CantaloupeAlone

Soon to be open So a few things have changed. I don't live in Brooklyn. I live in Taipei, Taiwan and I am pursing food and cooking full force. I am starting a restaurant in The Taipei City Hall section of town, which is fancy to be short. I am not alone here. My pals Catherine and Michael who brought my out last spring are now my partners. I have some other expat and Taiwanese friends here. In fact the whole country is friendly, and loves to drink and eat. I feel pretty good about this move in whole. So what kind of restaurant am I starting? What will serve? What is it called? All of these facts will be revealed to you in good time. For now lets start at the beginning. My partners found an amazing location which needs renovation. Gutting and revamping has begun. I am told it will take one month. Disbelief is giving way to reality. Construction and labor are affordable and efficient over here. Here is brief tour of what we are working with.  The front   The...

I've been skipping out my CSA updates. I have big news. This is my LAST CSA share for some time. I am officially moving to Taipei in 2 weeks for a new culinary venture. Updates on that later. Let's talk about what's happen with the massive range of items in the Flatbush Farm Share this week. On top of tempeh, cheese, coffee and more the Flatbush Farm Share offers a range of products from Milk Not Jails . This now includes things like chocolate ice cream, butter, Hawthorne Farms kraut, bread, granola. So many options I feel spoiled. I bought 2 tubs of butter (THICK and creamy is my complete description), regular sauerkraut (so sour you feel it in your brain), and ice cream (sadly mostly melted and icy sort of like a frosty from Wendy's). I traded my half and half for some extra radishes. This is a great assortment of hard and leafy vegetables. Its the kind of variety that makes participating in a CSA really fun. The fruit has been coming in large quantities too, whi...

Salad, salad, chomp, chomp Salad days are back. Big, no huge, leafy heads of escarole, romaine, arugula, parsley are now decoratring my fridge shelves in big bouquets. I don't have much of meal game plan, just to eat salads. A little oil, salt and perhaps a handful of herbs I've been harvesting from Prospect Farm. The Farm at Miller's Crossing, who provides my vegetables should be proud of their snap peas which are sweet as candy. That's right vegetables for dessert. Flatbush Farm Share CSA Week 3 1 bunch Chiogga Beets 1 bunch parsely 1 bunch arugula 1 bunch huge escarole 1 bunch romaine 1 scant quart snap peas 1/2 lb garlic scapes, which I gave away 6 eggs 12 oz half n half 1 quart dark beautiful cherries

Grilla from Manila torching the coals I'll be the first to admit it: I misuse the term BBQ all the time. BBQ is the application of heat and smoke in a controlled (usually small) way to slow cook meat until it's falling apart, juicy, and good. BBQ is not easy, requires time, skill and patience to control wild elements like fire and wind. I know how to grill. A grill is just a metal grate that you rest over heat, often created from charcoal or gas. I've been known to cook over wood fire, too. It's not any different from cooking on a stove except that you're outside and you're in charge! In fact, I have a metal grill pan I use inside all the time, but yeah, it's not as impressive sounding is it? So let's be clear. BBQ is slow-smoked ribs, pork butt, pastrami, brisket etc. Grilling is for hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken pieces, fish, vegetables or anything that can be cooked on a grate over a fire. Use your imagination, and you'll find that lo...

 You better believe that half and half is going right over those berries Its only been a month since my last CSA pick up, but I was so hungry for my first pick up of the summer season. Its time for sugar snap peas, strawberries and arugula you can identify by scent from 5 feet away. Ooh its happening, all this week of the Flatbush Farm Share . I'm getting a single share (what you see above) of vegetables, sort of like a half share I think, single share fruit, 1/2 dozen eggs and 12 oz of half and half care of Milk not Jails . Tempeh, coffee, yogurt, and cheese are also availiable too, which is an incredible variety. Thats practically everything you need. I should mention that the sugar snap peas were nearly perfect and I ate about 1/3 raw between home and photographing.  Flatbush Farm Share CSA Week 1 1 bunch collards 1 bunch romaine lettuce 1 bunch arugula 1 bunch rabini (young broccoli rabe) 1 bunch beets June is strawberry time 1 quart strawb...

Let block party season begin. Come down to Kensington, Brooklyn to support Compost 4 Brooklyn . It's really really fun day! The raffle rules. I will be serving samples of sauerkraut and talking fermentation. Compost for Brooklyn says: Join us to eat, play, grow, learn, and dance in the street in celebration of summer! E-waste recycling / live music by PrimaryRecords / unbeatable raffle / workshops / book sale / bake sale / TREE GIVEAWAY / bike bell giveaway / seed giveaway / bake sale / composting / and much much more The raffle really is all that. Compost for Brooklyn Block Party SUnday June 3rd 11 am - 5 pm Newkirk and E. 8th st in Brooklyn Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/294168834002498/

  ramp it up kimchi Ramps are a thing in the New York metro area. They are a wild variety of onion with a unique garlicky and mineral flavor that can't quite be replicated. Ramps can't be cultivated and are only around for a short while in spring.  Or so they tell me at the farmer's market where they go for $16 a pound. $16 a pound is more than meat, but this ramp kimchi recipe is pretty undeniable good.  Its a powerhouse of savory flavors that take you on a pungent tour of salty, spicy, garlicky, and then more spicy. I suggest it. This recipe is based on Tigress on a Pickle's , whose blog has been leading me to conquer pickling and fermentation techniques for some time now. This ramp kimchi kicked my cabbage kimchi's ass! Ramp Kimchi 1 lb of ramps, root ends trimmed off 2 cloves garlic 1 knob of peeled ginger 1/4 lb daikon 1 tblsp kosher salt 1/2 tsp sugar 2 tblsp crushed hot peppers 1 tsp oil Exihibit A: The ramps You will need a ceramic...