LoveFeast Table

So, after our bowls of bliss, we spent the afternoon walking around Soho.  We got lost in the MoMA store and Kate’s Paperie. The guys waited patiently while we picked out papers.  We made quick friends with the clerks there.  I almost got in trouble for taking a picture in there.  The clerk asked, “is that for art?” and I shot back, “everything’s about art!”  She high fived me and let me go free!  After all their waiting we rewarded the guys with a quick pub stop and then lunch at Momofuku Ssam.

We chose Momofuku because Todd and I had an incredible dinner the night before there.  I had  a splitting headache.  We cabbed it down anyway and persevered for a good meal.  But, it wasn’t good.  It was wonderful!!  If my headache would have killed me, I would have been perfectly content with this for my last meal.  Our lunch, was a repeat of the same.  Amazing.  The plates are shareable, and you want to share, because everything HAS to be tasted.  Our server brought out a dish of Spicy Rice Cakes and told us to avoid the red peppers.  Well, a dare like that at our table only creates a throwdown, quicker than you can say Bobby Flay.  Peppers were cheered and eaten.  At least on of them.  If you don’t scorch your mouth on peppers the flavor at Momofuku will astound you.  I can’t really describe the dishes we ate in perfect culinary terms.  I’m not a chef.  I’d say it was something like fireworks of flavors!  Some of our favorites were the Wild Striped Bass (with Pink Lady apple, charred leeks, lime puree), Honeycrisp Apple Kimchi (with Burgers’ smoked jowl, maple labne, arugula), and Satur Farm’s Friend Brussels sprouts (with mint, scallions, fish sauce vinaigrette).  If you have time and room try Milk Bar for dessert around back!  Milk and cookies, hip and cool, smells delight, desserts-like from home!

Hey!  You can also follow our reviews on UrbanSpoon!  Here is our review below:

We haven’t quite had a meal like this, ever!!

We haven’t eaten food like this ever!!!

It was sublime…amazing…and like a painting of flavors on our palates, it kept us wanting for more.

It really was beyond our expectations.

The simple surroundings and attentive staff at Momofuku added to the already perfect experience!

Our favorites, if we had to choose, were the brussel sprouts (OMG!!) and the kimchi apple salad!

Let us just say, it was totally worth the drive from Baltimore and the flight from Minnesota!!  Next time we come to NY, it will be a definite stop!

We started our first day in NYC at Balthazar last weekend.  Todd and I were beginning our breakfast there.  It is such a lovely bustling place.  Our waiter, one of many attentive waiters, came and asked us if we wanted our coffee or cappuccino in a “cup” or a “bowl”.   You can not go wrong with anything you order at this place as far as I can tell.  Hearty, healthy breads, homemade granola, fresh fruit, and pastries.   This is the way to start the day.  We started ours with a cappuccino, a bowl of warm bliss.   Can I tell you how lovely it is to relax with a bowl of cappuccino, uninterrupted with my husband?   However, it still is a  just a little hard to relax when one feels giddy with the anticipation of an amazing weekend, with best friends about to join in!

Then, the phone rang, Kristin on the other end.  “Where are you?”  They were driving up from Baltimore in their suburban after dropping off their five kids (2-14 years) at the crack of dawn at the grandparent’s for the weekend.  “We’re coming out of the tunnel!”  “What?” I squealed, they were making record time.  I’m not quite sure how they did it, but within 20 minutes they had parked the suburban on a side street and joined us!

Dark street, dark door, dark curtain…everyone in black.  We were kindly greeted by our NY friends and Death & Co. regulars.  They introduced us to the guru drink guy.  He gave us a nod as he created his magik.  We cozied into our booth and let the waitress guide us into a new and rediscovered culture of well mixed drinks.  They went out of their way to get it right and make us happy.  The whole experience will be with us for a while.  Well worth seeking out the dark doors!

Don’t look for me in New York City this week.  It will be too hard.  I’ll be wearing New York camoflage from head to toe.   I’m going to blend in like a burglar, dressed in black,  and steal a peak into city life.    When I’m wearing black, I’ll feel stylish, city-ish, New York-ish.  I’ll walk in and out of our hotel with confidence.  Black, it changes everything.  Jeans and tees, they might say gardening, or where I live right now, shoveling.  They might say soccer mom.   But, black especially at night says, Pegu Club, or Milk & Honey.   We’re meeting up with Devon & Kristin & our New York friends.  There will be tales to tell & it doesn’t get any better than that, when your wearing black!

Dear Amateur Gourmet,

We admit it.  We’ve been stalking, lurking after you on the web.  We see your blog rolls, your recipes, your friends, your pictures, your challenges.  You see, we have been in our homes a little too long… cabin fever takes it’s toll.  We’ve been wiping noses, vacuuming too much, planting herbs, gardening, washing dishes, and doing laundry.  We don’t get out much.  We don’t get to New York enough.  You see, it’s been years, really.  We needed adventure.  We needed some spice!  To see art, no, to make art!    So, somewhere, in between beer and sweet potato fries, on a hot day, last June, we thought, “We too are great!” (in our own minds).  We could be bloggers!  We could even be cookbook writers!  So, when we found your site, and specifically your post on food blogging, it confirmed our deepest longings to be hip moms-by-day, and  extraordinary lifestyle company CEO’s by night.  Are we dreaming?   Surely, aren’t we destined for Oprah?  If not, at least Adam Roberts blogroll?   And, although it’s possible we breathed in too much dust, perhaps sniffed a little too much Comet, we still have an intention, “From dryer lint to dreams!”.   And wait, you want to keep reading, this gets better, there’s more still… we’re gutsy… we believe our own hype.  In fact, we think we could even be like you!  So, believe us, while we haven’t been following since the beginning of your blog, in these last months, we’ve been reading “fervently”, so fervently, that we’re losing sleep, losing kids, but, finding our voice!   So, we thank you Adam, you inspire us.   As we wish you a Happy 5th Birthday, we’d like to give you this:  Dinner, LoveFeast-style, for you and your friends, at your place….our dime, your time.

Sincerely and with Appreciation,

LoveFeastTable Blog

Chris Ann Brekhus (Minneapolis, MN) & Kristin Potler (Baltimore, MD)

I have been credited for chucking meat on purpose.  Over the years, in fact, I have chucked several semi-loads of bad meat.  I know, I know….people are starving in….this is bad shopping, bad planning, bad karma!  I have been in my house for three solid days with these roasts and hamburger patties, and still they did not managed to get cooked or served.  This is my meat chucking confessional.  I don’t take it lightly.  The meat got chucked again:  here & here.  If I was a better planner/cook/ok, even MOTHER…..then, I wouldn’t be a Mother Chucker!!!  Kristin,  on the other hand, has managed to make a beautiful meatloaf tonight, even though she was in her van for six chuckin’ hours! See, her beautiful unchucked meatloaf?

Like I said, I don’t like it, but, I did it, Again.

Meatchuckin’ Meatloaf Recipe (by Kristin and Devon)

3 lbs. ground beef

1/2 vidalia onion/medium dice

1 1/2 orange pepper/medium dice

4 celery stalks/small dice

1 C. chopped parsley

3 Tbls. worcestershire

2 Tbls. sea salt

2 Tbls. chopped garlic

1/2 C. panko bread crumbs

1. Mix all of the above ingredients until combined.

2. Shape into three loaves and place on a sheet tray.

Make Topping:

2 Tbls. olive oil

1 can of tomato sauce (approx. 18 oz.)

1 can of diced tomato (approx. 15 oz.)

2 small yellow onions/small dice

1 Tbls. chopped garlic

1/4 C. chiffonade of basil

3 Tbls. of marmite

1.   Heat olive oil in a medium sauce pan.

2.  Add onions and caramelize.

3.  Add garlic and simmer for 10 minutes to thicken.

4.  Add basil and marmite, stir in and turn off heat.

(The topping recipe will make more than you need…save to serve with eggs…will make your breakfast extra special!)

Spread the topping, generously on all three meatloaves!

Bake at 350 degrees F for approximately 1 hour until no longer pink in the center.

*This recipe obviously makes a large portion!  We served 17 people with one loaf left over.  Use this recipe for a large crowd, or cut the recipe into thirds!  Meatloaf is one of those things you can change, doctor and have fun with!  Ours is never the same!

Chris Ann and I have been asking people, “What is your favorite food memory?”  Many people respond with, “I’ve never thought about that!”  I posed this question to my Aunt Bonnie over the holidays.  Aunt Bonnie is an artist and has always been the eccentric aunty of the family…that’s why we call her Uncle Bonnie!  She has created art all over the world.  I had the privilege of helping her with a mural here in Baltimore when I was a teenager.  She is currently wrapping up her first comic novel!  Needless to say she’s very talented.

“My favorite food memory…hmmm?  I remember I had just moved to New York and had recently discovered lavender.  I was growing my first plant at my apartment.  I went out to dinner with some friends and there on the menu, was lavender sorbet!  As an artist, the lavender sorbet appealed to all my senses!  It is a memory that stands out in my mind!”  -Uncle Bonnie

We know that many of you have favorite food memories…those times in your life, around a table, when time stands still and you remember the sights, the sound, the conversations and the taste!!  Will you share with us?