Dan's Taste of Two Forks was Hot!

/

On Saturday, July 13th, the 3rd Annual Dan’s Taste of Two Forks was hot! It is the largest food soirée in the Hamptons that attracted foodies near and far to taste and sip the bounty of the North and South Forks of Long Island, known as the East End. For those of you who are not familiar with the East End, the forks extend into the Atlantic Ocean like a two-tined fork. Farms, fishers, artisanal food purveyors and winemakers share the riches of this region’s land, sea and vines.

This sold out event was held under a tent at Sayre Park in Bridgehampton, on one of the most hot and humid evenings of the year; I should have brought my Wüsthofs as I could have cut the air it was so thick. An amalgamation of 36 restaurants, 8 specialty food purveyors and 17 vintners served and poured while we mingled and munched. And to add a little more sparkle to your champagne, the event was hosted by Bobby Flay and the Emcee was Alex Guarnashelli; an Iron Chef star-studded moment.

A portion of the ticket proceeds went to All For The East End (AFTEE), an organization whose goal is to generate significant new and creative sources of funding and organizational support for the not-for-profit organizations of Long Island's East End townships.

 

Memorable Tastes


North Fork

Noah’s, Greenport, NY—Chef Noah Schwartz
Crab stuffed deviled eggs

If you are not a lover of deviled eggs you can be swayed. Chef Schwartz is serving these beauties up at his restaurant and once you sink your teeth into these creamy, sweet and slightly spicy bite you will be a fan forever. The lemon aioli combined with the sweet crab and a touch of cayenne pepper was a fantastic combination.

First and South, Greenport, NY—Chef Taylor W. Knapp
Chocolate covered pork rinds, with anise, fennel, and smoked bay salt

Are you thinking what I am about to say? “Chocolate covered pork rinds, that seems so wrong?” And quite the contrary! We all know that sometimes opposites attract; salty and sweet go hand in hand and believe it of not —so does pork rinds and chocolate—a surprising culinary marriage of sorts. The pork rind was covered in chocolate and just on top was anise, fennel and smoked bay salt; it was sweet and savory and a delicious pairing. Their presentation was clever as these little gems sat on a piece of driftwood. If you go to First and South be sure to ask them about the chocolate covered pork rinds.

The Square, Greenport, NY—Chef Keith Luce
NoFo duckling summer rolls

Have you ever wondered what that packet of mystery duck sauce is suppose accompany when ordering Chinese take-out? I would guess that the majority of people use it on spareribs and an egg roll; at least I do. But how many of you order duck when taking-out Chinese food? I never do; considering I have about 100 packets in my cupboard, maybe I should. Chef Luce made his own special duck sauce that I would welcome over those mystery packs any day. This was sweet, slightly spicy and not overpowering to allow the duck to shine within this delicate bundle, bravo.

Grana Trattoria Antica, Jamesport, NY—Chef David Plath
Meatball shooters

The best meatballs I have ever eaten were my great Aunt Mary’s. To this day no one can replicate her recipe. There is even a video of her preparing it and a written recipe to follow along and still not even close. Grana’s meatballs reminded me of my great aunt's; a moist and toothsome meatball with italian seasoning and a simple marinara. I only wished these were larger; but I made up for it by eating five.

The Riverhead Project, Riverhead, NY—Chef Lia Fallon
Summer sea scallop ceviche

The ceviche was my first taste of the evening, a delicious starter to get my palate going. It was a summer party in my mouth; the sweet local scallops were marinated in the citrus juices and then combined with: corn, red and green peppers and romaine lettuce. This dish was bright, punchy, smooth and with a touch of heat. 

 

South Fork

Navy Beach, Montauk, NY—Chef Randy Santos
Local watermelon gazpacho with jonah crab, petite basil and sea salt

This savory bite kept my taste buds cool. I typically think tomatoes when I see gazpacho and this twist was a nice surprise; the yellow watermelon was silky, sweet and balanced beautifully with the crab. The basil and salt brightened the overall taste. I was inspired by this bite and will be working on my own gazpacho recipe soon, stay tuned.

Sea Grille Restaurant at Gurney’s Inn, Montauk, NY—Chef Angelo Montemarano
Organic quinoa salad mixed with lentils and chickpeas, served with mixed greens, tomatoes, carrots and dressed with lemon vinaigrette

Quinoa has been the grain-rage for the past few years and it has taken me some time to enjoy this ancient, nutrient rich grain. Gurney’s Inn Resort and Spa is a historic oceanfront resort that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. I was surprised to see them serving this dish; Montauk is the fishing capital of the world and I assumed we would be tasting fresh fish from the local waters. There is however a spa component to Gurney's and the Sea Grille Restaurant prides themselves on being SPE Certified, a holistic approach that focuses not just on health, but on the sourcing, preparing and enhancing of food. The combined selection of ingredients was a powerful and healthful bite and the lemon vinaigrette heightened the taste of the quinoa, rich lentils and chickpeas.

Joe and Liza’s Ice Cream, Sag Harbor, NY—Joe and Liza Tremblay
Mexican chocolate spice ice cream

Hands down my favorite taste; the Bikram Yoga heat levels under that tent may have contributed to this being my all-star and I bet the majority of the "eattendees" would agree. The cooling chocolate went perfect with the heat of the pepper; this was subtly sweet and spicy—how can you go wrong? It was so good that my husband Chris had to share it with the folks at Fresh Hamptons and for a good reason, he was sweating profusely and was thrilled to get a taste of this cold treat.

Fresh Hamptons, Bridgehampton, NY—Chef Todd Jacobs
Crisp Long Island duck confit with a warm salad of spinach, oven Yukon potatoes and sautéed forest mushrooms with a raspberry walnut vinaigrette; all local and organic.

Duck Confit is one of my specialties and I appreciated the execution and thoughtful flavor profiles and balance within this dish. The duck and mushrooms were meaty and earthy, a nice complement to the sweet spinach and tangy vinaigrette. The potatoes added that additional layer of creamy yumminess. I would crown this dish Long Island’s finest. Chef Jacobs will be catering Food Riot on Saturday, July 27th, to help Slow Food East End Support Local Farmers Market; a dinner you do not want to miss.

The Bell & Anchor, Sag Harbor, NY—Chef Sam McLeland
Duck rillette on crostini with pickled red onions

A rillette is a preparation of meat similar to a pate and so glad they did. On top of a crisp crostini was the duck rillette that was confit and the tang from the red pickled onions topped it off nicely, cutting through the richness of the duck rillette.

Gourmet Sorbet, by the Sorbabes, Sag Harbor, NY—Nicole Cardone & Deborah Gorman. Summer cucumber white wine mint and juicy passion fruit lychee

This is an all-natural, non-dairy sorbet. The fruit is sourced from local farms and is a refreshing treat with some interesting flavor combinations. The cucumber white wine mint was so refreshing; I can see this as a Le trou Normand, a palate cleanser in between courses or in a glass of sweet'tauk lemonade.

Sarabeth’s Bakery, New York City—Sarabeth Levine
Chocolate marmalade cookies

Sarabeth Levine is a true Hamptonite; an award-winning pastry chef, restaurateur, entrepreneur and a legendary jam maker. Her buttery cookies were sandwiched with orange marmalade and then dipped in Belgian chocolate; melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

 

Vineyards that were pouring

 

Castello di Borghese, Jamesport Vineyards, Lenz Winery, LIEB Cellars, Macari Vineyards, Martha Clara Vineyards, Mattebella Vineyards, One Woman Wines and Vineyard, Palmer Vineyards, Pindar Vineyards, Raphael, Scarola Vineyards, Sherwood House Vineyards, Sparkling Pointe Vineyards & Winery, Suhru Wines, Wöllfer Estate Vineyards, Waters Crest Winery.

 

If you missed Dan’s Taste of Two Forks and want to experience and taste your way through the North and South Forks of Long Island, you can attend the Harvest East End; this celebrates the wine-and-food bounty of Long Island Wine Country and will surely satiate the appetite and thirst of food enthusiasts. I attended last year, debuting as the out east foodie and I met some incredible food and beverage artisans. The celebration will be on Saturday, August 24th at McCall Vineyard & Ranch on the North Fork in Cutchogue, NY. 

The train tracks we crossed over after Dan's Taste of Two Forks. Tent glowing in the background.

At the Summer Fancy Food Show Emerging Food Entrepreneurs Dream Big

/
"There is no life I know to compare with pure imagination." - Willy Wonka

Imagination, wonder and daring to dream big were prevalent at the The Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City; a three-day specialty food smorgasbord featuring food and beverage artisans from around the world. With over 2,400 vendors from more than 80 countries showcasing 200,000 products, it was a foodies edible wonderment. I was only able to attend the last day of the show and focused on local-New York products, however I have a few notables outside of the Empire State.

I had my day cut out for me sampling: beverages, cheese, confections, sauces, spreads, and seemingly everything in between; it was a Pepcid AC commercial in the making. 

My day started with the “New Brands on the Shelf Pavilion” featuring 34 emerging food entrepreneurs, who exhibited their products for the first time at a Fancy Food Show. Mingling and munching down this aisle was by far my favorite; hearing the stories of these passionate artisans was truly inspiring.

Chef Dave Martin was a contestant and finalist on the first season of Bravo’s Top Chef in 2006. I had the honor to cook with Dave at a corporate event a few years ago where I was impressed with his sauces and marinades. It is no surprise that in 2012 he launched Dave’s Homemade, a company that produces small batch artisanal sauces and rubs along with a two-volume set of cookbooks for the home cook. The Ooey Gooey Caramel Sauce is not-so-sweet, made with maple syrup and sea salt; a great sauce for any dessert. Dave is offering 10% off on his products online; simply provide the code ffshow-10.

In 2004, Floyd, NY beer bar opened in Brooklyn, New York. Due to the law they were forced to serve food to keep their beer passion going and glad they did as their Kentucky inspired beer cheese is something to taste. Beer cheese is a southern specialty made from sharp cheddar, quality beer and a unique blend of herbs and spices. My first bite of the show was their original flavor. This was by far my favorite; the beer flavor undertones were balanced beautifully with the sharp cheddar and traces of pimento.

Vanessa Miller is a native New Yorker and a teacher who brought her blackboard way of business thinking to her black labels for her Get Dressed Salads. "The blackboard represents getting started", she said. Her product got its first start through Indiegogo, a crowdfunding platform. She speaks four languages and ironically enough has four dressing to boot; Ginger Gem, Perfect Pepper, Lemon Love, and Va Va Voom Vinaigrette. Vanessa is interested in dressing salads to enhance ingredients, not drown them. My favorite was the Ginger Gem, subtly spicy and silky.

 

LifeIce, NY

Out of tragedy comes triumph and it is so true for the founder of LifeIce, Paulette Fox. In the summer of 2010, the idea for LifeIce was born out of recipes Paulette made to comfort, hydrate and nourish her mother, who had been bravely battling ovarian cancer. She began blending and freezing flavorful batches of “nutritional ice chips” for her mother who lived beyond doctors’ expectations, giving extra days for Paulette to be with her mother. The 100% natural product is an innovative freeze-and-eat treat that is gluten-free, kosher-certified, GMO-free, fat free, low in calories and sugar. It comes in four distinct flavors: Berry Bite, Chocolate Crisp, Citrus Chomp and Green Grind. The base of LifeIce is coconut water and agave. LifeIce is not so sweet and the flavors are smooth and soothing. I can see this product in a beverage as a fun cocktail as well.

Help LifeIce raise awareness for ovarian cancer.

 

MitchMallows, NY

Mitchell Greenberg is the founder of MitchMallows, handmade marshmallows. Mitch is a set-designer and it is no surprise as each marshmallow was a character unto itself; Churros, Ginger Wasabi, Pretzels Beer, Banana Split, Watermelon, Mallopolitans and Creamsicle. The Ginger Wasabi was spicy and sweet; a unique marshmallow I can see in a hot chai tea latte.

 

Saucey Sauce, NY

The sister and brother team Toan and Ken Huynh founded the Saucey Sauce, Co. They started serving their mom’s recipe at dinner parties in Brooklyn, NY and realized they were on to something when friends started asking for bottles to take home. Ultimate Sauce line: Spicy Garlic, Fresh Lemon and Sweet Ginger Sauce. Limited run flavors: Hot Habanero KetJap and Sweet Jalapano KetJap. The sweet and savory taste of the Sweet Ginger Sauce was my saucey star; a sweet balance of brown sugar and ginger. This would make for a great marinade on chicken, pork or salmon.

 

Worth noting from South Carolina

 

Green Wave Smoothie Pops, SC

 I love green juice and this product is worth mentioning as I thought it was cleaver, healthy and delicious. For Dee Ann Bauer, a mother or three, she was always looking for ways to sneak greens into her children’s meals. Dee Ann and her daughter began experimenting on ways to develop a nutritious green smoothie blended with leafy greens and fruit. Once they discovered how delicious the smoothies were they developed a farm-to-freezer healthy pop and Green Wave Smoothies was born. These frozen pops are offered in two flavors: Kalelicious and Greena Colada. Both flavors are naturally low in calories and sweetened with fruit. If you live in the area Charleston, South Carolina you can find their product at the Charleston Farmers Market.

 

New York State aisle

Some sections at the show were broken out into states and countries. Brooklyn had a large presence and was part of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce that promotes food and drink entrepreneurs. Long Island had a small turn-out; I was happy to see our East End Long Island neighbors, Natalie and Steven Judelson of the Amagansett Sea Salt Company there.

Amagansett Sea Salt Company, NY

 Long Island was represented by Natalie and Steven Judelson, the founders of Amagansett Sea Salt Company. Their artisanal sea salt is made entirely by hand in small batches from seawater, directly harvested from the Atlantic Ocean, then filtered, solar evaporated, and packaged. Ocean-to-bottle takes place in Amagansett, a neighbor that I need to visit in the near future. I have used their Montauk blend that is infused with lemon zest on seared scallops that complements the sweet scallop flavor. I am particularly looking forward to using their new Southampton blend made with Madagascar Vanilla bean for finishing off brownies or even a sprinkle on top of butter poached lobster.

 

JoMart Chocolates, NY

Michael Rogak is a chocolatier and his family business has been making chocolates since 1946. Michael has embraced the new food age in Brooklyn and is enthusiastic about the food entrepreneurs that are making a living in Brooklyn. On display was beautifully wrapped candy bars and their butter crunch toffee with toasted almonds was melt-in-your-mouth good. JoMart is offering 10% off their online and in-store products during the holiday months of November - December. Mention out east foodie for this exclusive offer.

 

The Jam Stand, NY

 Two best friends, Jessica Quon and Sabrina Valle began making Jam in their apartment kitchen in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. They wanted to create a food company that was a true reflection of themselves and their community. Their Jams are uniquely flavored and the fresh fruit is sourced from local farms. My favorite flavor was the Drunken Monkey Jam, made with bananas, lime and rum; this will be my topping of choice the next time I make pancakes. 

 

Kings County Jerky Co., NY

This 100% Grass-fed beef Jerky was exceptional; hands down my most memorable Brooklyn vendor at the show. Jerky flavors offered: Cracked Pepper, Korean BBQ, Sichuan Ginger and my favorite the Mexican Mole that had rich chocolate undertones and a fine balance of spices. Added bonus, Pasture-raised & non-confined, no antibiotics or added hormones and is low in fat, sodium and high in protein.

 

Worth Noting outside of New York

 

Storye Bread, CT

Slowbaked and handmade Rye Bread that takes more than 38 hours to bake a single loaf. Anything with the word slow in front of a food craft is going to be good if not spectacular; Storye Bread is a true slow-craft. Their Rye Breads are: Classic Rye, Fine Rye, Fine Rye with Fruit & Nuts and Classic Rye with Carrots. I enjoyed each one; wheat-free, GMO-free, has 9 grams of fiber and is made with only rye grains grown in Northern Europe. A hearty and healthy bread worth trying.

 

Cypress Grove Chevre, CA

In 1970, Mary Keehn, single mother of four children living in Humboldt County began looking for a healthy source of milk for her family. By obtaining two goats from a neighbor, she milked the goats for dairy and over the years experimented with the craft of making cheese. Since 1983 Cypress Grove was born and has been a leader in the domestic goat cheese market and internationally awarded for the excellence of its products. Their artisan goat cheese lines are exquisite, in particular their sofi award winning Humboldt Fog, for classic cheese category. This has a subtle, tangy flavor with floral notes and would be lovely with a drizzle of honey. The Midnight Moon is aged six months; dense, smooth with a nutty caramel finish; this on a cracker with some quince paste would do me just fine.

 

This product was most unique; imagine the interior of a “finger lime vessel” that is packed with citrus caviar and when you cut it in half and squeeze, the finger lime releases individually contained juice vesicles that pop with a tart lemon lime flavor when bitten into, extraordinary. According to Jim Shanley, owner of Shanley Farms it took six years before the Finger Lime trees bared fruit. I can see this product used in a variety of ways, in particular on the rim of a margarita glass, how cool! Jim Shanley and his daughter Megan run the family farm business. They bring to market Citriburst Finger Limes, Morro Bay Avocados, and Sierra Sweet Kiwis.

The sofi Awards

The sofi Award is the highest honor in the $86 billion specialty food industry; “sofi” stands for Specialty Outstanding Food Innovation; and is awarded to the best of the best in specialty foods and beverages from members of the Specialty Food Association. The awards were presented at a red-carpet ceremony hosted by internationally-acclaimed chef Marcus Samuelsson. Getting this prestigious award is like receiving an Oscar for best actor within a category.

A list of New York-based companies that were awarded:

For Outstanding Chocolate

Chocolate Moderne-Avante-Garde Bar Blood Orange Bergamot Flavor

For Outstanding Cookie

Tate’s Bake Shop-Whole Wheat Dark Chocolate Chip

For Outstanding Cooking Sauce or Flavor Enhancer

We Rub You-Spicy-Korean BBQ Marinade

For Outstanding Soup, Stew, Bean or Chili
Sarabeth’s Kitchen-Legendary Velvety Cream of Tomato Soup

You can view all of the sofi awards and finalists here.

Getting around this show in a day was an amazing food race. Next year, I think the full three days would suit me and my stomach well. 

Heirloom Tomato Summer Tart

/

At the Union Square Greenmarket in New York City, tomato varieties have been making their debut amongst the strawberries, cherries and sugar snap peas at a few farm stands such as S&SO Farm—heirlooms, Eckerton Hill Farm—sungolds and Phillips Farm—greenhouse beefsteak tomatoes.

 

Summer is only a week old and I could not keep myself from the first of the farm stand tomatoes. What better way to welcome summer and this juicy delight than with an heirloom tomato summer tart; a savory crust filled with ricotta cheese, topped with tomatoes marinated in extra virgin olive oil and infused with basil. I prefer the heirloom cherry tomatoes for their size and vibrant color. The pâte brisée (shortcrust pastry) complements the sweetness of the tomatoes and the creamy ricotta cheese. The pâte brisée recipe is the same shortcrust pastry that was used for my duck confit tart and if you would like to try your hand at making ricotta cheese, you can find my recipe here.

 

Heirloom Tomato Summer Tart Recipe

 

Pâte Brisée (shortcrust)

ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups of flour
  • 2 sticks of butter
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/2 cup of ice water
  • Parmigiano-Reggiano for grating on to tart after pre-baked.

 directions

  1. Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor, and process for a few seconds to combine.
  2. Cut up the cold butter into 1/2 inch cubes and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about the size of garbanzo beans. Pulse about about 10 seconds.
  3. Add the ice water slowly through the feed tube, just until the dough holds together. The dough should be visibly crumbly where you can pinch the dough between your fingers and should hold. You are not looking for a ball state here.
  4. Remove the crumbly mixture from the processor and place on a smooth surface. Work the dough only enough to just bring the dough together.  Do not over-knead or your crust will end up tough.
  5. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, flatten each portion into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for one hour before using. This will chill the butter and allow the gluten in the flour to relax. At this point you can also freeze the dough for later use.  
  6. For each disk of pastry, on a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry to fit into your preferred tart pan size. To prevent the pastry from sticking to the counter and to ensure uniform thickness, keep lifting up and turning the pastry a quarter turn as you roll. To make sure it is the right size, take your tart pan and place it on the rolled out pastry. The pastry should be about an inch larger than your pan.
  7. Lightly roll pastry around your rolling pin and unroll onto the top of your tart pan. Gently lay in pan and lightly press pastry into bottom and up sides of pan. Roll your rolling pin over top of pan to get rid of excess pastry dough.

    8. To prebake the tart 

  8. With the tines of a fork, prick the bottom of the dough (this will prevent the dough from puffing up as it bakes). Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes to chill the butter and to rest the gluten.
  9. Preheat oven to 400° and place rack in center of oven. Line the unbaked pastry shell with parchment paper and fill the tart pan with pie weights or beans, making sure the weights are to the top of the pan and evenly distributed over the entire surface. Bake crust for about 20 minutes or until the crust is dry and lightly browned. Remove tarts from the oven; take out the pie weight and then grate Parmigiano-Reggianno on to the bottom of the tart so it is fully covered.
  10. Place tarts back in oven for 5 minutes to melt the Parmigiano-Reggianno, then remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Makes two, 9-inch tart shells or six, 4-inch round tartlets. 

Filling for Tart

ingredients

  • 1 quart of cherry tomatoes cut in half
  • 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon of fresh pepper
  • 1 tablespoon of pignoli nuts
  • 1 scallion, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups of ricotta cheese; room temperature  
  • 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh basil, roughly chopped

directions

  1. Over medium heat, toast the pignoli nuts until fragrant and lightly brown. Remove from heat to cool and set-aside for the tomato mixture.
  2. In a bowl place the ricotta, 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, pepper and scallions. Mix ingredients together and let sit.
  3. In a bowl place the tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, 1 teaspoon of sea salt, basil and lemon juice.  Fold together and marinate for 30 minutes. Gently fold in pignoli nuts before you are ready to assemble.

note: you can prepare the ricotta mixture a day before, however it should be at room temperature before assembling.

Assembly

Fill each tart with the ricotta mixture up to the edge of the crust. Then carefully place the tomato mixture on top. Immediately serve at room temperature.