Profile

feastofmaximumoccupancy

Things I love: history, my cats, eating, the red sox

  • Website
  • Location: Watertown, MA
  • Favorite foods: Ice cream, hot dogs, cheese, cantaloupe

Cook the Book: 'Ripe'

I love cantaloupe. It's the perfect summer fruit, and I can totally eat a whole melon in one sitting. Yeah.

Cook the Book: 'The Occasional Vegetarian'

black bean burgers. which is what i am making for dinner tonight.

Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway: Counter Culture Coffee Subscription

Standard latte, with my cheaply awesome Mr. Coffee espresso machine.

Book Giveaway: Pastry Paris, Because Everything in Paris Looks Like Dessert

I love a good buttery croissant. Really can't beat it.

Cook the Book: 'The Book of New Israeli Food'

I'm Jewish, and grew up in an Israeli Jewish section of town, so I honestly can't remember the first time I had Israeli food. The first time I had it in Israel was 2006.

I now live in "Little Armenia", and a lot of the shops carry Israeli items (in addition to Lebanese, Syrian, etc.). Heaven, pretty much.

Who amongst us, has the best pickiest eater story?

When I was a kid, I thought that eating the crust on a sandwich would make my hair curly. The thought of curly hair horrified me, so I ate all the way up to the crust. I never wanted the crust cut off, but I refused to eat it until I was maybe 10. Oh, and for the record, I have moderately curly hair, so me not eating the crust clearly didn't do as I thought it would!

I bought grapes recently and offered some to my husband, who said biting in to them was like eyeballs popping. He eventually ate them, probably because I wouldn't stop staring at him wondering what to think.

If any dairy product has run past the expiration, he refuses to eat it (if it's already turned I'll toss it, but if it still smells fine, I use it). I have to hide the containers when, say, the yogurt is two days past. All this from a guy who has no trouble with raw oysters, snails, haggis, etc.

Cook the Book: 'Fresh from the Market'

I'm excited for Thanksgiving dinner. Every year we make pig and pis nut rice - it's pignoli and pistachio nuts satueed with mace and combined with rice. We started making it when I was a kid and we have it for Turkey Day every year. I won't eat it any other time of year, even though it's one of my favorite things ever, because it's become such a tradition.

Besides that, I love baking with apples and can't wait to make a pumpkin pie (during the pumpkin scare last year I bought way too many One Pie pumpkin cans, so I have tons of pies to make!). I want to try making pumpkin pie with an actual pumpkin as well.

Fall is the best time of year to cook, IMHO, and I'm so excited that the weather is finally cooling down!

Boston's First Food Truck Festival

I went with my husband and a few friends, but it was nothing to write home about. We split up - one of our friends was in the rib line (M&M), and my husband and I were in the chicken and waffles line (Fillbelly's). It was about 11.30 when we got in line, and almost 2pm by the time we got our food. M&M ran out of ribs and Fillbelly's ran out of waffles after they had served maybe 25 people. By the time we got our fried chicken we were so hot and exhausted from the sun that we each ate about two pieces, and then gave the rest away to people standing in the line.

I have a sunburn on my shoulders, as I didn't think I'd be standing in a line in a parking lot on a hot sunny day and hadn't planned properly. I really wanted cupcakes, but about an hour after the truck showed up they ran out of food. I found out later that a lot of places, such as Roxy's grilled cheese, didn't get their permits in time and therefore couldn't sell any food (check the FB page - Citysearch wrote about it somewhere in the comments). The mayor was there, and I think he stayed for a whopping 10 minutes.

But I guess the best thing was the line camaraderie. Lots of people were chatting with strangers, and we bumped in to friends we hadn't seen in months. Aside from the families that brought their toddlers, who had fits, causing the parents to have fits, the atmosphere was upbeat.

Not the best way to spend a Sunday, but certainly not the worst.

Cook the Book: 'The Ciao Bella Book of Gelato and Sorbetto'

I think my first encounter with gelato was at Faneuil Hall in Boston, inside the marketplace there. That's the first time I remember seeing it, but I never got it from that shop. The first time I remember having some was from a place in the North End of Boston. I now have an ice cream maker, and definitely plan on making my own!

Best breakfast to get you thru the workday?

Oh man the egg "muffin" things sound delightful. I am definitely going to try that soon. I also love greek yogurt with homemade granola and fruit, but that falls out of my repertoire rather quickly.

@MissBrownEyes my husband feels the same way. If he could eat cold pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day, he would.

Cook the Book: 'Mary Mac's Tea Room'

I spent part of my childhood - ages 6 to 10 - in Stone Mountain, GA (just outside Atlanta), so I had many opportunities for Southern meals. One of the first things I remember is people talking about fried okra. I thought they were saying "fried Oprah" and I couldn't figure out how in the hell you would fry Oprah.

We used to eat at Po' Folks all the time. We may be Po, but we proud! I looooved their biscuits.

But by far the best food was my great Aunt's southern fried chicken and biscuits with gravy. You really can't get anything as good in the north, which is a shame.

I get totally psyched on cooking - and then lose motivation!!

Thanks for your responses everyone!! It was a great help. I've been doing a lot more cooking recently, and enjoying it thoroughly. To get myself going I chose smaller recipes using ingredients I already had, or where I only needed to get one bit from the store. It's worked out really well. Here is a sampling of some of the things I made:

- Squash and potato gratin
- Spinach and goat cheese quiche
- Brown butter spaghetti with spinach

I'd make something tonight, but it's 100 degrees right now!

Cook the Book: 'Fiesta at Rick's'

A party hosted by Anthony Bourdain would be awesome. Good food, and no doubt good music.

I don't know if David Lebovitz is considered a celebrity chef, but if he had an ice cream party, I'd be there in a heart beat.

I get totally psyched on cooking - and then lose motivation!!

Pretty much just the kitchen. I know what you are thinking - been down that road before. I think I am overwhelmed by all the possibilities, and suffer from choice overload!

Cook the Book: 'Bite-Size Desserts'

I love homemade ricotta cheese. Takes about 10 - 15 minutes to make, then about 2 hours in the fridge to cool down, and then a few spoonfuls and I'm satiated.

Cook the Book: The Essence of Chocolate

I'm going to toot my own horn here. About 4 years ago I decided to make a chocolate souffle. I'd never made any sort of souffle before, but I wasn't scared (perhaps because I was oblivious to the horror stories about fallen souffles!!). It was just a simple chocolate souffle, dusted with powder sugar, but it seriously was one of the best chocolate desserts I had ever eaten. I haven't been able to make it as good since that time (beginner's luck perhaps?) and I think about it often!

Defrosting meat

Thanks everyone! I'll definitely try running cold water over it =)

I'm cravin' a big bowl of _____

i had a big bowl (well, plate) of chicken curry today and it was awesome. I'm also craving a big bowl of tomato soup. With a grilled cheese sandwich.

mmmmm

Best breakfast to get you thru the workday?

Breakfast/brunch is easily my favorite meal of the day. It's also, for me, the most important one. I usually wake up quite hungry (sometimes to the point of famished, which means I probably need to eat more/better in the evening, but that's a whole other story!). I also work the standard 9-to-5 job, and need something healthy and protein-y to get me going and through the morning.

I love cereal, but eating just that means I am snacking on chips or something before lunch. I also love egg dishes - either egg and cheese on an english muffin or eggs with toast. The egg dishes mean I am full and not snacking until I am ready for lunch, which is great for the wallet and the waistline.

What do you have for breakfast that wakes you up and gets you through the morning? I would love to get some new breakfast ideas! Thanks!

I get totally psyched on cooking - and then lose motivation!!

So here's my problem. I am in a cooking rut. It's not for lack of ideas (recipe books galore, websites bookmarked, ideas from friends) or fresh ingredients - Boston has everything. It's not because my kitchen sucks - I have more counter space and cabinets than I know what to do with, and I finally have a big stove and an oven that properly cooks food.

I'll come across a recipe that piques my interest and decide to make it. I'll cobble together all the ingredients, and then 9 times out of 10, I'll leave it at that and do something "easier" (take out, same pasta dish I make over and over, so on and so forth). Sometimes I justify it to myself. "Oh, I don't have as much time as I thought" or "What if my husband doesn't like it (he likes everything)?"

I've been in this rut off and on for a few months, and it's really dragging me down! I'm thinking that to get back on track I will just start slowly. No need to cook everything in the book and have it be perfect - just a decent, home cooked meal! Does anyone have any advice for overcoming a cooking rut? Many thanks!

Defrosting meat

I usually never remember to take meat out of the freezer before leaving for work to defrost, so I usually just throw it in the microwave when I start preparing dinner. It does the job, but does anyone have any tips for other ways to quickly defrost meat? Thanks!

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

[Photograph: Sydney Oland] About the author: Sydney Oland lives in Somerville, Mass.  Find more information at sydneyoland.com (or read eatingnosetotail.com) Every recipe we publish is tested, tasted, and Serious Eats-approved by our staff. Never miss a recipe again by following @SeriousRecipes... More

Ricotta Cheesecake Pie

This is a lighter alternative to traditional cheesecake. The flaky crust and the addition of ricotta help lighten the affair, making it the perfect finish for early summer dinners. While this pie would be great with any fruit topping, I recommend strawberries and rhubarb, made with frozen or fresh strawberries and fresh rhubarb. More

Fast Breads' Buttery Rowies

I'd never heard of rowies until I saw this recipe in Fast Breads, but as soon as I saw the recipe, I knew I had to try it. The concept is something like a croissant, but with fever folds, and with the dough cut so the butter leaks out during cooking. More

Fast Breads' Crumpets

[Photographs: Donna Currie] As always with our Knead the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of Fast Breads to give away this week. Enter the contest here. Tea and crumpets. That phrase is absolutely everything I knew about crumpets... More

Dinner Tonight: One Pot Kale and Quinoa Pilaf (via Food52)

We love our kale at the Serious Eats office and quinoa, the little grain-that's-not-actually-a-grain from the mountains of South America, has been making some serious inroads into replacing the rice and pasta in our pantries. This recipe combines the two in a simple one-pot pilaf (our favorite kind of dinner recipe) flavored with toasted pine nuts, lemon juice, walnut oil, and a sprinkle of crumbled goat cheese. More

Lemon Cardamom Syllabub

On the list of great culinary innovations that Britain has given the world, desserts would be at the top. Although trifle and pudding are the most well-known, the humble syllabub is my personal favorite. What comes down to a flavored whipped cream is made more complex by the slight curdle the cream gets from citrus, and the sweet alcohol burn given to the cream by sugar and brandy. More

S. H. Fernando Jr.'s Spicy Lentil Fritters

S.H. Fernando Jr., author of Rice & Curry, calls these Spicy Lentil Fritters an Asian take on falafel, and that's a spot-on call. Subbing out chickpeas for yellow split peas makes for fritters with a great bite and the chiles, onion, curry leaves, ginger, and fennel seeds give these guys beguiling flavor, one that will have you snacking on these little fritters until every last one is gone. More

Mark Bittman's Brownies

Bittman's Brownie recipe is a gem, simple and tasty enough to give even the most apprehensive baker that much needed boost of kitchen confidence. Bittman's straight talk advice: "Err on the side of underbaking: An overcooked brownie is dry and cakey, while an undercooked brownie is gooey and delicious" makes for some damned fine brownies. More

Corn Paletas

One of the best things about working in markets is the wonderful people you meet. There's a particularly cute couple that are regulars at the Hester Street Fair and they love these paletas; they would buy several at a time last year to take home so they could enjoy for the week. I just bought some wonderful bicolor corn from the farmers market to make some and wanted to dedicated this recipe to them! More

Roasted Tomato Salsa

Roasting a set of standard salsa ingredients first may add some time to an otherwise quick process, but it's all for good as the end result retains a freshness while gaining a tomato intensity, some sweetness, and a more mild heat the melds seamlessly throughout. More

Lemon Chocolate Pie

Where most lemon pies are single crusted affairs, this pie is double crusted with a thick, sweet lemon filling that's similar to the pudding-like innards of a Lemon Meringue. Once the pie is baked and cooled, its top is covered with what amounts to chocolate frosting. More

Bi-Rite Creamery's Smooth and Mellow Chocolate Ice Cream

This may be the best version of a milk chocolate ice cream that I've ever had. It's definitely chocolate-forward, and plenty rich, but it really lets the milkiness of lower cocoa chocolates shine. Should you want to branch out to peanut butter chocolate swirls, rocky roads, or chocolate brownie chunk ice creams, this should be your base. More

Simply Cornbread

As a child, every year a few days before Thanksgiving we had a Simple Meal. The meal was meant to replicate the humble nature of the first Thanksgiving, and—in a world where there is so much hunger—remind us of all... More