Marketplace

Some images from the Farmer's Market in Kerrytown from my trip to Ann Arbor last weekend. I wanted to buy everything!

Can anyone tell me where there are some good, large farmer's markets here in Southeastern CT? Or even some farms with farm stands where I can buy a small variety of things. I am interested in farm fresh cheeses and meats as well as produce.

I know there is a Saturday market at Fiddleheads in New London, but does anyone know of any other - and possibly larger - markets?

Ode to the BLT, that most glorious of summer sandwiches

Is there a better sandwich in the summer than a BLT? In a word, no. The tomatoes are in season, the lettuce is cool and crisp, and the bacon - well, bacon is good any time.

Ironically, I used to hate BLTs. This is because I mistakenly thought I hated tomatoes (luckily I never harbored any illusions that I hated bacon).

I discovered only several years ago that I do not hate tomatoes; rather, I am simply extremely particular about them. I will ALWAYS ask for any fast food or deli (unless that deli is something on par with Zingerman's) to remove the tomato from whatever I order because I do not trust these places to have fresh, seasonal tomatoes. The reason I though I hated tomatoes is because I do hate out-of-season, pale, sickly-pink, fat-slices tomatoes. (Ugh - I shudder just thinking about these.)

A fresh, ripe, red tomato, however, is delightful. Sometimes I'll eat tomatoes fresh from the garden sliced with just a little balsamic vinegar. And very few things are more tasty than a caprese salad made with fresh tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil ( have you picked up the key word here?)

Which brings us back to the BLT. The bacon may steal the show, but even copious amounts of thick-cut bacon can not hide a sub par, disgusting tomato. For this reason, I only eat BLTs in the summer.

I make BLTs occasionally - or, when my tomato plants are out of control like last summer, often - but mostly when I need a quick dinner, which doesn't satisfy the lunch craving. Luckily, there are several places around New London where you can get a fantastic BLT for lunch.

Muddy Waters has a very basic, traditional BLT. It comes on somewhat thick toasted wheat bread. It has what I would call an average bacon to tomato ratio and very nice, crisp iceberg lettuce. The bacon is not really a stand-out bacon (not particularly thick or juicy, but just as good as your average bacon from the grocery store) and tends to be on the crispy side. I have never had a problem with gross tomatoes at Muddy Waters (and if you really want a great tomato product, wait until it gets a little cooler and get their tomato soup - it's very good!)

Thames River Greenery - part of my favorite group of businesses (Greenery, City News, Thames River Wine & Spirits, and Brie & Bleu) - also has an excellent BLT. The emphasis on the Greenery BLT was most definitely on the bacon - mounds and mounds of it. This is a thick sandwich, and extremely delicious. Plus, when you order a sandwich from the Greenery, you get the bonus of getting to poke through their excellent greeting card selection and all the fun City News magazines and newspapers, which in all honesty could have been part of the appeal for me.

I believe that best BLT in town can be found at the South Side Bistro. I discovered South Side while working downtown and have never ordered a meal there I didn't like. South Side's BLT comes on lightly toasted ciabatta and has some magical mixture of greens (maybe the only instance where I would say non-iceberg lettuce works on a BLT), tomatoes (sometimes yellow ones - no less fresh or delicious) and juicy, juicy, bacon that can not be duplicated )I have tried - it does not work). The South Side BLT also has the virtue of never once having too much mayonnaise (I am very grossed out by mayonnaise and goopiness in general - if I see thick schmears of mayonnaise leaking out of a sandwich, I can't eat it). Plus, on a beautiful summer day you can sit on the deck and look at the river - does it get much better?

I could wax poetic about the BLT for several more paragraphs, but I'm sure you've heard enough by now. Where do you think the best BLT is available? Or do you have another sandwich that does it for you? I'd love to know your thoughts!

Things to do when your friends come to New York City:

1. Take touristy pictures in Times Square

2. Relax for a few minutes in Bryant Park


3. Take touristy pictures in front of the New York Public Library

4. Order a $63 piece of meat for dinner and be ever-so-slightly sickened by the size

5. Go see a show - preferably a completely un-PC show involving some very inappropriate puppet behavior


6. Get drinks in some random divey bar and wish your friends showed up on the east coast more often

Poker should not be played in a house with women. *

*Mitch (Karl Malden), A Streetcar Named Desire 1951

There's been a lot of celebrity death in the headlines lately. It was tragic to hear about Farrah and her amazing hair battling cancer, and I think many people suspected that Michael Jackson had some pretty serious problems going on behind the scenes. Those headlines were depressing and shocking, respectively.

No one could really call today's celebrity death depressing or shocking - after all, it was a 97-year-old man dying of natural causes - but as an admirer of several of Karl Malden's movies (On the Waterfront and A Streetcar Named Desire in particular) I found the news of his death a bit sad.

As Father Barry in Waterfront, he encouraged Marlon Brando (*sigh*) to stand up to Johnny Friendly and mob that controlled the docks. Although Noe likes to snort and say "That's a stupid priest!" when Waterfront comes on cable and I insist on watching, I do not think Father Barry is a stupid priest. An idealized 50's Hollywood priest? Yes. A stupid priest? No.

The other quintessential Malden role was the rather thankless role of Mitch in the 1951 film version of A Streetcar Named Desire. It's no secret that when it comes to men, Streetcar is all about Stanley (also Marlon Brando - seriously, I adore 50s Brando). But the movie wouldn't be the same without Malden's heartbroken Mitch.


I'd write Karl a tribute, but other people who have watched more of his movies and who aren't obsessed with old-school Marlon Brando will do it better. I could not, however, pass up the opportunity to acknowledge someone who helped define two of my all-time favorite movies.

RIP, Karl.

Do you always watch for the longest day of the year and then miss it?

Last year I wrote a blog about Kevin Doyle's Great Gatsby party. I am glad to report that this year Doyle held the second annual Great Gatsby Party and that the costumes and cocktails were even better. We were lacking Kevin Lester this year, but attempted to make up for his absence with lots of toasting and "Lester-posing" for photographs.

Here are some photographic highlights from the evening:

The early crowd sets up the tent in case of rain.
Luckily the weather held out.

First drink of the evening: the French 75. Recipe appears below.

Trifecta in costume complete with vintage cocktails

Lester-posing

Depression-era Noe looks rather depressed.

Last year we really only made one vintage cocktail, the Monkey Gland. It was tasty, but it's the kind of drink you can really only have one of due to the sweetness factor (well, at least I only wanted one). This year, we all did some research on vintage drinks and had a tasting session at John and Katie's prior to the party. We found several - all involving gin - that we loved. Here are the recipes for our favorites:

The South Side (pictured):

1 1/3 cups fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup Simple Syrup
1/4 cup packed fresh mint leaves
6 ounces Gin
seltzer water

Directions:

Muddle mint, lemon juice and simple syrup until mint flavor has been released. Divide ice and gin evenly between each glass, add lemon mint mix and top off with seltzer water. Garnish with a lemon twist, if desired. Serves: 4

The Aviation:

Ingredients:

2 oz Gin
1/2 oz maraschino liqueur (we used maraschino syrup instead)
1/4 oz lemon juice

Directions:

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake well. Strain and serve. Garnish with a cherry. Serves: 1

*We topped this one off with club soda because the portion was extremely small.

Left to right: French 75, Blackberry Bramble, South Side

The Blackberry Bramble:

Ingredients:

Club soda
1 ounce crème de mure (blackberry liqueur)
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
1 1/2 ounces fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 ounces Gin

Directions:

Combine the gin, lemon juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker. Shake and strain into a glass, top with soda and float the crème de mûre. Serves: 1

The French 75:
*This one was not truly 1920's but it involved gin and it was tasty, so it made the cut.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar (we used simple syrup)
  
• 2 ounces gin
• 3 ounces plus 1 tablespoon chilled Champagne

Directions:

In cocktail shaker, combine lemon juice, sugar, gin, and ice cubes and shake to chill. Strain cocktail into a glass and top off with Champagne.

Thursdays with Inuk

This is what I do on Thursday mornings before I go to work. I play with three Beluga whales, including Inuk, the curious guy in the background there - and give them plenty of fish and tongue rubs (yes, belugas like their tongues rubbed). Sticking your hand in a whale's mouth may not be your idea of the right way to start the day, but it rates pretty high on my list.

Working for the Weekend(s)

Because I am not quite busy enough (sarcasm), I decided to get a second job, at least for the summer but hopefully something I can keep a few occasional hours year-round. Luckily for me, Jonathan Edwards Winery happened to be looking for a couple people to work in their tasting room at the same time I was looking for a part-time job.

The winery - which produces both Napa Valley and estate Connecticut wines - is located on what is probably the most beautiful piece of property I have seen in southeastern CT. 20 acres planted with Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, and Pinot Gris - what's not to like? Plus, it's fun. Even when it gets busy - which it defnitely does during the summer - you still get to socialize, talk to people about wine, answer questions about wine, and drink wine. What's not to like? It's hard work, but I really enjoy it.

These are some pictures from a recent event, the Spring Festival, held on June 6. Noe actually worked this event with me - with over 1600 visitors, the winery needed a lot of volunteers (and nothing warmed my heart more than seeing him pour himself a glass of Sauvgnon Blanc on his own free will - usually when Noe drinks wine, it is one sip and it's because I have stuck a glass in his face and said "try this.")

These photos were taken by Susan Denice, who works in the tasting room and does outside sales - she's an awesome photographer.

You can also check out what's happening around the winery at http://www.jedwardswinery.blogspot.com/ - or just come see me if you're bored some weekend.

Petite Sirah, waiting to be opened

The crowd outside

Noe working the tasting bar under the tent

Me working the cash bar inside

Jon giving a tour of the vineyard