Eating NYC: In Love with Levain Bakery

One might think that after eagerly devouring the famous Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookie during my visit to Chelsea Market, my desire for sweets of the chocolate-butter-and-sugar variety might be forever, or at least temporarily, sated. One would, of course, be wrong in such thinking. Which is why I found myself traipsing all the way to the Upper West Side, just two short days later, to visit another site sacred to the world of Chocolate Chip Cookies - the Levain Bakery, on W 74th Street.

Pie is the new....pie?

On my recent visit to NYC, I flew with Southwest Airlines. I swore allegiance to this quirky, friendly airline during college when I discovered I could fly home from school for only $60! These days, Southwest isn’t always the best deal, but I try to fly them whenever I can for their great service, free checked bags, and – who am I kidding – their hot chocolate! As far as I know, they’re still the only airline that offers hot chocolate as an in-flight drink choice and they also have the cutest snacks (I got little airplane-shaped crackers on my flight home this past Christmas!).

This time around, I found another new reason to ‘luv’ Southwest: their in-flight magazine, Spirit. I’ve enjoyed their mag before (usually for the monthly dollar-bill-origami tutorials – I bring a different one back for Matt each time I travel!), but the August issue was especially enjoyable because it had a huge feature, complete with several full-page photos, all about pie!

Anyone who has witnessed the ‘cupcake craze’ of the past few years has probably head the predictions – apparently cupcakes are on the way out…and pie is on its way in. Of course, there are those who say pie never left, and judging by the Spirit article, this has to be true. The writers detail a brief history of pie, tracing its origins all the way back to ancient Greece. Other highlights include the banning of pie as ‘a pagan form of pleasure’ by England's Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, in 1644, and the widespread adoption of pumpkin pie as a Turkey Day staple as far back as 1623.

The article is full of other fascinating little, pastry-covered tidbits; in case you were wondering, the top supplier of frozen pies last year was Schwann, and Boston Cream Pie is technically a cake, not a pie. A recipe for ‘pompkin’ pie appears in the first American cookbook, Ameila Simmon’s American Cookery, published in 1796, but apparently Americans are still pretty passionate pie eaters, consuming six slices of pie each year (I guess I’m an overachiever!) and purchasing over 186 million pies yearly in grocery stores  - and that doesn’t even take into account those of us who bake them at home!

For those who do prefer a home-baked pie, the magazine also provides a few recipes. S’mores Delight Pie, Cherry and Almond Galette (for more on my love of galettes, check out this post), and Brown Sugar Apple Pie are just some of the possibilities. They also detail the ingredients of some more unusual pies (soda cracker or navy bean pie, anyone?) and include a pie-centric Q&A session with none other than Martha Stewart (for the curious among you, her favorite is Brandy Apple Pie and she never eats pie a la mode).

In short, the feature is a great read, guaranteed to leave you craving a piece of Dutch Apple or a slice of Lemon Meringue - and leave you more informed about America’s favorite pastry than you ever thought possible. If you get the chance, snag a copy before the issue changes at the end of the month (or check it out online)! For those of you not scheduled to travel any time soon, I hope to make and feature at least one or two of their recipes in the future. If delayed gratification isn’t your thing (and when it comes to pie, I completely understand!), check out my recent post on the Triple Berry Galette – the crust is based on Martha Stewart’s pate brisee. Of course, if the writers of the Spirit article are to be believed, there's no real reason to rush - pies have been around for a long, long time and they're here to stay!

Eating NYC: Vanessa's Dumpling House, Chinatown

There's almost no food so universally eaten, enjoyed, and celebrated as the dumpling - the Polish have their pierogi, the Armenians their manti, the Japanese their gyoza, the Koreans their mandu, the Russians their pelmeni, and so on.  In Chinatown, it's all about the jiaozi - doughy wrappers filled with meat or vegetables and served fried or boiled.

One of my favorite things about Chinatown is its proliferation of hole-in-the-wall dumpling houses. Entire streets are devoted to these tiny eateries - some of them no more than a door's width across, and all brightly signposted and blessed with cheerful and optimistic names like Prosperity Dumpling, Tasty Dumpling, or Excellent Dumpling House. Every local has their favorite and my sister and her husband took me to their's - Vanessa's Dumpling House, at 118A Eldridge street.

Eating NYC: Gooey Butter Cake and the Statue of Liberty

I just realized that it's already Friday and I have yet to share a recipe this week! Thankfully, I have a really great one ready and waiting - Gooey Butter Cake! But, what does a distinctly southern dessert like Gooey Butter Cake have to do with the Statue of Liberty? Read on, my friend, read on...

As many of you know, I hate to show up to a party empty handed. I was raised to view the hostess gift or dish exchange as simply good manners, and since I was the family baker, more often than not the dish I chose was a sugary-sweet one. My recent visit to my sister was no exception - which is why I found myself baking this sugar-laden Gooey Butter Cake late into the evening on the night before my flight to NYC.