Eat First

Have a picnic on the patio at Blue Danube Gourmet

The first time I visited Blue Danube Gourmet to Go, in Skaneateles, this was the scene outside.

Now it's summer, and just in time, owners Erica Derrick and Lorand Ernyey have added cafe tables on the front patio, with seating for 10.

That means you can enjoy your biscotti and coffee or premium deli sandwich on a crusty little baguette right on site. No need to carry a couple blocks to a park bench overlooking Skaneateles Lake, though you can do that, too.

What else is new at Blue Danube? Funny you should ask.

In addition to a nice selection of imported and cheeses, the shop now carries bagels from New York City (with a variety of homemade cream cheese spreads, like sun-dried tomato/garlic and cinnamon walnut raisin), 10 varieties of artisan pasta from Flour City Pasta, in Fairport  and a growing selection of salami, prosciutto and other meats for sandwiches or sliced as you wish.

Genoa salami and provolone cheese, on an excellent baguette.

The shop is also featuring healthy specials that change weekly, prepared by natural foods enthusiast Abigail Henson, a jewelry designer and photographer whose works are featured at Skaneateles Artisans.

On the day I visited, "Abigail's Choice'' was Quinoa Corn Soup. I did not try it, but it smelled delicious, and several women who ordered it to go confirmed that it was.

Blue Danube is at 33 Jordan St., in the village. The shop is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday through Monday (closed Tuesdays).

Central New York and farmers markets: like peas in a pod

 

One of the best things about living in Central New York -- if not THE best thing -- is the proliferation of fresh, locally grown produce to gorge on from now until fall.

No time to garden? No problem. Farm stands dot the landscape, and in Onondaga County alone, there's a farmers market, somewhere, every day of the week (except Monday).

On Wednesday, for example, I had my choice of the Clay market (at Great Northern Mall), the Bayberry Market (Bayberry Plaza, Liverpool), the Green Hills Farmers Market (South Salina Street, in the Valley), the Manlius market (in the lot behind Sno-Top), Market Days at Marcellus Park and the Eastside Neighborhood Farmers Market in Syracuse.

Since I live on the East Side, I opted for the Eastside Market, formerly held alongside Loguen Park (East Genesee Street and Lexington Avenue). This year, it's being held at the Westcott Community Center (former firehouse at the corner of Westcott Street and Euclid Avenue).

The Eastside Market could win the prize for smallest farmers market in Central New York: There are just two vendors, though one of them told me there probably will be a third toward mid-July.

On Wednesday, Brownson Family Farm had strawberries, new potatoes, peas, red chard (above), lettuces and a selection of canned goods, including pickled vegetables and mustard.

 Daily Harvest Farm had salad greens (mesclun), chard, spicy red salad radishes and bunches of petite turnips (above), which they described as sweet salad turnips (I am not a turnip fan, so this seems worth noting). The owners also sell hand-spun and hand-dyed yarns.

A man at the Brownson Family Farm stand said next week is probably the last one for local strawberries. So if you haven't already, be sure to get some before they're gone! I don't want to hear anyone complaining they missed out.

To find a farmers market near you, consult this list compiled by The Post-Standard. And remember that the granddaddy of them all, the Regional Market in Syracuse, is open on Saturdays, year-round.

Strawberries and rhubarb: a seasonal partnership

If you like to bake with strawberries and rhubarb, now is the time.

Strawberry season is a short but sweet one in Central New York and we're about a week into the season already. That leaves a couple more weeks to love 'em up.

As for rhubarb: I know the tart "pie plant" is not to everyone's liking, but you might find you like it better partnered with sweet, juicy local strawberries.

A strawberry-rhubarb jam session over the weekend left me too much of both, even after stashing some in the freezer for use in future desserts. I considered making a crisp, cobbler or coffee cake before finally settling on muffins as the answer to my over-supply.

The crumble topping adds textural interest as well as a touch more sweetness, to offset the tartness of the rhubarb.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble-Top Muffins

For the muffins:

2 cups flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

2 eggs

1/2 cup canola oil

3/4 cup milk (2 percent is fine)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup strawberries, cut in small pieces

1/2 cup rhubarb, cut in small pieces

For the topping:

1/3 cup granulated brown sugar

2 tablespoons white sugar

2 or 3 tablespoons ground walnuts or pecans

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (or more to taste)

Freshly grated nutmeg

Combine flours, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Whisk together  eggs, oil, milk and vanilla extract. Pour in bowl with dry ingredients and blend gently until just combined. Do not over-mix. Fold in berries and rhubarb.

Spoon batter into muffin pan lined with paper cups, filling half to three-quarters full. Combine topping ingredients in a small bowl and sprinkle over tops of muffins.

Bake at 350 degrees for 24 to 27 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean. Serve warm. Makes 12 regular and 1 extra-large muffin, depending on the size of your muffin pan.

A muffin big enough to share.

Note: The muffins can be frozen -- carefully. Put cooled muffins on a pan and freeze for an hour or more before transferring the muffins to a freezer bag or container.

Strawberry-rhubarb x two: A strawberry-rhubarb muffin topped with strawberry-rhubarb jam.

 

For Bob's birthday: Nutella Cupcakes

I've come across recipes for cupcakes filled with Nutella, cupcakes swirled with Nutella and cupcakes frosted with Nutella.

The recipe that finally got me uses Nutella as the basis for the cupcake batter itself -- along with eggs, butter, milk and a little bit of flour. The cupcakes are dense, rich and brownie-like. They don't really need it, but they're frosted with chocolate ganache and sprinkled with toasted chopped hazelnuts.

The recipe and inspiration to make these over-the-top chocolate bombs comes from Food 52, an online celebration of home cooks and cooking at home, hosted by food writers Amanda Hesser and Merill Stubbs.

For those who have never had it,  Nutella is a spread made from skim milk, roasted hazelnuts and cocoa. A two-tablespoon serving contains 200 calories (and 11 grams fat). It's not something I usually have in the pantry, for obvious reasons. A sandwich made with Nutella or Nutella spread on toast or a spoonful of Nutella, straight from the jar, is about the last thing I need.

I was going to make my old-standby chocolate cupcake recipe (with a touch of brewed coffee) for our friend Bob's 50th birthday party last month, but decided to make these instead for the chocolate-loving birthday boy celebrant. When desserts were put out, they disappeared fast.

Bob's reaction: "Those were like the best cupcakes ever."

But don't take Bob's word for it. Give the recipe a try and see for yourself!

And leave a comment. What do you like to do with Nutella?

Nutella Cupcakes

Created by Pieceofcake, a member of the Food 52 community

For the cupcakes:

• 1/2 cup self-rising flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 8 ounces Nutella
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk

For the ganache:

• 3 ounces high-quality bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
• 1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur), optional
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts, for garnish

Cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Whisk together the flour and salt and set aside.

With an electric mixer in a medium bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and beat until well-blended. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy and pale in color. Beat in the Nutella until well-incorporated, stopping to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl while beating. Add the eggs and beat until smooth. On low speed, beat in half the flour mixture just until it beings to disappear into the batter. Beat in the milk. Fold in the remainder of the flour mixture by hand until the batter is smooth.

Pour the batter into the muffin cups, filling them no more than half  full. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs -- if in doubt, pull them from the oven a bit early -- do not over bake. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Ganache: Place the chocolate chips, butter and corn syrup in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stopping to stir after each interval, until the mixture is shiny and smooth. Stir in the vanilla (and Frangelico, if using).

When the cupcakes are completely cool, using a spoon, top each one with about two teaspoons of the ganache, and with the back of the spoon coax it as close to the edges as possible without letting it drip down the sides (or go on and let it drip...drippy chocolate is rarely a bad thing). Sprinkle on a bit of the chopped hazelnuts. Let the ganache set before storing in an airtight container at room temperature overnight -- these cupcakes truly taste better the next day.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

Taste of Syracuse: savoring the memories*

The tents are broken down and packed away, the towering ice cream cones deflated and you might not see the familiar purple fried dough stand again until state fair time: Taste of Syracuse, the delicious kickoff of the summer festival season in downtown Syracuse, has come and gone.

Here's a recap of six stands/samples that stood out at the Taste and are worth seeking out in their regular homes, followed by *a complaint about the event. But first, the good stuff: 

1. Fresh, organic carrot juice from Speedy Greens. Their hand-lettered ORGANIC FOOD sign might have been a Taste of Syracuse first, and their "shooter" of fresh carrot juice was by far the healthiest $1 sample.

The juice and more vegetarian-vegan-gluten free food can be had at Speedy Greens, a restaurant, store and holistic health center in Cicero.

 2. Jamaican jerk chicken sample from Caribbean King. Not for  those with timid taste buds, the chicken was rubbed with a blend of chiles and other seasonings, including garlic, and then grilled. I've had curry chicken for lunch at Caribbean King (109 E. Seneca Turnpike, corner of South Salina Street) and plan to stop in soon for seconds -- a meal-size portion -- of their jerk chicken.

3. Hot dog sample from Liehs & Steigerwald. No baloney! Hofmann hot dogs are the hometown favorite, there's no doubt about it, but the franks made at Liehs & Steigerwald, a family-owned butcher shop on Grant Boulevard, near Butternut Circle (and on Route 31, in Clay), are deserving of a wider following. Hopefully the Taste won the Liehs & Steigerwald dogs some new fans, who will seek them out (they're not sold in grocery stores) and also try Liehs & Steigerwald's signature sausages, bacon, etc.

4. Salad sample from DG's Family Restaurant in Brewerton. DG's shredded salad was tossed with house-made Italian dressing and stuffed inside a small cone, along with a small bread stick. It was one of several salads on menus at this year's Taste, along with a baby bleu salad sample from Diamond Catering and antipasto salad sample from Asti Caffe.

5. Wine sample trio from Americana Vineyards. Three petite pours of wine ($1) from the winery in Interlaken, on the Cayuga Wine Trail, introduced me to three nice, dry wines, two white and one red: Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay and Baco Noir. I would have left with a bottle of at least one of them, probably the Gewurztraminer, but bottles to-go can't be sold at the Taste. I see a trip to the winery and its restaurant, the Crystal Lake Cafe, in my future.

6. Baklava sample from the Turkish Cultural Center. Baklava, a multi-layered pastry made with phyllo dough, nuts and honey, is a sweet, sticky treat. The baklava served at the Turkish Cultural Center stand was made with pistachios instead of the usual walnuts, and seemed less honey-soaked than some versions. Besides that, who knew there's a Turkish Cultural Center in Syracuse? I didn't. The center offers cooking classes and Turkish coffee nights, among other events and activities.

*Complaint department: The number of chain restaurants at the Taste seems to be growing, with Arby's, Applebee's, Bonefish Grill, Jreck Subs, Panera, Pizza Hut and others in attendance this year.

I realize that chains are a fact of life and popular with a large segment of the dining public -- witness the long lines for a sample of Bonefish's bang-bang shrimp. Meanwhile, I enjoyed a zesty bite of shrimp with roasted red chile sauce from AppeThaizing, an independent restaurant on the Syracuse University hill.

Sorry to single out Arby's, but what place does a chain with thousands of outlets all over have in a festival with a focus on local restaurants and local flavor? Around the corner, my partner savored a bourbon beef sandwich from Diamond Catering, which he was still raving about on Saturday.

I guess what I'm trying to say is I hope the Taste doesn't lose the thing that makes it stand out from other festivals: its distinct Central New York accent.

What are your thoughts? Please leave a comment and let me know.

Try a taste of JJ's at Taste of Syracuse and the Miss Syracuse Diner

This is my friend Joe,  Joe Todisco.

This is Joe's restaurant, JJ's Miss Syracuse Diner.

On Friday, Joe will start his day at the diner, a fixture at the corner of East Washington and Montgomery Streets, across the street from City Hall in downtown Syracuse. Then he'll shift gears and head over to Clinton Square, where JJ's will have a presence, once again, at  Taste of Syracuse.

Joe is best known for JJ's, an Italian-American food stand at the New York State Fair. It used to be toward the far end of the Midway, a quick walk from the Native American Village. Then he moved to bigger digs along "Restaurant Row,'' near Baker's Chicken Coop.

Joe/JJ's took over the Miss Syracuse in March. The diner is a classic, a small, silver cylinder with an arched ceiling, a counter with six stools, a handful of tables and a row of booths along the Montgomery Street side. It's intimate and full of retro flavor. It has sat empty at times and had a succession of owners in recent years.

We settled into a booth and kept an eye on a side door of City Hall, hoping to catch a glimpse of Mayor Stephanie Miner, but no such luck. She's probably too busy to go out to lunch.

In addition to your usual diner fare, like eggs, omelets, pancakes, French toast, fretta, home fries and breakfast sandwiches, JJ's menu features club sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs and fish on Fridays (haddock, crab cakes and fried shrimp). It also includes some of Joe's regular  State Fair fare, like chicken Parm, fried bologna sandwiches and spicy chicken Riggies.

We give "forks up" to JJ's French toast with sausage patties (not pucks; $5)...

And chicken Caesar salad ($5.95). The coffee was decent, too.

I met Joe the year he opened his stand, while working on a food story at the fair. It was 98 degrees and about 150 percent humidity, and I wasn't in the mood for food, especially hot, heavy food. But I saw a sign that said "Braciole on a Stick'' and had to investigate. Joe and his partners were serving braciole from Ascioti's meat market in Solvay, swimming in "gravy" (red sauce) and yes, speared with a stick.

I stopped back to see him another day and tried the braciole. Not only was it incredibly delicious, it was so tender you could cut it with the side of a fork -- and a plastic fork at that. Last year, one of my first stops at the fair was at JJ's, for a pot roast sandwich.

What's Joe serving at Taste of Syracuse this year? I'm not sure, but whatever it is I know it will be tasty, so stop by and see him. Tell him Margaret sent you. The JJ's stand is No. C82 and you'll find it in front of the Atrium building.

JJ's at the Miss Syracuse, meanwhile, is open 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday. The only thing it's lacking, in my opinion, is a neon sign with a blinking arrow that says "Eat at Joe's."