Author: Ed

Love My Cheese Harp!

There are two kinds of cheese harps. This term is used for the wire cutter that cheese makers use to cut the curdled milk into the cubes that will separate from the whey and one day become cheese. It's also used for a handheld wire cutter that is the perfect way to cut open and enjoy pieces of a fully-ripe, soft cheese, like this Brebirousse Argental Petit.

I was trying to balance the harp on top of the cheese for a photo, but it works so well it began a gentle journey through the cheese.

I bought mine from a favorite cheesemonger, but I did find this wire cheese harp on Amazon that looks just like mine.

Here's more about that lovely piece of perfectly ripe cheese that we were slicing open.

And, here are more of our posts about cheese.

What's on your cheese serving shopping list? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:
Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.

May 8, 2012
Home Cooking by Laurie Colwin Enters the James Beard Hall of Fame

One of my daily reads, A Proper Bostonian, gave me the great gift of an introduction to Laurie Colwin's books. Somehow, it hadn't registered with me that this essayist, that I had read in Gourmet and The New Yorker, also had books I should read.

I borrowed the Boston Public Library copy of Home Cooking for far too long and when they wanted it back, because another fan requested it, I bought my own copy.

Last week, the James Beard Awards placed Home Cooking: A Writer in the Kitchen by Laurie Colwin in their Hall of Fame for cookbooks. However, this is far more than a cookbook. It does have some recipes, but it also has stories flavored with witty and wise insight.

A big thank you to Ms Proper for putting so much enjoyment into my evening reading sessions. I think my summer reading list will include the rest of this author's books. That should make for a warm, relaxed summer with lots of gentle laughter.

By the way, here's where you can find the rest of the winners of the James Beard Foundation Book Awards. Just click on the category under, "Browse more book awards" in the left hand column.

What's on your summer reading shopping list? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

More Home Cooking: A Writer Returns to the Kitchen

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Cover art courtesy of Vintage Books

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

May 7, 2012
Provincetown “Frenchie” with a Stand-in!

On every Provincetown visit we make a point of checking out some of our favorite gardens. This one, on Commercial Street, had a new addition– a Frenchie sculpture.

Suddenly, the real star emerged from the house, and granted a brief, private photo op!

And, just as abruptly, returned to seclusion, leaving the stand-in to deal with the next admirers!

Thanks for coming out to see us, little Frenchie!

Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

What's on your doggie star's shopping list? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.

May 6, 2012
Nature as Sculptor

What do you see in this weathered wooden pile?

On our last two trips to Provincetown, I spent time photographing the details of this group of weathered piles.

I find them fascinating. They change personality with the light, the tides, and the day.

What's on your beach time shopping list? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.

May 5, 2012
Made by Hand, a Handcrafted Friday Link
The upcoming, juried exhibition, “Made by Hand: a celebration of exceptional work from the North Bennet Street School” is our Friday link.

We never cease to be enthralled by the work that comes from the students and alumni of this Boston treasure and look forward to seeing this collection of hand-made objects painstakingly crafted by the school’s students and alumni– from elegant furniture and one-of-a-kind musical instruments to exquisite jewelry and ornate hand-bound books.

Here's a sneak preview they have shared with us! In the photos below (left to right) are:
- Handmade pendant by Laurie Berezin, NBSS ‘11
- Handmade fiddle by David Golber, NBSS ‘98
- Decorative bench by Jerry deRham, NBSS ‘83
- Hand-bound book cover by Kevin Sheby, NBSS ‘13
- Grandfather clock by Juan Pablo Blanco, NBSS ’12
Click on the small photos above to see a larger version in the viewer window.
- What: Made by Hand: a celebration of exceptional work from the North Bennet Street School
- Where: Main Lobby, 125 High Street, Boston MA (map)
- When: Monday, May 7 through Friday, May 18, 2012
- Hours: 8:00 am – 8:00 pm daily.
- Admission: Free
- Handicap Access: Yes
- Reservations: Not required.
- Nearest parking: 125 High Street garage. Limited street parking (metered).
- Nearest T stop: South Station (Red line)
- More Information about the show: 617-227-0155 or see the online page.
If you clicked over to the North Bennet Street School site, it may have made you think that you'd like to learn a new skill or give someone you love the chance to explore the life-changing opportunities inside those walls.

Here are some books to inspire you to do just that, at any age!

It's Only Too Late If You Don't Start Now: HOW TO CREATE YOUR SECOND LIFE AT ANY AGE

The Renaissance Soul: Life Design for People with Too Many Passions to Pick Just One

The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
Details:

North Bennet Street School

39 N Bennet St.

Boston, MA 02113-1914 (map & reviews)

(617) 227-0155

nbss.edu‎

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: Courtesy of the North Bennet Street School

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those comments add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We reserve the right to edit ads out of comments.
May 4, 2012
Wine Doggie Bags: Bring the Rest of That Bottle Home

We took home our first 'Doggie Bag" of wine recently. Achieving one of our BostonZest milestones gave us a reason to enjoy a small celebration. So, we treated ourselves to an Uber ride to Hamersley's Bistro and instead of a glass of sparkling wine, we decided to share a bottle of an old favorite, Argyle Brut, over a long lazy meal.

Alas, as much as we were enjoying the food and the good company at the bar, the early, early start to the day caught up with us and we realized we were only going to make it through two courses. Finishing the bottle was also going to be out of the question.

So, we asked our bartender, Mark, to bag it up for us to take home. He laughingly suggested that we blog about it. But, he added a serious note that he is always happy to bag a bottle and have his customers drive home safely.

As with every aspect of the service at Hamersley's, this task was performed in a completely professional manner. Mark found a cork that fit the bottle snuggly, sealed it in one of the bags that the state requires, printed and attached a copy of the receipt for the wine and the meal we had with it, and put it into a take out carry bag along with part of the remainder of Penny's chicken entre.

There are a few rules you have to follow in order to take the remainder of a bottle of wine with you from a restaurant. Since regulations do change over time, here's a link to the state's The Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission regulations on the topic.

Getting comfortable with asking for a wine doggie bag opens the whole wine list as a regular option. If you see an old favorite, a great value, a hard to find wine, or your server has a great suggestion, you can try it without feeling you have to finish the bottle.

Wines by the glass are wonderful and many places work hard to make those choices exciting and a good match for their food. But, those same places put a lot of work into the rest of the wine list and usually have some real treasures by the bottle.

Driving wasn't an issue for us. We clicked on our Uber app and another limo arrived quickly to drive us home. We'll tell you more about this new twist on car service soon. In the meanwhile, click on this UBER link, for a discount on your first ride and to send a few Uber miles our way too.

Love wine? Join our Our Sparkling Resolution

Check Out: Our Wine List

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here's, The Food Lover's Guide to Wine– the latest addition to our wine reference shelf. Here's our review of this book.

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.

May 3, 2012
Northeastern, Forsyth and Hemenway: Where to Find Food Trucks

As these rolling restaurants expand their reach and numbers throughout the Boston area, we’re Food Truck Tracking– checking out some of their favorite nesting spots, and what you’ll find when you get there. -The BostonZest Team!

Fenway- Northeastern- Forsyth and Hemenway Streets

Location: The intersection of Forsyth and Hemenway Streets. (map)

MBTA Link: Take a Green Line E train and get off at the Northeastern stop.

More info @: Boston's Food Truck Page, Hub Food trucks, or on the Street Food Boston app.

How many trucks: One truck at a time.

Who's here: The schedule calls for Mei Mei Street Kitchen, Roxy's Grilled Cheese, Frozen Hoagies and Boston Speed Dog. (Update: May 3, 2012: Check the latest feeds from these trucks. Steve at Hub Food trucks tells us there have been some changes to the schedule.)



(Click on any photo for a larger version.)

What we had: The opening day of Mei Mei drew us out to this spot. Our lunch was "Beef & Cheese Dumplings," "Porky Mac & Cheese," "Supah Spicy Magic Brownies," and "Crimson Berry Iced Tea."

Hours and dates: So far, some Tuesday through Friday lunch and dinner slots are filled here.

Tips: If you crave shade on a summer afternoon, the open space east of the building where the truck parks is a nice strip of shady grass that everyone seems to use for sitting and walking between streets.

And, if you are visiting the Museum of Fine Arts, a visit to a food truck might be just the break you need in a long day of viewing treasures.



(Click on any photo for a larger version.)

Where to Eat: There are benches up towards the museum, grassy lawns for picnic style dining, stone seating on Forsyth Street and a few tables in front of a Northeastern building on the corner.

Where to eat inside: We'll leave this one to you. Let us know if you have a good idea for a place to dine inside in the winter.

Restrooms: You could check in the Northeastern campus buildings where the public is allowed. If you're a member of the Museum of Fine Arts, you can use your free admission to access their facilities. If you know of a spot or two, add them to the Universal Hub Wicked Good Guide to Boston Restrooms so the rest of us can find them.

Bonus points for: A super friendly crowd of food truck lovers! The line was filled with happy, fun folks.

For more of our Food Truck/Street Food coverage: click here. Or, anytime you visit BostonZest, you can click on the "Food Truck/Street Food" tab at the top of the page.

Link: Boston Food Truck Location Map

Did you know you can buy groceries from Amazon? Have them ship what you need, and have more time to check out food trucks.

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Ed & Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We reserve the right to edit ads out of comments.

May 2, 2012
Toasting May with Thierry Triolet Champagne at the Beach!

While enjoying a bottle of Thierry Triolet Champagne Brut is a treat in itself, popping the cork at a beach in Provincetown elevates the entire experience to the level of “unforgettable.”

As we faithfully carry out Our Sparkling Resolution (raising a glass of bubbly to greet each new month) we’re always open to pushing the boundaries of our pledge.

We found this special sparkler at Perry’s Wine & Liquors in Provincetown where Scott O’Connor described Thierry Triolet Champagne Brut as creamy and a great value at $36.

Penny remembered the wine from a tweet by Gretchen (@MoralBeast) who called it, “… a remarkable Champagne! Dry but not too dry. It's a wonderful balance [with] an explosion of flavor!" Her brand new website is Urban Wine Dweller.

Despite our preference for pinot-forward sparkling wines, this beauty’s 60% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir, and 5% Pinot Meunier held our attention from the first sip. The winemaker puts it simply and best, “… pale yellow with hints of amber is expressed on fresh and fruity notes.”

Our bottle didn’t last long. It was so good, we couldn’t resist sharing with our neighbors at the beach.

Thierry Triolet, a small grower who supplies grapes to major Champagne houses, also has been making his own wine for more than 25 years– which means we have a lot of catching up to do.

If this Champagne Brut is any indication of Thierry Triolet’s passion and expertise, we can’t wait to try his other vintages. Back in Boston, we followed Gretchen's trail to TerraVino Wines in Brookline and happily found another bottle to enjoy today.

Update: Sadly TerraVino Wines is no longer in business.

Check Out: Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

More about Our Sparkling Resolution

Finally, more of our Provincetown Posts!

We have a new favorite wine book that we are not only recommending to our readers, but buying as a gift for wine-loving friends. It's a treasure and we expect it to look a bit worn and well-used pretty quickly. It may even suffer a few wine stains but we doubt that Karen and Andrew will mind.

The Food Lover's Guide to Wine

Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Here are more books from this team:

The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefs

What to Drink with What You Eat: The Definitive Guide to Pairing Food with Wine, Beer, Spirits, Coffee, Tea – Even Water – Based on Expert Advice from America's Best Sommeliers

Becoming a Chef

Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

May 1, 2012
Dot by Dot: Recent Work by Artist Bob Oppenheim

Tonight, a show of recent work by our friend, Bob Oppenheim opens at the Trustman Art Gallery at Simmons College. This is a great opportuntiy to not only see some of Bob's work but also to add another venue for exploring art to your leisure time list. The gallery exhibits the work of professional artists and has a yearly exhibition of student work.

Dot by Dot

April 30-June1, 2012

Monday through Friday 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m

Gallery reception, Tuesday May 1, 5pm-7pm

Closed May 18th

Trustman Art Gallery
Main College Building, Fourth Floor
300 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02115-5898 (map)

What's on your Mother's Day shopping list? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.

April 30, 2012
Sunday Dog, Ginger Has a New Home!

Ginger is a very lucky Sheltie, she’s found a new home in Boston. Actually, this four year old beauty told us that the finding part was done by her new person with the help of New England Sheltie Rescue. Ginger admitted, “I never made it to the available page [of the website] … I had a perfect applicant waiting for me!”

As soon as we saw this pair, it was obvious they were a match that was meant to be.

Ginger had only been in town for a week (when these photos were taken), but already seemed comfortable with the neighborhood. She came right up to us to say hello and get pats. Her new pal told us, “She goes up to every dog, no matter how big, and they don’t growl at her. She’s not afraid. She’s so friendly.”

More formally known as a Shetland Sheepdog this Scottish breed is extremely loyal, loves to please, and is very good at taking direction. In fact, when it comes to brain power, Shelties are ranked sixth in Stanley Coren’s “The Intelligence of Dogs.”

After spending some quality time together, we left Ginger to keep an eye out for more new friends. She’ll undoubtedly develop a big following. I wonder if she has a facebook page, yet? See ya, girl.

Get to know all of our Sunday Dogs at Boston Dogs.

Would you like to adopt a beautiful companion like Ginger? There are some resources to help you make your decision and get your life together off to a great start. This book from PetFinder, Petfinder.com The Adopted Dog Bible: Your One-Stop Resource for Choosing, Training, and Caring for Your Sheltered or Rescued Dog is one of our favorites.

Details:
Words: Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads out of comments.

April 29, 2012