Matzo Ball Soup

And yea, I have risen from the dead by means of matzo ball soup.

No, seriously.

It's a labor of love, matzo ball soup. It requires patience, an early morning, and SO MUCH SCHMALTZ. And in most cases, a woman over 50 to cook it. But there were no grandmothers or relatives in sight, so I had to take it into my own hands. Schmaltz is Jewish for "I love you."

I spent today shuffling around the house from the nook where I blog to the kitchen, tending the chicken stock and making matzo balls, adapted from Smitten Kitchen's recipe, and after six hours, it was totally worth it. Keepitcoming braved the cold with errands today, and she said that coming home to fresh, hot soup was a real treat.
So here's the recipe. It's labor intensive, so you can make it when you have a day free or start the soup overnight, but I found that it was perfect when made in time for dinner. One note: the broth had a tendency to evaporate a lot during simmering, often reducing the liquid by half over a period of an hour, so I had to keep bolstering it with chicken stock. The end result was amazing, though. There's something about rendering food, like caramelized onions and short ribs, that makes it condensed and rich. This soup falls into that category.

Foodette's Sick Day Matzo Ball Soup, loosely adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Ingredients (serves 2)

Soup
2 pounds of leftover or raw chicken (we just kept everything from our roast chicken dinner a few nights prior and threw it all in)
2 quarts of water
1 clove of garlic
1 tablespoon of olive oil or butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Matzo Balls
1 cup of matzo meal
4 eggs
4 tablespoons of cooled schmaltz
4 tablespoons of tonic water
2 teaspoons of salt
2 teaspoons of pepper
1 teaspoon of dried rosemary

1. Okay. Take all of your soup ingredients and place them in a large soup pot. Bring them to a rolling boil and reduce heat to a simmer. A little bubbling is okay. Let it go for three hours and watch Titanic, masturbate, make a few long distance calls, or thwart a Nigerian money scam. Every hour, add some chicken stock to the pot if it looks like it's getting low. You'll notice.2. After three hours, pour the whole mess into a fine mesh sieve under a large bowl. The golden nectar will be underneath. You will want to tip the bowl and drink the whole thing, but do not. Instead, let it cool on the counter or in the fridge until the schmaltz* is solid.3. Once the soup is cooled and there are solids on top, mix all of your matzo ball ingredients in a large bowl. Refrigerate for a half hour. While that's chilling, start a large pot of salted boiling water on the stove and let it get to a rolling boil. SK advises to wet your hands and roll the balls quickly, into little golf ball sized balls, before dropping them into the water. Next time, I'd make these a little smaller because they really expanded.4. Cover the pot, lower the heat, and let the balls simmer for 40-50 minutes. Once they're all floating and cooked, about ten minutes before they're done, heat up your soup. Chop some fresh parsley in your bowls and ladle the soup in, and a few matzo balls. Consume. It is like liquid butter with chicken essence. NOM.Keepitcoming resembles a nomming kitten in the background. The libation of choice paired perfectly- Hermann J. Wiemer 2008 Dry Riesling, of course.

* For teh Gentilez in the group, "schmaltz" is Yiddish for chicken fat. It is utterly essential in a good Bubbi's kitchen. Technically, because we used the skin and the whole nine yards, it's Griebenschmaltz, but it's all good.

Colia Frutta C

If my two favorite Italian brothers, Mario and Luigi have taught me anything, it would be that Italians are a flamboyantly deceiving people. They may seem like cartoon plumbers trying to save the princess in a cartoon world filled with evil mushrooms and evil turtles, but beyond the colorful mushrooms and never ending castles, the deeper message is about tapping that royal ass at the end of the day.

These strange candies I found in the mystery box of goodies acquired from Foodette was no exception to this strange Italian custom. From box they were contained in, it looked rather safe and even a child can enjoy them. Boasting the fact that these candies were enhanced with vitamin c, they seemed like they would be a rather fun and delicious way to fight off scurvy. Based on the fruity (pun intended) pictures on the box, I was able to figure out that in the center of each of these little candies was a liquid center of scurvy combating goodness. And with no more further speculation to the contents of the mystery center, I popped one of these candies in my mouth to find out what the mystery center is.The hard outer shell of the candy was just what one could expect from a candy that boasts it to contain a high value of vitamin c. It tastes like a vitamin c rich supplement hard candy. Much like the kind that Halls makes and can be purchased over the counter at your local pharmacy. It has a rather bitter citrus flavor like an orange peel. It wasn’t sweet like a Jolly Rancher like the box would have me to believe with its vibrant colors and flashy Italian words.

The mystery center of this candy was something that no one would expect from the colorful and kiddy packaging. The mystery center was just fucking cough syrup. The mystery center to this candy was just a tiny liquid filled center of fucking Robitussin citrus flavored cough syrup. It was as a welcomed surprise as being woken up by a punch to the testicles.

The thought of why anyone would put cough syrup in the middle of a candy baffles me to no end. Could this be a cough drop type candy where one would consume when they have a cough and sore throat? If that is indeed the case, then why is the box so colorful and flashy that it would suggest normal everyday consumption? Maybe the box clearly states that the delicious mystery center was actually just over the counter cough syrup. I don’t know, I can’t read Italian, I’ll probably never find out. This is probably going to be one of life’s little mysteries that will never be solved. Fucking magnets, how do they work? It’s a miracle.

Kennett

It doesn't matter how lauded a chef is, or how loud the hype is surrounding the opening of a new restaurant, the way I decide if I'm going to check out a new restaurant is to look at the menu — and it better be available online!

So often it's the case that restaurants have one vegetarian appetizer and one vegetarian entree on their small and concentrated menus. Upon seeing that my dining choices are not a choice at all, I click the menu closed, and never think of the restaurant again.

Kennett, the new restaurant and bar that opened this past Saturday on 2nd St. in the previous home of Lyons Den in the Queen Village neighborhood, had me excitedly waiting for their opening because of their menu alone. The fact that the beautifully dark and casual upscale Kennett is a hop, skip, and jump from my home is also a perk.

Sure Kennett's vegetarian entree offerings of a veggie burger, risotto, and wood fired pizzas (pizzas aren't available just yet, but should be up and running in about two weeks) are pretty standard, but at least there are a few choices.

What really got me excited were their small plates.

With the exception of Brussels sprout and sunchoke with bacon, all of the small plates are vegetarian. The addition of pork to vegetables is a too-easy, flavor cop-out for uncreative chefs, in my opinion, and I hope Kennett continues showcasing vegetables' glory without the help of meat.

Kennett's small plates also show a bit of creativity, too. Roasted chickpeas in a yogurt sauce, braised butter beans on toast, red wine braised lentil salad, and roasted parsnips are a welcome sight to these arugula salad and french fry tired eyes.We were so happy to see a salad of kale chiffonade with candy-striped chioggia beets, roasted squash, and feta dressed in vinaigrette that we ordered two for the table. A perfect winter salad. We just love beets, so ordered the marinated beet and feta salad with dill, mint, chives, and parsley. Tangy vinegar and dill made these beets irresistible.Our server said to think of the roasted parsnips with Parmesan as french fries, but I need no convincing of this pale root's sweet roasted flavors. So simple, and so good.
A warm plate of roasted chickpeas in a mildly spiced paprika and citrus yogurt sauce was perfectly hardy and satisfying on a cold winter evening, and the sauce was plate-licking good. The house-made veggie burger of wheat berries, red beans, walnuts, and sunflower seeds has just enough spice to be interesting. The hefty patty is served on a toasted brioche bun with Thousand Island dressing, lettuce and thick-cut roasted red onions. A pickle and collards are included.

Those collards were the only thing I ate at Kennett that I did not like. Though they were cooked perfectly, they were braised with Bourbon, I believe, which added an additional bitterness to a green that can sometimes be bitter on it's own.A bit of a sticky toffee pudding fiend, I was not going to leave Kennett without their version of the British date cake covered with toffee sauce. Kennett's rendition gets a thumbs up and will be ordered again, but would get two thumbs up if they could make the by-no-means-dry cake even moister. I just like my sticky toffee pudding to be ooey-gooey.

I'll take this moment to comment on the professional, ever-smiling, and eager-to-please staff and front of the house at Kennett, because that's what they were, even on opening day.* All of our questions were answered, and our special requests were accommodated. And, in an overly generous gesture, we were offered on-the-house the other two desserts on the menu and a round of drinks when we waited a bit too long for the sticky toffee pudding, which was also comped.

I'll also take this moment to comment on the drinks at Kennett. They have 16 taps of mostly local and craft beers, and about an equal number of small and large bottle craft beers, as well as a thoughtful list of 25 wines by the glass. As a non-beer drinker, I'm always thrilled to see a good cocktail list, and Kennett has a great one — prohibition-themed cocktails developed by local bartender phenoms Phoebe Esmon and Christian Gaal. If you like ice cream, go for Kennett's bourbon and vanilla ice cream topped with dark chocolate almond bark. Although, I could not taste the bourbon, the vanilla ice cream was thick and rich.And if you like fruit or rich puddings, go for Kennett's honey drizzled parfait of raspberry jam with semolina and mascarpone pudding.

I am so, so, so happy to have Kennett as a new addition to my neighborhood. They blew me away with their simple yet creative vegetable small dishes, a great cocktail list, friendly staff, and comfortable but mature atmosphere. Except for the fact that I don't like collards that are bitter, there was not a single dish that did not impress me. And this was achieved on their opening night! Bravo.

*Did I mention that the staff of Kennett is friendly and eager to please? After I wrote up this post, I went back to take a picture of the outside of Kennett, and Kennett's managing partner, Johnny Della Polla (the same guy who stopped by our table at the beginning of the meal to make sure we were happy, and the same guy who comped us desserts and drinks), ran outside to introduce himself when he saw me taking pictures, even though he did not recognize me from the night before since I was bundled up in my coat and hat. Johnny then invited me inside Kennett for a little history lesson, where he proudly showed me the black and white photos of the Kennett family hanging on the barroom wall. I learned that the Kennett family ran the Kennett Cafe as a bar and restaurant from 1924-1986 — and even made moonshine in the basement in Prohibition days — at the same location that has once again been christened Kennett.

Kennett
848 S. 2nd St., Philadelphia, PA 19147
267-687-1426

Yumnuts Slow Roasted Cashews

Oh boy oh boy there’s nothing better and nothing more satisfying to me than putting a fistful of nuts in my mouth every now and then. The only problem is that most of the nuts I come across either tend to be too dry and leave me with a bad taste in my mouth, or they are just way over seasoned one can’t taste the nuts but is instead eating flavoured salt with a hint of nuts. In my opinion, the perfect handful of nuts is both flavourful on the outside without compromising the original taste of the nuts.

I found these two sacks of nuts and decided to give them a go. With a bag advertising “YUMNUTS” I hoped it would be exactly how I feel after having some of these nuts. Having had led quite a relatively white bread lifestyle, where all my nuts came in very few flavours, either salted or honey roasted. These exciting flavours really piqued my interest, even though the thought of putting a bunch of black chocolate nuts or even spicy Deep South Cajun in my mouth would bring years of dishonour to both me and my family for years. Eventually, I decided to throw all caution to the wind and shove a few handfuls of exotic nuts into my mouth.
If the nuts are touching, it must be gay.

In all my years of chomping on nuts, there nuts were probably one of the best nuts that have ever been in my mouth. There was such a perfect balance of added flavour and spice and the original flavour of the nuts, that you can’t help but to put another one in your mouth and another one after that.

The chocolate nuts were nice and sweet without compromising the original saltiness of the nuts. There was a light crunchy chocolate sugar shell on the outside of each nut that was much like the M&M shell but with more chocolate flavour. The chocolate nuts would have been ones that would be safe to handle without fearing of leaving traces of sticky chocolate all over your hands. Each of the individual chocolate nuts would have a very nice crunch when chomped on. The sweet chocolate wasn’t too sweet and was just prefect in flavour for a quick snack. Finishing a handful did not make you feel like you’ve just eaten a Snickers bar but rather a few M&Ms with a handful of cashews. It was a nice alternative to trail mix and much healthier alternative than a candy bar.The Cajun nuts were also a great mix of spice and original nutty flavour. The Cajun spices on the nuts were of a good smoky flavour. Much like how one would expect a good Cajun mix of spices would taste. I personally don’t know the secret to making a good blend of Cajun spices but the people at Yumnuts sure do. The spices were not too spicy at first but had a nice heat in its after taste. It’s definitely something that is desired from a good batch of nuts.

The people at Yumnuts were right, after putting a bunch of their nuts in and around my mouth; they sure do have me saying “YUM! NUTS!” Sadly both of these bags ran out quickly and left me yearning for more of Yumnuts’ delicious nuts in my mouth.

AND FOR THE RECORD EVERYONE, NO HOMO!

India House, Northampton, MA

I love Indian food, but have found a disturbing lack of it in Western Massachusetts. Of course, my gold standard has always been Darbar India in Branford or, in a pinch, Thali in New Haven, but was just unimpressed by the sparsity of Indian cuisine around here. It was a little saddening, as it's one of my chief comfort foods. Long-time readers will know that I halfheartedly reviewed India Palace last year, so when Keepitcoming proposed checking out India House for dinner tonight, I was all too excited to have a chance at Indian cuisine once more.

This was an interesting restaurant. I thought the menu really combined things that were traditional with innovative creations, like pomegranate glazed kebabs for appetizers, or lobster tikka masala as an entree. Diners ought to be warned that the menu is extremely adjective heavy, with bewitching bomb-dropping and spewed bullets of seduction all over the place, but when stripped of extraneous speech, is easy to read and devoid of misspellings.

In an uncharacteristic move, I opted to pass up the stranger of the options and went straight for chicken tikka masala. I mean, come on, it's 39 degrees on a good day around here and only the hottest, creamiest, sauciest foods will do. So tikka masala it was, and for Keepitcoming Love, baigan bharta. We shared a chana samosa for an appetizer.The chana samosa wasn't complex, but it combined a good percentage of the textures and flavors we typically frequent- mushy, fried, saucy, tender food. It was basically a deconstructed samosa slathered in condiments, so how could we not love it? It was everything we expected it to be, with crunchy dough pieces, curried potatoes, creamy chickpeas, and SO MANY CONDIMENTS. Just covered in sauce. And the radish on top was a pleasant garnish. Something so simple was easily one of the tastiest dishes I've had at an Indian restaurant.After that pleasant snack, our entrees arrived. The portions were quite large and predicted tons of yummy leftovers in our future. The chicken tikka masala was a light salmon color and was full of vibrant flavors- red peppers, curry spices, chili peppers, chicken, and such. Poured on top of rice or spread on naan bread, it was heaven in a dish. Much spicier than I expected it to be, which was a huge plus.The baigan bharta was really soft and mushy, with a rounded curry flavor and a decent heat, but nothing overwhelming. The texture was perfect, with a fantastic selection of spices. This made it both hot and seasoned instead of an onslaught of fire on the tongue. Coupled with the naan, it was absolutely delicious. The genius who invents naanwiches will have my own personal seal of approval.God, what a great dinner this was. I don't often come to a place and plot out my next order that very night, but in this case, it was irresistible. I can't wait to come back here and try something new!(Note: I have made a slight change to my system of restaurant reviews. I will be rating as a whole instead of evaluating individual items as of tonight's review and all that follow it.)

Gedilla Hanukkah Surprise

Happy Hanukkah, Jews and Jewdettes! Foodettes? Yes! It's the second night and I'm listening to Hadestown and eating a little sea bass. Mazel tov!

In real life, I'm actually Jewish, so all the offensive pigeonholing I do now is completely permissible by today's standards. (I really am. It's on my trading card!) And tonight I'm reviewing a surprise that came with a gift from my father, the Gedilla Hanukkah Surprise dreidel.

I don't know exactly what type of kid receives this as a gift, unless you're counting me. Judaism lacks the overbearing sense of Catholic guilt that comes with Santa Claus and coal and shit, but this would definitely fall along the lines of a coal-related punishment for not filing your tax returns or telling Cousin Moshe to lay off the gefilte fish or something.The kit is aptly shaped like a dreidel, but does not spin. This is a weakness. It is pretty hefty and contains a few snacks for enjoyment, including Gedilla's own Cheeto knock off, a lollipop, hard "Flash" candies, and large Smarties.

We'll start with the least offensive, the Flash candies. These do not flash in your mouth but instead, have another special superpower. They take the form of waxy Mentos, with a slightly minty flavor and little resemblance to the fruit they are supposed to be, about as much relation as Woody Allen and his step-daughter wife have. So it's kosher! Fuck yeah!

Getting worse, we have a lollipop that resembles the kind one would normally receive as a child at a bank. Jesus, really? Stop it, Gedilla, you're just embarrassing yourself. I mean, at least go as far to pick on something the world doesn't already know about. Shove a bagel in there. Or call us lousy lovers. But come on, a bank lollipop? At least we know that it can't get any worse than-WHAT.
WHAT.REALLY?

Sure, the lollipop tasted like the unloved stepchild of Pine-Sol and made my lips feel sticky and dirty inside, but god damn it, candy money just brings home the bac- er, breaks the ban- er, takes the cake. It takes the cake and sells it for a 500% markup. Shucks, that just ain't right. The candy money...eh, it's not so great either. Fun fact, in a recent study by the FDA, this was actually the placebo to Tums, except with no health benefits and less flavor. I didn't like these. They melted too quickly and left an aftertaste of frugality.The last food (food?) in this grouping was the corn sticks. I was really excited for these because I love snacks and I love corn-based things, but when I saw the little, petulant bespectacled corn stick on the package, I fell even more in love. It's a little nod at all the nerdy kids in school! Screw you, dad, I didn't want to be a doctor any way! I just wanted to go into poetry and maize-inspired literature. But these are, like the rest of the Bad News Bears, pretty crappy. These are the Cheetos for the mildly deficient. If you cut yourself on their broken glass like texture, they'd give you these, the equivalent of Will Ferrell's wooden gun.

The flavor is barbecue, and the package warns me that they are "spicy hot." Nothing I love more than a challenge, so into my mouth they went. They'd be better suited as packing peanuts, I'm afraid. But that little character makes the package. And now I shall bequeath the Hanukkah miracle to my roommates. I can stand this no longer. Thanks anyway, dad!

Gnocchi

During my (slow) exploration of Italian restaurants in Philly, I decided to drop into Gnocchi, a familiar but long-since visited byob just off South Street. I thought I remembered hearing something about an old chef returning to Gnocchi, but, at this moment, can not dig up that rumor. Perhaps I am confused.

Warm and chatty Italian servers at Gnocchi greet newcomers with open arms, while giving hugs and kisses to regulars ducking into the charming, dimly lit and narrow eatery accented by walls painted with Italian images. Gnocchi may not be a new, up-and-comer in the dining scene with innovative food, but it is clear that Gnocchi is a loved comfort spot in the Queen Village neighborhood.
A basket of complimentary Italian bread starts the evening.
A salad of baby greens and goat cheese is unexciting, but will fulfill your healthy green requirement and keep you busy until pasta, the main attraction of the evening, hits the table.Slightly more interesting is the watermelon and mozzarella salad drizzled with sweet balsamic vinegar, a salad special of the day enjoyed back when watermelon was in season.I am terrified of ordering gnocchi at restaurants, for fear of receiving little leaden, tough potato balls. Since the restaurant's moniker is Gnocchi, I figured it was safe to order the gnocchi. And it is. Three different kinds of gnocchi are on the menu — gnocchi in aurora sauce, gnocchi in three cheese alfredo sauce, and spinach gnocchi in Parmesan alfredo sauce — along with a gnocchi special of the day.

The gnocchi in creamy three cheese Alfredo sauce studded with shiitake mushrooms, radicchio, and roasted peppers is inherently heavy, but if you eat a normal portion (less than what's on the plate), you can leave Gnocchi without the remorse of an overfull belly.
Besides gnocchi, other classic Italian pasta and meat dishes are on the menu. The boy opted for a hefty portion of the seafood-heavy linguine fra diavolo with shrimp and crab in a spicy tomato sauce.

If you're in the neighborhood and want a warm and inviting, traditional Philly Italian byob experience, Gnocchi fits the bill.

Gnocchi
613 E. Passyunk Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19147
215-592-8300