The Art of Food
posted on April 21 by mark
A recent party in New York City was held in honor of Jamie Wyeth in connection with a major exhibition of his works. Our staff passed hors d’oeuvres from ‘art’ trays garnished with green cymbidium orchids as guests moved through two floors of galleries displaying Mr. Wyeth’s paintings and drawings. A seven-panel series depicting seagulls as the ‘Seven Deadly Sins’ was particularly striking as were portraits of Andy Warhol with Victor Hugo and Fred Hughes. I especially enjoyed speaking with Mr. Wyeth about the techniques he used to create the fiery effects in his remarkable ‘Inferno’ panel which was the centerpiece of the exhibition. The ‘Inferno’ was also the inspiration for a cocktail which I created just for that evening – a marvelous martini made with Italian blood orange juice, vodka & chili-spiced mango. Mrs. Wyeth, who is depicted in her husband’s painting, ‘Catching Snowflakes’ was thrilled to see her image recreated from the original canvas into our wonderful chocolate picture frames. The colorful portrait, captured in detail in sugar, chocolate and edible gold leaf were wrapped with satin ribbons and displayed on silver estate trays. Not only were each of the 250 guests happy to receive one of these chocolate ‘Wyeth’s’ – but Mrs. Wyeth herself asked me to save a half dozen or so for her to take home as well.
Bread Alone
posted on March 05 by mark
With St. Patrick’s Day just around the corner, I have been giving much thought to the extraordinary variety of traditions associated with this holiday. So when Westchester Magazine asked me to be a judge on a panel of chefs for an upcoming Irish Soda Bread contest, I was intrigued to see how other area bakeries interpreted this classic bread. The contest results, which appear on page 112, show an enormous range of textures, flavors and shapes. The most authentic loaf, with a nutty brown-wheat dominance typical of Northern Ireland, was made by Eileen’s Country Kitchen in Yonkers. Other varieties were strongly seeded with caraway – some were heavily laden with currants or raisins. In my own baking – I always worked toward achieving a well-formed round loaf with the traditional cross hatch exposing a golden crust. And inside a moist texture and the buttery goodness of the finest ingredients. We will be sampling what we consider to be a ‘perfect’ Irish soda bread from now until St. Patrick’s Day. And along with our Irish soda bread, we will be offering a wonderful menu of regional favorites from Northern Ireland, the South Coast and County Cork.
Presidential Cookies
posted on December 18 by mark
When an invitation came for President Clinton’s Christmas party at New York’s Russian Tea Room – I was so excited to tell Mr. Fleck that he would be meeting the American icon he so admired. So last week, we were off to the Russian Tea Room – dressed in our presidential best and looking forward to a truly wonderful evening. Feeling very privileged to be included in such an event, we enjoyed champagne and Russian caviar served from gleaming silver trays as glitterati and politerati rubbed elbows with us common folk. The party took place in a private upstairs ballroom – opulently decorated with mirrors, gilt moldings and crystal chandeliers. Certainly fit for a king – if not the former President of the United States. There was much easy conversation with Clinton staffers, who now seem like family, old friends from Chappaqua and new ones who quickly became wonderful cocktail companions. After our three minutes with the charming Mr. Clinton and a go around with the paparazzi, we headed downstairs to the main restaurant with the unlikely hope of finding an available table on a busy Friday night. And we did. Just as we were seated at a plush banquette toward the front of the restaurant, Mr. Fleck leaned in and whispered to me, “don’t look, but Martha Stewart is sitting right behind you.” And of course I turned around and looked – catching her gaze at that exact moment. You would think the Tsar of Russia was present – but Ms. Stewart’s presence certainly gave a regal air to the evening. Only later did we discover that she too had been upstairs at the same party, and like us, decided to stay for a quiet dinner.
And still there was another surprise. A few days later a huge gold box of chocolates arrived on my desk with a note, “Merry Christmas from the Clintons.” How nice to be on their Christmas list - but I sure hope we get invited to the inauguration!!! Over the weekend we realized that even chocoholics like us would never be able to eat all of this candy – so Mr. Fleck decided to make holiday chocolate chunk cookies using the various filled chocolates, chopped and arranged in a way that each cookie would have a unique mixture of tastes. So while I was out doing a party for a favored Bedford client, Mr. Fleck made batches of Presidential Cookies as snow gently fell outside. Here is the recipe that was inspired by a gift from America’s foremost First Family:
‘Presidential Cookies’
2 ¼ c All-purpose flour
1 t Baking soda
1t Salt
1 c Butter, softened
¾ c Granulated sugar
¾ c Brown sugar, packed
1 t Pure vanilla extract
2 Large eggs
2 c Assorted filled chocolate candies or bon bons, coarsely chopped.
Directions:
Preheat Oven to 375 degrees.
Beat butter, sugars and vanilla until blended. Add eggs one at a time and until light and creamy. In a separate bowl combine remaining dry ingredients and gradually beat into mixture. Stir in candies and drop rounded tablespoons onto un-greased baking sheets. Bake 8- 10 minutes or until golden brown but still slightly under baked in the center.