Ferrara

If you are ever in New York, you need to go to Ferrara.  It should be your first stop.

And you should go in.  Try not to confuse the take-out line with the seating line.  Get a table. Look at all the wonderful, amazing treats displayed. 

And then order a tiramisu and a tiramisu martini.

And then try, just try to stop the unresistible moan as you taste a little bit of heaven on earth.

And this is no exaggeration.  It's that good.

Ferrara Bakery & Cafe

195 Grand Street (b/t Mulberry and Mott)

New York, Ny 10013 

Risotto 101

I've always wanted to make a homemade risotto.  Well, maybe not always, but recently.  I found a really easy, straight forward recipe by Giada.

Oh my goodness was it good!  It was creamy and buttery and delicious!

But something to note about risotto...it takes time and patience and stirring. 

Lots of butter, too.  Not this much butter, but a lot.

And more stirring. You can't really leave the pot's side.  You should have a glass of wine handy.

Recipie from Everyday Italian by Giada De Laurentiis

What you"ll need:

4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

3 Tbls butter

3/4 cup finely chopped onion (from 1 onion)

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

How you do it:

In a medium saucepan, bring the broth to a simmer.  Cover the broth and keep hot over low heat.

In a large, heavy saucepan, melt 2 Tbls of the butter of medium heat.  Add the onion and suate until tender but not brown, about 3 minutes.  Add the rice and stir to coat with butter.  Add the wine and simmer until the wine has almost completely evaporated, about 3 minutes.  Add 1/2 cup of simmering broth and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes.  Continue coking the rice, adding the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of broth to absorb before adding the next, until the rice is tender but still firm to the bite and the mixture is creamy, about 20 minutes total.  Remove from the heat.  Stir in the Parmesan cheese, the remaining tablespoon of butter, and the salt and pepper.  Transfer the risotto to a serving bowl and serve immediately.

I added some chopped mushrooms and it was delicious!  

I added them a little bit after the onions.

Life's Many Distractions

I'm back...I think.  I've been distracted.  Distracted by moving across several states, from New York to Georgia. Distracted by Chickens.  Distracted by job searching.  Distracted by laziness. 

You want to meet my chickens, The Originals? 

This is Bob, formally known as Barbie (aka BBQ).

Bob here was supposed to be a hen.  But he started crowing and hens don't crow.

So Bob had to leave; he was sent to a farm with 8 other hens.  Bob is probably in rooster heaven.  And see the two golden chickens (Tori - Chicken Cacciatore, and Sally - Chicken Salad) in the background?  They were supposed to be hens too.  But guess what?  After Bob left, they started crowing.  And you know what happens to a crowing hen?

They get sent to a farm, where they can crow there little hearts out.  And believe me they do, and it's not just in the morning, it's all day long.  

See the black chicken in the middle?  That's Stewie (Chicken Stew).  The only chick with a boy name turned out to be the only hen, go figure.  Stewie is the only "Original" one left in our little flock.  We added two more chickens, The Crispys and went back for 4 more, The Extra Crispys.  I'll introduce them later.