The High Line......

Once a vital commercial rail road ……..Now a horizontal park…..
Located along tenth avenue in Chelsea/Meat Packing District, NYC

Grand Opening Monday June 9......

A Brief History
1847
The City of New York authorizes street-level railroad tracks down Manhattan’s West Side.
1851 – 1929
So many accidents occur between freight trains and street-level traffic that 10th Avenue becomes known as Death Avenue. For safety, men on horses, called the West Side Cowboys, ride in front of trains waving red flags.
1929
After years of public debate about the hazard, the City and State of New York and the New York Central Railroad agree on the West Side Improvement Project, which includes the High Line. The entire project is 13 miles long, eliminates 105 street-level railroad crossings, and adds 32 acres to Riverside Park. It costs over $150 million in 1930 dollars—more than $2 billion today.
1934
The High Line opens to trains. It runs from 34th Street to St. John’s Park Terminal, at Spring Street. It is designed to go through the center of blocks, rather than over the avenue, to avoid creating the negative conditions associated with elevated subways. It connects directly to factories and warehouses, allowing trains to roll right inside buildings. Milk, meat, produce, and raw and manufactured goods come and go without causing street-level traffic.
1950s
Growth of interstate trucking leads to a drop in rail traffic, nationally and on the High Line.
1960s
The southernmost section of the High Line is demolished.
1980
The last train runs on the High Line pulling three carloads of frozen turkeys

The Standard Hotel…..designed to straddle the High Line….

Lounge area…with a view of the Hudson and New Jersey


Chelsea Market..... A former Nabisco plant

The Hudson and New Jersey....

The original tracks.....

Chelsea Market.....

Chelsea Market…..Expanded to accommodate the rail road….


Designed by Frank Gehry .....

Union Square Café Morning Market Meeting…..

Four times a year Union Square Café, NYC, holds morning market meetings. The second was Friday June 26. They start at 8:00 AM and end about 10:00. Pastries, juice and coffee are served. Next Danny Meyer, the restaurant owner and President of Hospitality Group, which owns and operates several fine dinning restaurants and a few casual ones in Manhattan, welcomes his guests and takes questions for about half an hour. It is always warm and friendly, he is addressing his adoring fan club. Usually the group is 80% regulars. Many he knows by their first names. This is followed by a presentation usually focusing on a seasonal product from Union Square Green Market. Topics have included, organic eggs, goat cheese, pasta, asparagus, microbrews and this Friday fava beans. You would be surprised how much there is learn. Did you know young fava can be eaten pod and all, are wonderful fried and salted, and are the oldest cultivated vegetable. And to finish the meeting USC’s executive chef demos 4 recipes and we are served samples of each with wine. A very nice way to start a day: food with friends, wine and a warm friendly atmosphere.
We had: Strozzapretti pasta (translates, priest strangler) with Fava Bean Sauce, Mashed Fava Bean Crostini with Pecrorino and Mint, Egyptian Style Falafel (100% fava, no chick peas),Young Fava Beans (pod included) with Lamb and Yogurt Sauce. The Crostini was the best.
This meeting featured Norwich Meadows Farm, a certified organic farm in upper New York State. And for some reason I do not have pictures of fava beans.

Norwich Meadows Farm Stand at Union Square Green Market
http://www.norwichmeadowsfarm.com/

Middle Eastern Cucumbers
I payed $2.00 for 2

Baby Turnips


Spring Onions

Beets


Purple Kohlrabi (German Turnip) The name comes from the German Kohl ("cabbage") plus Rübe ~ Rabi (Swiss German variant) ("turnip"), because the swollen stem resembles the latter.
I would buy them for color alone.


Interesting Spelling


Bok Choy is related to the Western cabbadge, and is of the same species as the common turnip?

Mashed Fava Bean Crostini with Pecorino and Mint

1 Cup cooked and peeled fava beans
(I found them frozen at an Italian market)
2 Tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano
1 Tablespoon chopped mint
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 Teaspoon salt
5 Twists of fresh pepper
16 Thin slices of toasted baguette
Sea salt
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Extra cheese and EVO for garnish

· Mix next 5 ingredients
· Mash with a fork
· Small chunks and a paste are what you are looking for
· Spread on baguette
· Garnish with sea salt, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Pecorino

2008 Historic Fort Greene Brooklyn,NY House Tour

In the spring, every other year, the Fort Greene Association hosts a house tour featuring many of the diverse homes in the district. Some are fully restore, others gutted and the interiors are stark and modern. It is like waking through a time warp, back or forward. All are unique, and lovely in their own way. My friend, in the past has organized 150 volunteers to help house sit, register attendees, and just help. We and a group of friends house sit in the morning, go to lunch and tour in the afternoon…….The tour is fun, volunteering is even more fun…..You meet so many fun and interesting people

Brown stones

A few frame buildings. Odd, I thought they had been outlawed due to fire. There is only one, located in Greenwich Village, left in Manhattan

Living room views of the house we were in.

Living room fireplace.....

The Prison Ship Martyrs Monument that stands today in the center of Fort Greene Park is a 1908 memorial to the 11,000 men and boys who died in horrid conditions on the British Prison Ships during the Revolutionary War. The Monument, which is sometimes referred to as the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, stands in the center of what was once called Fort Putnam, an actual Revolutionary War fort, named after Gernal Putnam. The Monument you see today is actually the third incarnation of this sacred shrine. The story of the horrid Prison Ships – and the ghastly conditions suffered by the men and boys imprisoned on them during the Revolutionary War – is one of the most disturbing chapters in American history.

Philadelphia’s Italian Market…….

The market is located in South Philly, in the area once dominated by the mob, just north of 9th and Washington. It is advertised as a “preserved Italian neighbourhood” where you can eat or shop for all things Italian. It is raw, interesting and dirty. It is no longer only Italian but an eclectic mix of Asian and Mexican. Sylvester Stallone jogged through its heart in 'Rocky'. Parking is atrocious, but the products are not.

Keeping warm.....

Great prices and quality...... Chinatown..........?

We purchased asparagus, chops, meyer lemons, gnocchi, salad greens, capers in salt. I cooked; my friends ate and drank …….We also stopped at: Fante’s Kitchen Wares Shop, Di Bruno Bros. Italian Market (think cheese), & a host of other small shops. We also tried to go to Pat's or Geno's for a real Philly Cheesesteak, but at 2:00 the wait, just to eat a sandwich sitting on the curb, was an hour plus. The restaurant/bar between them was just fine and I was told better. They also had Victory Beer, a Philly micro brew, on tap. A good time was had by all, sitting at a table.....

Clogs......

Taken at Bowery Kitchen Supply, Chelsea Market, NYC.....Just had to buy a pair. Special culinary model designed for the kitchen. Amazingly comfortable, better than my Birks……. Other colours available.

More New York Chinatown.......

For what ever reason, I enjoy Chinatowns. But they are all the same, and more of the same. Each street looks like the next; each shop sells almost the same products, as do the street vendors. The NYC Chinatown is amazing. It just keeps growing and growing. It has now taken over Little Italy, most of the Lower East Side, and continues to grow. Any time a shop is for rent, gone in hours to an Asian tenant. Chinese, Vietnamese, Malaysian shops and restaurants abound as do fish, produce, poultry, and souvenir shops.

Duck, duck, pork....

Coffee any one...... yes, this is at the entrance to a coffee shop.....

Be the first on your block to own one....Just great for your rear view mirror

Dragon fish.....?

Wedding Cake..........

Any bride would be proud.....

Taken at Philadelphia’s Italian Market. The produce, pasta and meats were wonderful. More pictures to follow..........

Chill Out.......

FROZEN GINGER PEACH/MANGO/PAPAYA SOUFFLÉS

If you can not find freash ripe fruit, frozen also works well

1 1/2 Pounds very ripe peaches or any low acid fruit
1 Teaspoon ginger juice 3/4 cup granulated sugar
6 Large egg yolks
1/2 Cup corn syrup
1/4 Cup nonfat vanilla yogurt
1 1/2 Cups heavy cream
1 Teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
Mint and fruit for garnish

• Peal, coarsely chop puree fruit.
• Place the fruit in a sauce pan with ginger juice and 1/4 cup granulated sugar.
• Heat over medium heat and simmer until soft.
• Remove from heat and cool.
• Place double thickness aluminum foil strips around small soufflé dishes with a 3/4 inch lip above the rim.
• Combine egg yolks, corn syrup and 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a mixing bowl, and make a double boiler.
• Heat mixture, whisking constantly for five minutes or to a temperature of 170°.
• Wisk in yogurt and remove to a mixing from the heat and beat with an electric mixer until very thick and cool.
• Set aside.
• Combine heavy cream, vanilla, and remaining sugar in a mixing bowl.
• Wisk until soft peaks.
• Fold in egg mixture.
• Fold in fruit mixture.
• Place mixture in soufflé dishes and freeze for eight hours.
• Garnish with fruit and mint and serve.
  You can also use one large soufflé dish and serve in wine goblets.

To Market, To Market....Intermarche.....

The Intermarche is France’s answer to Wal-Mart, but better. It is big, diverse, sells almost every thing and is the best super market I have ever visited. The selections of food and wine are extremely wide. On two visits to France, other then farmers markets, it was our market of choice.

Just over powering......and clean.....

Now that is a cheese selection.......

To Market, To Market…..Nuremberg, Germany…..

This fun fun little market is located in Hauptmarkt, Nuremberg's main town market square. The Hauptmarkt containes two of the city's best known landmarks -- the Frauenkirche, and the Schoener Brunnen. These two structures provided just the perfect setting for Nuremberg's many festivals. It is located below Kaiserburg, Nuremberg Castle. While a small market it is extremely divers and colourful. It is a great spot to sit, have a beer and watch the world go by.

The Schoener Brunnen, The term "Schoener Brunnen" literally meant "beautiful well". It was an artesian well that was decorated with some forty figurines of Nuremberger royalty.

To Market, To Market.......Chinatown, Vancouver, Canada

This market was a true surprise. Not sure why Vancouver’s Asian population is one of if not the largest in North America. Places to visit: Dr. Sun Yet Sun Chinese Garden, the market shops and a dim sum parlour atop the Chinatown mall. It was wonderful. Very few carts, but a long menu. We like this better, our choices are more diverse.

Lunch & Market, To Market….Salzburg…Austria…

Some days you are just charmed….. a few years ago on a river cruise on the Danube we made a stop with a side trip to Salzburg. Home of Mozart, but no one knows where he is buried. We did not visit the salt “mine” but did see wonderful churches and had lunch at a restaurant founded in 803 (no mistype, this is Europe).

Note the date on the crest.....

Well lunch with new and an old friend was interesting. I had quail, not sure want others had but…. At the next table was an American church choir, travelling from church to church singing. And oh my, the young ladies were lovely and the boys were geekey. But you could tell they, in a special way were “friends”. AND could they sing, and love it. They sang “the blessing” and a few other favourites just because, for them it was just so much fun……

Flowers are a large part of every market.......

Salzburg Market…. No Spargel …. White or green but the endive looks great…