I have a couple more things to share about NYC before I get to the weekend recipe…
If you haven’t been to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, I’d highly recommend it next time you’re in NYC. The memorial pools are located at the footprint of the original twin towers and have the names of every person who died in the terrorist attacks on February 1993 and September 11, 2001 inscribed around the perimeter. You can find the location of a someone you knew here…and also at the memorial itself. It is quite a moving and beautiful remembrance of those lost…and there’s no cost.
I had been to the memorial pools in the past, but not to the Museum, which opened on September 2011, the ten year anniversary of the terrorist attacks. To say it is overwhelming is an understatement. I had no idea what to expect and thought we’d be there an hour or so. We were there for more than two hours and could have seen more short films, etc…but, again, it was overwhelming.
After an emotional morning at the memorial we walked around lower Manhattan a bit, saw the Statue of Liberty in the distance and I finally, after having it on my list since the 90’s, went for a meal at Fraunces Tavern. Fraunces Tavern was one of my dad’s favorite restaurants in NYC due to it’s place in American history (he was like a walking encyclopedia of American history). It opened as a tavern in 1762, was the first office of the Department of Foreign Affairs after the Revolutionary War, and, most famously, the place where George Washington shared a meal and bade farewell to his officers after the British retreated, all but winning the Revolutionary war. His words to the troops…” “[w]ith a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave of you. I most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as prosperous and happy as your former ones have been glorious and honorable.” It’s a pretty cool, & large, place with numerous historical rooms and a nice American menu. I’d recommend it if you’re down near Wall St and lower Manhattan. 
We rounded out the afternoon with a walk through Chelsea Market and the High-Line before heading back to Brooklyn and an EatWith dinner that evening.
An EatWith dinner…what’s that? It’s a different, awesome dining experience where you buy tickets for dinner in someone’s home. Austin, Kate, Val and I dined with 12 strangers at some guys apartment in Brooklyn and it was one of the highlights of the trip. Omar was our host and he made an amazing meal for all of us. It’s BYOB and the dinners vary in price…this one was $42.00…so reasonable and SO MUCH FUN!!
Our final day in the Big Apple involved more sight-seeing with a visit to Eataly, Canal Street, finally seeing Fun Home (matinee) and back to Brooklyn for our three-bar date night with A&K and friend’s Doug and Peggy.
….and now a Chinese food recipe to try this weekend that’s been in my recipe repertoire for years
Almond Chicken
1 cups whole or sliced almonds (I use sliced, but they cook faster so watch them)
1-1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast…cubed or on the diagonal for thinner pieces
1 bag of snow peas or @ 1/2 lb
optional…sometimes I throw in a can of mini corn or another vegie
mix together…
1 tsp dried ginger
2 tsp sugar|
1 TBS cornstarch
3 TBS water
3 TBS soy sauce
1/3 cup sherry…or any dry white wine (I, of course, usually just use chardonnay)
Heat some oil up in the wok (or a non-stick pan will do). add almonds and brown, add chicken and cook until meat turns white, pour in the sherry mixture and cook until it starts to thicken. add snow peas (& mini corn) and cook for about a minute or so.
Serve over rice…& don’t forget the fortune cookie…voila!
To all my peeps in the East, stay warm & stay inside…and to all my peeps here in the West, let’s pray we get a drizzle or two this weekend!
You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails!
#nyc, #eatwith, #eataly, #timegan, #dodsworth
