Sasha's Kitchen: Restaurant review - Chuko

Noodles bars are all the craze here in New York (and probably elsewhere) right now.  The most famous is Momofuku Noodle Bar, which draws crowds for its noodles as well as its famous fried chicken here in Manhattan.  Recently the sou chef from Morimoto opened a new noodle bar right here in Brooklyn - on Vanderbilt in Prospect Heights, called Chuko.  Opened by Jamison Blankenship and David Coon, Chuko's ramen wasn't the only delight.  We had a great meal with several delicious appetizers, including some salt and pepper fried chicken.  The ramen is great as the restaurant offers a variety of broths to mix with the noodles (we tried both soy and miso broths with chicken).  Needless to say we were impressed. Last but not least, dessert of a chocolate macaron sandwich was a creative and tasty twist.  Below were the highlight of our meal.

menu at chuko

appetizer of salt and pepper fried chicken

appetizer of eggplant bun

chicken rame with miso broth

chicken ramen with soy broth

chocolate macaron ice cream sandwich

Sasha's Kitchen: Restaurant review - Chuko

Sasha's Kitchen: Hanger Steak with Bordelaise Sauce, Whipped Potatoes and Creamed Spinach

Recently, my mom gave me the book The New Brooklyn Cookbook as a gift. I was quite excited because this had been on my short list of cookbooks since it came out last year. I absolutely love dining out in Brooklyn, and although Manhattan has some great food and more restaurants, I don't hesitate to say that Brooklyn has some of the best food in the five boroughs if not the best. Living here has been a real foodie paradise, which I have truly enjoyed.

The cookbook has several recipes hand-picked from each of Brooklyn's best restaurants, many of which I have been to (including some favorites like Rose Water, Al Di La, Applewood and Farm on Adderley), and some which I have yet to try.  The first recipe that I tried from this book is from Dressler, located in Williamsburg.  I live in Park Slope so I don't make it to Williamsburg too often although I am well aware that they have some incredible foodie spots. Dressler is definitely one that I can't wait to try (especially after the success of this recipe).  Brooklyn has four Michelin-starred restaurants, and Dressler (located across the street from Peter Lugar's Steakhouse, another Williamsburg classic) is one of them. I can't wait to try it, but for now here's their delicious recipe for Grilled Hanger Steak with Horseradish Whipped Potatoes, Creamed Spinach and Sauce Borderlaise. This is the perfect meal for Valentine's Day!

This is a great dinner recipe - every aspect of this meal was just perfect! I cut the recipe in half, as it serves six, but below is the full recipe.

Dressler's Grilled Hanger Steak with Horseradish Whipped Potatoes, Creamed Spinach and Sauce Borderlaise


Sauce borderlaise
2 T canola oil
1 small carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch dice (about 1/4 of a cup)
4 celery stalks, cut into 1/4 inch dice
1 spanish onion, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch dice
6 garlic cloves, diced
2 cups dry red table wine (I used Malbec, not the driest of wines, but it was great with this recipe)
4 cups veal stock (I used beef stock because my mother was visiting and she does not eat veal)
1 fresh sprig thyme
1 bay leaf
6 whole black peppercorns
coarse salt

Whipped potatoes
1 1/2 lbs idaho potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 T unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 T creme fraiche
2 T horseradish (I used Golds)
coarse salt and black pepper

Creamed spinach
2 T unsalted butter
1 shallot, peeled and diced
1 pound fresh spinach, stems removed, washed and drained
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 T flour
kosher salt
pinch of cayenne
pinch of nutmeg

Steak
six 10 oz hanger steaks, trimmed of fat (I obviously used three and cut the entire recipe in half)
Salt and pepper for seasoning

First I made the French borderlaise sauce. Heat the canola oil in a medium sauce pan and add the celery, carrot, onion and garlic. Saute until the vegetables are caramelized, which takes about 15 minutes. Next, add the red wine (don't use cooking wine here, but quality table wine)and reduce until almost all of the liquid has evaporated. Add the stock, thyme, bay leaf and peppercorns and bring the solution to a boil. Then, reduce to a simmer and cook until the sauce is syrupy and coats the spoon, which takes about an hour. Strain the sauce and set aside.

While the sauce was simmering, I made the whipped horseradish potatoes. These are genius - the combo of the horseradish and the potatoes made for some of the best whipped/mashed potatoes that  I have ever had.

Place the potatoes (prepped first) in a pot and cover with cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and cook at a boil until tender, about 15-20 minutes. Combine the milk, cream and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low. Cover to keep warm. Drain the potatoes. Rather than mash with a ricer, I beat the potatoes in my stand mixer to whip them. Add the warm milk mixture and combine in the mixer. Fold in the creme fraiche and horseradish, and season with salt and pepper. Cover to keep warm.

To make the creamed spinach, which has long been one of my favorite steakhouse side dishes, melt 1 T of the butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the shallot and saute for two minutes until translucent. raise the heat to high and add the spinach, stirring until wilted, which takes about three minutes. Drain the spinach in a colander for 10 minutes.

Melt the remaining butter in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add flour and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly for about four minutes. Slowly add the warm milk mixture to the flour/butter mixture and whisk constantly until it thickens, which only takes about a minute. Season to taste with salt, cayenne and nutmeg. I made the creamed spinach slightly spicy with the cayenne pepper, which was just wonderful.

Season the steaks as desired - I used salt and pepper. Grill the steaks in a grill pan over medium heat as desired. The book suggests ten minutes for medium rare, but we like outs medium-well so we grilled them much longer. Grill on both sides, and when they are done, allow to rest for five minutes. Then slice the meat against the grain into 1/4 inch slices.

Serve the steak with the potatoes, creamed spinach and drizzle with warm sauce borderlaise. Happy Valentine's Day!

Sasha's Kitchen: Hanger Steak with Bordelaise Sauce, Whipped Potatoes and Creamed Spinach

Sasha's Kitchen: Restaurant Review of 'The Farm On Adderley'

The best brunch in New York City isn't in Manhattan.  And, Park Slope brunch might be getting a run for its money too.  I have long said that Rosewater in Park Slope has the best brunch in New York City, but the race is now a tie.  I had one of the best brunches of my life last weekend at a small farm-to-table style organic restaurant in Ditmas Park called 'The Farm On Adderley.'

It was a bit of a trip on the subway to get to Ditmas Park, about five stops past Atlantic Avenue on the Q train to Cortelyou Road, but well worth the trek.   The Farm On Adderley is no secret to those who live in the surrounding neighborhoods.  It was a 30 minute wait for a table for prime sunday brunch, and this restaurant was clearly the number one place in the neighborhood, surrounded by lovely, charming Victorian era homes.  Yes, this is still Brooklyn, but you have officially entered suburbia.  I loved every minute of it, from the wonderful farm fresh, seasonal ingredients used in my brunch, the friendly service, to my walk around the neighborhood filled with Victorian homes that qualifies as part of the Midwood Section of Brooklyn.  I had never been to Ditmas Park before, but I will be back for dinner at the Farm On Adderley soon!

The menu looked too amazing for my husband and I to stick to one entree a piece.  And why should we?  The menu was extremely reasonably priced.  All of the foods on the menu are prepared using exclusively farm fresh, seasonal produce from various organic and humane purveyors and farms.

We started off by each ordering a pot of lovely tea.  I selected the White Rose Melange tea, while Brad ordered the Unity Botanical Blend.  Then, we shared a salad, the Bibb Salad with pumpkin seeds, cranberries and goat cheese fritters, which hit the spot.  I enjoyed it so much that I am going to try preparing my own version of the salad this weekend.

For our entrees, I ordered the creative Red Flannel Hash, a dish prepared with cured corned beef, an egg sunny side up and beet puree.  The combination of the farm fresh beets with the cured corned beef was stellar.  This dish ranks very close to the top of brunch dishes I have had in my ten years living in New York.  My husband ordered a bit more traditionally - sausage, potatoes and eggs.  His dish was equally impressive and delicately prepared to perfection.  We also had a side of cheddar cheese grits, a dish that seems so easy, yet it was absolutely mouth watering.

Finally, we had two slices of sea salt chocolate chip brioche for dessert.  It would never have occurred to me to prepare brioche with a combination of chocolate and salt in the first place.  What a wonderful idea.  The combination was perfect and maintained the delicacy of the brioche, preventing it from being overly sweet.  This was the complete package, a delightful brunch from start to finish.  None of the dishes we ordered were overly complex, but the Farm On Adderley did all the little things right to create a charming and mouth watering brunch in a delightful ambiance, with wonderful service to match.  As I said above, we will be back for dinner very soon indeed.

Sasha's Kitchen: Restaurant Review of 'The Farm On Adderley'

Sasha's Kitchen: Restaurant Review of The Jakewalk

I wasn't planning on writing a restaurant review when my husband went out for dinner on Valentine's Day at the Jakewalk in Cobble Hill.  Mostly, we were just looking for a romantic and relaxing night out, some good fondue and a low key, chill atmosphere without leaving Brooklyn.  We found all of those things at the Jakewalk, a local restaurant and wine bar, plus a great Brooklyn vibe, fantastic food, cocktails and wine. No doubt, my husband and I will be back very soon.

We arrived on Valentine's Day Eve around 7 PM to discover a small and cozy, yet buzzing restaurant.  Although the Jakewalk does not take reservations for a party of two, we did not have to wait for a table, even thought most of the tables were taken.  We were greeted by our friendly and helpful waitress, who presented us with an out of this world wine and cocktail list.  The Jackwalk cocktail menu featured a number of different cocktails, all expertly mixed in that prohibition era speakeasy style that I have grown to be so fond of at a number of other Brooklyn and Manhattan bars.  My husband ordered the "Diamond As Big As The Ritz", a drink that was prepared as a "flip" meaning that it contains egg whites, in addition to whiskey, lemon juice, bitters and club soda.   He was quite impressed with the quality of the drink and enjoyed every last drop immensely.

I decided to order one of the Jakewalk's "Flight's of Wine," which include three good sized (half glass) portions of three different wines.  This is such a fabulous idea, and I am not sure why more restaurants don't offer wine in flights like the Jakewalk.  It's such a great opportunity to taste and enjoy three different wines, and I love having small portions of a variety of food and wines, rather than a large portion of only one thing.  I selected the "White Aromatics" flight which offered a Riesling, Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc.  All three were fabulous, but I especially enjoyed the Riesling and Chardonnay.  I was impressed with the sizable portions for only $14 for all three.

For our dinner, my husband ordered the Macaroni & Cheese with the duck Rilette, while I selected a different duck dish, the duck breast special with scalloped potatoes that was on the menu for Valentine's day.  Both dishes were delicious but the duck rilette in the macaroni and cheese was an amazing combination, and my husband savored every last bite (side from giving me a small taste).  I can't  say enough about the macaroni and cheese and duck rilette.  It was probably one of the best, and certainly the most memorable, macaroni and cheese I have had out in a long time, and had was made with a wonderful spicy jack cheese.

For dessert we ordered the chocolate fondue, which was such a fun and delicious way to enjoy dessert in this wonderful, chill environment.  The fondue came with graham crackers, strawberries, bananas, marshmallows and plenty of chocolate and was a nice, romantic way to end the perfect (and budget) Valentine's Day meal.  This would have been a great meal any night of the week, and we plan on returning soon to try the cheese fondue.

Sasha's Kitchen: Restaurant Review of The Jakewalk