Come On Up for the Rising

Easter Dinner 2017

I pulled this one out of me arse.  It was last minute.  I was tired.  I wasn't feeling much of the holiday spirit, but without special food I realized it would really suck.  So luckily I had this mini shoulder piece of pork to slow cook. I made a homemade BBQ sauce that helped my spirits.  Also a yogurt dill red potato salad thanks to my sis who reminds me of the traditional sides that make holidays complete.

An easy side arugula tomato Parmesan salad with a raspberry vinaigrette.

That morning an early bike ride out to Red Hook for breakfast in the back of Fairway.

Can't You Hear Me Knocking?

A fun lunch for a bad occasion. Our good friend was being sent to prison. Not a good day. We needed to say goodbye or good luck or something although all the words seemed wrong. Do you ever wonder if you make any difference at all in any person's life? Your words or your concern, your gestures, your intent. People say beautiful things to me occasionally but within a few hours I usually forget they ever said them. I usually think they are just trying to be nice anyway but I know what the real truth is.
When P overshoots and tells me something too nice, I immediately wonder why he felt he needed to go overboard. Am I that big of a mess? Why would he patronize me?

I try to be sincere when offering advice or encouragement. I don't have any answers I know that but you got to come up with something at times like these. Like the freak that I am I had brought with me to the restaurant little cut out picture figures of all of us so T could put them up on his wall and think of happier times. A pic of P's from the back carrying a 12pk of beer home on a cold winter day. A pic of me trying to look badass with my bike gear on crossing a bridge and so on. But I lost the nerve to give them to him. After hearing all of his new reality, it felt like a mockery. So there they were looking up at me from the bottom of my purse as if to say good job asshole.

Even the food which was amazing by the way, fell a little flat. Beef brisket and pulled pork sandwiches from the Smoke Joint. Sides of mac and cheese which I think was their best ever, baked beans, corn bread, coleslaw and BedStuy potato salad. These are winning dishes. We ate and talked, but I don't remember the food at all this day.

Knowing Me, Knowing You

Another great brunch at the Smoke Joint! I got the beef brisket sandwich again. My reasoning being the chicken and pulled pork is great but I eat tons of those meats weekly but when do I get brisket? Decision made. Case closed. Plus the fat on brisket is truly one of life's greatest treasures. They will serve it as a snack in my heaven.

We went with the seasoned fries, Bed Stuy potato salad and baked beans again - all super good sides, no surprises there. J had some pepper-infused tequila bloody Maria that took everything for me not to grab and suck down for some sweet mental and emotional relief. But no, not drinking, not gonna do it. Thank you, I'll have the iced tea please. sigh.

I was weak that morning. I didn't want to miss brunch with J but P had me out on a bike ride that morning and I was under the weather. The hill in Prospect Park almost did me in, plus there was a cancer walk that in my opinion was poorly planned because it became an obstacle course of bikers, joggers, kids and cancer walkers. What should have been a nice day in the park turned into a cursing sweaty hateful resent-fest. If you're a biker, you resent the walkers and the joggers. They are in your way. It's simple. Get out of my way. If you were walking, you probably felt it was your day and the park should have been closed off to bikers and joggers. If you're jogging well sorry but to me, you're from another planet anyway, so you don't count. What normal human could take running up those hills?!

Nobody Does It Better, Makes Me Feel Sad for the Rest

When we visited Nashville a couple of weeks ago I was most excited about our potential culinary adventures. I knew we'd hit some dives and some fast food. It became apparent pretty quick though that unless we actually settled somewhere and didn't just drive through towns we'd be forced to do fast food or a chain dinner house, which seemed real odd to me. Could we actually go into a Chili's or a Red Lobster type establishment having been to the crossroads?


In my mind we were eating our way up an imaginary roller coaster and the big thrill ride at the end was going to be this Nashville BBQ. Mind you, we were in and out of that city before most people woke up BUT we both did some research and you have to trust the web at some point. We reached the same conclusion, that Jack's BBQ on Broadway was supposed to carry the town's treasure. And so to Jack's we went. And like I mentioned, it was very descent. Respectable BBQ indeed. No complaints.

But this is how spoiled we are food-wise anyway in New York City. Casually we went to brunch with our good friend the other day and picked the spot on the corner for a BBQ lunch. We're lucky enough to have a BBQ place on the corner, as well as a Thai, a Greek diner, a pizza parlor,a bar, an amazing burger spot and a few others. The Smoke Joint was..I'm gonna say it...better than Jack's. The smoked meat somehow was more tender, more juicy and more flavorful. The sauces, I'm gonna give those to Jack's, although Smoke Joint's are super good too. But the key to really good smoked meat is when you don't find yourself reaching for the sauces right away.


Side dish wise, I'm gonna have to give that to Smoke Joint as well because they have a kick ass Bed Stuy potato salad that rivals any, maybe even your moms. And seasoned fries that are crisp and small and go so well with the flavors. Their beans are incredible with chunks of sausage just in case you start missing the brawn, which you won't because they are TOO tasty.

Corn bread award goes to Jack's. Some of the best I've ever eaten. It wasn't too sweet, yet it was moist and delicious, I'd go on to say addictive. In fact just talking about it makes my mouth water.

We're always complaining about New York, rightfully so 'cause she's a big 'ole mean unrelenting muhthuh but one of the bonuses are that she has some of the most amazing food being cooked on thousands of corners around every borough. And so she may be mean, but that bitch sure can cook!

A pork shoulder to lean on

Pork shoulders were on sale down at the PathMark dontcha know so I slow roasted one last night with a garlic, vinegar, dried pepper rub. Oh my gosh, it looks and tastes so so good. I've done this lots before but I read a Nigella Lawson recipe where she left hers go for 24 hours on 275. I went 15 just because I woke up and had to taste it! The skin is crisp and amazing, the meat stayed nice and moist. Thank Goodness, because that was my fear, that it would dry up like my soul on a Sunday night.

Now pulled pork sandwiches are gonna happen no doubt this week but I wanted to go for something more interesting today. When we lived in SF, we started trying lots of Vietnamese food. They're soups were incredible. Here, they've opened a bunch of Vietnamese sandwich shops that serves these super cheap, super great pork sandwiches. So I'll do an homage to that 'Bahn Mi' (pronounced BUN mee) sandwich tonight in celebration of Tiger Wood's Jersey tournament 'come back' (we hope). So, they do a spicy butter-mayo spread on a toasted baguette and a julienne of carrots, cucumber and lots of cilantro. I thought there were jalapenos as well but I can't find a recipe. I'm going from memory and pics. Also, a big missing part is this amazing pate but this is an homage, not a total recreation so LAY OFF ME!

In place of the carrot, cucumber chop, I'm going to put in this fresh carrot, apple, radish, cabbage slaw that I made last night while I had my cuisanart out. I wanted to keep it light, so I opted out of the mayo and the sour cream and just went with rice vinegar, a pinch of sugar and lots of salt, pepper and fresh 'peno's. I'm adding a little heat with some chipolte mayo.

I've loved watching golf when Tiger was playing, like so many. This whole year has been tough with all that nonsense and what a shocker that whole fiasco was, huh?! This week the divorce went final and that's always rough to see but seems like the best thing. Hey we all got problems, hate our jobs, wanna kill our bosses, can't see any light until 'bout Thursday BUT or AND, no million dollar bankroll to soften the blow of it all. So, they'll be okay but our main concern is T's game. Will that recover? We're thinking possibly this will be the tourney that turns that boy around. I'm always looking for a good reason to make a small feast so I'll make some sides and call this a party. Sometimes you need a shoulder to lean on, even if he's a pig.