Cmacfarlane’s Weblog

Since my children first started college in New York State I have had the opportunity to travel around the state.  New York is rich in specific regional foods.  Of course you may be aware of the popular regional New York foods like Buffalo chicken wings or New York style pizza but have you ever heard of Spiedies only found in the Binghampton area?

Today I am going to talk about an Utica, NY specially, Chicken Riggies.  Yes Utica is noted for something other than Utica Club.  Chicken Riggies is a chicken rigatoni dish popular with the Italian community in Utica.  I first heard about it from a friend whose husband grew up in Utica.  Shortly after she mentioned it TV cook Racheal Ray made it in a 3o minite meal.  I don’t know about the 30 minute part but it is a great dish.  Spicy from hot cherry peppers with a tomato cream sauce that just improves with age.  I highly recommend making the escarole dish Rach includes with the Riggie recipe.  The combo takes alot of Ingredients but it will feed and army and you won’t be disappointed.

I think it will work to copy and paste the link.  If not go to food network and type in the search chicken riggies and you will find it.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/cda/recipe_print/0,1946,FOOD_9936_66377_RECIPE-PRINT-FULL-PAGE-FORMATTER,00.html

New Years day we went to Harrisons in the Old

Carlson building on Main Street Stowe(where Gracies use to be many years ago, around the back).  We were in famous company as Rusty Dewes was there(the logger).  The food was great.  The menu was diverse and we had difficulty deciding which to eat.  The mussels, which were mentioned on Trip Advisor, lived up to the reputation of fantastic.  They were cooked in a cream sauce with tomatoes and almonds.  The steaks we cooked to perfection and chicken dishes were wonderful.  The portions are small which means you can do dessert.  I hear the mocha cheesecake was the absoult best ever.  Its pricey but if you are looking for a special dinner out this is a good one.  The service is great, the atmosphere is cosy.  I give this place 3 thumbs up.

A note to all MacFarlane party attendees, bring only a lawn chair and a donation for the dog shelter.  You may want bug spray as well.  Musical instruments are welcome. There will be bonfires later. Lets hope for good weather but we will have shelters if necessary.  The raspberries and blueberries look good for the weekend as well.  Look for a posting on the party website for a map.

Menu

Appetizers

Salmon and cream cheese on pumpernickel,  mini  quiches,  bruscetta, curry chicken wraps, meatballs, Vermont cheese and crackers.

Main Dishes

broccoli salad, macaroni salad, potato salad, bean salad, baked beans, pulled pork sliders, cheeseburger sliders, Greek sliders, smoked turkey, foccacia, rosemary sourdough, vegetarian stuffed shells.

Desserts

Carrot cake (its Jessie’s birthday), berry trifle, brownies

I love to make risotto but the leftovers once cold are not really good reheated.  While Jessie and I were in Italy we saw a great way to use it up.  If you are looking for local don’t look at this recipe.  Here it is: Take a golf ball size portion of good quality risotto and form it around a 1 inch square of fresh mozzarella.  If you made the risotto correct to begin with it should be sticky enough to hold together, if not add an egg to the risotto first.  Dip the rice balls in flour, egg and Italian bread crumbs in that order.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.  Deep fry in hot oil (350) until deep brown.  Serve alone or with marinara.  They make a great first course.

For those of you on Facebook, you might have seen the picture of the sisters and cousin at this eatery.  If you want great sandwiches, soups, salads and fabulous desserts stop by Edelweiss in Johnson.  I had a soup salad combo that included a Caesar salad and gazpacho.  The gazpacho was great.  It had fresh corn in it.  Others at the table had equally delicious sandwiches and salads.  The main charm of the place is the eclectic dinning area.  It is in the upstairs of an old house (downstairs available for handicapped).   It has interesting antiques and eclectic furniture.  I give Edelweiss 3 thumbs up.

Last night the family decided to go out to dinner but wanted to go somewhere new.  I had heard that the old JR’s in Montgomery had changed hands and was a good place to go.  After some research we found the new name was Bernie’s.  Bernie’s is right in downtown Montgomery and serves seafood and pasta on most nights but apparently serves Mexican on Mondays and Thursday.  We were there on Wednesday so we had the regular menu.  Soup or salad was included in meal.  I had a wonderful sweet potato soup that tasted like pumpkin pie.  All the selections we made got rave reviews.  I had a chicken breast that was stuffed with prosciutto and mozzarella then pan fried.  Bob’s looked great.  It was fresh clams marinara on spaghetti.  The wine list and beer list left a little to be desired but they do have a full bar.  All in all I would give 2.5 thumbs up.

Since Hillary’s closed in Morrisville, breakfast has had limited choices.  While waiting for a windshield to be replaced I wandered around downtown Mo’ ville and found The Bee’s Knees across from Arthur’s’ Department store.  They had an interesting selection of breakfast sandwiches and burritos as well as basic egg dishes.  Most of the ingredients are advertised as local (important to me) and is very fresh.  The coffee was excellent and was served in large mugs, coming as regular or dark.  I of course had the dark.  I had an egg, cheddar,spinach and garlic sandwich that was served on homemade foccacia bread.  It came with a fresh watermelon garnish.  The food was fabulous.  The restaurant is small and eclectic.  The walls covered with interesting local art.  They also serve lunch and dinner and have local music in the evenings.  I would go there again and give it 3 thumbs up.

Last night we ate at the Hub in Johnson, VT.  It is a flat bread pizza place that as far as we are concerned is only topped by one other pizza place we have been so far and that is American Flatbread pizza in Burlington, VT(the wood fired oven the only advantage).  We tried three different pizzas: Buffalo chicken, shrimp scampi and Jerry’s pie, a veggie pizza.  They were all great.  They also have a good selection of micro brews, wine and soft drinks as well as some great looking salads and appetizers.  We also had the mini Stromboli that was filled with prosciutto and cheese and served with a red sauce. They also have live music at the Hub.  Last night was a jazz band that played in the front corner of the restaurant.  They were decent and not too loud so you could hear your dinner partners.

All in all we give the Hub 3 thumbs up.  We will go there again.

Seeing if this works now