Drumroll...

THE CAST IRON SKILLET IS HERE!

Just got it in the mail.

Pizza, biscuits, pies... Here I come!

The Year of The Cash Cow

As Im stuffing red envelopes (you know what Im talking about.. Can't I get this on automation yet?), I wanted to take the time out and ring in the lunar new year!

Therefore, HAPPIEST NEW YEAR! 

Minus the champagne, plus the Hennessey. No to midnight kisses, but yes to oranges and chocolates! I love the non-romantic, non-$150 entrance fee to a trendy night club, sequence-less dress association to Chinese New Year. Maybe it's just not a trend yet. Give it a few more years and we'll be paying for our complimentary midnight toast.

If there is one thing I love more than being Chinese on Chinese New Year, it is being Chinese on Chinese New Year eating Chinese New Year related food! 

Obviously. The correlation is a dead given. 

Every year, the festivities start off the same way. The floor is swept. The floor is mopped. Furniture is wiped down. We are wiped. All clothes and bed sheets are washed. Fruits and vegetables are washed. Basically, the theme here is Elimination of All 2008 Germs. Even hair must be washed before midnight, a point my mom stresses highly. You know not even the toughest shampoo can get rid of 2008 hair germs. While cleaning is important, eating is top priority. The Chinese are easy to please in a way. As long as there is food on the table, and enough of it, they are happy. Let me correct that. I'm happy. 

We definitely had enough of it today. From A to Z, come on down folks, cause we have it all!

The feast of 8. 8 dishes that consist of lobster, greens, mushrooms & abalone, rice noodles, pork & eggs, snap peas with shrimp, chicken and soup. *Does not need to be consumed in that order*

If you're an Ox like me, this is our year. For desserts. And right... That ole' fortune whatever you call it. 

All the best in health, prosperity, and those other Chinese sayings. Gung hay fat choi!

Calling All BFFs, French Parisians and Anyone Who Can't Turn Down That Friendly Neighbor, Sugar.

Getting paid is like an entrance ticket to another restaurant. Once that paycheck comes, I know I'm on board the fast track to Foodtown USA.

Take me there. NOW.

Why is wine and cheese the way to a women's heart (and hips)? With a trusty red, four solid cheese pairings, a leek/goat cheese quiche and two of my best girlfriends, those hearts and hips could not be happier.

Jadis, LES New York

Oh Jadis... How have I walked by you about 236738582735 times and not even give you a slight peek over the shoulder? Clearly, I can't defend myself in this round. I have no case. Throw me in the prison cell cause I'm red handed, guilty.

The atmosphere was perfect. Couches. Bookcases. Dim lighting; an essential for atmospheric perfection. Wonderful, attentive waitress. Smells comparable to a team of mothers, their mothers, and their mother's mother baking for hours on end. Foreign language background music. All winning points here.

And the food! AND THE WINE! You, Jadis... Oh you. I'll see you again.

Like all women, no night goes undone without some dessert.

We just need it, okay. I also run on salt, but the salted peanuts in my purse were not enough to suffice. Despite New York's frigid Saturday weather, there was no stopping us. We had one thing in mind, and one thing only; Chickalicious.

Chickalicious is a masterpiece. From the same owners of Dessert Club, also a top-of-the-notch gourmet bakery, you have Chickalicious, the first dessert bar in NYC. It's refined. It's romantic. It's $12 dollars, 3 courses and complete with words like amuse, red wine reduction, petit fours, and tartlet. It's for the full and not the hungry. Yet, very very satisfying.

My girlfriends all eyed the same main course, the toasted almond cake with apricots and almond ice cream. I forged ahead with the decision and the other two fell for the chocolate tart.

Chickalicious, East Village New York

Come to my wedding, almond plate. You are definitely invited, times XL. While we gobble every course at record speed with very unlady-like poise, we appreciated all the aromas and flavors circulating our tongues. We wanted more. But, a tasting is a tasting and Dessert Club was right across the street for round two.

It's too easy to eat in this city.

Pioneer of Paneer

That's right. I said it. Homemade paneer! Kudos to Shivani; my Indian recipes go-to person.

Paneer, a crumblier version of cheese curds, is a popular dish/snack/gift from the man above, that deserves much more spotlight. Easy to make. Fun to make. Easy to eat. Too fun to eat. Trust me. Too much fun too eat. I ate a handful without even realizing what was taking place or going on. 

With a simple ratio of milk and vinegar, you can be eating paneer day and night. Forget your other old, cheese friends. Manchego, Gouda, Asiago... Watch out. The paneer is coming to a grocery near you.

Boil up the whole milk (No cheese is cheese unless it full fat cheese! Don't fool yourselves ladies and gentlemen). Add vinegar. Let the separation begin and end. Drain out pot into cheesecloth. Let the remains sit. Sprinkle remains with cumin seed and black pepper. And that's the one-two step. 

I hear local dairy is a big deal these days. I think its time to go into the cheese making business. I've always looked good in those yellow, oversized cheese wedge hats.

The Pork Sandwich and A Side of The Boyfriend, Please

This weekend was full of tasty, full fat indulgences. It's the winter. Help yourselves. The stomach gives you permission.

The cookie tin was most definitely dipped into (10 times plus) and the pant sizes running two sizes too small. But all in all, the 4896923057 miles of walking, dealing with the unreliable L train including the unhappy campers on the L train platform, and moving boxes (1 puffy mattress padding) up and down the stairs proved most effective in counteracting those gut busters!

After our little 4 hour Costco escapade, the pizza and fountain beverage had long worn off from our system, leaving us in search for a treat in the East Village. Caracas Arepas bar immediately came to mind. Apparently, all of New York had the same thought process. Needless to say, we ran off and escaped to the pork heavens of Porchetta! Praise the lord!

Just as packed but somehow we managed (hypnotized) to stay. Pork was in the air. Bodies were huddled around the four seated diners. More bodies poured into the 5 by 5 space. Two men, standing, teared apart their plated pork goodies with hardly an exchange words. Just smiles and nods of approval. Pork worshipers... I was ready. Make me believe.

Golden, warm, and bare bones (just pork!), it arrives. The holy Porschetta sandwich. And instantly attacked from the left.

Porchetta Sandwich from Porchetta, NY NY

Crunchy, savory, fennel-y. It got it going on.

The people definitely got it right on this one.

As we sat there and window watched the passer-byers, all we could think of was:

"There is money to be made in the sandwich business. This is a gold mine".

Unfortunately, eating the all-star sandwich fogged our senses and thought patterns.

I'm a believer. This sandwich is here to stay.

The 2008 Roundup - Favorite Food Experiences of The Year

How does one figure out some numerical way of ranking food adventures of memories past?

Does it involve a cheap bill & the waiter's phone number?

Or do you consider spotting Robert Dinero while consuming your Tuna Tartare high on the list?

I'm not favorable to either.

And clearly the answer is...

With a glass of Asti Spumunti that's how! Cheers to the New Year.

And taste buds, service, your favorite people... you know. The old standbys.

It's hard to say what exactly are my favorite food moments of this year. A lot fit the bill. Maybe cause I'm young and my palette has not been developed, I don't have a clue in deciphering what's moderate, good, poor, excellent, above and beyond my wildest dreams. Get out of here, Christine. You're way over your head.

But, honestly... I have had a great year in food. Like I have proposed to 23 being the best year of my life, I'll also propose that I'll keep eating, keep trying, and keep enjoying what everyone has to offer. Except slimy things. That does not favor well on my tongue. Maybe I'm just not giving it enough love.

So, here it is! The "I MADE ITS!".

Au Pied Du Cuchon, Montreal Quebec

Yes! Foie gras... All the time. Every time. Approved. So approved!

Pegu Club, NY NY

Why should we ever rule out drinks? It's a critical element in my food pyramid.

Jean Talon Market, Montreal Quebec

You have to give it up for Montreal! If you have to make one pit stop in this city (besides hitting their ice-free slopes), make it this one. Affordable, fresh, tasty, lively, animated, all the positive words you can possibly find in the dictionary and the sister words found in the thesaurus.

Freemans, NY NY

It was the secret alley. It was the hanging lights streamed across the secret alley. It was the stuffed animals hanging on the wall. It was the stuffed animals on my plate. It was the spinach and artichoke dip. IT WAS DEFINITELY THE SPINACH ARTICHOKE DIP. And finally, it was the private back room I got to share with a few favorite people. Ahh... I could go back.

And there you have it. Let's see what you got 2009.