Brooklyn Restaurant Week starts Tomorrow!

Monday, March 19th through Thursday, March 29th over 175 Brooklyn restaurants will offer a three course menu for $25 per person. Palo Santo will be participating for the sixth year running, and for the first time our new BBQ restaurant Fort Reno will also be in the game.

Meat & Sides at Fort Reno

Also noteworthy, tomorrow night also brings the return of our Palo Santo Rooftop Greens. Thanks to a mild end to the winter our rooftop garden is already sprouting to life with tender green shoots! This season we will be accepting help from volunteers. So, drop us a line if you would like to get up on the rooftop with us and help with the planting, weeding, harvesting and composting. Free beer for all volunteers!

Sprouting Greens on the rooftop

At Palo Santo our Restaurant Week menu will change nightly, and we will try to post a few of them up here on this blog. This is what we have for opening night:

Anticuchos at Palo Santo

 

 

Appetizers:

*

Rooftop Greens

*

Garbanzo & Spinach Soup

*

Chayote Salad

orange/watercress/vanilla

*

Beet Salad

blue cheese/almonds/pickled onions

*

Anticuchos

*

Pork Tostada

black beans/queso fresco/radish

***

Main Courses:

*

Plantain Stew

mushroom /jasmine rice

*

Picante de Mariscos

clams/mussels/scallops

*

Roast Fish & Plantain

hot slaw / salsa verde

 *

Asopado de Pollo

tomatillo/fava greens

*

Braised Short Ribs

mashed potatoes/spinach

Revolutionary Restaurant Sourcing

Friday, February 24^th 2012 from 2:45-4PM

 

Fort Reno Pitmaster Lia Forman is speaking at Just Food’s annual Conference on the topic of Revolutionary Restaurant Sourcing: How restaurants buy, grow, and support local food. Before Fort Reno opened in January 2012, Forman was sous chef at Park Slope’s Palo Santo, cooking with homegrown vegetables from Palo Santo’s rooftop garden. In addition to produce from the Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket located right up the street, Forman cooks up grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, and heritage breed pork.

Forman will discuss what it means to be a conscientious chef with Mary Cleaver from Cleaver Co., Sean Dimin from Sea to Table, Evan Hanczor from egg, moderated by Jimmy Carbone from Jimmy’s No. 43.

Revolutionary Restaurant Sourcing

Friday, February 24, 2012 from 2:45-4PM

Auditorium of the Food & Finance High School

525 W. 50^th St.

NY, NY 10019

www.fort-renu.us

www.palosanto.us

www.justfood.org

It’s that time of the year again! Seed planting time. This year we have a fancy new indoor grow light set up.

Papalo is one of our favorite herbs to garnish tacos

homegrown tobacco for cooking

 

And in rabbit news... The cycle of life continues with the birth of five new bunnies.

Available Saturday, February 11th – Valentine’s Day Tuesday, February 14th

$150 per couple

*Please Call For Reservations

(718) 636-6311

Oyster Ceviche or Citrus, Radish & Olive Salad

Cauliflower Soup with Popcorn Oil

***

Choice of

Grilled Gulf Shrimp, Sea Urchin, Avocado & Cucumber

Artichokes a la Plancha, Mushrooms & Almond Romesco

Steak Tartare, Guajillo Aioli & Manchego Toasts

***

Choice of

Guiso de Verduras, Eggplant, Okra & Chickpeas

Grilled Venison, Mole Poblano & Black Bean Sope

Swordfish, Quinoa, Endive & Grapefruit

Ropa Vieja, Arroz Verde & Sunny Side Up Egg

***

Chef’s Tasting of Desserts

CHRISTMAS EVE

Saturday, December 24th 2011

***

AT PALO SANTO

Bring your friends and visiting relatives to have Christmas Eve dinner with us! Our daily changing menu will feature some very special holiday favorites and seasonally inspired dishes, including Free-Range Goose from Heritage Foods U.S.A. Take advantage of our thrifty $27 three course prix fixe or splurge on the five course ($55 per person) chef’s holiday tasting menu.

Here is a sampling of what we have planned:

Stewed Garbanzos

pumpkin / coconut / jasmine rice

Picante de Mariscos

mussels / shrimp / squid / chile paste

Seared Yellowfin Tuna

sweet potato / avocado / red onion

Pozole Verde

slow cooked pork / spicy tomatillo broth / chicarron

Goose 2 ways

christmas stuffing, quince paste, brussels sprouts

Dessert Tasting

paired with a glass of Alcyone Reserva

December 31st 2011

5:00 – 7:00 pm Three Course Prix Fixe

$45 per person

9:30pm Seven Course Tasting Menu with wine Pairings

$145 per person

Call for reservations 718.636.6311

Oyster Ceviche

-’08 Bodegas Carrau Sust Brut, Cerro Chapeu, Uruguay

 

Lobster Tostada

avocado / crème fraiche / homemade tortillas

-’09 Dr. Konstantin Frank Rkatsiteli, Fingerlakes, NY

Grilled Swordfish

pomegranate / endive / heirloom radish

’10 Channing Daughters Sylvanus, Long Island, NY

Soupe Giraumon

slow cooked pork / stewed pumpkin / cornmeal dumplings

-’08 Heron Hill Blaufrankisch, Fingerlakes, NY

Braised Lamb

chayote gratin / red wine / root vegetables

-’06 Neyen Syrah, Colchagua Valley, Chile

Grass-Fed Beef Tenderloin

black lentils / mushrooms / greens

-’06 Viñedo de los Vientos Ripasso de Tannat, Atlantida, Uruguay

Dessert Tasting

-’06 Viñedo de los Vientos Alcyone Reserva, Atlantida, Uruguay

Time to Finish up that Turkey!

 

 

Sick of turkey sandwiches, the gravy is long gone, but the rest of that turkey day bird is still staring at you every time you open the fridge.

What to do?

…Dump it all into a Turkey Pot Pie bitch!

 

Here’s a recipe for the one that I just made:

 

Flaky Crust:

1/4 lb. all purpose flour

1/4 lb. whole wheat flour

1/4 lb. butter

1/4 lb. rendered bacon fat

1/2 tsp salt

 

1) In a mixing bowl, blend the flours, salt and bacon fat with your finger tips.

2) Add just enough water to keep the dough together and work it into a ball.

3) Let the dough rest in the fridge and the butter soften on the counter top for 30 minutes. (this is a good time to start making the gravy)

4) Pull the rested dough out of the fridge and put it out on a floured board.

5) Roll the dough out until it is about 1/2 inch thick.

6) Spread the softened butter on the rolled out dough.

7) Fold the dough over and roll it out again. Repeat this step three times.

8) Rest the dough in the fridge again before rolling it out for the pie.

 

Milk Gravy:

2 lbs roasted turkey bones broken into pieces

1 carrot peeled and chopped

1 onion peeled and chopped

2 celery stalks chopped

2 bay leaves

2 oz. butter

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup white wine

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

 

1) Boil the turkey bones, carrot, onion, celery and bay leaves in just enough water to cover them. Turn down the heat and let the pot simmer for at least an hour, but more cooking time is better.

2) Melt the butter in a large sauce pan.

3) Add the flour to the melted butter and whisk until it turns golden brown.

4) Deglaze with the wine and whisk while adding the cream.

5) Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper and whisk until it thickens. Remove from heat.

6) Strain the turkey stock.

7) Reduce the turkey stock to 1 cup.

8) Combine the turkey stock and the thickened cream.

 

Assemble the Pot Pie:

Crust

Gravy

1 lb cooked turkey meat chopped (I included the gizzards)

1 lb raw vegetables chopped (I used leeks and green beans, but you use just about any vegetable. Potatoes, squash, peas, brussels, parsnips and artichokes are all good)

salt and pepper to taste

 

*Preheat your oven to 375f

1) Combine the gravy, turkey and veggies.

2) Taste and season with salt and pepper.

3) Fill a 9″ pie pan with the mixture.

4) Roll the crust out in a circle just big enough to cover the pie pan with 1 inch overlapping on all sides.

5) Cover the pie with the rolled out crust and gently press down on all sides.

6) Punch a few small holes in the middle of the pie crust.

7) Bake the pie until the crust is golden brown.

 

Serve the Pot Pie!

Palo Santo Thanksgiving Menu

Reservations available from 2pm to 8pm

718 636-6311

Adults $60 ~ Kids $30

First Course:

Rutabaga & Apple Soup

 

Second Course Choice of:

Sweet Potato Ceviche

avocado / cilantro / lime

Chicory Salad

bacon / sherry vinegar / rajas / queso cotija

Roasted Cauliflower

chimichurri / anchovy / bread crumbs

 or

Anticuchos de Pavo

Third Course Choice of:

Chestnut Dumplings

roasted mushrooms / creamed swiss chard

Line Caught Swordfish

butternut squash / pomegranate / endive

Pavo en Mole Poblano

braised turkey / plantain stuffing / peanuts / raisins

Roasted Heritage Turkey

quince / brussels / celery root gratin

Wild Boar Shank

romanesco / parsnip puree / plum butter

 Dessert:

Tasting of Three Seasonal Postres

 

 

 

 

MISSING:

 

Dear Friends of Palo Santo,

 

This week the Haitian license plate was removed from the Palo Santo restroom. The license plate was from Chef Jacques Gautier’s grandfather’s car in Port-au-Prince.

 

Palo Santo is so homey because it is filled with personal stories: Trinidad’s tile mosaics, Brett and Alonso’s tables, Lindsay’s buoy, Trudy’s juice pitchers, and my wood carving of the Haitian coat of arms. I feel lucky to be surrounded by things people cherish at a job that is important to me serving people I care about.

 

I have read the inscription on the license plate “la pearl des Antilles” everyday at work for three years and I find comfort in telling myself in the midst of a stressful day, “yes Haiti is a pearl.”

 

Please return the license plate. Drop it off, send it in the mail, slip it back in the restroom. The nails are still in the wall.

 

Love,

Araby

 

 

 

 

Snow falling in Brooklyn in October?

 

 

I guess that’s it for this year’s growing season…

 

Last chance to pick the rest of the tomatillos and hot peppers!

 

 

Time to make the last batch of 2011 Rooftop Salsa…