peanut butter

This weekend I went to the Nutropolitan Museum of Art, the world's first PB&J exhibit! I love peanut butter and was promised a free jar, so my decision to visit this exhibit was a no-brainer.

Peanut Butter & Co, an amazing PB company that I don't know how I hadn't heard of before, presented the exhibit, along with the National Peanut Board. Peanut Butter & Co sells a variety of peanut butter products and has a sandwich shop in the village, which I'll obviously be checking out. Death by Peanut Butter Sundae? Yes, please!

The exhibit, which was only presented over this past weekend, consisted of delicious photographs of creative peanut butter sandwiches, creating your own peanut butter sandwich (which you then got to enjoy), information on how peanuts are healthy for you, and a free jar of Peanut Butter & Co peanut butter on the way out, along with a special knife for ideal peanut butter spreading. For every jar PB & Co handed out, they donated one to the Food Bank for NY. I received a jar of Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Peanut Butter, which I never knew existed, but it is delicious. When I created my own peanut butter sandwich, they used White Chocolate Peanut Butter, which was also tasty.

peanut butter banana split

with caviar and champagne.. fancy

starry night

the king - bacon, banana, honey

make your own sandwich...

don't forget the toppings!

Bagged peanut butter jars waiting to be handed out

pizza pizza

I've made a couple of South American dishes in the past few weeks and meant to take pictures, but forgot. oops.

One night I made 2 different types of homemade empanadas - one with mushrooms and cheese, and one with ground turkey (in place of ground beef) complete with hard boiled egg and spices such as cumin. Good, but not as good as the place on the corner in San Telmo.

Another night I made a Colombian chicken, corn, and potato stew following this recipe. It is known as Ajiaco in Colombia, and although the stew I made was delicious (if I may say so myself) it did not live up to the Ajiaco my Colombian roommate in Buenos Aires made. She recently sent me her recipe, so that will have to wait for another cooking adventure.

Tonight, I didn't completely follow the South American theme, but I did remember to take pictures! Well, I guess they do eat a lot of pizza in Argentina, but that doesn't make it Argentine. Anyway, Trader Joe's $0.99 pizza dough was the foundation for the 3 different pies I made. I used garlic and herb dough for the plain pie, and whole wheat for the other two. They were all delicious, especially washed down with some Malbec ;) The brie and green apple pizza was inspired by a dinner eaten at a random Italian restaurant in Madrid, and I think it was my favorite one that came out of the oven tonight.

ready for the oven

half plain, half pepperoni

pesto, mushrooms, goat cheese

 

caramelized onion, green apple, brie

argentina in spain

A little Argentine ♥ in Madrid...



mate



cooking Argentine meat with love

   

alfajores



map, futbol, obelisk

spanish is intriguing

"We speak Spanish.. mainly because it's the language that we speak."

Jaja.. great commercial for Kahlua, using Spanish, an "intriguing language..."

helena

Yet another cute cafe in Buenos Aires. Surprising, right? Delicious food, refreshing mint lemonade, and an undeniably cute and quaint atmosphere make up Helena, one of my favorite places to spend the afternoon doing work.

Helena is located in Palermo Soho at Nicaragua 4816. Open Tuesday - Saturday from 9am - 9pm, Sunday from 10:30am - 7:30pm.

housewarming gift

Friends who recently purchased an apartment in BA received this delicious meat from a friend and cooked it up for dinner. Only in Argentina would a big hunk of meat be a housewarming gift.

ñoquis del 29

Coming from an Italian family, some sort of pasta is almost always present at family get togethers. This includes gnocchis, little pasta pillows made from potatoes and flour. Every Christmas, my Grandpa made gnocchis from scratch for our family of 40. So, you can imagine my excitement when I learned of Gnocchi Day, a tradition here in Argentina.

Gnocchis (ñoquis in Spanish) are Italian, but made their way to Argentina with the Italian immigrants and their heavy influence on Argentina. The 29th of every month, restaurants serve gnocchi specials, pasta shops advertise their gnocchis, and families make them at home for dinner. This tradition comes from when payday was the 30th or the 31st so by the end of the month you had little food left in your pantry, and little money left in your wallet. Gnocchis were the obvious soluton, since the main ingredients are potato and flour, both which are very inexpensive. Seasoned grandmothers can easily and quickly throw this dish together for their family. They are made by mashing boiled potatoes, mixing them with flour, maybe a little egg and salt, rolling them out into long snakes and cutting them into little pieces. They're cooked in boiling water like other pastas. Here, variations of the recipe are popular, such as pumpkin or spinach.

As the 29th grew closer this month, I decided to have friends over to celebrate Gnocchi day. Having never made these before (does making the fork imprint after my grandpa has already done all the hard work count?) and promising a dozen friends gnocchis, I was taking a big risk. With my grandpa's recipe in hand, I began the long process.

On the 27th I boiled 1.5 kilos (a little over 3 pounds) of potatoes, peeled them, and mashed them with a fork. I covered them and put them in the fridge overnight.

The next morning I took out the potatoes, flour, an egg, and some salt. I had been dreading this next step ever since I decided to go on this cooking adventure. Today I had to mix the flour and potatoes. Too much flour and the gnocchis would be too heavy. Too little and they would fall apart in the water. I had no scale (the recipe calls for 45% of the weight of the potatoes) so had to do it by feel. I threw in some flour, an egg, and some salt, and started kneading it all together by hand. A common mistake is to keep adding and keep adding flour. But I kept adding and I kept adding. The dough was really sticky and I didn't think that felt right, but finally it seemed to reach the "right" consistency.. not that I really knew what that was supposed to be! Next, I took a handful of dough at a time and rolled it out on a floured surface, made some fork imprints, and cut it into little pieces. I transferred the fragile pieces to a floured baking sheet, and stuck them in the freezer. Between making such a big batch and it being my first time, this whole process took me a few hours. My back began aching and my wrist hurt for the rest of the day, but finally I rolled out the last bit of dough.

With all the gnoccis in the freezer until dinner time the next night, I had no idea if they were going to come out right. Would there be too much flour, causing them to sink in my guest's stomach? Or too little flour and they would fall apart in the water? The next night, with hungry guests standing by, and with my sauce and meatballs bubbling away, I boiled salted water and dropped the first batch of gnocchis in. As the recipe said, when they float they are done. I drained them, poured homemade sauce over them, called my guests in, and waited for the first bite.

Success! Everyone loved them. Or I just have really nice friends! Either way, I was proud of my cooking endeavor, although next month when the 29th rolls around I'll be going to a restaurant to celebrate!

bookstore + cafe = amazing

I love books, which is why I also love bookstores. Even bookstores in another country where I can't read everything. I just love browsing the shelves, escaping into the different images, titles, characters... I could easily get lost in a bookstore and be happy.

I love coffee, which is why I also love cafes. And cafes are in abundance in Buenos Aires. Drinking coffee takes on a whole new meaning here, where to-go cups are rarely seen. It's about the experience of sitting in a cafe with a cafe con leche, a medialuna (croissant) or two, a good friend and/or a good book. The people watching possibilities are endless, and thanks to the low turnover in restaurants, you're free to sit as long as you want (or until you feel guilty taking up a table while people are waiting for one).

Join a bookstore with a cafe and a perfect combination is born. I don't mean a big Barnes & Noble with a Starbucks sitting in the center. I mean a cute little bookstore, with an equally cute little cafe tucked inside. A few of these combinations exist in Buenos Aires, including Libros del Pasaje, also known as Boutique del Libro. This particular shop sits in Palermo SoHo with high ceilings, floor to ceiling bookshelves complete with ladders to reach the higher shelves, a selection of CDs for sale, a laid back staff, a cafe along the back wall with a few tables and a couch, free WiFi (usually a given in this city, but still a plus!), a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, sweet and savory menu items, a seperate smoking room with a skylight, and funky but relaxing background music. Although the cafe is a bit on the pricier side (it is in Palermo, after all), all the other factors make for a cozy afternoon.

Libros del Pasaje is located at Thames 1762 and is open late everyday.

back in the usa

First stop in the States after 7.5 months away: Miami International Airport.

And so far… not much of a difference.

Everyone speaks Spanish and English, all the signs are in Spanish and English, it’s warm outside, it’s an airport…

BUT – I see English magazines (Time, Newsweek, Cosmo, People, Us!), American candy (Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Butterfingers!), Dunkin’ Donuts, and most importantly – bagels!

Although, I’m waiting until New Jersey for the real thing. I've waited this long, I can wait a few more hours...

restaurant service. or lack of.

If restaurant service in the states was like the service given here in Argentina, waiters would never make any propinas (tips). As it is, they only receive 8-10% here. But the difference is, they don't live off their tips; they make a higher hourly wage so the tips aren't as important. Which may be why the service isn't very... attentive.

There's no "How is everything," "Can I get you something else," etc. Don't expect the waiter to automatically refill your drink, and don't expect them to clear your plate as soon as you're done.

On the other hand, when you do need something, simply ask and you will receive it quickly. Take your time with your meal, and don't feel bad sitting back and continuing your conversation even when you're done eating. You won't feel rushed by having the check dropped off on your table before you've even decided whether you want dessert or not. In fact, you won't receive the check until you ask for it.

The Argentines may be on to something here. Like life, going out to eat should be relaxing and leisurely, an experience to enjoy, not something to be rushed through.

guest blogger: Stuck in the 50s ... Malbec style

GatoNegro. A balcony. Buenos Aires. Savoring good friends from abroad. This is DEFINITELY the life. Yes, it has been a while since an update has been made to this particular perspective of residence in the Argentina capital. (notice the alliteration - I paid attention in 8th grade). Until just recently, nothing earth-shattering has occurred in my otherwise monotonous porteña existence. A week ago a relatively unknown decided to stop in. His name: Paul. Enough said. One of the most amazing, influential people in my life. He convinces me to leave DC - at least, that it was a good idea, for me. And, in return, I was able to offer the same to him. He to Barcelona, albeit a bit later. So we have this connection. And I get to play host and tour guide for a while, which has been ... entertaining, to say the least. Wings on a wall, amazing Argentine steak, prevoleta like none other, super unhealthy yet tantalizingly delicious choripan, walks through Palermo and San Telmo and Congreso and parks and cafes and book stores, text messaging like you would not believe. A smile never escapes my face. It's been great to welcome a now good friend to a city I have come to accept as "home". He constantly comments on how well I know my surroundings and how comfortable I am here. And, it's true, when I think about it, I am comfortable here. I know my way around. Anything he has asked me, I've been able to come up with a relatively reasonable response. I am proud of myself, as I should be, he tells me. As a favor in return he puts up with my constant "so, in Barcelona, what is ...blah blah blah... like" compared to life here. Many differences, he has to say. But I like where I am. The food, the people, the wine, the vibrance. He makes me realize how much I have really gotten to know my new surroundings, how well I have managed on my own, meeting new people, living independently, tolerating Argentine casanovas, tackling check-out counters, confidently navigating bus routes. It's impressive, he says, of where I am here in Buenos Aires. And, you know, I agree.

It has been really nice having a friend from DC come to visit. To show around. To be "normal" around. To have mutual experiences and connections to reflect upon, and at the same time, understand what it is like to leave everything that you perceive as normal American living for a new, well, American life. And I am doing very well. I may not have all the answers. I may be enjoying my youth. But it's where I should be - eating too much ice cream, enjoying my oh-too-many-hours of leisure time, figuring out what is best for me, outside my comfort zone. In a new comfort zone.

Cats and walruses. Yeeeeessssss. Balloon hearts. Mate microphones. Wine on a balcony in a perfect, cloudless, sunny porteño evening. It's my life, and I love it.

Hasta pronto, familia y amigos. Todo bien. No se preocupen. Estoy en buenas manos.

Meghan

(About the author: Paul Contino is a respected and worldy traveler, making his way, one country at a time, through South America. You can find his perception of latin life in this particular article, as well as at http://paulcontino.wordpress.com. Kudos to his entertaining personality and unique and somewhat odd aproach to life!)

choripan (bondiola not pictured)

posing with the author

a little saigon

With the number of eating options in this city it's a wonder they all stay in business with so much competition. Add to that at least 20 puertas cerradas (closed door restaurants) and I guess we can conclude that porteños really like to eat, and they like to do it in style.

A puerta cerrada is essentially an intimate dinner at the chef's house. The restaurants are usually only open on specific days of the week or month and offer a pre-fixed menu to a limited number of reservations. Prices tend to be higher than a "regular" restaurant but at a puerta cerrada you're also paying for more attentive service and a deliciously unique experience.

I recently had the opportunity to dine at A Little Saigon, a closed door Vietnamese restaurant in Buenos Aires. Having learned about both this restaurant and the concept of a puerta cerrada at the same time when I first arrived in BA, I had been eager to try it. My mom's visit mid-August was the perfect opportunity. A Little Saigon is open every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for AR$100 per person, with a different theme each weekend. With only 12 seats available each night I made sure to make my reservation for the August 15th "Meat Lovers" dinner ahead of time. Thuy, the chef, immediately responded with a confirmation. We were good to go!

Saturday evening arrived and although my mom and I didn't know exactly what to expect, we were both very excited to visit A Little Saigon. We both love to cook, eat, drink, and socialize so were interested in this uncommon dining situation that neither of us had experienced before. We arrived at 9PM and Thuy's fiance, Ben, greeted us at the door and after we took our shoes off (a Vietnamese tradition and show of respect) he poured us each a glass of wine while Thuy cooked in the kitchen. The dinner table was set up in their living room, right when you walk in the door. Lighting was low, candles were lit, the table was set already, and flowers floated in water filled vases. Only 2 other reservations had been made for this evening, so we waited for them while we chatted with Ben. The first starter was brought out, flavorful pork dumplings with soy sauce. It was time for the next course, but the other reservations had not shown up yet. Once it became clear that they were probably not coming, it was decided that Thuy and Ben would join us in eating dinner, and they began to bring out the rest of the meal.

We sat down and enjoyed the scrumptious appetizer of chicken rice chowder, probably my favorite dish of the evening. The main course was then served family style and included jasmine rice, caramelized pork ribs, sweet and sour shrimp (which I was especially excited for considering seafood is majorly lacking in my diet here in Argentina!), and spicy beef (which was actually spicy, not Argentine spicy). It was all incredibly delicious; Thuy is a great chef.

After the main course, dessert was served in the form of jasmine tea and cassava cake, a flourless cake made with cassava root. Neither my mom or I had ever tried it before but it was very tasty.

With all the beef, empenadas, and pizza we eat in BA, the Vietnamese food was a great break. The food was amazing, but the company was also fantastic. Thuy and Ben were so nice to welcome us into their home, and my mom and I were so happy that they ended up eating dinner with us. The 4 of us chatted like old friends all through dinner. They made us feel so welcome; we felt like we were just at our friend's apartment for dinner, minus paying! I look forward to trying other puertas cerradas in BA, and hopefully revisiting A Little Saigon.

For those of you who aren't in BA and don't have the privelage of visiting A Little Saigon, here is the recipe for Thuy's delicious Cassava Cake:

INGREDIENTS
1 lb cassava root
400 ml (1 can) coconut milk
100 ml water
2 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon talk

METHOD
- preheat oven 345
- grate cassava root to acquire 4 cups
- combine eggs, butter, sugar, and salt. beat until frothy
- add coconut milk, water and cassava. mix well.
- pour mix into buttered 8X8 baking dish.
- bake 30 minutes, let cool before serving.


Visit A Little Saigon's website or e-mail Thuy for more information or to make a reservation

oui oui? si

On a quiet street in Palermo Hollywood is a cute little cafe with some of the most delicious non-Argentine food here. Oui Oui is a French restaurant that is quaintly decorated with quotes on the wall and little knick knacks everywhere. The menu, which seems more American than French, is broken up in a few locations but most of it is handwritten on a large chalkboard hanging on the wall, one column for salads and one for sandwiches. To the right is a small chalkboard with a few different cheese platters listed. There are also pink slips of paper sitting on tables with the brunch menu and smaller dishes such as soup, hummus, and cheeses, but no prices. Look next to the door and see yet another little chalkboard with breakfast items, including full American style plates with scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and potatoes. Another sign says "hay bagels" - there are bagels, which is hard to find in BA! On the menu, bagels come with salmon and cream cheese. I have yet to try them but I doubt they compare to bagels from NJ & NY.

Oui Oui does not take reservations and is not very big, so expect to wait outside awhile, especially on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, even if you get there as late as 3PM. Give your name to whichever waitress is at the door. They are all wearing funky outfits under mismatched aprons. If you are waiting long enough, they may bring you a sample of their specialty drink, mint lemonade, which is as refreshing as it sounds.

Once seated, take time to look over the extensive list of options. If you're sitting outside, don't forget to peak inside at the chalkboards. Most main dishes run from AR$20-AR$30. Breakfast items include coffee, tea, mint lemonade, or wine. Salads are big, and sandwiches come with either roasted potatoes or a side salad. The waitresses are friendly and don't mind if you order your dish with changes (like removing bacon bits and adding goat cheese to my salad, which is the best goat cheese I've had in BA)


If you have room for dessert, order the Mus de Chocolate Amargo (bitter chocolate mousse). Your waiter will bring a big bowl of it to your table and scoop it onto a plate for you. It's delicious, and enough to serve a few people.

Oui Oui has another location just a few doors down (Nicaragua 6099) on the corner of Dorrego, but apparently this one doesn't have a hot kitchen.

Oui Oui is located at Nicaragua 6068 and is open Tuesday - Friday from 8AM-8PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 10AM - 8PM

beef.

Being here for one month and not having had any steak could be considered a sin, but finally, a traditional Argentine beef dinner... and it was well worth the wait.

La Cabrera was everything I hoped for and more. It's one of the most popular parrillas (grills) in the city, so you'll find a mix of both porteños (locals) and foreigners waiting outside for a table. Since we got there around 10pm with no reservation we were told we had a 45-50 minute wait. Would that be OK, even though we wouldn't eat until after 11 and the Buenos Aires winter weather was setting in while we waited outside? Not a problem, since they keep their waiting guests warm with complimentary champagne and passed hors d'oeuvres of chorizo and stuffed olives. We could wait all night with this treatment. But alas, the beef was waiting for us and we were finally seated at a corner table in the cozy restaurant.

Along with our basket of bread we were served 2 different dipping sauces and a bulb of roasted garlic which was delicious. One of us had eaten here before and knew that 2 beef dishes for 3 of us would be plenty, and she was right. We ordered a beef with thyme, and another beef dish which the server recommended. They soon arrived, along with 6 little ramekins of "side dishes" each, then another platter of at least 6 more ramekins. The side dishes were a mix of hot and cold items, from caramelized garlic to cold potatoes, mashed potatoes, squash, applesauce, cooked eggplant, beans, mini caprese salad, artichoke, and more. Some were not great and didn't even get touched, but others (garlic, mashed potatoes, squash) were worth eating.

We ordered the meat medium but it came out a little more medium rare. The beef with thyme was so tender and delicious. The other dish was also very delicious, just not as tender. 2 dishes, especially due to the size of one of them, was more than enough. The entire La Cabrera experience left us happy and satisfied.

look at the size of that steak!

La Cabrera is located at Cabrera 5099, in Palermo. Their sister restaurant, La Cabrera Norte, is located a few doors down at Cabrera 5127.

the best empanadas in ba.. so far

I've only been here for 3 weeks so obviously I haven't tried all the empanadas the city has to offer, and there are a lot, and usually at around AR$3 each (less than US$1, how can you beat that?) But out of all I've tried so far, Tonno Pizza & Cafe in Palermo are by far the best. Empanadas at Tonno were actually my very first meal in BA and they set the bar high. Some I've tried have been lacking in the filling or were obviously frozen and stuck in the microwave in the back.




Not Tonno's. Deliciously flaky, browned, and full of... filling. I've tried the pollo (chicken), espinacas con queso (spinach with cheese), jamon y queso (ham and cheese), and queso y cebolla (onion and cheese). Obviously cheese is a key factor to deliciousness.




Taste testing other empanadas won't be a problem..
but until I find ones as good as Tonno's, I'll keep returning..

Tonno Pizza & Cafe is located at the corner of
Thames & Charcas, at Charcas 4400

submarino

how it arrives: hot milk and a chocolate bar (this one is even shaped like a submarine!)

stir it up

enjoy the delicious Argentine hot chocolate

This one happens to be from the cafe right on my corner, Halina Cafe

breaking plates

When we decided to go to dinner Friday night, who knew breaking things was on the menu??

Although we called to delay our reservation at least twice, Mykonos welcomed us when we showed up at midnight. The first thing I noticed, besides the murals of Greek on the wall and the staff dressed in costumes, were broken plates on the ground. We figured we had missed the fun but when we sat down, they handed us each a plate. Not for our appetizers... but to break during their dance show. A few minutes later, the lights dimmed and 2 of the servers worked their way into a dance right in the middle of the dining room floor. This was our cue to get up and break some plates! Opa!



Of course the food was also a highlight of the evening at Mykonos.. the hummus with the warm pita was delicious, as was the tabule, pasta, stuffed grape leaves, and my pita a la pizza - pizza with feta, tapenade, cured ham, and basil.

Mykonos is located at Olleros 1752