weekend eats

I apologize for the long hiatus! My weekend turned into a unexpectedly long one and I was somewhat technologically unavailable. That said, I'm back and happy to report some yummy nibbles from this past weekend.

So Summer is officially upon us (well, as far as I'm concerned) which means every weekend, this city clears OUT. I mean, I'm hard-pressed to find more than five friends from any of my clans hanging out in the concrete jungle. But, as soon as I get on my Summer beach schedule, I too will hopefully be more M.I.A. Until then, I shared a somewhat gluttonous weekend with my roommate, Ellen. But since this rarely happens for either one of us, we just went with it, with smiles on our faces.

Sunday was lazy but beautiful. So we soaked up some sun down at Battery City Park until our stomachs were growling louder than the barking dogs, croaking birds, and the couple playing paddle ball in front of us. We both had pin-pointed our craving: steamed clams, baguette to soak up the luxuriously briny broth, and ice cold vino. So we skipped back towards the West Village to hit up The Lobster Place in hopes of bagging some clams. Perhaps it was the time of day, but we were a bit under-mused by the selection. But, Steamers they had so we loaded up on a pound and a half. And because we couldn't help ourselves, since they were staring at us so lovingly from their basket of ice, two Bluepoint Oysters were shucked and drizzled generously with fresh lemon juice right in front of us which we immediately threw back. Our eyes crossed with pure delight. A shot of clean, ocean water spiked with a citrusy punch. A special treat for ourselves, being the only city dwellers for the weekend.

Then it was on to Murray's Cheese for sample upon sample of stinky selections. After tasting our way through a number of Tallegios, we settled on a Grès des Vosges, a cow's milk cheese (Alsatian Muenster) from the Alsace region of France. Pungent, salty, and smooth, it was a worthwhile splurge.
Once back at home, butter and olive oil were heated up in a tall pot and copious amounts of fresh garlic were grated in with a few dashes of red pepper flakes. A splash of white wine dramatically hit the oil and in went the clams. Lid went back on, and they steamed for five or six minutes, shaking the pot every once in a while. A quick salad of fresh boston lettuce, orange, and fennel (this is becoming a habit) were once again dressed with my white balsamic vinaigrette. As soon as the steamers opened up, the pot was hit with a huge handful of freshly chopped parsley and a squeeze of lemon. Done. Dinner guests came and went and there was no shortage on food. We sopped up our bowls of uber flavorful broth with plenty of torn pieces of baguette. And trapped in the city or not, we were eating, drinking, and sopping up all of the best parts of Summer right in our very own apartment.