Aunt Etta's Pancakes

My Aunt Etta's pancakes are probably the best I ever had. While I don't have a picture, I was able to get the recipe.

Ingredients:
1 cup yogurt
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
A few tbs canola oil or melted butter
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

Directions:
Beat the yogurt and eggs together very well. You can use plain or vanilla yogurt, or a mixture of the two. If you use vanilla yogurt you can omit the vanilla extract. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk together. Makes 7 pancakes. To make more, double the recipe.

Top with plain or vanilla yogurt and fresh fruit or compote for a special treat.

Out on the Town (Boston): Sound Bites

I went for a quick 24 hour trip to Boston yesterday. It had been months since my last visit, and it was time. I stayed with my friend Steph and after a few hours of lounging inside avoiding the rain we finally ventured out for dinner. We opted for the Pour House, a bar on Boylston. The main draw was the Saturday night special - half-priced burgers, not to mention inexpensive large beers. My burger with cheddar and sauteed onions and a mountain of fries came to a whopping $2.85. I could not complain about a night out for way under $20, including transportation.

For breakfast this morning we met our friends Sarah and Adam at Sound Bites in Somerville. There was a line, but it was worth the wait.

Breakfast often presents the perennial dilemma - pancakes or eggs? This is especially problematic if the menu looks good. The more interesting the menu the more decisions one must make. I thus always appreciate a pancake/eggs combo on a menu. It saves me a lot of distress in breakfast ordering. Sound bites had exactly the combo for me - two eggs, two pancakes, choice of meat, and toast or a bagel! What?! For the pancakes you could choose from many enticing options - I went for mixed berry. Honestly, the pancakes won in the end, but I was happy with my wealth of food. I saved the bagel for the bus ride home. Did I mention this cost $7.99? Yeah, that's right. Take that, New York.


Sarah went for the same combo, but with banana-berry pancakes. Mmmm. Steph had the Tunisian omelet, with olives and feta. Not up my alley, but sounds incredible for the olive lover (another hurdle I have yet to cross). Adam had an amazing looking take on Eggs Benedict - instead of Canadian bacon it had tomatoes and avocado. Brilliant.


In the end, Sounds Bites was a great breakfast spot. The pancakes reminded me of our favorite college breakfast place, the Country Corner Cafe in Saratoga Springs. It is surprisingly difficult to find reasonably priced delicious breakfast, and this definitely hit the mark. Thanks Steph for recommending it!

Out on the Town: Ronnybrook Farms and Chelsea Market

I grew up in the West Village. When I was in middle school, Chelsea Market opened on 9th Avenue and 17th Street, just a block from my school. My friends and I would go there for lunch and eat cheesecake, soup, and drink chocolate milk. It was great because there was variety and it was surprisingly reasonable. It's main downside at the time was that it was on 9th Avenue, which was still pretty sketchy. What I love about Chelsea Market is that even though the neighborhood around it has changed dramatically in the past ten years, this market has not. Although there are some newer, fancier establishments, many of the places that were there when it first opened - Ronnybrook Farms, Ruthie's, Amy's Breads, and even Hale and Hearty Soups - are still there. The Italian market is the best place to go for fresh Italian sausage (made right there), french spicy mustard, and spices.

Since Ronnybrook Farms had left the farmer's market before I got there on Saturday, we needed milk. What better excuse to go to the Ronnybrook Farm's Milk Bar in Chelsea Market? In addition to their awesome selection of milks, ice cream, and yogurt, they also have an unbelievably delicious menu. We got the "egg-in-a-hole" - a fried egg in a piece of rye bread with cheddar cheese and potatoes.


They also make unbelievable beverages. Evan got the choco-latte, which is steamed chocolate milk with espresso. Mmmm.

http://www.chelseamarket.com/

http://www.chelseamarket.com/pages/stores/ronnybrookdairy.html

http://menupages.com/restaurantdetails.asp?areaid=0&restaurantid=49580&neighborhoodid=0&cuisineid=0

Fried Eggs with Aged Gouda

During the week I rarely get to enjoy breakfast. If I am lucky I have time to grab a granola bar on my way out. So on the weekends, breakfast or brunch is a luxury I try not to miss out on. Today I made a quick easy breakfast that took about 5 minutes. If you are able, I highly recommend purchasing or making garlic butter. It is the quickest way to make everything delicious. I get mine from Ronnybrook Farms at the Union Square Farmers Market. It also seems fairly easy to make, although I have never tried (future blog post, perhaps?).

I simply heated a nonstick skillet and melted garlic butter. Crack two eggs. Cook until whites have set, then flip. Place a few slices of aged gouda on each egg while it finishes cooking, 1 minute or so. Meanwhile, toast english muffins and smear with garlic butter. Ta-da! I enjoyed this with some pumpkin spice coffee from my favorite place to get fresh coffee, Porto Rico Importing Co http://www.portorico.com/store/. It made for a yummy fall breakfast on what is turning out to be a rainy day. So much for my trip to the farmers market...