Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Chicken & Chet




Chet Baker


Came up with a new one the other night. It was at one of our dinners that we have a coupel time a month, when we cook, drink wine, and listen to some great music on Vinyl .. Vinyle Records that is, and some great music, not like any of the crap they make today, but great artist of the 20th Century like; Frank Sinatra, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Albert King, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and greats like Chet Baker. What's that? You never heard of Chet Baker? You're forgiven, many have not.
Chet Baker was one of the 20th Cenury's greatest and most unique Jazz Artist. He played Trumpet and had a positively unique singing style that was Super Cool and all his own. Baker played with Jazz Greats Charlie Parker and Jerry Mulligan before forming his own band and going out on his own in 1953, when he recorded and released Chet baker Sings ...
Chet Bakers most famous recordings are; My Funny Valentine and Let's Get Lost ...

OK, back to the Chciken & Chet Dinner ...  So my friends and I were having one of our little dinner parties at Chris's place on Thompson Street (Greenwich Village) .. As we usually do, we decide what we are gonign to eat, we buy the food, get some wine and cook dinner. As always the elements of our little dinner parties are; the food, some very good wine, and lots of great music, some on vinyl, some on CDs ... No matter what we make, we usually always have some nice cheese to start the meal, we decide on some music, and crack open our first bottle of wine. This night, Chris had already decided on chicken, which we all agreed would be great. He made some buttered carrots and Couscous to accompany the Chicken. Chris picked up a nice bottle of Au Bon Climant Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara that was quite nice, and I brought a bottle of Fausto Maculans Brentino ...

Chris was cooking the chicken, and we were listening to Eric Clapton, Ron Wood, and Pete Towsend's Raibow Concert LP .. A great album that's a bit obscure, but can you imagine, Clapton, Pete twonsend and Ron Wood all playing together? Friggin amazing. I myself had never heard of this concert and live recording album until Chris turned me on to it. It's awesome. Chris had some Zeppelin playing when we sat down to dinner, and I told him we had to tone the music down while eating. Like most civilized people I can't listen to loud music when eating so I requested a slow down. Chris asked what I wanted? He had been playing some Chet Baker when I arrived at his apartment, so I said I could go for some more Chet. He obliged.
The chicken was quite tasty, the wine was flowing and Chet Baker sounded just fine. 
The next day I sent Chris a Text thanking him for the Chicken & Chet, and so it's been coined. Everytime we have a Chicken Dinner now, we must also have some Chet, Chicken & Chet, it's our latest thing .. A dinner theme to add to our already famous Chianti Rolling Stones & Newport Steaks (dinner), as well Pork Chops Vino & Soul ... 
Oh and by the way, dessert is always Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and all is well with; Chianti Steak or Chicken, The Rollign Stones and Rock N Roll, R&B, Chet Baker and Peanut Butter Cups .. What more could one ever ask for?


by Daniel Bellino-Zwicke



CHICKEN
&  
CHET










Sunday, August 3, 2014

BRUNELLO REESES & ROCK N ROLL in GREENWICH VILLAGE

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  Greenwich Village Newport Steak, French & Italian Wine Dinner on Thompson Street in "The Village."  My buddy Chris B. and I had another nice little Wine-Dinner this past Sunday with his girlfriend Maria ... It was quite the dinner ... We had some really nice wine to drink, with cheese a Steak-House Salad, and the famed Newport Steaks of Greenwich Village ... Chris gave me a call on Wedsday and said we where on for dinner this coming Sunday Night (Jan. 12, 2014) .. We were both quite phyched for a nice dinner and the prospect of drinking some great wines and The Newports, our favorite steaks. "A little Cote de Beaune" Chris uttered, immitating Miles in the greatest wine movie of all-time "Sideways" And so it was to be "a little Cote de Beuane" from Michele Bouzereau  2001 and  Sancere from Les Mont Damnes 2012, both wines quite lovely and very good examples of their prospective zones ... Chris always picks out nice White Burgundy's and the Bouzwereau was no exception, it was wonderful ... Anyway, let me get back to the Newports and the order of things as concerned the dinner which was awesome as usual, and maybe a bit more awesome than usual ...  So Friday I called Chris and asked hwo many we were gonna be for dinner as the butcher shop is closed Sunday and I was going to get the steaks on Saturday for Sunday .  We agreed on the 3 of us so I was set with the number of Newport Steaks I needed to pick up ... Oh yes, and the butcher shop in question was none other than the butcher shop where the Newport Steak was invented by one Italian-Butcher named Jack Ubaldi way back in 1947 ..  Jack wanted to able to sell his cuts of Tri-Tip Sirloin more readily, so instead of selling 

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  Our THREE NEWPORTS From FLORENCE MEAT MARKET,  GREENWICH VILLAGE continued Tri-Tip in one piece which didn't sell as well, Jack cut the Tri-Tip Sirloin into 3-4 individual Steaks from the one triangular cut of beef .. He named the Steak after the Nike-like logo on a box of Newport Cigarettes and the rest is history as they say .. Florence Prime Meat Market is still open on Jones Street in Greenwich Village and that's where I get my Newports, either there or at Pino's Prime Meats on Sullivan Street which cuts a Great Newport and makes tasty home-made Italian Sauages as well .. Pino's is great, but I prefer and give an edge to Florence Market as they are the originator of the Newport and they look of the shop is much "Cooler" with all its original old fixtures ... 

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OUR LINEUP of WINES For The NIGHT: 

BURGUNDY, SANCERE, BRUNELLO & SAUTERN


   NEWPORTS in The PAN

NEW PORT STEAKS In The PAN

NEWPORTS COOKING on 2nd SIDE


NEWPORTS COOKING on 2nd SIDE[/caption] So I go to Florence and ask them to cut me 3 nice Newport Steaks .. One of the butchers goes to the walk-in (Refrigerator) and comes out with a nice fresh looking Beef Tri-Tip .. He puts it down on the thick wooden butcher block and starts trimming the tri-tip of some of its fat .. He then cuts me off three nice 2 1/2" thick Newports and wraps them in butchers paper .. The counter lady tells me it $18.99 for the Newports (about $6.50 a piece for 3 Prime Steaks). "A Bargain." I pay the lady, get my steaks and walk the 3 blocks back to my apartment, where I put my Newports in the frig to the next day.

The Hearts of Romain with Tomato Onion & Bleu-Cheese Dressing "A STEAK HOUSE SALAD"

The Hearts of Romain with Tomato Onion & Bleu-Cheese Dressing 
"A STEAK HOUSE SALAD"

So I get to Chris's house and as I'm climbing the stairs to his apartment I can hear some great Jazz playing . It was Dexter Gordon and quite fine . I was tired from walking up 5 flights of stairs, so I told Chris to crack open a bottle of wine, "I need to relax." Chris cracked open the Cote de Beaune Bouzereau, and it was quite nice and everything you'd expect from a nice mid-road White Burgundy. We both loved it .. Chris broke out some nice Brie Cheese and we sipped the wine, ate cheese and relaxed listening to some nice tunes before I started on the dinner; prepping the salad, the mushrooms, potatoes, and onions for our dinner to come ..

..FLORENCE MEAT MARKET GREENWICH VILLAGE "HOME of THE NEWPORT STEAK"
FLORENCE MEAT MARKET GREENWICH VILLAGE "HOME of THE NEWPORT STEAK"

Learn How To Make GREAT STEAKS, SUNDAY SAUCE MEATBALLS and More in SUNDAY SAUCE When Italian-Americns Cook by DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE

 NEWPORTS on The PLATE With MUSHROOMS & ROAST POTATOES ...

NEWPORTS on The PLATE With MUSHROOMS ROAST POTATOES
2014-01-12 13.51.58

REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS "THE PERFECT DESSERT"
 by DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE
  LEARN HOW To MAKE GREENWICH VILLAGE NEWPORT STEAKS


SUNDAY SAUCE alla SINATRA alla CLEMENZA "RECIPES in SUNDAY SAUCE by DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE"

Friday, August 1, 2014

Joys of Watermelon Corn & BLT 'S


WATERMELON CORN & BLT'S

The JOYS of SUMMER


Summer Time, Watermelom, and Corn? It's a Sweet Time of the year. A time for picnics and barbecues, swimming and baseball. Watermelon and Corn on The Cob too. Oh those sweet days of Summer. You've got Hot Dogs & Burgers on the grill. There's Lemonade and Potato Salad too.
There's Corn boiling away and ready to be soon devoured. Sweet Summer Corn, oh what a treat. You slather on lots of butter, some salt & pepper too, and go to town, swirling it around as you bite in yumm. Ever see those cartoons where a squirl or some animal is eating corn and they make the corn turn so fast and cut into the cob like a buzz saw? Pretty Funny! The corn is good, and I never can forget my Dad and his stories of corn and how my grandfather loved those ears so much. my Dad see he had 14 a one siitng one time. And my dad wanted to do the smae, but I think the most he ever had was 8 .. As for me, just a mere 4 ears was all I can do.
 We got some good home-made potato salad and a nice juicy Burger hot off the grill. I'll put on salt, pepper, a bit of Mustard and Ketchup. Wash it all down with the fresh squeezed Lemonade. It's Summer!
 Now it's time for Watermelon, fresh, crisp, and juicy. Boy does it tast good. Always a special treat. That's how I always remember the watermelon of my youth. It was something special. We didn't have it every day, but when we did? Oh what a treat. Still is to this day.



CORN on The COB

LOTS of BUTTER !!!

Yummm !!!!


Such special treats? Fresh Summer Corn and Watermelon. Oh how I love them so. Both of these Babies. As I said, for me, they are always a special treat when I have Watermelon or Corn. And both at the same time? Heaven! And oh so cheap. I remember when watermelon was just  amere .17Cents a poun and you could get 10 Fresh Ears of Jersey Fresh Corn for just a Buck! Yes 1 Dollar for 10 ears. These days, the best you can do is usaully 5 ears for $2 ... Well I guess that's not too bad.

This year, so far I've gotten Watermelon on 3 seperate occasions. Just .59 Cents a pound, on sale. Regularly the supermarket sells it for $1.29 or $1.49 a pound .. I almost never buy something if it's not on Sale .. Like my Jewish friends say, "Never pay full retail." I couldn't agree more. Hey, Tomatoes are at the height of the season and the prices don't look that great. The market where I got the Watermelon had Beefsteak Tomatoes for $2.99 a pound . "No Way!" I'm not paying that. Dam, they're in Season! They shouldn't be more than .99 Cents  . Not even that, 79 Cents would be more like it. Guess I'll have to trek down to Chinatown to get some Beefsteaks at a good price? And when I do. It'll be time for guess what? BLTs !!! My favorite. Love that Bacon! And with nice big ripe and juicy Beefsteak Tomatoes? I'll have a BLT that is beyond compare. Just like last year and the year befor. It's just once a year.
Beefsteaks, Watermelon, and Corn. Oh, life can be good at times. Enjoy!


by Daniel Bellino-Zwicke



BLT

Look at those TOMATOES !!!

Look at That BACON !!!

Yummm !!!!!




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