Beets

Every time my mom served beets, hot and pickled, while I was growing up I cringed. I'm sure that the fact my dad always put the ball of seasoning on my plate saying, "Look! Sarah a giant beet.," didn't help.

While in LA last March, my intense hunger forced me to try beets again when they arrived as a complimentary appetizer. I was surprised to find chilled, pickled beets sweet and tasty, and ever since then I've been hooked on buying cans of them.

Today in the NYTimes there was a cute article called A Good Year for Beets and Self-Reliance by Annie Raver. Here's an excerpt, which shares a way to pickle fresh beets. I might have to try it!

"I remembered the beet salad that I love to eat in New York: roasted diced beets, with arugula, goat cheese and walnuts. “Hmm, sounds good,” Mother said.

Then she showed me how to pickle beets the Eastern Shore way. Just trim the leaves off the washed beets, but leave an inch or so of the stems. Cutting into the root leads the beet to bleed Into the water, leaching out vitamins and flavor.

“Beets, you know, are full of iron,” said Mother, who was trained as a nutritionist.

Cook until just tender enough to stick easily with a sharp fork. Then drain, peel and slice as soon as they are cool enough to handle. Mix half a cup of sugar with half a cup of vinegar in a big bowl, stir in the warm beets, and salt to taste."

Making your own salad dressing Part II

Yet another NYTimes article on Salad, The Well-Dressed Salad Wears Only Homemade by Mark Bittman, has me thinking about Laura's salad making skills. Maybe one day I'll be able to master the art of making my own dressing too (as long as I continue reading the daily headlines via email and practicing).

Here's his recipe: "The simplest dressing, vinaigrette, is this: around three parts oil to one part vinegar or lemon juice, salt and pepper, and maybe some added flavor. This may be an herb (a pinch of dried tarragon is good, fresh chives better) or a condiment (Dijon mustard is classic, and a splash of soy sauce is amazing). There might be a bit of onion, garlic (easy on this), scallion or shallot. Combine them with a fork for a “broken” dressing, or with a whisk or a blender for a lovely, creamy emulsion. Presto."

Bowlmor

I went bowling tonight for the first time since high school and it was surprisingly fun! As I grew up bowling at AMF's in Richmond, Virginia, Bowlmor lanes with its elevator up, cushy benches, and full bar was my swankiest bowling experience to date. Our 8:30 arrival was perfect for getting the last open lane.

My favorite fancy feature was that after each frame the bowling pins changed colors, something I made sure to point out to my "date." Sadly, he was not as enchanted with this feature as I was. He was, however, a much better bowler than I after he remembered his technique (basically he ended each roll kneeling).

The staff was friendly overall, but our waitress stopped being attentive after it became apparent that we weren't planning to booze it up. But, seriously, it was Wednesday and we already were paying plenty to bowl. I hope to go again, but on a Monday which seems to be the best deal: $20 for unlimited bowling on a first come, first serve basis.

Location: 110 University Place (Between 12th Street and 13th Street)
Hours: Mon 11:00a-3:00a, Tues-Wed 11:00a-1:00a, Thurs 11:00a-2:00a, Fri-Sat 11:00a-3:30a, Sun 11:00a-12:00a (after 5 you have to be 21)
Cost: $$ ($5 shoe rental and anywhere from $8.95 to $9.45 per person per game, depending on the day and time)

Vintage

While a little complicated to get to from my location in Queens, like all things not off of the NW, I enjoyed Vintage tonight. As soon as I walked in the waiter, John, decided he liked me and encouraged me to definitely go for it as my date "was cute!" He also later told my escort he was lucky to have me with him as I was more attractive than him, which was just wrong, amusing, and confidence boosting all at once.

Vintage has a HUGE drink menu, which was perfect since I love drink menus. Unfortunately, this slowed my decision making to a halt along with the getting to know you conversation. Don't worry me made up for it later and shared a drink "Lady and the Tramp" style. I ended up with Nadia's Perfect Ten as my first drink (a girlie martini of course). It was sweet without being too sweet; I highly recommend it. My other drinks weren't quite as good, but they still were interesting.

Vintage was very relaxed with comfy couches in the back, quiet yet good music, and sports on TV. It is a great location for meeting people that you actually want to hear, and I definitely would consider going back, especially if John was working. He even made sure I got home dry by giving me an umbrella!

Location: 753 9th Avenue (Between 50th Street and 51st Street)
Hours: Mon-Thurs: 5:00p-1:00a, Fri: 5:00p-2:00a, Sat 12:00p-2:00a, Sun 12:00p-12:00p
Cost: $$ (but I only had drinks)