May 16, 2006
From the desk of Pekes Canfield, girl reporter:
Saturday morning dawned a bit gray and gloomy, but my running companions and I still managed to make the best of things at the Alzheimer's 3 Mile Race in Midland Beach. Post race, the intrepid runners headed to the St. George green market to replenish their cupboards (and bellies!).
It was another fairly light showing of vendors at the market, but I was delighted to see the first strawberries of the season sitting rosily along side the reed thin asparagus and succulent tomatoes. My gentleman friend and I enjoyed the strawberries in all their plump glory that very evening. June is peak strawberry season locally, but we found the May crop to be small, tender, and full of juice. Perfect, in other words. I served them drizzled with a touch of balsamic vinegar -- the tang of the vinegar seems to intensify the sweetness of the berries. For a festive presentation, I put them in martini glasses.
The apples were another highlight. The variety I chose this week were Mutsu -- sometimes known as Crispin apples. They have a light green skin and a dense, crunchy texture much more tart and rich than a Golden Delicious, which the untrained eye could mistake them for. They were a tasty bargain at $1.25 a pound.
And what, you ask, was the pain du semaine? Oh my goodness, I was swept off my feet by a loaf of green olive, roasted garlic and oregano bread. It was a sourdough loaf peppered throughout with plump green olives, fresh oregano and lovely roasted cloves of garlic that were melting sweet to the tooth. We enjoyed this loaf alongside a smart bowl of spaghetti with a velvety onion and pancetta sauce -- courtesy of a cookbook written by Staten Island's own Carol Frazetta, chef and owner of the renowned local foodie mecca Carol's Café & Pub near the intersection of Richmond Road and Four Corners.
Lest you think all I consume are carbohydrates, I'm happy to inform that my supper on Saturday night involved various meats on sticks and peanut sauce. That's right, Thai food! Find me someone who doesn't yearn for a taste of pad thai, satay, or spring rolls every now and again and I'll show you someone with ill-served taste buds.
As a rule, this reporter tends to prefer restaurants that have been vetted and recommended by those more willing to risk a bad meal than she. Driving down Forest Avenue one day, however, I spied a little spot called Forest Thai Cuisine at the corner of Llewellyn Pl. just before Jewett Ave. How I managed to miss this gem of restaurant until now befuddles me. Gathering together a quartet of fellow Thai food aficionadoes, I made the trek into Westerleigh determined to give the place a full taste test.
The consensus report: delicious. We had a lovely meal that started with coconut shrimp -- butterflied, dusted with shredded coconut and lightly fried to perfection. We also ordered three satay dishes: shrimp, chicken, and beef satay served, each served with a smoky, dense peanut sauce. The beef satay tasted slightly gamey to me and was a bit overcooked, but the chicken and shrimp were tender and quite flavorful.
For the main course, the gentlemen at our table devoured bowls of steaming Penang curry with chicken and crunchy green beans and shrimp pad thai. The curry was spicy enough to stimulate conversation but not spicy enough enough to deter digestion. The ladies, meanwhile, enjoyed roasted duck with a slightly sweet chili and garlic sauce and a dish of tender scallops nestled in a casserole of coconut milk, rice, basil, and chilies.
We savored the meal with bottles of Singha beer and thick, sweet Thai iced tea. The place does an impressive amount of takeout trade but was fairly empty in terms of table dining. As a result, we were able to enjoy the intimate setting without feeling rushed to make room for the next group.
If you have a favorite neighborhood boîte on our part of the island, please do let me know! I'm always on the lookout for tasty spots to sit, sip, and savor!
-- Pekes
May 7, 2006
Pekes Canfield, intrepid girl reporter -- and eater -- brings us this report from the opening of the 2006 St. George Greenmarket.
St. George (LN) -- Saturday mornings from 8am to 2pm May through November, are some of the jolliest times on the North Shore. Why? The Greenmarket, of course!
Located in the Borough Hall Municipal lot directly across from the St. George Theater, the market gives Islanders a chance to mingle with neighbors, vendors, and even meet the occasional celebrity. I spied attorney and former candidate for Borough President John Luisi and his lovely wife there this past weekend.
The pickings were a bit slim on Derby Day; it is early in the season and only four vendors were there for the market opening. I did, however, manage to pick up some lovely hothouse tomatoes that added a sweet and juicy kick to my curried chick pea salad and some velvety slender new asparagus that practically melted in my mouth when served with a drizzle of olive oil, kosher salt and parmesan.
I also bought some fuji apples from the upstate orchard owner who staked out his customary spot. The apples were tart -- and enormous -- but a bit overpriced in my opinion at $1.69 a pound. The delightful baker from Just Rugelach (the Kearney, N.J., company bills itself, humorously, as "Not Just Rugelach" at area greenmarkets) was also in his usual spot, and I can say that the blueberry scones are as tender and fruit-filled as ever. I can also report that my market companion, a noted sugary-foods connoisseur, heartily enjoyed his regular ration of cider doughnuts.
Before leaving the Not Just Rugelach stall, I purchased a loaf of rosemary olive bread to serve along side a steak that evening. Crusty, chewy and studded with dark, salty olives and aromatic rosemary, the bread was stellar. We devoured half the loaf Saturday night, and I'm already thinking about how nice the leftovers will taste toasted in panzanella!
I hope that got your mouthwatering and will encourage you to stop by the greenmarket next Saturday morning!
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