Writing With My Mouth Full

Murray’s Real Salami

I broke the strap of my goggles so swimming after work was out. What does one do on a Friday night alone? If you’re me, then you’d also be on the 6 train to Grand Central Terminal to visit the new Murray’s Real Salami store. Rob Kaufelt, the owner of Murray’s Cheese, is now selling cooked and cured meats from artisan producers like Creminelli, Larchmont Charcuterie and Niman Ranch.

The staff, though not like the Di Palo family members who can recite the history of a cheese or cured meat off the top of their heads, was helpful and excited about letting you try almost anything you want. The Creminelli sausage was perfectly salty with some spice in the end, while the $99-per pound Ibérico de Bellota was naturally oily with some velvet in your mouth (must be all the acorns those happy pigs ate). Just try getting a sample of that at Despaña.

The venison paté was superb with apricot and hazelnuts. The pheasant was rich and had pistachios. Both were perfect on their own or on fresh baguette. I ended up buying with everything I tasted except for the Iberico, plus some bresaola and cornichons. I also took home a bonus package of Niman Ranch bacon because I spent more than $25 during opening week. Across the aisle was Murray’s Cheese where I picked up slivers of Ombra, Pecorino Ginepro and Le Chevre Noir. Back home, I saw no reason to stop: I opened a 2005 Chateauneuf du Pape bottle to go with everything.

There should be more Friday nights like this.

Murray’s Real Salami is inside the Grand Central Market, 212/867.7202. They are open until 9pm during the week.

Chunky Apple Muffins

After a full week of craving salty foods, I woke up Sunday morning eager to bake something sweet. I’m not a big fan of too much sweet, though, so I opted for an easy apple cake recipe minus half a cup of sugar. When I took out the baking pans from the oven, I saw an old muffin pan I’ve only used a few times. From there, I just decided to make muffins instead of cake so I can transport them easier to work the next day.

Ingredients:
1 red apple, peel on, chopped in small chunks
2 cups flour, sifted
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup butter, melted, plus a little extra to grease the muffin pan
1 tbsp baking powder
2 tsps cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350º with the rack in the middle. Butter and flour a muffin pan.
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, sugar and salt in a large bowl. In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs and the buttermilk, and then the melted butter.
3. Pour the buttermilk mixture over the flour mixture. Fold in the apples. Stir until barely combined. Try not to over-mix so that it’s not too sticky.
4. Spoon a small amount of batter into each muffin hole so that it’s only halfway full. It will rise and will need the extra room later. Bake for about 15 minutes or until muffins are just set. Lower the oven temperature to 275º and bake for another 10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from a gentle poke. Turn off the oven and leave the muffins inside until the oven cools back down. The muffins will continue to cook in the remaining heat.

Kimchi Fried Rice with Fried Egg

Funny how Korean food is my crutch cuisine after a night out of excessive drinking. If not a hot, spicy soup before going home, it’s kimchi fried rice topped with a fried egg when I wake up. Korean food can lead you to too much drinking, but it sure does help you recover from it.

A fried egg is perfect with this fried rice. When you crack the half-cooked yolk and let the yellow ooze over your rice, you’ll forget about that banging headache, too. Mmm, I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.

Ingredients:
leftover cooked white rice
kimchi
1 egg
oil

1. In a heavy skillet, heat some oil and add rice. Fry and cook by stirring and tossing until the cold rice is warm and free of clumps. Add a small amount of kimchi and stir. The rice should be red-orange, but you don’t want it to be too moist. I try not to add too much of the kimchi juice. Remove fried rice to a bowl.
2. Using the same skillet, heat some oil again and fry the egg. Serve on top of the fried rice.

Almond Restaurant

12 East 22nd Street
212/228.7557
$90 for two, with 2 glasses of wine, with tip
♥ ♥ ♥

We’ve driven by Almoncello on Montauk Highway only to stop at Townline BBQ for lunch instead. This summer I told myself, okay, I’ll definitely eat there next year. But now that their Manhattan branch has opened, I don’t have to keep empty promises anymore. Closer to me is homey French bistro food good enough for a no-hassle night out with friends.

After a stiff and stress-relieving dirty martini at the bar, my friend and I sat down and ravaged the appetizers list. We couldn’t get enough of the fruits de mer with curried mussels, octopus and a delicious scallop and fennel ceviche. For $15 it was a steal, though I would gladly give the rest up for more of the ceviche.

Almond excels at the duck confit. It was my favorite dish among the few that we ordered. The polenta ravioli and the mac and cheese were too rich for my taste, but that was probably because I was already at my limit after the frogs’ legs with the puff pastry. My friend, whom I convinced to eat frogs’ legs for the first time, loved them and went on raving about them to her husband when she got home.

For a last-minute decision to eat out in the Murray Hill area, I think Almond is an economical and good choice. I doubt that it will be as empty in the weeks to come.

Post to be updated as soon as my friend sends me the photos.

Sage Ice Cream

It’s probably not the right time to be posting recipes about ice cream, but I’m going to do it anyway because it’s so easy if you have an ice cream maker. Now, to me an ice cream maker is one of those things you register for when you get married. I’m not on that path so I had to borrow one from someone who recently tied the knot. I must say that it will be my next purchase as soon as I have my own kitchen space. (Of course that’s what I said before I got the three Le Creusets, the tagine and the bamboo steamer.)

Sage came up as a possible pairing for our pumpkin-squash Supper theme last month. The herb itself is so fragrant that in ice cream form, it overpowered the cake and chips I wanted to match it with. In the end, we served a more subtle pumpkin ice cream to complete a last course we called Trio of Pumpkin, and now I have a whole tub of sage ice cream sitting in the freezer reserved for those quiet nights indoors.

Ingredients:
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups half-and-half
1/3 cup fresh sage, coarsely chopped
4 large strips of lemon zest, peeled using a peeler
9 egg yolks
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp salt

1. In a heavy saucepan, bring cream, half-and-half, sage and zest to a boil over moderate heat. Remove from heat and cover the pot for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, whisk together yolks, granulated sugar and salt in a large bowl. Pour in half of the hot cream and whisk to combine. Transfer to the saucepan to combine with the remaining hot cream. This is your custard.
3. Cook custard over moderate heat while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Do not let it boil. After about 5 minutes, the custard should be thick enough to cover the back of your spoon.
4. Pour custard through a fine sieve into a bowl and let cool in room temperature, stirring occasionally. Cover with Saran wrap and store in the refrigerator until cold, at least 1 hour.
5. Using an ice cream maker, pour in chilled custard and churn, following manufacturer’s instructions. Mine took about 20 minutes. Scoop out of ice cream maker and transfer to a resealable plastic container and put in freezer to harden.