Archive for November 2009

EVENT: In the Small Kitchen, Coming Soon to a Bookstore Near You
MENU: Dark Chocolate Cookies with Milk Chocolate Chunks; Chocolate Chip Cookies with Milk and Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Good news in the oven at BGSK!

No, we have not conceived a love child. Or maybe on second thought, we have conceived something, and maybe it is a love child of sorts. It’s not a little girl though (that’s Helena, daughter of Rebecca, who’s enabling our first catering gig). What it is: a book! It’s been a year-long process, with a lot of help in the…

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Chocolate Chip Cookies with Milk and Semi-Sweet Chips
Makes 3-4 dozen, depending on size

I have to attribute my appreciation of this combo–milk and semi sweet–to one of my closest friends, JoJo, with whom I spent many hours reading cookbooks and copying out recipes in the basement of the Harvard Coop. The first time I watched her pour chips from two bags into her dough, I was surprised. Then, almost immediately, I found myself a convert.

As for the chocolate chip cookie recipe, it’s more or less the Tollhouse one, and I think it makes the most…

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Cara and Phoebe’s Quarter-Life Kitchen
By Carey Jones

“We’re excited to hear that New York bloggers Cara and Phoebe, of Big Girls Small Kitchen, just announced their upcoming book—though we might be even more excited for the celebratory chocolate cookie recipes posted along with it.”

Read the full article here.

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EVENT: Jordana’s 25th Birthday, and the 1-Year BGSK Anniversary
VENUE: Jor’s Parents’ Apartment, Upper West Side
PARTY SIZE: 40-50
TYPE: Hardy, Asian-Themed Cocktail Buffet
MENU: BBQ Chicken Satays (P); Soy-Sesame Tofu Satays (C); Asian Meatballs with Tomato-Ginger Chutney (P); Manchurian Cauliflower (P); Summer Rolls (C); Peanut Udon Noodles (C); Potato-Pea Masala with Cilantro-Mint Chutney (P); Naan (Local Indian Takeout); Cupcakes Three Ways (C)
PHOTOS BY: Alex

Exactly a year ago, as I…

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Potato-Pea Masala with Cilantro-Mint Chutney
Makes 10 main course servings (roughly a gallon)

Read the original post herev.

Ingredients
3 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 lb Sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 jalapeños, seeded, coarsely chopped
1 5-inch knob peeled ginger, coarsely chopped
6 garlic cloves
½ tbsp cumin
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp honey
2 large onions, chopped
2 15oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

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Summer Rolls with Nuoc Cham
Makes 30 rolls

Read the full post here.

Ingredients
30 rice paper wrappers*
1 cup carrots, julienned
1/2 cup mint leaves
1 cup cilantro leaves
1 package rice noodles, soaked in hot water for 5-10 minutes until soft, then drained, tossed with a few teaspoons peanut oil, and cut into smaller pieces
1 small Napa Cabbage
1/3 cup roasted peanuts

*These are different than egg roll or spring roll wrappers, which need to be cooked. Find them cooked or fresh at specialty…

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Asian Meatballs with Tomato-Ginger Chutney
Makes 50 meatballs

After the success of my birthday meatballs, I felt inclined to put an Asian spin on my winning recipe for Jor’s Indian-esque buffet. In place of basil and parsley, cilantro. Instead of ketchup and Parmesan, red chili paste and ginger. Read the original post here.

Ingredients

For the Meatballs:

3 large shallots, minced
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus 1/4 cup
1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
3 large eggs, beaten
2 tbsp…

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EVENT: The Lapine Thanksgiving
VENUE: Phoebe’s Parents’ Barn, Katonah New York
PARTY SIZE: 35-40
MENU: Grilled Turkey (Uncle Porky); Apple Cider Gravy, String Beans with Spiced Nuts, Semi-Sweet Potato Mash with Spiced Caramelized Onions (Mom); Mixed Greens with Lemon-Chive Vinaigrette, Pumpkin Leek Stuffing with Turkey Sausage (Me); Cranberry Sauce (Aunt Susan); Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie (Cousin Holly); Pumpkin Cheesecake (Cousin Jessica); Fruit Cake (Cousin Julie)

My dad’s side of the family is very close. In fact, my aunt, the only girl of four, married a man whose name…

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EVENT: Thanksgiving
VENUE: Cara’s Mom’s House, Riverdale
PARTY SIZE: 12-25
MENU: Turkey; Gravy; Roasted Brussels Sprouts; Double Baked Sweet Potatoes; Cauliflower Puree; Broccoli Puree; Grandma Jane’s Chestnut Stuffing; Biscuits; Chocolate Marquise with Mocha Whipped Cream Frosting; One-Crust Apple Tart; Pecan Pie; Pound Cake

My mom throws Thanksgiving every year in the house I grew up in. The size varies from about 12 to 25, depending on where my uncles wind up, but the contents of the menu rarely change, even if the…

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EVENT: Bon Appetit Holiday Recipe Contest–Vote for the Mousse here!
DISH: Chocolate Mousse with Gingerbread Whipped Cream
PART OF THIS HOLIDAY MENU: Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon; Inside-Out Ravioli Pasta

Last week, Phoebe and I got to discussing the strange and tragic dearth of chocolate around the holidays. Between the spices and the nuts, the fruited loaves and the Christmas cookies, I suppose there just isn’t room for it (though my Thanksgiving dessert spread, which features my sister’s rendition of Maida Heatter’s Chocolate Marquise with Coffee Cream, and the cake…

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