This is Vanesscipe’s first “commercial” endevor (!)

Email me if you’re in NYC and would like to attend.

Saturday, February 3rd, 2007
Paris London New York West Nile
285 Kent Ave #2
Brooklyn, NY 11211

12 noon to 3pm

Prix fixe brunch sound installation (very very veggie vegan friendlies)

“Hello” : friends and count’ymen,
We cordially invitation you for join U.S> for a fancy Roman/Brooklyn opulent brunch,
complete with 12 channel sound and visual installation.

Succulent and sassy food concoctions by Vanessa and sisters from vanesscipes.com with special assistance from Jed.

Sound performance / installation by :
Doron Sadja
Zeljko McMullen
Stefan Tcherepnin
Sadjeljko
M.V. Carbon

Video work from: Jay King / Mario Diaz de Leon
Paintings: Justin Craun + more…

We kindly ask that you RSVP  by Thursday, Feb 1st at 5pm - so that we may properly prepare enough food.
$10 - includes brunch, unlimited coffee, and performance
(we will have mimosas and bloody mary’s for extra charge)
 

It was an apartment like many other stately Upper East Side apartments except instead of a parquet floor the floor of this living room looked like it been prepared for surgery with linen, plastic wrap, and silver utensils stretching wall-to-wall. It overflowed with guests focusing with utmost concentration on… dumplings.

You see, the lively Nex0s hosted a dumpling party last Sunday. Guests were invited bring their own fillings to stuff into dumpling skins until they got silly. It reminded me of the nursery rhyme about Old Mother Hubbard except it wasn’t a shoe - it was an apartment. And there weren’t so many children - there were so many dumplings I didn’t know what to do. So many, in fact, that at the end of the evening I became concerned about the “orphan” dumplings - dumplings whose masters had left without giving them a home. Luckily, my sisters were happy to help house a few dumpling-children. For a few minutes, at least, before they gobbled them up.

Here was my contribution:

Peanut Butter and Jelly Dumplings

peanut butter
jelly
dumpling skins
toppings and/or sauces (suggestions below)

The directions are pretty simple if you’ve ever made dumplings before: stuff your dumpling skins with your favorite kinds of peanut butter and jelly. I used the most amazing peanut butter made by my fellow foodblogger Jessica of Su Good Sweets. Buy some. You won’t regret it.

Steam your dumplings. Or, pan fry your dumplings in butter or vegan margarine. If, like me, you’ve never made your own dumplings before, this PDF from Cooks Illustrated does a great job explaining the different methods of stuffing and cooking the dumplings.

If you want to be extra fancy you can make one of the two toppings I made for the dumpling party:

1) Spiced Sugar

In a small sauce pan, lightly brown a few cardamoms and cloves either “dry” or with a little butter.
Mix with some turbinado or demerara sugar (or just plain white sugar if that’s what you got) and add a hardy sprinkle of cinnamon.

2) Salt & Vinegar Crumbs for the Adventurous

Crush up some salt and vinegar chips. Dip away with your Pb&J dumplings.

I’m guessing that these dumplings would be good with pretty much any sweet “dip” too - warm nutella, melted chocolate, lavender honey, cinnamon-butter sauce with lemon zest. So many possibilities you won’t know what to do.

I’m not cooking my own Thanksgiving dinner this year, but if I did, the menu might look something like this:

Snacking Tray:

• Mixed olives and cornichons
• Crudités plate
• Cheeses and grapes

Salad:

• Crisp green romaine lettuce salad with arugula, tomatoes, cucumbers, homemade croutons and a simple mustard vinaigrette

Soup:

• South African Butternut Squash Soup. Stephanie made this wonderful soup for our Foodbloggers Potluck and I can’t stop thinking about it. It’s slightly untraditional for a Thanksgiving meal, but the squash makes it very autumnal.

Grain/Starch:

• Wheat Berry and Apple Salad
• Wild Rice Salad with Orange Slices and Walnuts
• Garlic or Traditional Mashed Potatoes. This apple gravy from A Veggie Venture looks pretty awesome.
• Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes. I agree with Lisa - yes to sweet potatoes, no to marshmallows!

Vegetable Sides:

• Fresh cranberry sauce with orange zest
• Stuffing, dressing, whatever it’s called
• Iowan Broccoli Casserole (Yes. It has Velveeta cheese. But whoever said Thanksgiving had to be gourmet? Couldn’t be easier. Or worse for you.)
• Veggie Pot Pie
• I also liked these fresh, zingy ideas from last week’s New York Times: Brussel Spouts with Lemon Zest
• Braised Red Radishes

Main (“Meat”):

• Balsamic-roasted Seitan with Cipollini Onions from Peter Berley’s Fresh Foods Fast

Or

Chicken-style Seitan with a Tarragon Cream Sauce with Parsnips and Carrots

Rolls and French Bread

Dessert:

Pumpkin Pie

Apple Crumble

Thanks to Danielle at Habeas Brulee for hosting this past Saturday’s first (to my knowledge) NYC Food Bloggers Potluck.  She was kind enough to overlook my eager early arrival and made some wow-looking French Onion Soup Dumplings:

I was thrilled to meet other bloggers in person and it was a real treat to talk with people who spoke foodeese more fluently than I (chocolate nibs? Thai rice steamer?)  The group greatly exceeded my expectation that people who appreciate food can never be all bad… they weren’t any bad. Not only were there excellent potluck dishes (my fav was the Squash and Roasted Banana Soup from Stephanie at Scrumptious Street - post the recipe soon, please!) there was great wine, chat, and bloggeriffic camaraderie.

I for one hope this turns into a regular event.  I didn’t get to pry into everyone’s blogging lives as much as I would have liked -  I’m curious!  I also have high hopes of kicking San Francisco off her high horse and becoming, as NYC is almost everything else, the food blogging capital of the world.

In this corner, representing New York:

Danielle and Dave from Habeas Brulee
Jessica from Su Good Eats
Julie from A Finger in Every Pie
Lisa from Homesick Texan
Nicole, who blogs about food on livejournal as nex0s
Stephanie from Scrumptious Street
Stephanie from Adventures of Pie Queen
Tse Wei from Off the Bone

I think SF has met it’s match.
Thanks to all and hope to do this again soon!

 

         

This bean dip is named for my 3 hot sisters. They’re all you really need to get a cocktail party started. If you don’t have hot sisters of your own, borrow a friend’s or just make this spicy bean dip. Its truly easy — almost fun — to make. Full of hot summer flavor, easy to eat, and suspiciously vegan, it will make any party a hit with or without sisters.

Serves: 20 guests with other appetizers
Time: 15 minutes plus 30 minutes baking time

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