Page 98 - Westchester Magazine - January 2011

Dining
Amuse Bouche
WHAT’S IN SEASON // The Big C
The seductive blood orange and a love of all things citrus
Citrus historically has symbolized eternal love, having been adored by royalty and coveted by Olympian gods. Its culinary usage may be more quotidian, but, in my opinion, no less euphoric. Gremolatas, crêpes Suzettes, piccatas, and franceses would be
nothing without their citrus inamorata. My own caramelized orange dessert has elicited the occasional sigh over the years. Fennel salads, pork braises, and a thousand vinaigrettes
have known its charms.
And January is prime seduction time. Honeybell tan-
gelos, blood oranges, and jewel-like kumquats are poised to conquer: a glossy, perfumed tsunami launched from
Floridian ground zero.
That state is a citrus mecca of about 82 million trees and the
world’s leading grapefruit producer (but the runner-up to Brazil in oranges). The nascent orange grove Spaniard Ponce de Leon supposedly planted in St. Augustine in the early 16th century has seeded a multi- billion-dollar business; its progeny now account for more than 70 percent of U.S. production.
A miniscule fraction of that is on delectable display at Armonk’s Moderne Barn (430 Bedford Rd 914-730-0001; modernebarn.com). Kumquats lend bittersweet complexity to Chef Ethan Kostbar’s port re- duction for roasted duck breast, and blood oranges jolt an olive- and pis- tachio-studded salad with crimson tang. His baby-beet salad partnering with seared dayboat scallops is a culinary Pantone chart of golden lem- ons, pink pomelos, fiery Honeybells, and scarlet beets. “I love that the citrus lends such sweet acidity and color,” he says. It’s an ode to artistry, yes, but more a pledge to ingredient integrity. “I don’t like to deconstruct things,” he states. “I want people to recognize what they’re eating. I try to represent the ingredients for what they are.” And he’s not just spouting locavore/artisanally correct jargon; Kostbar grew up on a farm and worked in greenhouses and on a kibbutz. “I understand the growing pro- cess,” he says, “I’ve taught my cooks to treat the food that comes through the door with respect.”
Considering the new restaurant’s popularity, it’s a lesson they, and we, have learned well. Respect, yes, and, like those ancient royals, adoration.
Blood Orange Salad
Courtesy of Ethan Kostbar, Moderne Barn (Yields 6 to 8 servings)
COFFEE WITH THE CHEF // Neil Ferguson
Thyme
3605 Crompond Rd Yorktown Heights (914) 788-8700 thymerestaurant.net
What Culinary School Can’t Teach You... A good work ethic
Dessert Diners Like Most... Anything with chocolate
I Never Eat... McDonalds. I read Fast Food Nation a while
back, and something clicked in my head.
My Favorite Cookbook... Great Chefs of France by Anthony Blake and Quentin Crewe—inspiring!
My Favorite Website... starchefs.com. It’s a great way to see what my peers are doing around the country.
Favorite Place to Dine Out... Blue Hill at Stone Barns. Dan Barber and his team are cooking incredible food and giving great service. They achieve the one thing they’re meant to—make you smile.
Food Trend I Hate the Most... The haters who respond on food blogs. Put your energies into something more positive, people!
When Chefs Get Together, They Usually... Eat very well and drink too much!
My Favorite Rock and Roll Band Is... Metallica Chefs Tend to Use Too Much... Butter
Favorite Culinary Utensil... My trusty Gray Kunz sauce spoon
What Diners Don’t Know But Should... How much food
is processed from start to finish before arriving on their plates. The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan should be required reading at school.
The Strangest Request Ever Received from a Diner...
Whipped cream and chocolate sauce to go.
Favorite Late-Night Snack... Tom Costello, the executive chef-owner of Thyme, makes a great bacon, onion, and sour cream pizza—delicious!
// John Bruno Turiano
What’s Wrong with
This Address?
We wonder why there have been so many turnovers of restaurants at the Heathcote Five Corners intersection. The many incarnations (among long periods of vacancy) at the French château-style building at 2 Weaver Street, originally built in 1924, at the intersection of Wilmot and Heathcote Roads, are below. What’s wrong with this address anyway? Haunted? Jinxed by leprechauns? Here is a list of its nine bygone tenants as well as its newest one:
I The Donnybrook Lodge I Pippins
3 Tbsp shelled pistachios, toasted 3 Tbsp sherry vinegar
3 Tbsp honey
Salt and white pepper, to taste
1⁄4 cup canola or vegetable oil 1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb mesclun greens
2 15.5-oz cans chickpeas
(garbanzos), drained and rinsed 1⁄4 cup Gaeta olives, pitted and
thinly sliced (any black olive can
be substituted)
3 blood oranges, peeled and
segmented (Honeybells can be substituted)
2 eggs, hard-boiled and sliced 1 English cucumber, unpeeled,
seeded, and diced
1⁄3 cup blue cheese, like Stilton,
crumbled
Toast pistachios in baking pan in 325° F oven, 3 to 4 minutes.
Make vinaigrette: combine vinegar, honey, salt and pepper, then slowly whisk in oils until emulsified. Put greens, toasted nuts, and remaining ingredients into large bowl. Add vinaigrette to taste, and toss.
// Diane Weintraub Pohl
I Moras
I Piedmont Inn I Bartholomew’s I Charlie Brown
I Heathcote Tavern
I Backals
I Bistro Citron
I Massa’ (see Nibbles, pg 103)
96 / JANUARY 2011 / WWW.WESTCHESTERMAGAZINE.COM
// JBT
D