If you’re looking for a v-day Bouquet this weekend, be sure to check out Kat Flower at the Brooklyn Flea (this Sunday 10-6pm). She’s a great new designer on the scene, you may remember her work from our pizza party. Isn’t it nice to get a glimmer of sunshine in these pics, oh how we can’t wait for summer !
kat flower is also available for special orders, weddings and events, you can see more of her work here.
Happy weekend everyone ! What are you all up to ?? We’re excited to check out “9”, a North African restaurant by Michael Berardino of the Dell’anima, ‘Inoteca, L’artusi empire (some of our favorites) in Hell’s Kitchen (53rd + 9th). Sounds so yummy. And Friday we might join the Feast Conference to celebrate what is local and good, and rub shoulders with some pretty cool people . We’re also excited to see NY Mag take over the Hester Street Fair with more than 40 restaurants and food trucks. Someone might need to roll us home… Hope to see you all out and about ! xo
Below is our recipe for Broccoli and Burrata with a warm anchovy & caper dressing (courtesy of Camille Becerra)…bon appetite !
As promised below are recipes for 2 more antipasti dishes by Camille, Grilled Zucchini with Mint And Pecorino Reggiano and Grilled Asparagus with Roasted And Marinated Tomatoes.
We were lucky enough to have our dear friend (and supper talented chef) Camille Becerra contribute a few knockout antipasti recipes for our Pizza class. This one is a simple and fresh compilation- Roasted Peppers With Boccaccini And Grape Tomatoes.
The recipe is below and there will be more to come this week. enjoy.
French cheese + black truffles. need we say more ?
And with this post we’ve finished up pizza week, (next week we’ll be posting some of our lovely antipasti recipes as well). The rain has finally subsided and we are ready to enjoy this beautiful weekend. And from the looks of all these great local events—happily eat and drink our way through it ! If your near Astor Place you might find us as one of these many events over three days dedicated to the delicious Italian Wine, Spumante. Yum. Or if you’re feeling more serious perhaps you should attend one of these New York Times, timestalks Friday or Saturday. Hungry ? Visit the New York Botanical Garden for a Harvest Festival featuring celebrity Chefs Sunday and Monday. Bon Weekend !
This combo is just delish, like a roast beef sandwich but waaaay better: roquefort, roast beef, caramelized onion, cracked peppercorn. The caramelized onions were a huge hit, and are a great topping to have on hand. Below are the full recipes….
The key to these pizzas is choosing wonderful ingredients – manchego, figs serrano ham and arugula…when they are all combined the result is fantastic. See recipe card below for full details.
Below is the recipe for the Margarita Pizza, a true classic.
Vincent’s menu from the grilled pizza class were inspired by the wonderful cheeses and unique flavor palates of 4 different countries. We also had a special treat, a visit from Janine Hock at Omniwines- who paired each pizza with a beautiful wine. Omniwines is a specialized importer and distributor of terroir driven wines. Their wines are typically estate bottled, made from indigenous grape varieties and represent a balance between historical/cultural traditions & enlightened modern winemaking. They focus on wines from relatively under represented regions in Italy but also represent producers from other wine producing countries of the Mediterranean & South America. Below is a our menu – along with the wine pairings served. A huge thanks to Janine and Omniwines for participating in this event, we were truly honored to have you !
Nibbles
Parmigiano-Reggiano & Marinated olives-
**Wine : Medici Ermete “solo” Lambrusco 2009 – this is a dry, sparkling wine coming from the heart of emili-romagna, Italy. It is made with 100% lambursco salimino and has a refreshing fresh dark fruit characteristic, good acidity and frizzante/bubbles that dance on the palate. this was served when guests arrived.
Buratta & Broccoli
Grilled vegetables and antipasti
Grilled Pizza:
Italy, Margarita DOC
San Marzano tomatoes, Mozzarella di Buffalo, basil
**Wine: La Sibilla Falenghina 2009 - 100% falenghina coming form the area of Compi Flegrei which is on the bay of Naples. It’s bright, light and refreshing white wine with racey acidity. Slight salinity in the wine from its proximity to the sea starts stimulates the palate for food like tomatoes, lemon and mozzerella cheese.
Spain
Manchego, Figs, Serrano Ham, Arugula
**Wine: Jesus Diaz Malvar 2009 – 100% malvar which is an indigenous grape: located only within the DO of Madrid, Spain. It is made in an old tradition of fermenting in earthenware jars that create an interesting floral nose, slightly viscous mouth feel and matches food with salt and sweet components.
USA
Roquefort, Roast beef, Caramelized onion, Cracked peppercorn
**Wine: Zolo Bonarda 2009 – 100% Bonarda from Mendoza, argentina. The most grown red grape in argentina is plush, aromas of black current and black rasperry and smooth tannins
France
Beaufort, Goat cheese, Truffles
**Wine: L’ermitage 2009 – white from the Languedoc regions of France, the south . A blend of Marsanne, viogner and granache blanc and its aromatics are stone fruits like apricots and white peach, richer mouth leaning towards a heavier white wine but dry on the finish.
** All wines are available at Smith and Vine.
Hello all - hope you all had a wonderful weekend. This week we’ll continue our posts about the grilled pizza, plus a few recipes for some antipasti starters that we served at the meal.
Below are Vincent’s instructions for grilled pizza making…
There have been many Grilled Pizza methods and books with literally dozens of techniques. The original and most popular version was created by Joanne Killeen and George Germon, the husband and wife team behind the Providence , RI restaurant, Al Forno. Their book, Cucina Simpatica is a must have for any serious grilled pizza chef. Although you can you a cast iron stove top method at home as well as a gas grill, charcoal works best. The flavor of real NY style brick over pizza will as well as the high temperature make charcoal the best source for full flavor. When you stack the coals for your fire make sure to build a higher stack of coals to the side if the grill where you will be stretching your dough on a prep table. This makes the all challenging transfer from stretching surface to the hottest part of the grill much easier.
Hold your hand 3-5 inches above the hot part of the fire for a count of 3 before the heat forces you to remove it. Then you know the fire is hot enough to start grilling pizza. A cold grill is not going to work. Then place a 5 oz ball of dough on a well oiled metal sheet pan and stretch it out with your fingers, some of my friends use a roller, thats ok but make sure it doesn’t stick. Oval shaped almost football like are the easiest shape to achieve. The thickness should be about 1/4 inch to 1/8 inch and even all around. Don’t make a loop around for extra crust as you would a traditional pizza, make the thickness consistent throughout.
When the pizza is about 8-10 inches long you can transfer the dough lifting it on each side with your thumb and pointer fingers and spread it across the hottest part of your grill. Let it cook for about 2-3 minutes or until bubbles appear on the top almost like a pancake.
Using tongs and a spatula flip your pizza over on to the cool part of the grill. Quickly brush the top with olive oil and add toppings as fast as possible. The idea is to get each ingredient on to every part of the pie evenly. Then using the tongs slide the the pizza over to the hot side of the grill. When the cheese is melted and starts to bubble its ready. Slide it of to a wooden cutting board, garnish cut and serve right away. The ideal crust is chewy in the center and crunchy at the same time. Practice makes perfect.
