Random thoughts on cooking as I prepare to make garlic-butter seared scallops over capellini

Cooking. It’s one of my favorite things to do. I’ve always loved food, though. Ever since I was a little kid, it was the one guarantee: Emily is happy when food is around. I love looking at it, learning about it, eating it, making it, buying it, pairing it with wine…I love food. 
This past year of my life, I’ve learned a lot about food through personal experience and by watching certain documentaries (go Netflix). What I’ve realized is, it all comes down to timing. It makes all the difference. And the little things. Any idiot can follow a recipe, but preparing something in a careful and precise way takes skill and practice. I hate being an elitist cooking snob and normally I believe that you should be able to do whatever the fuck you want and experiment and all that, but there are certain things that I hold to be true. So, here are some of my patented cooking tips:

1. My number one (and anyone who has any Russian blood in them can agree with me) is garlic. Basically, garlic makes everything taste good. I would eat candied garlic as a dessert.
2. I also love the flavor of basil. It’ll make anything taste fresh.
3. My mom swears by paprika. I prefer Hungarian hot paprika because I don’t think regular paprika has a ton of flavor and, let’s face it, everything is better spicy. Everything. I’m not accepting any conflicting opinions. This is a fact.
4. Now that we’re talking spices, red chili flakes top my list. This is a pantry basic and everyone must have some readily available at all times. Red chili flakes are so versatile. If you throw them into a skillet with olive oil and garlic, anything you cook in that skillet will have a nice spicy bite that’s not too overpowering but still noticeable. Just don’t use too much.
5. Cajun/creole seasoning. I’m a shrimp fanatic and unless I’m making scampi, you can guarantee that my shrimp preparation includes one or both of these spices. They’re also awesome for vegetable stir-fry if you’re sick of making Asian stir-fry (I am).
6. Citrus. Lemon and lime are not solely reserved for the world of tequila and mixed drinks. No, these citrusy friends brighten up every dish; I add lemon juice to almost everything. It’s not about the actual citrus flavor but more about what it does for your food: it marries all the flavors so they work well together while at the same time distinguishing each individual flavor and helping it stand out. Citrus in cooking is like putting on perfume as a part of your daily routine. It’s the last thing you spritz on before you walk out the door, and while it may not be absolutely necessary, it makes you smell great and makes it look like you tried harder than you actually did.

These are my thoughts as I prepare to make garlic-butter seared scallops over angel hair. And you can bet there’s gonna be some lemon juice in that dish.

Best brunch in NYC - Cafe Mogador

Just take a long, hard look at this picture and you might understand why I would probably fly to New York just to have brunch at Cafe Mogador in the LES. This Morrocan restaurant is the perfect, cozy little brunch spot nestled in between lots of other cozy little brunch spots on St. Mark's street. Everytime I go, I order the blackstone eggs (pictures above), which includes two poached eggs with hollandaise sauce over thick cut bacon and roasted tomato on an English muffin. These glorious eggs come served with spiced potatoes, a side of spicy morrocan Harissa, and a mesclun salad. So where do I begin? I can't possibly do the poached eggs any justice with a description. It's a taste/feeling that no word can accurately describe. I would call it "umami" but I hesitate to use that word due to it's widespread misuse and over-application to anything that tastes good. All of the elements of this dish balance each other perfectly: the creamy hollandaise sauce with the savory bacon, the light, lemony mesclun salad with the poached eggs--simply put, it's an amazing experience for the taste buds. Oh, and brunch comes served with fresh squeezed orange juice and your choice of cappuccino, espresso, or tea. You get a bang for your buck and I guarantee you will leave on cloud nine.