New blog site

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Top Chef: Just Desserts

I am really late to the game on this one, but I just read that Bravo picked up a new iteration of Top Chef - called Top Chef: Just Desserts - featuring pastry chefs. You can bet I'll be watching this one (trying to contain my jealousy!)!

Say (Grilled) Cheese!

A grilled cheese truck? Yes, please!

























Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Milk Truck

The "LOST" Supper

... but what does it mean?! (getting a little too excited for the final season premier in Feb.!)

More Must-Sees Around the Corner...

... on both Broadway and the silver screen. I'm interested to see the outcomes of both - if "A View from the Bridge" will do as well as the previous 1998 Broadway revival, and to see how ScarJo fares on Broadway, and how Woody Allen's latest venture will fare compared to the mixed reviews of his last. Regardless though, Arthur Miller and Woody Allen - two of my favorites - can't wait for both!

What a lovely story this is - Sylvia Bailey, 84 years old, is "the longest-running show on Broadway," having ushered for Phantom of the Opera since it opened in 1988. Great anecdotes about her in this article - she has so much spirit.

A Book a Day

Wouldn't it just be amazing to have the time to do this?
Not to say that it's impossible to accomplish while working full-time, but even though I tend to be a fast reader, a wealth of 'free' time is definitely essential in order to devour a book a day for a year and really absorb enough of each (rather than reading a book a day for the sake of doing so/just getting through each). Someday with more of the luxury that is time, I'd love to give it a shot!

Michael Pollan is Smart.

Recent brilliance from Michael Pollan:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/magazine/11food-rules-t.html
And, going along with the above article, this is great.

RIP Gourmet

I am completely saddened and disappointed by today's news that Gourmet magazine is folding. And I'm a little surprised too - while Conde Nast's Bon Appetit apparently has slightly higher circulation numbers, Gourmet has a much deeper legacy in the food world, so I wouldn't have thought it would be the one to go. It will be so missed. Apparently the brand at least will still live on through television and continued cookbook ventures, in addition to recipes living on Epicurious.com. And, Bon Appetit is certainly a great magazine - but it won't make up for Gourmet's absence. Not to mention the fact that I adore Gourmet's eponymous web site, which I frequent for recipes and articles (I especially love the recipes of the month and the "Diary of a Foodie" feature - sort of along the lines of NYMag's great NYDiet) and the weekly emails and monthly picks/tips from one of my idols, Gourmet editor-in-chief Ruth Reichl. I am now more glad than ever for my parents' long-time subscription to the magazine, as my mom saved so many issues that I'll still be able to read and cook from - though I was a little late to the game, apparently, having ordered my own subscription only last week. So much for that.

Kennedy Center Honors, 2009

I love watching the Kennedy Center Honors maybe even more than the Academy Awards or Golden Globes - the tributes to each honoree are always wonderfully produced and performed, and the honorees are incredibly and indisputably deserving of their recognition. I love how this reveres every kind of performance art, rather than just one or two. So, I was especially excited to learn who will be honored this year: Mel Brooks, Bruce Springsteen, Robert De Niro, Grace Bumbry and Dave Brubeck. I can only imagine the hilarity that will surely ensue from Brooks' tribute (Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick performing something from The Producers, please??), and one of the best parts of having a musician - Springsteen, in this case - recognized is that other incredible performers come together to cover their songs in what is almost always a tremendous rendition. I also would guess that some really cool arrangement of Brubeck's famed pieces will be created and performed, and I am also eager to see who will sing for Bumbry. An opera singer being honored reminds me of how I can almost directly attribute my love of opera with the Kennedy Center Honors performance (unfortunately can't remember offhand who the tribute was for or what year it was - late 1990's, I think) when a woman and man - each probably in their 20s - sang "O Soave Fanciulla" from La Boheme (which became one of if not my favorite opera songs and operas). At the time, I had never before seen someone under the age of probably 50 sing opera, and I had also just never really paid attention to it before - and I became quickly and completely enthralled, and remain so today. OK enough of a digression here - point is, I can't wait to see the broadcast of this year's Kennedy Center Honors in December - I'd set my DVR now if I could!

Woodstock... the Musical?

Yes indeed! Woodstock producer Michael Lang has confirmed that he is developing a musical about the concert of the century, involving elements from his recently published memoir "The Road to Woodstock" and focusing mainly on individuals who attended the concert and how they were affected by it. As of now, it's slated for Broadway's 2010-2011 season. Will be very interesting to see how this turns out - though with Lang behind it, one can hope it will be as organic and authentic as it should be.

In case there was a need for yet another reason to love Ben & Jerry's:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/01/hubby-hubby-ben-jerrys-sh_n_273872.html

Food & recipe posts to come...

... I just need to get the photos off my stubborn Blackberry first! Coming up soon:

*Whole wheat blueberry muffins (these are to die for - you'd never know they're actually healthy!)

*Lamb tagine with onions, olives and potatoes

*Goat cheese and spinach stuffed chicken with roasted vegetables

*Classic chocolate chip cookies

*Summer mixed-berry cake with lemon cream cheese frosting

High in the Sky

I watched Man on Wire last night, a documentary about famed wire-walker/artist Philippe Petit, and was pretty blown away. The film itself was extremely creatively done, with a combination of reenactments (which usually I find to be silly, but it seemed to work here), new interviews with Philippe and those close to him/his friends and those who worked with him, and a ton of original footage. There was a surprising element of suspense woven into the film - surprising because you know Philippe pulls off walking between the Towers and lives to tell the tale - and it just blows my mind that a human is capable of doing what Philippe did. He is also one of the most charismatic and unusual people I've seen - his creative and artistic energy, freeness (for lack of a better word) and outpourings combined with his unmatch physical abilities are just fascinating. This is a man truly undaunted with a passion and drive so deep it's almost tangible, and I found it especially interesting that while what he wanted is something most people would never fathom or consider, the reason he wanted to conquer it - and the emotional journey it took him on - is not so unfamiliar. The film received a great deal of well-deserved accolades - so I'm jumping on that bandwagon and highly recommending it as well!

For the Love of Food (what else is new)

I am a big fan of Nora Ephron, and am enjoying reading the influx of articles by/about her in the wake of press for Julie & Julia. I also adore (understatement!) Gourmet and really enjoyed this simple piece Ephron recently wrote for it, discussing what she ate over the course of a day or so this summer. She is just such a wonderful writer and an enviable foodie. Aside from her meal and snack descriptions and our shared love of seasonal fruit, I couldn't resist pulling this quote she ended the article with that 1) I'm sure I have said myself in similar words before, and 2) makes me wish even more that I could meet and have a meal with this woman:

"I don’t think any day is worth living without thinking about what you’re going to eat next at all times."

It's a little funny too because while I certainly know a lot of people who would whole-heartedly agree with this statement, it must sound so bizarre to someone who just doesn't care that much about or have a strong interest in food... and I can only imagine this to the extent that the mere notion of not feeling this way seems so foreign and beyond strange to me, so I'm guessing the same is true for people on the other side of the fence.