Morso NYC

I was invited to a press dinner at Morso a couple of weeks ago.  I immediately checked out the website and was pleased to see so many dishes I couldn’t wait to try.  As I walked down the stretch of 59^th street between 1^st Avenue and York, I saw a bright awning and then through the glass several pops of color – I had arrived.  Upon entering, I am greeted by a cheerful hostess. To my right I spy a long communal table that seems to be a private dining area. To the left is the main dining room.  It is well lit, and two walls are covered with 50s style pop art. I loved it!

We sat at one of the round tables that seats 4 or 5. The restaurant gives off a cool modern vibe in an effortless way.  The tasting menu looked fantastic and as soon as the first dish arrived, I started falling in love.  The Gorgonzola Fritter Salad was eye catching.

The aroma was also quite appealing.  I cut into a crispy shell and cheesy middle then took a bite.  I was slightly embarrassed at my audible moan. I just didn’t expect to enjoy it so much – after all, I generally am not a fan of too many cheeses.  The combination of gorgonzola, roasted pears, spiced walnuts and the apple cider vinaigrette was perfect.  The dish was light and I did not leave a bite on the plate.  When the Farro salad arrived, I thought I would have the same experience. 

It just didn’t do it for me. It was very hearty and grainy. The combination of roasted almonds, dried apricots, eggplant and Portobello mushrooms definitely screamed Mediterranean.  I took a few bites and my palette just didn’t appreciate the combination.  If you’re looking for a healthy and hearty starter, this is definitely your best choice. Our next dish was the Spaghetti Carbonara.

It is usually served with guanciale, but they made mine sans pork.  I almost melted eating this dish.  The pasta was al dente and the mix of eggs, pecorino and onions was incredible.  I was especially pleased because the dish was not especially creamy. It was just the right amount of creaminess built into the dish and it did not require any additional liquid.  I finished my entire plate and honestly wanted to ask for more. When I first scanned the menu, I must say the Capesante caught my eye. So imagine how delighted I was when it was on our tasting menu.

The sautéed scallops served on black rice gave me goosebumps.  The scallops were some of the best I’ve ever tasted. Perfectly caramelized on the outside and melt in your mouth good on the inside.  The black rice was an interesting accompaniment but it worked.  The limoncello sauce was subtle but definitely present.  Next up the Agnello. I debated about whether or not I would try this dish. After all, I haven’t eaten lamb in over a decade.  I decided to give it a shot.

I mean a dish that beautiful can’t be so bad, right? It definitely had Mediterranean flare since it was served with crispy eggplant & lamb roll, white beans and mint sauce.  There were also little lamb sausages in the sauce.  I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.  The beans were exquisite and the sauce brought everything together quite nicely.  The hint of spiciness left on my tongue after every bite was the best part.  After a short break to let our stomachs rest, we were treated to a dessert trio.  At an Italian restaurant Tiramisu is always expected.

This was different than any I’ve tried. Perhaps the blood orange sauce was the difference. The tiramisu was light and not too rich. I couldn’t resist the Chocolate Cake.

It was served with Vanilla gelato which would have been a great dessert on its own.  The dessert I least expected to enjoy turned out to be my favorite.

Pistachio Cake didn’t look like much when it came out but WOW it sure did pack a punch of flavor. I think I ate more than my share.  As I was eating, I kept thinking about all the other items I saw on the menu that I wanted to try.  I decided I had to come back…and I did.  At the end of that week, we celebrated my brother’s birthday at Morso. Our server that night was a bit chatty and overly explanatory, but I tend to be impatient so I won’t hold it against him.  The chef’s amuse that night didn’t photograph well but tasted delightful.

Beets with gorgonzola cheese and a limoncello sauce.  The beets were fresh and the contrasted quite nicely with the cheese.   Mama Bear ordered the pasta special of the day.  Our server described it as quill pasta in a yellow tomato sauce.

She loved the dish! I thought it tasted incredible. I’ve never had yellow tomato sauce, but this was amazing. The pasta was also delicious.  The birthday man ordered the Gnocchi Verdi.

I had been eying this dish since I first looked at the menu.  Gnocchi is one of my favorite dishes.  This was even better because it was spinach and in chicken and rabbit ragout.  Oh la la. Spinach gnocchi?! By far the best gnocchi I’ve ever had.  The rabbit and chicken combination was also spectacular.  I could eat this dish every day and never get tired of it. Y-squared ordered the Anatra.

What a beaut! Spiced duck breast with farro, dried cranberries, roasted pears and sweet and sour pomegranate sauce. The duck was sensational.  The crispy skin on the medium well duck breast was well seasoned and reminded me why I love duck so much.  I also had a chance to sample the Pheasant which was the Caccia (game of the day). 

Oh man! I had no idea pheasant could taste so good. It was served with gnocchi and small pieces of house made lamb sausage.  I was really impressed with how many ingredients were on the plate, but it still managed to come together well.  Everyone’s entrée was fabulous.  I enjoyed it so much I almost forgot to eat my own food.  I ordered the Caccuicco, a fish stew.

This was eye catching and definitely the kind of dish I would love.  Tons of seafood in a tomato sauce.  The seafood was great, but the sauce tasted a little thin. It needed a little more body and a pinch of salt.  The desserts were a great pick up.  They brought out a beautiful Tiramisu decorated with raspberries and a candle.

The Panna Cotta was fabulous as was the Cheesecake.  

All the desserts managed to be rich and flavorful but not overwhelming.  

Since they brought these out without us asking for them, I’m not quite sure whether or not they have a dessert menu. It may just be daily specials, which worked out quite well on two occasions!

Morso truly is fabulous. It is a restaurant with sophisticated dishes with fresh ingredients.  The décor is warm and inviting. The staff was very friendly on both occasions and I look forward to returning soon.

Hungry yet?

Friendsgiving 2011

It's the most wonderful time of the year! The Super Bowl of cooking is here! Thanksgiving is the BEST holiday EVER! I love my family and spending Thanksgiving with them is fantastic.  But, I also love my friends. So this year, I decided to get the best of both worlds by hosting a Friendsgiving a few weeks before Thanksgiving.  It was an awesome treat for me because I love cooking, eating, and hosting.  I tried a couple of new recipes, but also had many oldies but goodies in the mix.  I think there was something wrong with my camera, or perhaps I just got too excited about the food that I didn't get a chance to take a picture of certain dishes.  The recipe posts will hopefully come later, although last year I never got around to posting the recipes.  Without further ado, below are some of the delicious treats that were part of the feast.

The appetizer selection included two types of wings. Spicy BBQ on the right and Jerk Wings on the left.

Mr. N got quite the shock when he took a bite of the Jerk Wings without realizing what he was getting himself into.  I was patting myself on the back for the quality of these Crab Cakes.

I must have been patting with both hands, because I didn't remember to take a photo after they were plated.  le sigh. I will say the Marylanders approved so I must have done something right :) The Shrimp Dumplings were also a hit.

Ms. O was kind enough to construct and fry these crispy delicious bites. She also mixed the accompanying sauce which was terrific.  After the appetizers, the many parts of the main course were served. It's not Friendsgiving without the Turkey!

This one was Honey Brined and fall off the bone good. Cooking turkey in a bag is really the way to go. I also served Drumsticks with peppers and onions.

Ms. H was convinced this was sausage....I guess the peppers threw her for a loop.  To compete with the poultry, I also served Salmon.

Whole Foods was having a sale on Coho Salmon that week, so once Mr. M mentioned it, I decided to incorporate it into the menu.  I think most will agree that the sides are truly the stars of Thanksgiving. This was definitely the case at Friendsgiving.  By far the most popular was the Sweet Potato.

I served one with marshmallow topping and the other with streusel. I didn't get a chance to photograph the streusel so I'm using a photo from last year.

There were plenty of debates through the night about which was best.  I think a little bit of both is the way to go.  For those who only enjoy the classics, I also served Mashed Potatoes.

I was afraid I wouldn't have enough carbs so I made two pastas.  The Baked Mac and Cheese was a hit, primarily because of the potato bread crumbled on top.

The lasagna also got a lot of love, but unfortunately none from the camera.  Here's a picture from last year.

I can't make pasta without also including rice, so of course some Jollof Rice was absolutely necessary.

And by some, I mean 8 cups of rice.  We also had quite the bounty of vegetables.  Two types of spinach. Creamed and Sauteed.

The Sauteed Spinach was one of the last items to come out so unfortunately no photograph.  Similarly the Broccoli and Cheese was still in the oven when I put my camera down. I did capture the Collard Greens which were slow cooked for about 6 hours.

I'm definitely using that recipe again!  As though those weren't enough greens, Ms. O also fixed a delicious salad!

All that food took a lot more time than I anticipated so I could only offer one homemade dessert.  Pumpkin Ginger Cheesecake! This year, it didn't crack.

Thankfully my guests brought plenty of dessert...

Seriously a lot of dessert...

I'm not kidding when I say a lot...

It really was a lot!

This Friendsgiving day feast was everything I hoped for and more. Ms. O was an amazingly awesome sous chef in so many ways. I am incredibly blessed to have such great people in my life and I hope this Thanksgiving you also Count Your Blessings...

Hungry yet?

Pumpkin Ginger Cheesecake Pie

I'm going to start posting the Thanksgiving recipes. I hope to post a couple a day, but no guarantees.  My favorite new recipe this year was the Pumpkin Ginger Cheesecake Pie.  It was a little challenging because I had to make the crust myself and I've never made cheesecake.

It turned out pretty well though, no?  To be fair, I made some mistakes in this recipe - I'll be sure to tell you what I did wrong so you don't mess up. I very much look forward to trying it again.  The first thing to do is to make the crust - if you're under a time crunch, you can use a pre-made crust but this gingersnap crust is definitely worth the time.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt

Stir together all ingredients in a bowl and press evenly on bottom and up side of 9 to 9 1/2 inch pie plate.

The recipe recommends buttering the pie plate but the mixture already had sufficient amount of butter.  The crust will bubble if there's too much butter. Bake until crisp, 12 to 15 minutes, then cool on a rack to room temperature, about 45 minutes.

While the crust is cooling, start working on the filling.

Ingredients


3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger (I couldn't find any so I tried to make my own. Sliced ginger, boiled it with sugar then dried it in the oven)
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin (Libby's did the trick)



Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Pulse sugar and ginger in a food processor until ginger is finely chopped, then add cream cheese and pulse until smooth. Add eggs, milk, flour, nutmeg, and salt and pulse until just combined.

Reserve 2/3 cup cream cheese mixture in a glass measure. Whisk together remaining 1 1/3 cups cream cheese mixture and pumpkin in a large bowl until combined.

Pour pumpkin mixture into gingersnap crumb crust.

Stir reserved cream cheese mixture (in glass measure) and drizzle decoratively over top of pumpkin mixture, then swirl with back of a spoon.

I made the mistake of not pouring all of the reserve because it looked like it was going to over flow.  Big mistake - the cake ended up cracking while it was cooling.  When I make it again I'll be sure to use all of the cream cheese mixture.  Put pie on a baking sheet and bake until center is just set, 35 to 45 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool to room temperature, about 2 hours, then refrigerate, loosely covered with foil, at least 4 hours.

The cake turned out really well (even with the crack) but it was the crust that made it spectacular.  I will definitely be trying this recipe again.

Hungry yet?

Happy Thanksgiving!!

It should come as no surprise that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday ev-er!  While I recognize that some of the history of Thanksgiving may be a little shady, I choose to focus on the part that lets me be thankful for the fabulous family and friends that I have in my life and the feast that we eat to celebrate.  As is usually the case, there were several dishes featured at this year's Thanksgiving.  Some of these you've seen before and others are brand new.  I will share recipes in due time (still have a lot of catching up to do for last week's meals)  I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving and are enjoying your black friday!

20 pound Honey Brined Turkey

BBQ Chicken Wings

Shrimp Dumplings

Meat Loaf stuffed with Spinach

Creamed Spinach

Stir Fry Broccoli with Garlic

Baked Drumsticks with onions and peppers

Turkey Lasagna

Stovetop stuffing

Plantain

Lamb and Couscous

Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Streusel Topping

Candied Yams with Marshmallows

Baked Mac & Cheese

Sausage and Cornbread Stuffing

Biscuits

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap crust

Best Brownies Ever

It was quite the feast and belief it or not we cut a few items out of the menu.  I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving!  Recipes forthcoming over the next couple of weeks...

Hungry yet?