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Archive for Deli

Salty Saturday 2019

Jan24

Salty Saturday is the traditional family bagel and lox brunch we do on the Saturday after ThanksGavin.

For the last couple of years it’s been hosted at my cousin Matt’s house. This year (2019), it’s a touch more subdued than usual due to cooking fatigue.

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Prep work in the kitchen.

In his sunny dining room.

Across the way is the kids table.

And a look at the spread.

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As usual matt whips up a couple frittatas.
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Olives to start.
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Gratuitous zoom.
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Several kinds of cream-cheese.
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Whitefish salad — my salt favorite.
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Pickled herring.
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Veggies and leftover muhammara.
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Onions, I guess, are feeling left out.

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And here is my plate — delicious but it did induce ridicule for including 4 full bagel halves!

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My mom’s chocolate chip banana bread.

To combat the salt, I also tried a strategy of pounding a cold press coffee, which seemed to work (a bit). Then we got in the car and drove off to New York!

See here for more ThanksGavin posts.

Related posts:

  1. Salty Saturday 2018
  2. Salty Saturday 2017
  3. ThanksGavin 2011 – Salty Saturday
  4. Salty Saturday 2014
  5. Salty Saturday
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bagels, Deli, Lox, salt, Salty Saturday, ThanksGavin, ThanksGavin 2019, Whitefish

Salty Saturday 2018

Jan16

Salty Saturday is the traditional family bagel and lox brunch we do on the Saturday after ThanksGavin.

For the last couple of years it’s been hosted at my cousin Matt’s house.7U1A2180

Prep work in the kitchen.

In his sunny dining room.

Across the way is the kids table.

And a look at the spread.
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Olives.
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Cucumbers and tomatoes as condiments.
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Cucumbers and onions — looking pretty.
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Capers and chives.
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I like my cream-cheese with chives in it.
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Muenster and Swiss. Always makes me think of the Muenster Rebellion but I love it still.
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Two kinds of whitefish salad. Chunky smoked.
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And creamy whitefish salad (lots of mayo). I actually like this one better.
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Two kinds of lox, regular and pastrami lox — which I now love. Low salt too considering.
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Pickled herring.
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Roasted beets.
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Matt made a frittata too.
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And here is my plate — delicious but it did induce ridicule for including 4 full bagel halves!

To combat the salt, I also tried a strategy of pounding a cold press coffee, which seemed to work.

See here for more ThanksGavin posts.

Related posts:

  1. ThanksGavin 2011 – Salty Saturday
  2. Salty Saturday 2017
  3. Salty Saturday
  4. ThanksGavin 2015 – Salty Saturday
  5. Salty Saturday 2014
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Deli, Lox, Salmon, Salty Saturday, ThanksGavin, ThanksGavin 2018, thanksgiving, whitefish salad

Eating Sydney – Leura Gourmet

Jan29

Restaurant: Leura Gourmet

Location: 179 The Mall | Blue Mountains, Leura, New South Wales 2780, Australia. +61 2 4784 3121

Date: December 19, 2017

Cuisine: Australian

Rating: Surprisingly good

_

One wouldn’t expect to find anything decent in a small (but cute) tourist town like Leura, deep in the Blue Mountains a few hours outside of Sydney.

But this little cafe and deli looked fairly appealing.

Lots of deli counter.

And goods.

And pastries. Savory pies are common in Australia — I happen to like them.

The interior had a nice view and was painted a lurid green that invaded all the photos.

The menu.

Mango lassi. Love these.

Apple juice — in Australia it’s usually cloudy. Mr. Picky didn’t like it.

Pappadum & Smoked Salmon Salad. Tasmanian smoked salmon, camenbert, avocado & pappadums with our special dressing. Interesting Indian/Australian fusion.

Caramelized onion & goat’s cheese tart.

Simple pasta.
 Tandoori Chicken. Served with rice, pappadum, raita, & sweet mango chutney. More Indian fusion. Not bad actually.

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Shot from the nearby Three Sisters rock formation

Given the Burger/Fish & Chip vibe of most of the other places in town these was some welcome sophistication. And very Australian somehow.

For more Australia dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Eating Sydney – Oyster Bar
  2. Silk Road Journeys – Shaanxi Gourmet
  3. Eating NY – Eat
  4. Eating Basque – Local Fare
  5. Eating Santa Margherita – La Paranza
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Australia, Deli, eating-australia, Leura

Gjusta – Economics of Labor

Sep11

Restaurant: Gjusta

Location: 320 Sunset Ave, Venice, CA 90291. (310) 314-0320

Date: July 17, 2017

Cuisine: American Deli

Rating: Good food, anoying format

_

A few minor reservations aside, I’ve loved Gjelina since it opened. It helped pioneer the wood communal table, paper menu, 21st century LA thing. And the food is very tasty. For some reason it took me a while to try Gjusta and I’m going to use this review as an opportunity to snark on even newer restaurant trends. IMHO most of these are driven by rising labor costs and Gjusta is working to optimize their business — but I believe it makes the overall experience far inferior.

Nothing wrong with the Gjusta shabby chic decor. It could use some parking (it’s got like zilch) but that is a Venice hazard. Inside is basically a deli. But not exactly with deli food. First time in the “system” was completely incomprehnsible. I had no idea what to do. Took 5 minutes to discover the old fashioned “take a number” machine. As a deli should, they have smoked fishes and the likes on their very baroque menu. Pizza like “flat breads” too — too bad I hate pizza that isn’t right out of the oven. There are a lot of stations. But none really serve to help you (the customer). It’s crowded and people are eating wherever they can. Counter, leaning against the wall, outside, patio. It was kinda odd. See. Doesn’t look like the most comfortable spot to eat does it? See any silverware? Napkins? god forbid a chair? The kitchen is large, however, and bustling. The patio playing at being attractive. It was very crowded and we had to camp tables, leaning over the previous guests to make them uncomfortable. This, of course, meant that we had to sit with their dirty dishes for 10 minutes until the table got bussed. Oh, and had to get our own silverware, and our own water, and all that. Who needs servers when you can do it all yourself? The menu. Ice Tea. Of course I had to go hover by the drink dispensary area inside (after setting my own table) to get this. Same with my cappuccino. But it was a good cappuccino at least! Some sour dough. An empanada. Fine, nice buttery crust, but it was still just an empanada. I did like the pickles though. Whole grain waffles. Would have been better less whole grain. Certainly onm the plain side. Falafel plate. The chef likes pickles. This is like all the ingredients — but where is the pita? How do you eat it? Smoked Brisket Banh Mi. Baguette, smoked brisket, pickled daikon-carrot-cucumber, cilantro, chili dressing, garlic aioli. Not bad. More pickles. I’ve had better Banh Mi, and it was $15.

Soapbox time:

The food at Gjusta is fine. I’ll have to go back and try some more items. It’s a weird menu, and not one I will necessarily drive 20 minutes for or struggle with parking for.

The problem is the experience. I wanted to sit with my people and talk and eat. Instead I had to find parking, wait in line to order, camp for a table, find the silverware, find the water, find and wait at the drink area. By then — 10 minutes later — the food had arrived and we ate it and left. Which is precisely the intended point, as I shall explain.

Gjusta undoubtedly pays some high rent (Abbot Kinney is a very pricey area these days). And they have a good number of employees – who are simultaneously underpaid for the work they do absolutely, probably relatively well compensated by Gjusta (who is reportedly a decent employer) compared to other restaurants, and way too expensive given the price of the food. But wait you say, don’t they charge $15 for a small sandwich? True. But it’s also a labor intensive operation (fairly artisanal) and the food isn’t absolutely pricey so the per person cover averages are probably in the teens ($15-20 maybe?). It’s not a booze driven format either to drive up revenues. It’s also designed to be crowded, after all being the 3rd joint by the Gjelina team. And the limited (and inconvenient) seating helps determine throughput.

If they had normal waiter service, not only would they need more employees, but the customers would seat, figure out what they want to order, wait for it to come, then eat, then wait for the check etc. Maybe 50% eating time. By selling at the counter people seat more or less when they have their food and because they have already paid are — laptop users aside — more likely to get up right away. Perhaps 80-90% eating time! More throughput. Plus, while Gjusta has bussers to bring the food out (but somehow not the drinks) and clear tables, they just don’t have waiters. Nor, at least when it’s busy, do bussers seem to set tables.

The customers do.

So the experience is very different. I can’t imagine coming here with more than 2 people. And even so, you have to spend a good chunk of your time “working” before you can relax and eat. And unlikely a more streamlined (and sometimes equally annoying straight up fast casual like the wretched Chipotle), it isn’t necessarily much faster than a casual sit down. Maybe a bit. Certainly if it wasn’t crowded. I could imagine coming here by myself or maybe with one co-worker or something like that. But sandwich prices are somewhere between $0 and $1 cheaper than Gjelina, so if I had the time, I’d just go there.

Hmmm. But it seems crowded. Maybe Millennials don’t mind. And/or maybe the restaurant has to do this to make real money. I tried fast table service with cheap food at Ramen Roll and the labor costs ate us alive and put us out of business. Go figure.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Deli, Gjusta, Venice

Eating NY – 2nd Ave Deli

Aug25

Restaurant: 2nd Ave Deli

Location: 162 E 33rd St, New York, NY 10016.  (212) 689-9000

Date: July 4, 2017

Cuisine: (Kosher) New York Deli

Rating: 3 meat sandwich!

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Most people gravitate toward the “tourist” delis like Katz, but if you want real New York Jewish food you have to go full kosher!

They used to be a couple blocks over last time I was here — actually on 2nd ave — now they are just down the street on 33rd.

The menu.

Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry — got to have it!

Slaw.

Pickles — two types.

Sweet peppers.

Chicken liver. The liver was good, but not sure what you do with the motley collection of veggies underneath.

Triple Bypass Sandwich. A 3 decker sandwich consisting of 3 large potato pancakes and everything but the kitchen sink: salami, pastrami, and corn beef. The pastrami is the best of course.

Fries.

Apple strudel. No butter obviously.

And a complementary shot of chocolate seltzer. I always find the acidity of this drink surprising.

Overall, some solid meat. I added the Russian dressing of course, but probably would have been even better with some cheese — haha. I normally bash Kosher restaurants as (at least in LA) they don’t seem to care a whit about quality. 2nd Ave is solid though for NY Deli — it is what it is.

For more New York dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Eating NY – Eat
  2. Eating NY – Laboratorio del Gelato
  3. Eating NY – Cosme
  4. Eating NY – Sarabeth’s
  5. Eating NY – Marea
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: 2nd Ave Deli, Deli, eating_new_york, Kosher, New York

Salty Saturday

Dec20

Part of the tradition for the ThanksGavin weekend of gluttony is a Saturday deli brunch. As we celebrate in Philadelphia, we have access to all sorts of great deli and the like.


This year, we’ve moved to a new location for Salty Saturday, namely my cousin Matt and his wife Andrea’s house (they just moved in this year).


A bagel brunch begins with great bagels!


And fresh Nova lox of course. This was hardly salty at all.


Two kinds of herring, creamed and pickled.


On the right is the chive cream cheese (which I prefer).


And in the center the regular. On both sides are whitefish salad. This particular blend has no mayo, and is merely smoked whitefish. Given the freshness of the fish it’s particularly delectable.


Cream cheese alone doesn’t pile on enough calories, so munster and aged cheddar are key.


Plus the condiments. Red onions, cucumbers and heirloom tomatoes.


And farmhouse eggs from the coop plus a homemade fritata.


And the all important cappuccino. Matt is a whiz with the machine.


The whole plate, partially under construction, can be seen here. Yum!


For dessert we have homemade cinnamon buns.


And the return of the poached pears (along with a new — smoother — batch of chocolate sauce).


Too much goodness. Fourth meal in, I’m beginning to feel it. We have a long drive after this so I grabbed a liter of water to balance out the salt!

For more ThanksGavin dining, click here.

Related posts:

  1. ThanksGavin 2011 – Salty Saturday
  2. Saturday is for Salt
  3. Brunch at Tavern – again
  4. Breakfast = Carbs + Salt
  5. ThanksGavin in Review
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bagel, Brunch, Cream Cheese, Deli, Lox, Philadelphia, ThanksGavin, Whitefish

Umami Burger at UMAMIcatessen

May12

Restaurant: Umamicatessen

Location: 852 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90014. 213-413-UMAMI (8626). @umamiburger

Date: April 20, 2012

Cuisine: Gastro Burger

Rating: Top Burgers

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UMAMIcatessen is a rather peculiar concept (albeit one that works). Grafting Umami Burger, The Cure (high end deli) and P!GG (pork oriented charcuterie) together under one roof. Not to mention E&O donuts!


The triple menu. Click here for PDF.


Truffle cheese fries. Oh my!


Onion rings and sweet potato fries. These alone would be damn good.


But we have five sauces. Homemade ketchup (this one actually is better than Heinz) and four others. Spicy, mustard, etc. All were great.


Smushed potatoes. Dutch yellow creamers, double fried with some kind of aioli.


The cure bagel. Lox, creme fraiche, onions etc. A very (very) slightly lighter high end version of the classic.


Manly burger. Beer-cheddar cheese, smoked-salt onion strings, bacon lardons. Wow!


Shrimp Burger with Yuzu-Kosho. Wild shrimp patty with japanese spices.


Ahi Tuna Burger. Hand chopped ahi tuna, crushed avocado, gingered pickles, wasabi flake.


The greenbird. Shelton farms turkey, crushed avocado, green cheese, butter lettuce, sprouts, green goddess.


And after a “light” meal like that, donuts!


Carrot cake, rum raisin, cream cheese. Pretty much like what it sounds like, a carrot cake donut!


Tres leches, cajeta, ceylon cinnamon. Yep, tasted like tres leches.


Beignets, chicory, cafe brulot, burnt sugar. The carmel alone was to die for!

The concept here of glomming together a bunch of different high end comfort food joints is kind of interesting. Basically it works as the flavors are unified by fat, plus the execution is good. It’s casual, fun, modern (not in an avant garde way). Basically jammed with flavor, so what’s to complain about?

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. ThanksGavin 2011 – Salty Saturday
  2. Brunch at Tavern – again
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bagel, burger, Cheese Burger, Cream Cheese, Deli, donut, Donuts, H. J. Heinz Company, Hamburger, Heinz, Los Angeles, Lox, Pigg, S. Broadway, The Cure, Umami Burger, Umamicatessen, veggie burger

ThanksGavin 2011 – Salty Saturday

Nov28

Part of the tradition for the ThanksGavin weekend of gluttony is a Saturday deli brunch. As we celebrate in Philadelphia, we have access to all sorts of good deli and the like.

My mom also made an interesting Southern casserole of eggs, cheddar, and challah.


Just blend.

And pack into a casserole dish, then bake.


For the bagel spread we have the onions — crucial for the lingering bad breath.


More veggies.

Cream cheese, normal and with chives.


Swiss and Muenster cheese.


Kippered salmon and chunky whitefish salad.


It’s worth zooming in on the whitefish salad as this stuff is good!


Good nova lox.


Creamed herring — not for everyone’s taste!


And fresh baked bagels from a local bagel specialty bakery.


Here is the finished casserole which had a soufflé-like texture.


And this incredible donuts from a special place that fries them to order. They only make donuts and for an hour a day — fried chicken! These are three different variants of cinnamon. Certainly the best cinnamon donuts I’ve ever had.

Overall, another great brunch! You can check out last year’s here.

For more ThanksGavin dining, click here.

Related posts:

  1. Saturday is for Salt
  2. ThanksGavin 2011 – The Italian Market
  3. ThanksGavin 2011 – The Third Wave
  4. Bibou – ThanksGavin 2011 Prequel
  5. ThanksGavin 2011 – The Main Event
By: agavin
Comments (3)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bagel, Casserole, Cooking, Cream Cheese, Deli, donut, Lox, Muenster, Philadelphia, ThanksGavin, thanksgiving, whitefish salad

Breakfast = Carbs + Salt

Oct10

The best part about the 26 hour fast of Yom Kippur is breaking it!

Best to start with some wine on a really empty stomach.

Parker 91. “Bottled the week before I visited, his 2005 Morey-St.-Denis en la Rue de Vergy displays aromas of fresh, ripe plum, black cherry, bitter herbs and toasted nuts. Ripe plum and black cherry along with deep rich meatiness mingle in the mouth with notes of mineral salt and iodine and sweet nut oil nuances. Creamy in texture and boasting remarkably fine tannins for a village wine and no hint of its 50% new wood, this finishes with a flattering persistence of crisp, subtly-bitter fresh fruit skin and fascinating mineral suggestions. It should drink fabulously over at least a 5-7 year period.”


Traditional, of course, is deli (i.e. bagels and lox etc.). We get ours from Brent’s Deli, which is my favorite for dairy and fish.


The bagels.


Rye bread of course.


A variety of cream cheeses, old school, new whipped, veggie, and my personal favorite, honey almond (I like the whole sweet and salty thing).


The all important “monster cheese” (what my three year-old calls it).


Various bagel toppings: lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber.


Brent’s lox is so thick 18 of us toasted 3-4 pounds of it.


Chopped marinated herring. An acquired taste, but I spent too much time in the mid east not to.


Tuna salad (this is homemade by my sister-in-law Wendy).


My personal favorite, whitefish salad. Oh so good.


Salted cod, another classic.


Brent’s slightly sweet cucumber salad (like that) and cole slaw.


And old school pickles.


And fruit.

Plus a bit of homemade chinese chicken-less salad.


Parker 90. “The 2009 Rosso di Montalcino is totally beautiful and elegant in its expressive bouquet, silky fruit and understated, harmonious personality. This is a wonderful, impeccable Rosso from Le Potazzine. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2017.”


And my plate of gluttony. Four bagel halves. I even had another afterward.


The dessert spread is even more deadly.


Parker 99! “A monumental effort, the 2001 Rieussec boasts a light to medium gold color in addition to a fabulous perfume of honeysuckle, smoky oak, caramelized tropical fruits, creme brulee, and Grand Marnier. The wine is massive and full-bodied yet neither over the top nor heavy because of good acidity. With intense botrytis as well as a 70-75-second finish, this amazing Sauternes will be its apogee between 2010-2035.”

It was that good too!


Most of the desserts come from Viktor Benes, an old school Czech bakery with really good Eastern European baked goods. This is a chocolate fudge cake. My in-laws are chocoholics.


Apple pie. Halfway between American style and strudel.


Same with the cherry.


And an assortment of decadent baked goodies. Cookies, macaroons, apple fritters, rugelach, almond strudel-like things etc.

Afterward I stumbled upstairs in a pleasant salt and carb coma. I still felt bloated the next morning too.

Related posts:

  1. Saturday is for Salt
  2. Wynn Breakfast Buffet
  3. Eating Tuscany – Villa Breakfast
  4. Joan’s on Third for Breakfast
  5. Upstairs 2 – Modern Tapas, Lots of Wine
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bagel, baked goods, Breakfast, Brent's Deli, Cook, Cucumber, Deli, Dessert, herring, Lox, Munster, Salad, Sandwiches, whitefish salad, Wine, Wine tasting descriptors, Yom Kippur

Ultimate Pizza – The Toppings

Jan01

When making Ultimate Pizza fresh ingredients are one of the most crucial elements. I already went over the preparation of the Dough, the Pesto, and the Sauce. Now I’ll cover the bulk of the shopping and for toppings.

I get most of my “fancy” condiments at Bay Cities Italian Deli and Bakery. This is a convient one-stop-shop spot for all sorts of Italian (and other) goodies.

I have never been in there when they aren’t mobbed. The deli counter wait alone is usually 30-45 minutes.

They make some darn good hoagies, and they have a bit of outside seating. Even though it’s December 31 the weather is gorgeous.

I had them make a “Jersey Style” Italian Hoagie. No mayo. No mustard. Just cold cuts, provolone, and oil and vinegar. Oh and don’t forget the onions, lettuce, pepper-chinos.

I went to the Gelsons for produce. Bay cities doesn’t really have produce.

The loot nestled in the trunk. This is pizza only for five!

Dairy. Next after the dough, and possibly the olive oil, nothing is so important as the dairy. Burrata, world’s greatest fresh cheese, fresh from the local creamery. Mozzarella (balled and blocks from shredding), Creme Fraiche, Gorgonzola, Parmesan, Ricotta, Bay Cities House Blend (parm and pecorino grated), and Bucheron (very fancy goat cheese). I threw in some Egg Nog because of the season.

Some jarred and canned stuff. Anchovies (in vinegar and in oil), black truffle oil, Italian tuna, capers, roasted peppers, sun dried tomatoes, artichokes, tomatoes, various compotes, jams, corn (sometimes I’ll roast it fresh but I was too busy), and more.

Polenta to use as “pizza lube” (getting it off the stones and peels). Olive Oil (single vineyard), balsamic must (the Romans used this), honey, garlic, vinegars, onion marmelade, balsamic glaze, black mission figs, marcona almonds. I have white truffle oil too, but I forgot to stick it in the photo.

Produce. Five types of mushrooms, including morels and fresh chanterelles. Basil, Thyme, Rosemary, Oregano, Chives, Dill, Sage, Cilantro, Mint, Arugala, crushed red pepper.

More produce. Italian squash. Red onion, avocado, lemons, meyer lemons, roma tomatos.

Every item needs to be prepped and put in a bowl or similar so it is accessible during the pizza making. Here is the basil. In total, this is a huge amount of work.

Mozzarella is grated.

Arugala is coated in Meyer Lemon and fresh ground pepper.

Gorgonzola crumbled.

Dried mushrooms rehydrated, fresh ones washed.

White asparagus boiled and blanched.

Vegetables chopped.

In aggregate, this prep takes 2-3 hours, even after all the shopping. The the above is just a sampling of photos.

Here is the complete spread prior to guest arrival.

Please CONTINUE HERE WITH THE PIZZA ITSELF.

Related posts:

  1. Ultimate Pizza – The Sauce
  2. Ultimate Pizza – The Pesto
  3. Ultimate Pizza – The Dough
  4. Quick Eats: Andy’s Spanish Eggs
  5. Quick Eats: Pizzeria Mozza
By: agavin
Comments (5)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bay Cities, Black pepper, Bucheron, Burrata, Cook, Cooking, Creme Fraiche, Deli, Dough, Eggnog, Food, Home, Olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pesto, Pizza, Shopping

Saturday is for Salt

Nov28

Traditionally, the ThanksGavin continues on Saturday with the deli brunch. In LA you just can’t get deli like you can in Philadelphia, with the partial exception of Brents. The locale was moved this year to cousin Abbe’s downtown.

 

A homemade frittata is whipped up.

Cousins Abbe and Matt prep in the kitchen.

The spread: fruit, munster cheese, kippered dish, fresh cut red onion, cucumber and tomato. In the back you can see cream cheese with fresh chives, and whitefish salad. I love good whitefish salad.

The other half of the spread. My mom and aunt made the cream cheese, chive, onion, caper, and fresh lox “terrine.”

My plate, with both a whitefish and a terrine bagel, and a bit of frittata.

A closeup of the homemade cream cheese, chive, onion, caper, and fresh lox “terrine.”

A near perfect bagel, with munster, terrine, whitefish salad, and onion. Just don’t get too close afterward.

Chocolates from Jagielky’s, an old fashioned chocolate maker in Atlantic City.

 

ThanksGavin Calendar:

Wednesday night dinner

Thursday night Thanksgiving Feast

Friday night pork roast

Saturday Deli Brunch (this post)

 

Related posts:

  1. Quick Eats: Panini at Home
  2. Ghost of Thanksgivings Past
  3. Thanksgiving Proper
  4. Thanksgiving – Pork Insanity
  5. Thanksgiving – The Prequel
By: agavin
Comments (8)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bagels, Breakfast, Brunch, Cheese, Cooking, Cream Cheese, Dairy, Deli, Dessert, fish, Food, Home, Lox, Munster, Nova, Philadelphia, Sandwiches, side dishes, Smoked fish, Spreads and Fillings, ThanksGavin, thanksgiving, vegetarian
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