Quick Hit: A Return to the Melt Mobile

Since it was so good the first time around, we returned to the Melt Mobile recently for some more grilled cheese goodness.

This time around they had a couple of new specials and I went with the Caprese Grilled Cheese with fresh mozzarella, basil, tomato, and a pesto spread. Of course I had to add in that delicious homemade tomato soup I love so much. I can honestly say the first time around was no fluke, this place makes AMAZING grilled cheese sandwiches.

I also heard that Bobby Flay will be back this Friday, I think a third trip is in order very soon.

Food paparazzi!

Just a quick blog entry to share something from the npr.org blogosphere;

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/04/23/151230939/poll-are-your-friends-bombarding-you-with-food-porn?sc=fb&cc=fp

While we're just as guilty by joining this blog and writing for it, not one of us are wearing thick frame glasses, nor are our hems prepping us for the flood, and while yes, we use antique typewriters to write our checks (guilty as charged) it is a trend!

Enjoy, but know that the video is juvenile, and wear your headphones.

You'll hear from me after I pickup my new hipster helmet.

Hudson Valley Restaurant Week

For those of us in the Hudson Valley there's something called the Hudson Valley Restaurant Week. Calorie counts are cast aside for a three course meal at a good number of restaurants all over the region. Lunches are $20.95, and dinners are $29.95, and it's a steal from a lot of these establishments. Most of the meals offered would cost that alone for entree, much less appetizer and deserts. Tax, tip and beverages are separate from that tally, but you can still make out like a bandit. It's an exceptional way to try new places for a much better price point minimizing disappointment, and in the good cases a great feeling of value...

So, without more babbling about how neat this concept is, two establishments were visited this weekend. First, Cathryn's in Cold Spring, NY. A pleasant facade is made better as you walk through a small winding brick path in a garden to the entrance. Opening the door yields a view to your greeters, and a sliver of the kitchen. The smells are excellent, but subtle, fresh oil cooking something good. As we were lead to the front of the building you realize this is the type of place where wine and an appetizer could be a habit. Comfortable lounges, simple, but comfortable table layouts make you feel like you're at home. Moving further into the space what was once the front room of a retail establishment is now a picture window to Cold Spring passing by.

The wait staff is young, but certainly not without skill and experience as drink orders were taken, bread supplied, and we were made comfortable. The menu was explained in a thorough manner and questions were answered confidently and without trips to the kitchen. As someone with difficult food conditions as I'm gluten and dairy free, and sensitive to ginger it's sometimes hard to eat out at higher rated establishments. Once I notified the server he quickly checked with the chef to make sure my order was to be prepared without dairy, gluten or ginger.

We both ordered from the menu. My wife had a butternut squash soup, a local cheese sampler and a carrot cake desert. For myself I ordered the hazelnut and apple salad with local greens, a trout simply prepared with side greens. For my desert which I often must forgo I was able to have a berry compote.

The soup was made with dairy but was served cold. My wife reports: This was not a bad thing however. It was smooth, with a pleasant flavor from the squash putting it into a neutral sweet flavor. This is often lost in squash soups since cooking them often pushes the sugars out, leaving only an earthy tone. The cream also helped lend a savory flavor bringing it together. For my appetizer all components were very fresh. Since this was not the season for fresh greens I can only imagine that these were greenhouse cultivated, to no loss however since the various greens were exceptional. For lack of any better descriptors everything about the salad greens were "soft." The flavor was subtle, the greens were very tender, almost as though they were true baby greens, but not without being washed out.. The apples were sharp and the hazelnuts seemed not to have been shelled on site, but still had a complimentary flavor to the apples. Both the apples and the nuts provided the hard texture to the soft of the greens.

Squash soup

Fresh greens

For our main courses my wife explains her cheese course as "nummy." Well, that's good for some, but from the perspective of each cheese everything was on point. The cheddar was aged, and had bite requiring the jam provided. The brie had a good casing, and texture was not oily or melting, but slightly thicker than anything that could be spread. The goat cheese is something I can have, so I can explain it as a smooth, creamy texture with only a hint of the gamey flavor that often accompanies goat cheeses. It was pleasant, and I'm not entirely sure how the deep earthy flavors were removed so well. The trout was excellent, simply cooked in a pan with very light oil it was as light and subtle as the other foods that day. Again the greens were "soft" and subtle. The morels that were on top were unfortunately a little over cooked, but the portions that were not lent a earthy, almost nutty flavor with a slightly chewy texture. They were a good choice with if they hadn't been quite so over done, but I still enjoyed the whole dish regardless, and would order it again without reserve.

Trout

Hudson valley cheese sampler

The desserts were quite good, albeit common for the class of restaurant. The cake was well done with a dense sponge, and contrasted with a smoother than normal texture of icing between the layers. The outer layer of icing was very dense and just a bit too much of a thinkness was applied, which meant some was shaved off and left on the plate. The berries were excellent, fresh, and were very sweet naturally. They were chilled and served in a small glass dish that was so cold that condensation was present on the outside, a very good thing. Unfortunately I forgot the pictures, so next time kids. ;)

All told this is definitely some place we would return to at least once more. For information on their restaurant take a look at: http://www.tuscangrill.com/

In Honor of National Grilled Cheese Day: Lunch at the Melt Mobile

Yesterday was National Grilled Cheese Day and never being one to pass up an opportunity to celebrate such an esteemed day of recognition myself and several coworkers decided to celebrate it by lunching at one of the newest food establishments in town, the Melt Mobile.

The Melt Mobile is a grilled cheese truck that parks by Six Landmark Square in Stamford, CT. In an area that is overflowing with hot dog trucks it is a unique take on the mobile food concept. It also differentiates itself by serving gourmet style sandwiches instead of your run of the mill American Cheese on toasted bread. Some of the menu items include meatball grilled cheese, pulled pork, a dessert grilled special, and even The Insanewich which is a burger in between two grilled cheese sandwiches.  It’s positioned right outside the front of Six Landmark Square building and there are even a few tables and chairs right next to the truck so you can eat in if the weather is nice.

Of course wanting to try their signature meal, I went with the Insanewich with a side of homemade tomato soup. The Insanewich consisted of an 8 oz. Angus burger in between two melts with bacon, lettuce, tomato, and some kind of delicious sauce. Coworkers of mine went with the Meatball 3 Cheese Squeeze (meatballs in marinara, fresh mozzarella, pecorino, reggiano parmigiano, and fresh basil on Tuscan bread) and the classic Original Melt (Tillamook cheddar, Gruyere, and Monterey Jack on country white bread).

First let me comment on the tomato soup as I am a HUGE lover of it when it’s done right. This was done right; it was creamy, not too salty, and full of ripe tomato flavor. I would go back just to have another bowl of this soup. It was cooked exactly how I like it. The sandwich itself was a giant; I barely finished it and spent the rest of the day in a semi food coma. The burger was juicy and flavorful and the grill cheese bun was perfectly melted around it. It also left no grease on my hands or the plate which was a pleasant surprise. There’s nothing worse than an overly greasy sandwich. Whatever sauce was on this made the sandwich. It was quite tasty and combined well with the bacon, cheese, and burger. I don’t know if I could get this sandwich every time, but it was definitely worth one go around.

Overall this was a hit. Everyone thought the food was very good and the prices while not cheap were comparable to the cafeteria in our building and most other sandwich places around. I will definitely be returning to the Melt Mobile sometime soon. 

The Home Stretch with GMO Labeling

There has been a lot of new developments in the fight to require foods that use GMO (Genetically Modified) ingredients to include that information on their labels both on the national and local levels. There have been some encouraging signs, but there are still things that need to be done to ensure measures get passed that require companies to label their products.

First on the national level the Just Label It campaign has resulted in 990,000 signatures on the petition urging the FDA to require GMO foods to be labeled on packaging. They would like to get over 1 million signatures within a week to present to the FDA. If you’d like to sign that petition, just go to http://justlabelit.org/. Getting over 1 million signatures would be a powerful statement to the FDA that people want to know what’s going into their food. We are one of the only industrialized nations that does not currently require GMO labeling. Australia, China, Japan and all 15 EU member countries require it.

Second a lot has been happening on the local front for Connecticut residents. HB 5117, an Act Concerning Genetically-Engineered Foods, passed in the CT Environment Committee with a vote of 23-6, a bi-partisan vote and a crucial step in the life of the bill. Five out of ten Republicans on the Committee voted in favor of the bill and all but one Democrat voted in favor of the bill. The bill will now be sent to the Connecticut House where it will wait until the Speaker of the House, Representative Christopher Donovan, calls the bill for a vote. If you believe in the bill, I’d encourage you to write to Mr. Donovan asking him to call the bill to a vote. A premade letter was written out which I used below. The legislative session ends May 9^th so it’s important he calls it before then. His contact information is:

Christopher Donovan
Legislative Office Building, Room 4100
Hartford, CT 06106
Christopher.Donovan@cga.ct.gov
860-240-8500
1-800-842-1902

The standard letter reads:

Mr. Speaker,

I write you today urging you to call HB 5117. I want the right to know if GMOs are in my food so I can make informed choices when buying food for myself and my children. Over 30 countries including Australia, China, Japan and all 15 EU member countries successfully label GM foods and we deserve those same rights. I believe strongly in my right to know exactly what is going into my food, despite the industries attempts to conceal that and I hope you agree.

Thank you.

** YOUR NAME**

**CITY/TOWN**

In addition to writing to the speaker, you can write to your individual legislators urging them to vote for the bill. This is probably the simplest part of taking action as all you would need to do is go here:  http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_25022.cfm. Click the “TAKE ACTION” link at the top and enter your zip code to get the legislatures in your district. Fill in your information and use the pre written email statement they have prepared or write your own.  

If GMO labeling is something you feel strongly about (as I do) I would encourage you to take some action. There are a lot of companies fighting against this, and the people in charge will need to hear from as many people as possible if these bills are going to pass. 

Doppleganger Dish, Episode II - Enchiladas Verdes

So, it's been a while since the inaugural Doppleganger Dish column.

To review, this series is about a dish I enjoyed in a restaurant, and the subsequent attempt to recreate something similar at home. I try not to go too crazy with the ingredients, so you're not stuck with a whole bunch of something you won't use somewhere else after making the dish.

When we last spoke, I was extolling the virtues of fresh, healthy, but very tasty Thai Minced Chicken Lettuce Wraps (which I love at Thai Basil in Greenwich) as an avenue for having a very satisfying dinner as part of a general plan of eating better.

Today, I'm taking a crack at a dish that I love from a little mexican place that I absolutely adore. When I worked in East Norwalk, it was a ritual; every Thursday, a crew of us would head to Tacos Mexico on Fort Point Street. During our years of weekly trips there, we saw the place grow from a tiny dive with two rickety tables next to the soda fridge topped with the tv blaring Telemundo, to them expanding next door, installing a bar, adding nice tables, and remodeling the place into what is easily the nicest spot in the little strip mall area where they reside.

I've had many dishes at Tacos Mexico, and everything there is great, fresh, and cheap; but I keep coming back to the enchiladas verdes.

After I got laid off from my job in Norwalk, I still would occasionally make the trek with my former colleagues to get my TM fix; and eventually those of us in the Greenwich/Stamford area were fortunate enough to be graced by the awesome El Charrito folks, who expanded from their little taco truck in Stamford, to also having a homebase storefront in Riverside.

Their enchiladas are also excellent, but like Sheryl Crow says, the first cut is the deepest, and I still long for the TM enchiladas.

Not only do I now once again work in Norwalk, albeit a little further from my old spot, so I can once again hit TM on occasion, I also have tried my hand at creating that magical green sauce, and while I don't think I'll ever get it exactly like theirs, (Tacos Mexico regulars are convinced that the little old Mexican ladies in the back sprinkle some manner of pixie dust or crack on the food there) I can make a pretty awesome salsa verde that is the centerpiece of this dish.

Here's how I do it.

INGREDIENTS

For the Salsa Verde

Tomatillos, about 1/2-2/3lb, husked and washed

Garlic, about 4-6 cloves depending on size and taste

Onion, 1 small or 1/2 a large

Cilantro, a good handful, trimmed of stems

Jalapeno Chile, 1-2, depending on size and desire for heat (seeds can be removed too to cut down on the heat)

Poblano Chile, I usually use one or 1/2 a large one, but again it will depend on your desire for heat

Juice of 1/2 a lime

Salt

1tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

About a 1/4cup of water

For the Chicken Filling

1lb Chicken cut into small cubes

2tsp Chili Powder

2tsp Ground Cumin

Salt

To Round Things Out

Corn (or flour) tortillas

Cheese (queso fresco, queso cotija, or even just shredded cheddar or mozzerella)

Sour Cream (or mexican crema)

Rice and/or Beans to accompany

Hardware

Large Skillet

Medium Saucepan

Cooking Oil

Blender or food processor (I prefer an immersion stick blender for this application)

PROCESS

One of the things I love about this recipe is that because the salsa verde ingredients are destined for pulverization, you really don't need to be too careful about your chop size. After rough chopping the salsa ingredients, I heat some vegetable oil in the saucepan over medium heat, and get the onions going.

I add the tomatillos next (I usually just halve or quarter these) along with the chiles and garlic. The goal here is to get some color on the vegetation, I usually season each addition with a pinch of salt, which will help pull out some moisture. Also, the tomatillos will give up some moisture as they soften.

After the tomatillos are softened, and the other ingredients have some color, about 8-10min, you can add the vinegar and some of the water. Remember, water is a solvent and will dilute the taste of the salsa, so I really only use enough to get the salsa "going" when we blend it. That said, the salsa is pretty potent stuff and I think it can handle some of the dilution.

I save the cilantro and lime juice for right before blending, they are volatile flavors and won't stand up to cooking without losing a lot of their punch.

I usually blend this until it is relatively smooth; the pectin in the tomatillos will help hold it together. I like it warm on these enchiladas, and it's also great cold or at room temp as a chip salsa.

The chicken filling process is pretty straightfoward taco assembly routine. You're going to brown the cubed chicken, season with salt and the chili powder and cumin. No big whoop.

As for assembly, take a tortilla (you really should warm these even if you're lazy. A damp paper towel and 10-20 seconds in the microwave really helps), spooning some filling in there, then rolling, and covering with salsa and a bit of cheese and sour cream.

Serve with rice and/or beans, good stuff.

Hopefully it won't be as long before my next Doppleganger Dish episode.

Sun Dried Tomato and Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken

    I make a good amount of stuffed chicken. I've used everything from Italian Sausage to Feta Cheese as a stuffing but this recipe might be the best one I've ever had. It's a perfect blend of sweet and tart, creamy and crunchy, with a strong and rich flavor to it. It's also fairly healthy, with a lot of the flavor coming from the sun dried tomatoes and olives. The ingredients below were scaled for two people so you might have some adjusting to do depending on how big a meal you're making.

Ingredients

• 1 lemon (for vest and juice)
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 12 Gaeta olives, pitted
• 1/2 cup Sun dried Tomatoes
• 1 Portabella Mushroom top
• parsley sprigs (amount depends on your preference)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 chicken breasts, pounded thin
• 1 small log Honey Goat Cheese (I used this)

Directions

• Whisk together the chicken broth, olive oil, and juice and zest from the lemon and marinate the chicken in that mixture for approximately 30 minutes. 
• In a food processor, chop the parsley, portabella mushroom, sun dried tomatoes, and olives together. Add in some oil from the sun dried tomatoes, garlic and onion powder as well as salt and pepper to the mixture and place in a small bowl. Slice up the Goat Cheese and add it to the mixture and blend with a spoon until well mixed. 
• Place the chicken breasts flat in a baking pan with some of the marinade mixture in order to keep them moist during baking. Scoop the filling mixture onto the chicken breasts and roll them around it, using a toothpick to keep them in place. 
• Bake in a 425 degree oven for approx 15-20 minutes.