Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Marinating A Christmas Tradition

Tradition!!
Of course all I ever think of when I hear that word is that hit tune from Fiddler on the Roof.  Once a musical theater nerd, always a musical theater nerd. Funny enough it's a perfect tie in, as this post touches upon Russian, Ukrainian, and Polish Christmas traditions. This year I wanted to to a full 12 course traditional Ukrainian meal, but with my travels it was impossible to do as I got home on Christmas Eve...eve. But I am already looking forward to next year when I can continue my Baba's legacy in the kitchen. 

Get easy access to basic recipes and read a little more about Sviaty Vechir here.  I love the part about how the meal commences when the children find the first star to light the sky on Christmas Eve. What a great tradition! I also love the idea of leaving a chair empty for those who have passed on.
Since I didn't have the time to prepare a feast, I will focus on the other very important aspect of any Slavic holiday...drinks!  
More specifically, Honey and Cherry Vodka.
My cousin has my Baba's secret recipe for her honey vodka, and I have yet to wrestle him for it, so I found this one online. ;) 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Makes about 1 quart

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons cold water
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 cups boiling water
  • 1/4 vanilla bean, split
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 2 whole cloves
  • 1 small cinnamon stick, cracked in half
  • 10 black peppercorns
  • 20 allspice berries
  • 1 1/3 cups honey
  • Zest from 1 orange
  • 2 cups vodka

Preparation:

  1. In a large saucepan, combine cold water and sugar and heat until it dissolves. Add boiling water, vanilla bean, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and allspice. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.
  2. Strain the simple syrup you've just created through cheesecloth or a coffee filter and return to the saucepan. Add the honey and zest, and heat, stirring, until the honey has completely dissolved. Bring to a boil and immediately remove from heat.
  3. Gradually stir in vodka. Serve hot. If serving, cold, let honeyed vodka come to room temperature, transfer to a lidded jar and refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve.
Honeyed vodka or Medivka, served hot or cold, is a favorite among Ukrainians and Poles. And, since it's steeped in aromatic spices, less than top-shelf vodka will do just fine. No matter what temperature it's served at, warms the body from the inside out. Perfect for the holidays! 

Two cousins made two different marinated sour cherry vodkas,
and we had a taste test to see which was the best. They were both quite different, but the basic recipe goes like this:
SOUR CHERRY VODKA
 
 Recipe By     : Homemade in the Kitchen
 Serving Size  : 1    Preparation Time :0:00
 Categories    : Beverages
 
   Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
 --------  ------------  --------------------------------
    1 1/4  pounds        sour cherries, pitted (about 2 3/4 cups)
    1      cup           sugar
    2      cups          vodka
 
 Put the cherries into a 1-quart Mason jar, and cover with the sugar. Seal
 the jar and shake it several times, until the cherries are well coated with
 sugar. Add the vodka, reseal and shake the jar a few more times to mix. Set
 aside in a cool, dark place for 4 weeks. Strain the mixture through a fine
 sieve into a 4-cup glass measuring cup. If desired, transfer the liqueur to
 a decanter. The Sour Cherry Vodka should be ready to drink immediately and
 has a shelf life of 2 to 3 months.
 
 YIELD: 2 cups
  
I am sure one could substitute agave nectar or even honey to create a combined honey/cherry vodka as well!

 I love Christmas. I encourage everyone to look into their family history to build upon deep seated, interesting, and entertaining traditions. I had a great time with my mom, family, friends, and even had a very impromptu reunion with awesome cousins I hardly ever get a chance to see. The very best thing about the holidays, no matter what your religion or background, is spending time with those you love. 

Friday, December 14, 2012

Nobu on the Crystal Symphony


Silk Road is celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa's incredible specialty restaurant on the Crystal Symphony. I have spent many a wonderful evening here stuffing my face, all while convincing myself it's ok because it's mostly raw fish. So healthy! (six courses later....)
Silk road is based off of Nobu's cuisine from over 20 of his restaurants...and here is 


from all over the world. From New York to LA to Budapest and beyond, Nobu, with the help of Robert DiNiro, has created a sushi sensation.

Opening a restaurant in Melbourne with DiNiro
I highly recommend saving some money and blowing it all on a night to remember eating some of the most delicious Asian fusion... ever. Maybe you will run into some familiar faces:
...all coming and going at Nobu hot spots.

Some of my favorite dishes include the new style sashimi and Nobu box:
 I also enjoy the Rock Shrimp in a fabulous cream sauce that apparently is one of Scarlett Johansson's favorite dishes. 
So lucky to have had the opportunity to sample his cuisine over and over again....these are the perks of ship life that are the ones I really...savor. Pun intended.


Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Hawaiian Cuisine at the Shorebird

Take a good long look at that beautiful skewered shish kebab. Have you taken in it's juicy, stunning, stacked wonderment? A few of these babies along with the biggest buffet I have ever ingested in my life is what we found at the 
in beautiful Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, Hawaii. Waikiki restaurants are notorious for being supremely busy and after trying unsuccessfully to get onto wait lists for up to an hour, a woman randomly came up to us noticing our frustration, and pointed us in the direction of this perfect little restaurant. Thank you foodie angel.  All of the following was experienced right on the oceans edge, on the beach with a side of fireworks! Perfect night out.

From their webpage:

Here’s how it works
Steaks and seafood come to the table fresh on a platter. Guests are directed to the grill where they are provided with a variety of seasonings to completely customize the flavor of their entrees. Cooking times are clearly displayed at the grill along with a large clock to ensure perfection
All of our entrees include an expansive salad bar, which showcases more than 25 items, including fresh greens, garnishes, fruits, lomi lomi salmon, rice, bread, pasta and other local favorites. This is a meal in and of itself.
The buffet features items like our Hawaiian-style beef stew, home style chili, pasta, soup of the day, four-bean salad, fresh fruits, plus daily special entrees. 
Crazy blurry picture but that's what happens when you are being lit by tiki torches :)

Saturday, December 1, 2012

Cupcake Tours

Cupcakes are making a huge comeback and I for one am not disappointed. I'm still on the fence with neon day-glow and acid wash jeans, but cupcakes...yes please. Bring them back in "haute-couture-cuisine" style.

My gorgeous girl Kaleigh was in town and her request was to go on a cupcake tour. For some reason I complied very quickly. ;) She and I were a great team traveling in Europe together, and we both love photography, so capturing cupcakes in NYC seemed like the perfect activity for us.  Most people pay big bucks for these tours but I thought...why not come up with a cupcake tour of my own, tourist free... and...free.

 So here is a very easy cupcake walking tour in NYC's East Village. (all non stamped pictures courtesy of Kaleigh Jones)

We started in Union Square at Baked by Melissa.

After our tasting there, we walked to Crumbs Bake Shop...a bakery that is beyond overwhelming in their cupcake choices.

We walked through the beautiful Washington Square park displaying all it's beautiful fall colors. 
My turkey was so thirsty
No cupcake tour would be complete without a trip to one of the most famous bakeries in NYC, Magnolia Bakery.


But wait!!! You don't live in New York but you're now craving a cupcake? Or two or three or more? Here are cupcake tours across the country and across the pond. What a great idea for bachelorette parties, showers or well... if it's Thursday. ;) Get your cupcake on!

Click on the name of each city to take you to their tour: