March 2012 – Harmonious Belly

March 19, 2012

My Newest Project

So, I’m writing a book. And here’s the cover!

A month or so ago, I was approached by a mid-sized publisher to write a book about the food of Queens, where I live. It’s in guidebook format, so it will be a great way for locals and visitors alike to get to know the restaurant scene, specialty shops, artisanal food production, and more in the borough of Queens. There aren’t too many print publications like this when it comes to Queens, so I’m happy and honored to be working on this project.

I’ve been enjoying the writing immensely, and tasting all sorts of dishes from various cultures has been just fantastic. Queens has a lot of immigrants who bring their traditional food practices with them, which is a total bonus for someone like me that is interested in traditional foods from cultures other than my own.

Some of my favorite recent dishes came from Nepali restaurants – at the last one I was at there was a spicy potato dish called achar, which was flavored with fenugreek greens, sesame seeds, and lemon juice, and spices. It is simply amazing and I want to learn how to make it myself. I also recently discovered braso, a Filipino dessert consisting of a sweet egg custard sandwiched between two thick layers of soft yet sturdy meringue. Just so good.

I’ve also enjoyed gathering with friends and sharing meals with them. It feels great to be able to share this experience with them, and I am so grateful for the time they are giving me.

I am sure I will write more about and certainly mention this project over the next few months. I look forward to sharing more news about the project as it progresses, too!

March 15, 2012March 29, 2012

Get To Know Nourishing New York

Not long ago, my friend Sarah launched a service called Nourishing New York, where she provides traditional foods for purchase. I thought it was a wonderful project/business and wanted to learn more about it, and share it here. I hope you enjoy learning about Nourishing New York, and please give Sarah some of you business if you are local and so inclined.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

My name is Sarah Milcetic. I’ve been living in Astoria, Queens for about 8 years and I live with my husband, 10 month old son and our pack of cats. We had up to five cats at one point when we were fostering. My education is in Psychology, Environmental Science and Web development. I’ve been working from home for almost 5 years, creating websites for small businesses and individuals (designedbysarah.com).

I’m also very passionate about sustainable and non-toxic living, which I write about – among other things – on my personal blog (arealhousewifeofnyc.com).

Tell me a little about Nourishing New York. Why did you call it that? Why did you start it?

About a year and a half ago I joined a meetup.com group called the Traditional Community Kitchen. Through the group I learned about eating nutrient dense foods, prepared in traditional ways. I slowly started incorporating these foods and methods into my diet.

I have several friends who are interested in adding some of these same foods to their diets but have either been intimidated to get started or haven’t found the time yet. Since I’ve been feeling really passionate about traditional foods and I’ve always loved to cook and be in the kitchen, I thought I could spend a little more time in the kitchen and make extras of the foods I’m already preparing for my family.

I decided to use the name Nourishing New York because the recipes I use are based on recipes from Nourishing Traditions. I was originally thinking of Nourishing Astoria but didn’t want to exclude anyone outside of Astoria.

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March 5, 2012March 4, 2012

How To Make Water Kefir

If you’ve been watching my Harmonious Belly Facebook page over the past couple of months, you know that I’ve been doing a lot with water kefir. It’s been really interesting, a lot of fun, and yields a very tasty beverage. I’ve gotten some positive feedback on the water kefir drinks I’ve created, so I must be doing something right. I thought I’d share a little bit of what I’ve learned. I tend to take a simple approach to making this probiotic beverage, and some of my practices may be controversial, but they have served me well so far.

1. I bought my kefir grains from Cultures For Health. They arrived dehydrated and I rehydrated them with water and organic sugar. It was very easy to do this. Instructions come with the kefir grains.

I had heard that water kefir grains were more crystaline than dairy kefir grains. I was under the impression that they were hard, like actual crystals. Turns out they are soft, and you could crush them with little effort between your fingers. From a visual standpoint, though, they do look like bits of crystals.

2. I use regular old tap water to make my water kefir. NYC has some of the tastiest water in the country – we drink our water at home pretty much exclusively from our tap. NYC water also contains both chlorine and fluoride, which some people really don’t want to ingest. I have not run into any problems with them from a robust fermentation standpoint.

Most literature on water kefir says to avoid water with these things added to it. If I could easily and practically avoid them, I would. You may prefer to get rid of the chlorine (not much can be done about the fluoride), and that is done by boiling the water and letting it sit overnight. I’ve also read that you can just let it sit out for 24 hours and the chlorine will evaporate.

I could put my water through a Britta or PUR type filter, but I really hate that everything involved with a filter like this is plastic-based. I really don’t want to add more plastic to my life. Plus they are not cheap. So, after taking all things into account – convenience and cost being the primary issues – I decided to experiment with plain tap water. I have had great success – my grains are healthy, not slimy and they have no off odor or color. I check them each time I make a new batch of kefir.

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March 1, 2012March 1, 2012

Lunch Yums at Taverna Kyclades

I’m currently in the middle of a giant project – happily, it’s food-related – so I’ve taken an unexpected baby break from the blog. Once the project is done, I’ll talk a little more about it. Right now, though, I want to tell you about a recent meal I had here in Astoria, at Taverna Kyclades.

Taverna Kyclades is a staple Greek restaurant here in the neighborhood that is extremely popular with locals and tourists alike – in the evenings, you’ll see lines to get in, snaking down the block; we ate there at 1pm and were seated right away. It’s very close to my apartment, and after this meal I just had I’m kicking myself for not eating there sooner. The food was fantastic – so fresh and clean tasting. I had heard rumors that the use of olive oil was excessive, but I thought they used the perfect touch for everything.

The meal was shared among three of us, which means we got to taste a variety of dishes. We ordered two appetizers and two main dishes. The appetizers were a platter of dips – taramasalata, tzatziki, and skordalia – and grilled octopus. We chose grilled calamari and fried sardines for our main dishes, and they came with a side of horta and a side of lemon potatoes. Everything was excellent. My favorite dish of the whole meal, though, was the octopus. I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did.

The octopus was tender yet meaty, a texture I did not expect. Wonderful! There was a little olive oil, which added nice flavor. The meat itself was very mild but not devoid of flavor. I would eat this again in a heartbeat.

The spreads were also lovely. We all remarked that the taramasalata was light, not heavy and gloppy like it can be. I loved the salty little roe present in the spread. The tzatziki was more cucumber than yogurt, and the skordalia, a garlicky potato spread, was smooth and perfectly garlicky.

We ate it with some semolina bread, which was no doubt baked nearby.

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