What The Heck Is A CSA? Ambler Farms Event Tells All Ingredients Features Education Local Farm Organic Wilton healthy Farm Fresh Stephanie Webster January 05, 2010
Behind the Scenes @ The SoNo Baking Company Ingredients Restaurant Bakery Catering Education Norwalk Breakfast Dessert Deanna Foster January 03, 2010 It is still really dark at 4:30 AM , but the pre-dawn hours hold transformative powers. Darkness will turn to light and the promise of a new day will be realized. Sometimes, both happen sooner than you expect. When we arrive at the SoNo Baking Company for a behind-the-scenes tour, it's shortly before 5:00 a.m., but the aroma of warm yeasty bread has transformed two half-asleep writers into bakers in training. Owner, John Barricelli, welcomes us in through the still dark café, chairs resting upside down on tables; display cases standing empty. Our eyes have to adjust as we walk through the sleepy cafe into the brightly lit kitchen. Suddenly awake, we are immediately caught up in the rhythm of the bakers at work. Read More
Shopping Guide: Green Foodie Finds for the Holidays Ingredients Fairfield Holiday Westport New Canaan Farm Fresh CTbites Team December 17, 2009 Analiese Paik, Founder of the Fairfield Green Food Guide is constantly scouring the farm stands and markets of Fairfield County for great green foodie finds. She has come up with a list of wonderful local products just right for the holidays. Happy shopping! Holy smoke!: The Willie Bird whole smoked turkey, formerly available exclusively through Williams-Sonoma’s catalog, is now available at Palmer’s Market in Darien. You can thank Richard the butcher for bringing in this famous all-natural, vegetarian fed bird from Sonoma, CA to grace your holiday table. Save yourself the shipping and head to Palmer’s Market at 264 Heights Road in Darien, just off exit 10 on I95 across from the Noroton Heights train station. They also have fresh Long Island duck! Read More
Sensational Sweets @ Sweet On You Cafe & Bakery Ingredients Restaurant Catering Stamford Lunch Dessert Deanna Foster December 12, 2009 I love the challenge of baking: trying to get a light flake in a pie crust or the perfect crumb to a cake or the right texture for a chosen cookie. But mostly I love baking because when successful, it can bring such delight to those doing the eating, usually my friends, whom I enjoy making happy. So, it is rare for me to purchase baked goods as I feel I lose out repeatedly: once in the making, once again in feeling the love, and too often in taste, with overly sweet, overly greasy or overly heavy confections. However, baking requires time, and when you don’t have it you need a quality go-to bakery that will not disappoint. Happily, I discovered my go-to place last week: Sweet On You Bakery in Stamford makes heavenly confections that are beautiful and delicious, and frankly, better than I can make at home. Even if you don't live in Stamford this bakery is worth the trip. Read More
Homemade Holiday Gifts: Vanilla Sugar & Extract Ingredients Features Ask Chef Nicole Holiday Recipe Dessert Nicole Straight December 07, 2009 Tired of giving your teachers and hosts the same bottle of wine, gift certificates, or coffee table books? Why not make your own eatable holiday gifts this year? CT Bites makes gift planning easy with our ongoing December feature "Homemade Holiday Gifts." No, we're not getting out the hot glue gun. We're getting crafty in the kitchen with delicious gift ideas that everybody will enjoy: Homemade Vanilla Extract & Vanilla Sugar. Read More
Local Teen Chefs Get Fresh and Get Published Kids Bites Education Events Kid Friendly Deanna Foster December 04, 2009 If you have a teen chef at home, or if you are a teen’s chef, you’ll be well served to head to the Westport Barnes and Noble on Tuesday, Dec. 15th, at 7:00 pm. for a book signing and tasting to celebrate the release of Rozanne Gold’s latest cookbook, EAT FRESH FOOD: Awesome Recipes for Teen Chefs. For this venture Gold recruited a brigade of teens, six of whom are Westport residents: Danielle Hartog (15), Deanna Hartog (11), Gwen Beal (15), Andrew Miller (15), Caroline Foster (15), Margaux Stamm (15) who helped recipe test and taste many of the 80+ recipes in this book. FRESH stands for: farmer friendly, ripe-ready, easy-exciting, sustainable and honest-healthy and this book lives up to its name. Don’t think this is another cute kids’ cookbook. This is a book for teens, written by a James Beard award-winning chef and author who has teen’s interests, sensibilities and taste buds in mind. Gold has chosen recipes with few ingredients, 6-8 on average and that are easy to make, most take about 30 minutes prep. Only recipes the teen chefs and tasters loved and had a good time making are included in the book; those that made the cut are inspiring. Read More
Winter Essentials: Chocolat Chaud from "The Pantry" Ingredients Fairfield Specialty Market Kid Friendly Dessert Stephanie Webster December 02, 2009
Meet the Yeastie Boys @ Billy's Bakery in Fairfield Ingredients Bakery Fairfield Breakfast Comfort Food Dessert Marcy Shinbaum November 26, 2009 Those of us that live in the town of Fairfield have followed Billy’s Bakery from its tiny rustic beginnings to its current bright retail space like a pig snorting out truffles. We stop in and wander around wondering what doughy treats we will pick up, but really, we know exactly what we want before even stepping out of the car. The reason we wander is because it gives us an excuse to meander over to the sample basket and spread soft churned butter on slices of fresh baked bread. I’m not embarrassed to admit that on more than one occasion that sampling has been my lunch. I recently decided to stop into the bakery with a fresh eye, contemplating whether or not this local shrine was good enough to warrant a road trip from the far corners of Fairfield County. Read More
Visions of Gingerbread @ The Stamford Museum Kids Bites Education Events Stamford kids activity Kid Friendly Opening Sarah Green November 11, 2009 Every year, I buy one of those boxed gingerbread house kits and my kids and I go at it. We glop it together with that glue-like petroleum by-product substance that they call icing, we decorate with the stale jelly beans and mini gum balls they provide, and we call it a day. It’s fun and the kids enjoy it. Do yours? If so, head to the Stamford Museum and Nature Center (SM and NC) this month and next to see how the pros do it. “Visions of Gingerbread: The Sweetest Architects” is the name of the exhibition that the museum is presenting as both a showcase for local bakers and as a fundraiser for the SM and NC. Read More
Whole Foods Market Opens in Milford Ingredients Events Specialty Market Opening Stephanie Webster November 11, 2009 You would have thought they were giving away TV's at the pre-opening party at Whole Foods Market in Milford. A line snaked through the parking lot as people clamored to get a glimpse of this new glittering grocery mecca. The new location officially opened its doors today with their customary breaking of the bread ceremony, and I kid you not when I say that Milford residents have one more reason to smile when they wake up in the morning. Read More
Wine Chat: Le Beaujolais n'est Pas Arrive Ingredients Greenwich Norwalk Ridgefield Specialty Market Wine Chat CTbites Team November 09, 2009 I am convinced that one of the best kept and most unfortunate secrets in the wine world is how good wines from Beaujolais actually are. Yes, that’s right–Beaujolais. The word itself creates a certain conundrum. It has been misappropriated and used as a gigantic ruse to convince the American wine drinking public that Beaujolais is actually that thin, fruit juicy froth that Georges Duboeuf has celebrated for years. Quel disastre! Let me break it down: red wines of all stripes are crushed during harvest (the vendange), racked and barreled to age. Some wines – like great Spanish Riojas don’t get released for 7-8 years after they are harvested. The wait is worth it and the wines benefit from age. Not Beaujolais Nouveau. Beaujolais Nouveau is crushed and rushed into the bottle mere weeks after being picked. And it tastes like it. What the heck was Dubouef thinking? Obviously he wasn’t. Read More
What's in Your Lunchbox? Do-it-Yourself Pizza Dippers Kids Bites Ask Chef Nicole What's in your Lunchbox? kids activity Recipe Kid Friendly Nicole Straight November 04, 2009 What snack food is more universal and beloved than pizza? As a play on this perennial favorite we thought we would create a deconstructed pizza that kids could have fun assembling at their desks. Instead of standard pizza crust, we are using tortillas for their flexibility and wrap-ability. Sure, you could cut up some handmade triangled pizza crust, or even pita bread for this one. Build them any way you want. You will need a few small containers for proper travel, but your children will be the envy of the classroom. Turkey pepperoni, shredded cheese and tortilla “pizza dippers” Read More
Wake Up to Holly’s Wickedly Plain Oatmeal Ingredients Specialty Market Breakfast Stephanie Webster November 03, 2009 I’m definitely one of those people who remain deep in a breakfast rut for an embarrassingly long period of time. For the past 2 years, it’s been Arrowhead Mills Old Fashioned Oatmeal (never instant). I get very cranky when I run out. But while stocking up last week at Whole Foods, a cute, yellow package positioned right next to my target oatmeal caught my eye. Holly’s Wickedly Plain Oatmeal. “The yummiest, healthiest, highest protein oatmeal” the package exclaimed. Could it be? I wondered. Who is this Holly and what can she possibly have done to improve oatmeal? On a whim (brave foodie that I am) and of course following careful inspection of the package (protein count, fiber, etc – okay, fine, Type A foodie that I am), I decided to give it a whirl. And I have not looked back since. Sorry, Arrowhead Mills. Read More
Resource Guide to Buying your Thanksgiving Turkey Ingredients Going Green Holiday Organic Specialty Market Thanksgiving CTbites Team November 01, 2009 Photos c/o Ekonk Hill Turkey FarmAnaliese Paik, Founder of the Fairfield Green Food Guide has compiled this exhaustive shopping guide to purchasing your free-range, organic, all natural Thanksgiving turkey. Everything you need to know about where to find the centerpiece of your holiday is here. There is no better time to aim high for superior freshness and quality in our food than when we’re playing hostess to friends and family at Thanksgiving. All eyes are sure to be on the turkey so now is the perfect time to check that most important food purchase off our to do list. If you’re like me, you are also thinking about where and how the turkey was raised and what it was fed. Well, you are in luck because there are many excellent choices of all natural, free-range, organic, and kosher turkeys available in local stores. If you are looking for extremely rare locally-grown organic Heritage Turkeys, they are available for home delivery. Choosing Heritage Breeds, which have been passed down from generation to generation because they taste good, helps preserve genetic diversity as well as American culinary traditions. Please note that the most coveted birds sell out fast. Here is a complete guide to buying your Thanksgiving turkey with brands from your local Fairfield County markets. Read More
Hummus Taste Test...Who's got the Best in FC? Ingredients Specialty Market Stephanie Webster October 30, 2009 A few weeks ago at a CT Bites editorial mtg. we got into a heated discussion regarding which brand of hummus was the best on the market. This may seem odd to some, but we are serious about our food here. Everyone had their personal favorites, and the issue could not be decided concretely by debate...there is no convincing a foodie. Chef Nicole stepped in with the perfect solution to our hummus conundrum…a humus showdown, or in practical terms a blind taste test. The editorial team loved the idea, so last week we gathered to talk shop, and more importantly, to eat hummus...lots of hummus. We tried to get a sampling from a wide range of markets, and even included a favorite Middle Eastern restaurant. Sure, we may have missed some, but here were our contenders: Hummus Showdown Contenders Read More
It's Always a Party @ Sugar & Olives, Norwalk Kids Bites Restaurant Catering Cooking Classes Education Going Green Holiday Norwalk healthy Lunch Sarah Green October 28, 2009 Wish you could throw a party in your own home, where people could meander from room to room to avoid that stuffy, restaurant feel? Hate being stuck at some long, rectangular table where the only person you are speaking to is the one right next to you? (You know, the one that you had been trying NOT to get stuck with.) Want to be relaxed and enjoy the food with your guests while someone else prepares, serves, and cleans up? Want to stop worrying about the red wine spilling on your white sofas? Tired of stressing about the fancy gadgets in your medicine cabinet that people might discover while they “powder” and snoop? Have your (organic) cake and eat it too at Jennifer Balin’s eclectic and fabulous “space” in Norwalk. SUGAR and OLIVES is the name and quirky and sensational is the game! Read More
Halloween Recipes: Screamin’ Meanie Pulled Pork Bites Kids Bites Features Ask Chef Nicole Holiday Recipe Kid Friendly Nicole Straight October 24, 2009 Here is yet another fun and tasty party pleaser. We have listed two techniques for the creation of this delicious dish. Your selected preparation will depend on your expendable time, and your desire for home made fare vs. store bought ingredient assembly. We made these both ways over the weekend, and you will be happy with the results either way. If you are not a regular pulled pork eater, try it. The sweetness of the BBQ sauce, and the tenderness of the slow cooked pork makes this a real treat. Technique #1 I'm short on time: Screamin’ Meanie Pulled Pork Bites (Mini corn bread and pulled pork sandwiches) Read More
Easy Halloween Party Recipes Part 1: Bloody Fingers Kids Bites Features Ask Chef Nicole Holiday Recipe Kid Friendly Nicole Straight October 24, 2009 Halloween is around the corner, and this week, in honor of this ghoulish holiday, CT Bites will feature a daily recipe to help you plan the perfect Halloween party. These dishes are both adult and kid-friendly, and are simple time-saving delicious meals that will leave you plenty of time for dress-up. This is the first in our series, and really... what defines the real joy of Halloween more perfectly than eatable severed body parts? These "Bloody Fingers" are an updated version of a perennial favorite, pigs in a blanket. I like to use chorizo, but you could substitute chicken apple sausage or Portuguese linguica. Bloody Fingers in a Blanket (AKA chorizo in puff pastry) Read More
An IKEA Smorgasbord...No Assembly Required Ingredients Features Specialty Market Swedish New Haven Sarah Green October 20, 2009 "IKEA, Swedish for common sense," is how the commercial goes. Yet my common sense seems to escape me while shopping there. Although the products are nifty and super cheap, it is NOT my greatest talent to build beautiful furniture from planks of wood, a package of bolts, and a direction sheet that has only arrows as its vocabulary. Yet back I go, trip after trip, filling my cart with baskets of every size, shape, and dimension and spectacular flower-shaped light bulbs that may or not fit in American lamps. "What’s the sense?" I have asked many times. Now I know. It’s all about the sense of TASTE- The IKEA food mart rocks! Tack sa mycket, (thank you) Bjorn! Now I must confess, I lived in Stockholm for years so my taste for things Swedish is admittedly subjective. So, to be fair and unbiased in writing about the food, I decided to have a Smorgasbord with my Westport peeps so they could tell me their unadulterated opinions. Here's how it went down: Read More
