Mulled Hot Apple Cider is literally fall in your mouth.  It’s warming on a cold day, and it has the flavor of the holidays in every sip.  Lots of fancy kitchen stores sell expensive mulling spices, but honestly,  they go bad after a 6 months, and you probably won’t finish all of them before apple cider is out of season and hard to find.  As long as you have some fresh ginger, cinnamon sticks, cloves and oranges, you can mull cider that will have the freshest flavor possible.  And the good news is, these are all ingredients you’ll most likely have around for holiday baking and recipes! Check out the video and recipe, posted below. 

Mulled Apple Cider Recipe 

• 1/2 Gallon Local Apple Cider (look for no preservatives added)
• 3 Cinnamon Sticks 
• 3 Whole Cloves 
• 2” Ginger, sliced 
• Zest of 1 orange
• 1.5 ounces whiskey per mug of cider (optional)

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to simmer.  Keep it simmering for 15 minutes and then serve! Garnish with orange wedges or extra cinnamon sticks.  If you want to keep it warm all night long, heat it up in a slow cooker then leave it on low- it’s the perfect way for party guests to help themselves to warm cider all night long! And of course, the cider is delicious when spiked with your favorite whiskey.  Now THAT should warm your soul! 

Walnut and Basil Pesto over Pasta - photo courtesy Raphael Rodriguez

It’s no secret that San Francisco is an amazing food town. I mean, the local, sustainable, and organic movement pretty much started in Northern California years and years ago and is now just a way of life.  It’s down right inspirational, and exciting to see meet the young people upholding these ideals.  Enter Three Babes Bakeshop.  They’re a pop up pie company that not only sells their pies online and delivers throughout San Francisco, they operate out of a shipping container behind Stable Cafe in the Mission.  We caught up with the girls to learn about their signature Salted Honey Walnut Pie - a delicious concoction reminiscent of pecan pie, only better. It’s perfect, in fact. And those walnuts come from a family friend who’s ranch is not too far from San Francisco, so naturally we had to stop by the farm first to see how a walnut is grown and harvested.  But walnuts are great in savory dishes too, so once we’re back in Brooklyn, we put the walnuts to good use in a savory Walnut Basil Pesto. 

Check out the episode below, and follow along with the recipe! 

RECIPE - WALNUT BASIL PESTO

1/2 C Walnuts, shelled and toasted 

2 Cloves Garlic, chopped

2 C Fresh Basil Leaves

1/2 C Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

1/4 tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

1/2 tsp Lemon Zest

Juice of 1 Lemon 

1/3 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Pulse all the ingredients in the food processor until pesto consistency.  Do not over mix - the pesto should be rustic!  It’s very versatile, and is delicious as a dip, a sandwich spread, or in pasta.  In fact, this is the perfect amount of pesto for a half pound of pasta - a fast and delicious dinner for two! Double the recipe for the full pound of pasta!

This post is not the first time I have expressed my love for Guarapo, that delicious, cold, refreshing, pressed sugarcane juice.  Whenever I head down to Miami, my first stop is Latin America Market where they serve up the freshest guarapo in town - pressed to order - from local sugarcane.  It’s a Miami mainstay in an unassuming spot, but worth the trip west of downtown. Watch here to see how it’s made! 

photo courtesy eatinglocalinthetropics.blogspot.com

Despite what many people think, Cuban food is never spicy.  Instead, it’s tangy from citrus and pungent from loads of garlic.  That combination is the quintessential sabor cubano, and it comes from their signature sauce: Mojo. 

Before you make Mojo, you have to first find Sour Oranges.  They’re local to the tropics and are easily found all throughout Miami and South Florida, but you can also pick them up at Latin American supermarkets and sometimes even Whole Foods in other areas. They’re very bitter and extremely sour, but once combined with fresh garlic and smoky cumin, you have a marinade that will transport you right to Havana. Watch and learn how it’s made, and as always the recipe is below: 

CUBAN MOJO:

• 1 Cup Sour Orange Juice (seeds strained - about 5 sour oranges)*
• 10 Cloves Garlic
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. oregano
• 1/2 tsp. salt 
• 2 TBSP olive oil 

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week, and is AMAZING on pork.  

TIP:  Try making Lechon or Cuban Roast Pork.  Get a pork shoulder 3-7 lbs and pierce it all over with a knife.  Cover the pork shoulder in the mojo and allow to marinate for 8 hours or overnight.  Roast on 220 for 8-12 hours until falling apart and tender.  Viva Cuba! 

*If you can’t find Sour Oranges (also called Bitter Oranges or Seville Oranges) you can substitute equal parts Lime and Orange Juice.  

Tiffany Yeh is a great sport.  She spent the summer with Raphael and me (and James the Dachshund) as Hungry in Brooklyn’s intern. Now that she’s back at SUNY Albany, we miss her very much. But we wouldn’t let her leave without a bang: since she spent the past few months learning about Brooklyn’s food culture, we figured she could teach us a few things about her own. In this episode, Tiffany takes us to Chinatown in Flushing, Queens, for a soup dumpling tour that is sure to make your mouth water. 

I’m usually a vinaigrette kind of girl, but boy do I hate to waste ingredients. So whenever I have buttermilk around from baking or pancakes, I make a jar of Buttermilk Ranch Dressing to use up the rest of the carton.  And guess what? It’s almost as easy as opening up a bottle of the store-bought stuff that usually contains MSG and loads of preservatives.  Watch the video and learn how to make my version of this decadent dressing (recipe below).  And here’s a tip: marinate organic chicken breasts in the dressing for at least four hours, then grill.  You won’t be disappointed!

BUTTERMILK RANCH DRESSING RECIPE: 

• 1 C. Organic Buttermilk 
• 1/2 C. Sour Cream 
• 1 tsp. white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp dijon mustard 
• pinch of salt
• black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. granulated garlic 
• 1 TBSP minced shallot 
• 2 TBSP fresh chives, chopped 
• 1 tsp. fresh dill, chopped

Whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, vinegar, and mustard until combined.  Add the remaining ingredients,  and whisk again.  Adjust the salt and pepper to your taste. Serve over an iceberg wedge, bibb lettuce, garden tomatoes, or as a marinade for chicken or pork!

We just got back from a pretty awesome trip to Northern California.  While there, we shot with a pretty rad pie company called Three Babes Bakeshop that operates out of a shipping container in the back of a super cool cafe.  Then we visited a walnut farm near Stockton and a small family vineyard and winery in Healdsburg.  But don’t worry, even though we were hard at work, we still found plenty of time to play.

And we that’s exactly what we did at Cafe Van Kleef in Oakland.  This unassuming spot on Telegraph Avenue is known for their greyhounds because the bartenders painstakingly press fresh grapefruits all night long.  The smell of citrus wafting through the air to the sounds of New Orleans-style live music is the perfect combination of California and kitsch.  And if you’re lucky, you’ll meet Benny the Tamales Man, who will bring you a delicious homemade tamal (request his super spicy hot sauce served in a gatorade bottle) for about $3.  Wash it down with a couple greyhounds ($7) and I would say you’ve had the perfect night. 

Check out HIB’s homage to Oakland with our latest video, How to Make a Fresh Squeezed Greyhound: 

In New York City, pavement usually prevails.  So we were pretty surprised when we came across The Queens County Farm, a working organic farm in—you guessed it—Queens!  As we were wrapping up our shoot about pasture-raised chickens (coming soon!), our tour-guide and farmer extraordinaire Kennon Kay showed us a pretty obscure crop in season right now: Ground Cherries.  These tomatillo-esque fruits are essentially small orange berries encased in a paper-thin, lantern-shaped husk.  With the flavor profile of a cherry mixed with a tomato, these berries work great in both savory and sweet dishes. Check out our video below, and the next time you head to the market, don’t be afraid to grab some ground cherries!    

My friend Michael Cyril Creighton and I go way back - back to the days when we dressed up as holiday characters together for our special editions of Best Night Ever at Vh1.  Ah, the good ol’ days.  But now we each have our own web series, and we thought it was about time for another collabo.  

Michael plays Jack in his creation, Jack in a Box, a hilarious show about the trials and tribulations of actor with a ‘tude, working in a box office selling tickets - and his soul. And Jack has vices.  Lots of them. Including cupcakes.  

So I decided to make the perfect cupcake full of vices in honor of my favorite comedic character.  Watch as I teach Michael how to make the perfect naughty treat:  Caffeine Cupcakes with cocoa, coffee and cola.  Watch the video and follow along with the recipe below! 

CAFFEINE CUPCAKES RECIPE:

Makes 18

• 2 Sticks + 2 TBSP Butter
• 3/4 C Cola (suggested: boylans) 
• 2 TBSP Instant Espresso
• 1 3/4 C. Flour
• 1/3 C. Dutch Process Cocoa Powder
• 1 TBSP Baking Powder
• 1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 1 1/2 C. organic cane sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten 
• 1/4 C. milk
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

BUTTERCREAM FROSTING 

• 2 sticks butter
• 1 lb confectioners sugar
• 1/2 C dutch process cocoa powder
• 3 TBSP cola 
• Sprinkles for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake tin with baking cups.  Set aside. 

In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, cola and instant espresso over low heat. Once the butter is melted, allow it to cool. Meanwhile, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.  Add the sugar and whisk. 

In another bowl, combine the milk, eggs and vanilla.  

Add all the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, being careful not to over-stir.  Fill each of the baking cups 2/3 of the way with batter and bake for 25 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.  

Transfer them to a wire rack and allow them to cool. 

For the icing, beat all the ingredients together until light and fluffy.  Frost the cupcakes, and top with sprinkles.  

Enjoy!

This time of year, the market is full of leafy greens, but sometimes it’s hard to figure out exactly what to do with them.  Take kale for instance.  You’re probably used to it braised or sauteed;  but kale is also delicious raw if prepared the right way. So move over lettuce! We’ve got a recipe for a Tuscan Kale and Red Cabbage salad that’s crunchy, tangy, delicious, and really good for you! Check out the video and follow along with the recipe below!

TUSCAN KALE AND RED CABBAGE SALAD RECIPE:

FOR THE SALAD:

• 1 bunch Tuscan Kale (lacinato, dinosaur), stems removed and thinly sliced
• 1 C. Red Cabbage, thinly sliced 
• 2 TBSP Red Onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 C. Hazelnuts, toasted and chopped 
• 1/4 C. Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/4 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes

FOR THE DRESSING:

• 1/4 C. Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/4 C. Extra Virgin Olive Oil 
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl, toss with the salad dressing and allow to marinate for at least a half hour, up to eight hours.  Dig in and enjoy!