Inside The New York Botanical Garden
recipe
Posted in Programs and Events on October 23 2012, by Matt Newman
Ahhh, the comforting vignettes of fall’s arrival: the Grand Allée‘s tulip trees tinged with gold, families touring the Garden in matching jackets, a ravenous horde of pumpkin patch ghouls dragging themselves up from their earthen tombs.
Er, yeah, we place the blame firmly on Ray Villafane and his cadre of spooky sculptors for that last one.
In the midst of our Halloween month (because why would you ever celebrate the most frightful holiday of the year for only a single night?), we continue on with another fall tradition that hits each week through November 21: the Wednesday Greenmarket! Bearing in mind the ongoing creepfest in the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden and elsewhere at the NYBG, you’ll of course find piles of pumpkins and seasonal gourds to decorate your porch. But there are also plenty of fall favorites to keep on your list that you’re not obliged to carve into jack o’ lanterns, because one cannot live on pumpkin pie alone–at least not for more than a week or two.
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Posted in Around the Garden on October 2 2012, by Matt Newman
Peach and raspberry pies, savoy cabbage, pear cider, pickled beets, Macintosh apples, parsnips and tomato juice! This is just a sampling of the fresh baked, picked, or pressed eats stacked high during last week’s Greenmarket cornucopia, and there’s sure to be more this Wednesday as we dig deeper into the fall harvest.
Believe it or not, the crowds have only grown since the thermometer started dipping. I guess you can’t underestimate the power of fresh fruits and vegetables to mobilize New Yorkers before the sleet and snow start falling, though the threat of pale, “cardboard” tomatoes on the horizon might also have something to do with it! So if your schedule is lax and your fruit bowl is looking a touch on the skinny side, scribble “Greenmarket” into the October 3 slot in your organizer, leave your produce bag by the door, and drop a couple bucks on your Metrocard for a stop in the Bronx.
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Posted in Around the Garden, Mario Batali's Edible Garden on August 6 2012, by Matt Newman
It’s not often I get the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden to myself, but last week, before the school groups arrived, I snuck a peek at what was happening in Mario Batali’s Kitchen Gardens ahead of the coming Edible Garden Festival. The sun was high and bright, yet the sight of ripening vegetables, familiar varieties tucked in among the somewhat more exotic heirlooms, made it easy to deal with the summer heat.
I picked my way around the garden plots, noting leafy greens and sweet potatoes, kohlrabi, flowering artichokes, and a few ready globes of garlic. And dangling in friendly groups above them all: new tomatoes, plump and prolific in the sunshine. Some are already settling into that quirky adolescent phase, not yet ripe, blushing with spots of bright reds and oranges on one side while still a shy green on the other. Certain varieties are lumpy and rustic-looking, others smooth and plum-shaped, and all of them have been hand-selected by Mario Batali’s top chefs–some of the finest culinary minds in New York.
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Posted in Exhibitions, Programs and Events, The Edible Garden on August 14 2009, by Plant Talk
Uses Architecture as Model, Seasonal Foods as Inspiration
I am very happy to see the public turning the tide on the recent bad food trends and diets and embracing a seasonal-foods lifestyle. On my Web site, Harvest Eating.com, I have been promoting the idea of cooking with seasonal ingredients for roughly five years now. I have seen the interest in my work reach a fever pitch this year as people are truly attempting to change their eating habits to a more sustainable and community-based approach that includes plenty of local sourcing. This is fantastic and shows that the public is paying close attention to the chefs that are leading the movement. I’d like to think I am among the chefs making a difference in this area.
In preparation for my appearance tomorrow at The Edible Garden, I had been contemplating what my demonstration should comprise. There are plenty of chefs who give rock-star demonstrations that show off their skills in all sorts of culinary focuses, including seasonal cooking. However, I am trying to do something different this time. I want to grant access into the part of my brain that allows me to create recipes. I don’t think enough chefs, or any for that matter, attempt to teach the art of “recipe creation” to the people they encounter at demonstrations or other public events. I will attempt to change that on August 15 in NYC.
I believe that most “foodies” don’t give their own senses enough credit. Most people know what good food looks like, smells like, and tastes like, yet if you ask them to create a recipe without the aid of a cookbook, things go astray. The prospect of creating recipes for most people is daunting. That was the case for me as well for many years. It was only later in my career in food that I became a prolific creator of great recipes. Anybody can create a recipe, right? Let’s see…how about smoked salmon and peanut butter yogurt with chopped onions and grapes? Does not sound too good, huh?
To create great recipes, you need some guidelines, some boundaries, and some building blocks of knowledge to judge the combination of flavors, textures, and smells. You are attempting to create balance.
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Ahhh, the comforting vignettes of fall’s arrival: the Grand Allée‘s tulip trees tinged with gold, families touring the Garden in matching jackets, a ravenous horde of pumpkin patch ghouls dragging themselves up from their earthen tombs.
