New Malaysian Restaurant

For Valentine’s Day, Danny and I had dinner at New Malaysian Restaurant. It’s located in an alley on Elizabeth Street. We’ve been here many times in the past and just missed this tiny little restaurant. We ordered the roti canal for an appetizer. The roti canal is a little appetizer that gets you in the mood for Malaysian food. The roti curry was mildly spicy and coconuty. There was also bits of chicken in the roti. You just dip the bread in the roti and it’s like heaven. I’m not a fan of spicy food but the roti had a good kick to it.

 

For our entrees, we ordered the honey glazed steak. In the past, we’ve always ordered the honey glazed steak and it was pretty good. This time, the steak was slightly overcooked and had a beautiful honey flavor with a hint of black pepper. I love just about any kind of steak and this was pretty good (despite the fact that it was a little tough). There were also sliced cucumbers and tomatoes. They didn’t make too much sense with the steak but I love me some cukes and tomatoes. We also ordered a side of rice to soak up the sauce. What I thought was funny was that they gave us a butter knife to cut the steak. Maybe they’re afraid of people stabbing each other?

 

We also ordered the pan fried seafood noodles. On top, the noodles were super crunchy and the bottom of the noodles were moist. There was a variety of seafood (scallops, shrimp, calamari, fish ball, artificial crab meat), mushroom, and veggies (snow peas, carrots, and chinese broccoli). This was a great dish. Though the noodles were moist on the bottom, the top remained crunchy. The seafood was plentiful, piping hot, and cooked perfectly. The mushrooms were squishy as normal and the veggies added a nice healthy crunch.

 

New Malaysian Restaurant

48 Bowery

Between Bayard St & Canal St

New York, NY 10013

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23
Mar
2012

La Parma

Danny and I went to La Parma out on Long Island. He’s been there many times with his family and took me there for date night. La Parma is an Italian restaurant that serves everything family style. We ordered fried zucchini stick as an appetizer. They were super crunchy on the outside and moist inside. I love zucchini and this just hit my zucchini spot. The marinara was a little spicy but still rich and yummy! Surprisingly, I thought there could have been more zucchini sticks, since it was family style but the zucchini sticks were good nonetheless.

 

We also ordered penna a la vodka (my favorite sauce!). Now this was seriously served family style. We had more than enough for leftovers (probably enough to feed a small family). The penne was cooked al dente and the vodka sauce was just delicious! The vodka sauce had pancetta in it, so it gave the sauce a nice meaty taste. The sauce was light, cheesy, and had a faint bacony taste. If I could, I would have penne a la vodka for every meal!

 

For our main entree, we ordered veal Parmesan family style. Our server cut and served the veal Parmesan before I could take a whole picture of the plate lol The veal Parmesan was good but I’ve had better. The veal was slightly overcooked and tough but it was ok. If the veal was moist, then that would’ve made the entire meal perfect. The marinara and parmesan tasted better than the veal itself. However, the veal parm tasted good with the pasta a la vodka. Next time, we definitely won’t order the veal parm.

 

La Parma

452 Jericho Tpke

Huntington, NY 11743

http://www.laparma.com/

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19
Mar
2012

Mickey Mantle’s Restaurant

Mickey Mantle’s is an all american sports bar that also has a sit down section. We go here for the holidays every year. It’s one of my favorite traditions. As tradition, I always order the chicken fried steak. The chicken fried steak comes with a side of mashed potatoes, cream gravy, and mixed vegetables. The chicken fried steak was as crunchy and yummy as usual. My only complaint is that I think the steak has gotten smaller over the years. The chicken fried steak dipped in the gravy was so southern and homey. The mashed potatoes were moist and buttery. Also had the potato skins in there too (I like the skins because I usually have just smooth mashed potatoes, so this was a nice change). I loved the veggies! The beans and carrots were just crunchy and slightly salted. Overall, another great dinner. I’m looking forward to going back for the holidays this year.

 

Mickey Mantle’s Retaurant

42 Central Park S

New York, NY 10019

http://www.mickeymantles.com/

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17
Mar
2012

Classico Light Ceramy Alfredo Pasta Sauce

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I was selected to take part and received a jar of Classico Light Creamy Alfredo Pasta Sauce. Classico Light Creamy Alfredo Pasta Sauce has 50% less fat and 45% fewer calories than the leading brands of Alfredo sauces, but with all of the rich and creamy taste. There are just 60 calories per serving, it’s made with real, high-quality ingredients such as cream, Parmesan cheese and butter.

 

I found a great recipe for pan fried chicken over a bed of pasta and alfredo sauce. I also made a side of sauteed green beans. For the alfredo sauce, I just added the alfredo sauce to a saucepan and added a few tablespoons of dried parsley and basil (fresh herbs work as well) to add some more earthy flavor. I just heated the alfredo sauce up on medium heat and added the herbs. After making some tri-colored spaghetti, I added the alfredo sauce on top and then the chicken. The sauce was super light and creamy. The alfredo sauce went well with the pasta and pan fried chicken. Normally, alfredo sauce is thick and somewhat chunk. Classico Light Creamy Alfredo Pasta Sauce was light, creamy, and not overwhelming! Here is the recipe for the pan fried chicken.

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18
Nov
2011

My Turn To Make Dinner

Danny and I take turns making dinner for each other and it was my turn to make dinner for him. I made fried green beans a while ago and Danny has been wanting to try them, so I included fried green beans as an appetizer in the meal I would prepare for him. I also made a nice house salad, rosemary roasted potatoes, and pan seared steak.

 

Fried Green Beans

1/2 cup cornstarch

1/3 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/3 cup water

1 egg, beaten

1 lb green beans (frozen or fresh)

1. If you’re using fresh green beans, you have to boil the green beans and then shock them (keeps them green and crunchy). If you’re using frozen green beans, don’t defrost them.

2. Combine cornstarch, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Stir in the egg and water until smooth.

3. Heat up 1 inch tall of oil in a frying pan. Dip green beans and fry. Turn every 2-3 minutes until brown.

4. Drain on paper towels.

 

I made these dipping sauces: equal parts mayonnaise and horseradish and mix. The other sauce I made was the same exact as the 1st one but I added a couple squirts of ketchup.

*The fried green beans came out super crispy and tasted yummy with the spicy sauces!*

 

House Salad

1 head of lettuce (we like Buttercrunch)

4 plum tomatoes

1 cucumber sliced

1 avocado, cut up into 1 inch pieces

croutons

 

1. Cut up lettuce, wash, and dry.

2. Toss in tomatoes, cucumber, and avocado.

3. Add croutons and drizzle with dressing.

 

*Such a nice, light, and healthy salad! We used raspberry dressing, giving the salad a slight sweet and tart taste!*

 

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes and Pan Seared Steak

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes (Ina Garten’s recipe)

1 1/2 pounds small red or white-skinned potatoes (or a mixture)

1/8 cup olive oil

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoons minced garlic (3 cloves)

2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary leaves (I used dry rosemary)

 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Cut the potatoes in half or quarters and place in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and rosemary; toss until the potatoes are well coated.

3. Dump the potatoes on a baking sheet and spread out into 1 layer; roast in the oven for at least 1 hour, or until browned and crisp. Flip twice with a spatula during cooking to ensure even browning.

4. Remove the potatoes from the oven, season to taste, and serve.

 

Pan Seared Steak(Alton Brown’s recipe)

2 boneless rib eye steaks, 1 1/2-inch thick
Canola oil to coat
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

 

1. Place 10 to 12-inch cast iron skillet in oven and heat oven to 500 degrees. Bring steaks to room temperature.

2. When oven reaches temperature, remove pan and place on range over high heat. Coat steak lightly with oil and season both sides with a generous pinch of salt. Grind on black pepper to taste.

3. Immediately place steak in the middle of hot, dry pan. Cook 30 seconds without moving. Turn with tongs and cook another 30 seconds, then put the pan straight into the oven for 2 minutes. Flip steak and cook for another 2 minutes. (This time is for medium rare steaks. If you prefer medium, add a minute to both of the oven turns.)

4. Remove steak from pan, cover loosely with foil, and rest for 2 minutes. Serve whole or slice thin and fan onto plate.

*Steak and potatoes…how can you go wrong? The potatoes were moist on the inside and crunchy on the outside. The steak was cooked well and just so juicy!*

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12
Oct
2011

Fried Zucchini Sticks

For the past month, our zucchini plant from the garden has been producing huge zucchinis. I gave some to Danny and he in turn experimented and made some zucchini sticks. He sliced the zucchini in half and just cut off 1/2 inch strips. In 1 bowl, he beat 2 eggs and on a plate, he added 1 cup Italian style bread crumbs. In a frying pan, you add enough oil to cover the zucchini. Once the oil has heated up, he took each zucchini stick and dipped it in the egg and then the bread crumbs. You fry each strip roughly 2 minutes on each side or until slightly brown. Danny made them for me and they were so good and crunchy! The zucchini goes really good with marinara sauce or horseradish.

Fried Zucchini Sticks

1 medium zucchini

2 eggs

1 cup Italian style breadcrumbs

Oil for frying

Horseradish or marinara sauce (for dipping)

 

1. Slice zucchini in half and then slice into 1/2 inch strips/sticks.

2. Beat 2 eggs in bowl. Pour breadcrumbs onto plate.

3. Heat up oil in frying pan.

4. Take zucchini and dip into egg mixture. Then dip zucchini in breadcrumbs until covered.

5. Fry for about 2 minutes each side or until slightly brown. Drain on paper towel.

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11
Aug
2011

Polish Dinner

So Danny loves pierogies and making them was 1 of my goals while he was on vacation to Italy. They came out great and when he came back to the U.S., I knew I wanted to surprise him with them. I fried up a bunch of pierogies and a pork cutlet. I just pounded out the pork chops, beat an egg in a bowl, and had the bread crumbs on a plate. Dip the pork chops into the egg and then cover with bread crumbs. I fried them for roughly 8 minutes. The only thing missing was applesauce. Danny absolutely loved the pierogies (he said they were better than Polska, the polish restaurant in Greenpoint we love). I am definitely going to make more just in case we get a craving!

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01
Jul
2011

Japanese Date Night

Since it is spring break for NYC schools and we rarely see each other, my boyfriend and I decided to have date night. We went to this Japanese restaurant on the upper west side called “Sushi Hana.” I had been there 2 years ago with my best friend and we really enjoyed the food, so I had to take my boyfriend there. See, we’re not into sushi (for me, I don’t like the rice and seaweed combination and my boyfriend just isn’t a fan of it but we will eat sashimi). In our case, we could eat non-sushi japanese food.

 

When it comes to food, my boyfriend usually plays it safe. For our appetizer, he ordered the pan-fried shrimp in Thai sweet chili sauce lettuce wrap and I ordered the lobster ceviche (I loooove lobster and I ordered it the last time I was there and it was delicious). The shrimp from the lettuce wrap was too spicy and had a weird smell to it (I also found it strange that there were peas and carrots in it, very un-Japanese.) My lobster ceviche on the other hand, was delicious (the mango was fresh, avocado was light and refreshing, and the bell pepper was crunchy and sweet. The only critique I have is that there was some kind of cream mixed in, so I ‘m not sure if that would still be considered ceviche but this was delicious nonetheless.)

 

Our entrees came with miso soup and brown rice. The miso soup had a strong mushroom flavor and was really nice on a cool day and the brown rice was nutty and filling. He ordered the chicken katsu (basically sliced chicken cutlets) and I ordered the grilled black cod. The chicken cutlets were good but it was something we could have made at home. My black cod came on a bed of black quinoa and a side of asparagus and orange miso sauce. The fish was sweet and buttery and the asparagus was crunchy. The black quinoa went really great with the fish. My only complaint was that the orange miso sauce tasted a little woody, so I ate everything without the sauce.

 

Last time I went here, we had the tempura vanilla ice cream and remembered how good it was, so we ordered that for dessert. When they brought out the dessert, I didn’t remember it being so big (the ice cream ball was the size of a softball!). The batter was coated on a little thickly but the ice cream was soo good! The boyfriend enjoyed this the most (you can’t go wrong with ice cream). Overall, I really enjoyed what I ordered. My boyfriend, not so much but we would definitely try japanese food again.


 

Sushi Hana

466 Amsterdam Avenue

New York, NY 10024

http://sushihanajapanesenyc.com//

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23
Apr
2011

Fried Green Beans

For almost a week now, there’s been a bag of green beans just sitting in the fridge. I remembered having a plate of delicious fried green beans at Friday’s when we went to the movies a few months ago and I’ve wanted to fry some up. I found the easy batter recipe I had used when I made fried eggplant fries last year (I got the recipe from an old Food & Wine magazine).

 

Fried Green Beans

1/2 cup cornstarch

1/3 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/3 cup water

1 egg, beaten

1 lb green beans (frozen or fresh)

 

1. If you’re using fresh green beans, you have to boil the green beans and then shock them (keeps them green and crunchy). If you’re using frozen green beans, don’t defrost them.

2. Combine cornstarch, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Stir in the egg and water until smooth.

3. Heat up 1 inch tall of oil in a frying pan. Dip green beans and fry. Turn every 2-3 minutes until brown.

4. Drain on paper towels.

 

For a dipping sauce, we didn’t have any ranch dressing, so all I used was 2 tbs of mayonnaise, 1 tbs of hot sauce, and a squirt of ketchup. The fried green beans tasted great and didn’t have too much batter on it and was crunchy. The sauce was tangy and slightly spicy!


Green Beans

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14
Apr
2011