on Allen Street (129, between Rivington and Delancey). When you walk in, you're met by two kitchen aids, a nice man behind the counter, and hand written signs on the wall filled with possible flavors. There are numerous kinds of fruits, then there are the go-to chocolates, vanillas, and staples of that ilk, and there are also herbs and spices like rosemary, cinnamon, and cardamom. You can invent your own, or you can pick from the Customer Combinations that others have already crafted. Once you pick your flavors, he mixes them into a little cup of cream and then pours the concoction into the kitchen aid. After all the flavors have blended, in goes liquid nitrogen, which causes the silver bowl to spill over with eerie Halloween fog. When the fog subsides and the potion seems done, you are presented with your own hand crafted cup of creamy, delicious (depending on your flavor combination) ice cream.
I mixed fresh cherries with almond extract and cinnamon, which resulted in an ice cream that tasted like cherry pie. My friend Pete got peanut butter, cardamom, and M&Ms. His tasted like a savory Indian treat with a nice sweet smattering of M&Ms.
You may not have the same obsession with ice cream that I do, but if you do get down there before this summer. They just opened in October and in the colder months, there's no wait, but I bet the summer will be lines out the door.

Also, I saw a sign that they cater and I would love to hire them for a summer cocktail party