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~ Because it's the little things that make your day

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Monthly Archives: May 2014

Best Tomato Sauce Ever (Vol. I)

29 Thursday May 2014

Posted by Leah in RECIPES

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Butter, Florence, Marcella Hazan, Mario Batali, The Godfather, Tomato sauce with Onion and Butter, Tomatoes

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Food lovers, look away, for I have a confession to make:  I hate tomatoes.  It’s blasphemy, I know, for the tomato is one of the staples of practically every type of cuisine, yet since I was young and had my first BLT, I literally gag at the sight of them.  My poor mother spent years picking little cherries out of my salads and big beefsteak slices from my sandwiches, and when I lived in Florence for a semester, it’s possible that I pissed off an entire city. (“Ma che cosa ci fa?? Stupido Americano!”) But what can I say?  Eat a tomato in front of me like it’s an apple and you will see a grown woman squeal like a 5-year-old. (It’s the seeds, by the way.)

Cook the little suckers, however, and it’s a whole different ballgame.  It’s ironic that for a girl who shuns gazpacho and bloody mary’s, I salivate at the thought of a sumptuous tomato sauce.  Remember that scene in “The Godfather” when Clemenza was teasing Michael about his phone call to Kay (“Tell her you love her, Michael!”) all the while teaching him how to make the best Italian “gravy?”  I had to make that sauce right away! And when I first made the holy grail of all tomato sauces, Marcella Hazan’s Tomato sauce with Onion and Butter, I felt like writing the city of Florence a mea culpa.  Chefs from Matio Batali to practically every food blogger out there have sung its praises for years, elevating Hazan, the “Julia Child of Italian Cooking” to superstar status.  It’s also ridiculously easy to make, so there’s really no excuse not to try it.  Oh, unless you’re on a diet.  Or watching your cholesterol.  Because what makes this sauce so good is butter, and lots of it.  Yep, it’s not your nonna’s traditional gravy with garlic or wine or sugar, but rather a lush and velvety sauce that is so simple and good, you may never make another tomato sauce again.*

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Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter
from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan 

  • 1 28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes (San Marzano if you can find them), with their juices, cut up
  • 5 tbsp butter
  • 1 onion (preferably yellow), peeled and cut in half
  • salt, to taste

Put the tomatoes, butter and onion in a heavy saucepan over medium heat.  When the tomatoes start to bubble, lower the heat to a slow and steady simmer, and cook uncovered for 45 minutes or until the fat floats free from the tomatoes.  Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes to the side of the pot with a wooden spoon.  Remove from heat, add salt to taste, and discard the onion before tossing with pasta (Hazan suggests spaghetti, penne or rigatoni).  Add grated parmesan cheese if desired, though most agree it doesn’t need it it’s so good!

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*That is, until you read my “Best Tomato Sauce Ever, Vol. II and III, coming soon!

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Hartwood: Grab some people, go there now.

22 Thursday May 2014

Posted by Leah in TRAVEL

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Hartwood, Mexico, reservations, sustainable energy, Tulum

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Hartwood
Carretera Tulum Boca Paila
7.6KM Tulum Mexico

¡Atención por favor, lovers of Tulum!  You’ve no doubt either heard about Hartwood, the remarkable, open-air restaurant in Tulum, Mexico, or even tried to go, but have you gotten in?  There are countless articles about this magical eatery – opened in 2010 by a hipster couple from Brooklyn – extolling its much-deserved virtues that seem hard to believe (No stove? No fridge?).  Believe them all, by the way, and yet I’m going to tell you the most important thing you need to know about Hartwood:  Go as a party of eight. That’s right, eight.  Hartwood (in)famously does not take reservations, and as it’s become insanely popular of late, it seems you have to forsake your after-beach shower and stand in line for hours just for the possibility of a table.  Um, no.  Vacation in Mexico = afternoon siesta, right?  So what to do?!  Well, I recently traveled to Tulum for a certain, ahem, milestone birthday and brought along 7 milestone-making friends with me. Hartwood, you see, does take reservations, but only for parties of 8 or more.  “Mmm, here’s to you!” my friends said as they sipped their grapefruit habenero-infused margaritas and toasted my birthday.  “No, here’s to you,” I replied, “because you all got me into Hartwood!”

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Why all the hub-bub?  The romantic, rustic atmosphere sets the tone, the tropical cocktails almost knock you out, and by the time you taste the rosewater-scented sea bass ceviche, you know you’re in for something special.  Fall-off-the-bone pork ribs made my knees weak, and the charred and luscious “Arrechera Angus” was possibly the best steak I’ve ever had.  You’ll want to take pictures of the creative and colorful sides, like the largest, smokiest red beet I’ve ever seen, and you’ll want to savor your dessert, a lime tart that tastes like what citrus and heaven must taste like if they met. Finally, another juicy cocktail, mixed with a blender that is the only electrical appliance used at Hartwood, because that might be the biggest reason of all for all the fuss – this extraordinary restaurant uses no electricity (only a small generator for said blender) but rather relies solely on sustainable energy, a wood-burning oven, and lots of good knife skills.  It is truly the epitome of living (deliciously) off the grid.

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So if you’re in Tulum only with your beau, or maybe on a girls’ trip with your BFF’s, find a way to bump up your party. Make friends with that couple you always see at breakfast!  Ask your fellow yogis after your morning yoga class!  Did I take 7 friends to Tulum with me just so that I could get a reservation at Hartwood?  No.  Would I?  Um, could you pass the plantains?

 

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Mozart, baby.

06 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by Leah in MUSIC, TV / POP CULTURE

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

birth coach, Bose SoundDock, Meryl Streep, Mozart, Mozart Clarinet Concerto, Out of Africa, Robert Redford

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Remember that scene in “Out of Africa” where Robert Redford takes Meryl Streep flying in his little yellow plane, soaring over the lush plains of Kenya, an equally lush soundtrack soaring overhead?  Now, do you like babies?  Read on…

A good friend of mine, successful and single, recently had a baby, and one night six months ago, she rocked my world when she asked me if I would be her “birth coach.”  Say what?!  Birth what?!  Me?!  I could go on and on about that night and all that followed, but let’s just say I accepted and it was indeed one of the most heart-stirring and memorable experiences of my life. One of the things I’ll never forget?  The music! Despite my desire to  put together some dramatic, eclectic playlists for the big day, my friend only wanted to hear Mr. Baby Music himself, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.  Me, I’d want to hear some soothing Chopin followed by a Jay Z opus or two, but I wasn’t the one popping this baby out.  So a Mozart playlist it was, and when the day arrived and I got THE CALL, I stuffed my Bose SoundDock into my bag-in-waiting, and nervously headed uptown to start my “coaching.”

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About 8 hours and 2 epidurals later, it was time for the final push.  I got on one side, the nurse got on the other, and Mozart played on.  I tried to remember all the breathing instructions I was supposed to impart on to my slightly-drugged yet valiant friend, but all I could think of was, Oh my god, Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto just came on!  This baby’s got to be born during the 2nd movement!  And me being me, that’s exactly what I said.  “One, two, three …. the Adagio is almost here, the music they used in that great scene from “Out of Africa,”  PUUUSH! … six, seven, eight …. “  And guess what?  Beautiful little Claire Luna, all 8 lbs. 2 oz. of her, was indeed born to this beautiful music, below.  And let me tell you, Robert Redford’s got nothing on baby Claire.

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Baby Claire, minutes after birth

Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A major, 2nd movement (Adagio)

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This is CNN.

01 Thursday May 2014

Posted by Leah in TV / POP CULTURE

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

CNN, Don Draper, Harrison Ford, James Earl Jones, Jon Hamm, TV commercials, voice-overs

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It’s easy to recognize James Earl Jones’ signature voice as he reminds us what news channel we’re watching, but have you noticed how many movie stars are now lending their voices to TV commercials? It wasn’t too long ago that voice-overs were considered taboo for a serious actor, with those unable to resist the easy pay day secretly sneaking off to Japan, because, well, I guess Harrison Ford just couldn’t find a beer in the U.S. that he liked. But now they’re doing it out in the open in droves, and some are even double-timing (I’m talkin’ to you, Don Draper!).

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Can you match the celebrity actor with his/her commercial?

  1. George Clooney
  2. John Krasinkski
  3. Kevin Spacey
  4. Lisa Kudrow
  5. Kiefer Sutherland
  6. Jeff Bridges
  7. Julia Roberts
  8. Jon Hamm
  9. Gene Hackman
  10. David Duchovny
  11. John Corbett
  12. Willem Dafoe
  13. Morgan Freeman
  14. Donald Sutherland
  1. Honda
  2. Pedigree
  3. E-surance
  4. Nationwide Insurance
  5. American Airlines
  6. Visa
  7. Yoplait
  8. Budweiser
  9. Mercedes
  10. Volvo
  11. Bank of America
  12. Hyundai
  13. Lowe’s
  14. Walgreens
  15. Ford
  16. Face Yogurt
  17. Applebee’s
  18. Ford Trucks

Answers: 1-H & R, 2-C, 3-A, 4-G, 5-K, 6-L, 7-D, 8-E & I, 9-M, 10-B, 11-N & Q, 12-P, 13-F, 14-J

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