Savor it While it Lasts

Vassar is fast approaching

and my days of working an internship and a job will soon be over

so will be the days of restaurant hopping in Hell's Kitchen,

hanging out in Chipotle on those sweltering hundred degree days,

just for the refillable soda with the lemon twist

real ice cream cones will be long gone, and I'll be stuck eating fro-yo from wafer cones

my dog won't wander in to my room late at night

air conditioning will be a thing of the past

so I have to bask in the things I love, for the next three weeks

My devotion to Cafe Bustelo & Pilon will never falter,

Spanish coffee all day everyday, con leche and lots of sugar

just the way my mom makes it every single morning

heating the milk in a separate pot, it becomes my job to make sure it doesn't boil over

and boy, that sure is a lot of responsibility

I appreciate our cabinet shelves, lined with assorted Goya products so much more now

my mom & Goya really make magic together

The best thing is being able to travel to any continent,

from the comfort of the East Village

First Avenue takes me to India, with all the lights

and celebration of a festival

not to mention deliciously addictive cheese naan

(think a match made in grill cheese-Desi fusion heaven)

At work I can revel in both Japanese & Afghan cuisine
Even Ukraine isn't out of reach, I gotta love authentic pierogies

even though I think at Vassar they do them pretty well,

my roommate would always look forward to pierogie night

the one night of the month she would decide to emerge from

the cave that was our room, and when she didn't

I would smuggle ziplock bags and tupperwares of them

so she could freeze them and have real dinner (ie not cereal) for days

she's the one thing that I don't have while I'm at home,

and I miss her & her Midwestern charm

but most of all, I miss her stressed out habit

of making turbans out of scarfs

she'd don them at night, while struggling with chemistry chapters

My (few) days of being a home-cook were awesome

I'll have to give that up in the communal dorm kitchens

which frequently are missing key things, like spatulas

I'll have to trade in the tastes of my childhood

I remember sitting in small Puerto Rican restaurants

waiting on my pernil & tostones, sipping Coco Rico coconut soda,

light and refreshing

Kola Champagne to accompany my rice & beans,

its not the same having Diet Coke out of soda machines

The last thing I must savor in these last 3 weeks

are beautiful mountains of ice cream

my heart breaks at the thought of being without the creamy goodness.

Culinary Delights in Jackson Heights

I have a shameful, shameful secret

before yesterday the only Indian food I had ever eaten

were run of the mill samosas with cooling yogurt sauce

out of greasy paper bags while walking around the

empty streets of Woodside,

that all changed yesterday

when I went to the famed Jackson Diner in Jackson Heights

Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake

(great, amazing book, please read it)

inspired me to look at Jackson Heights differently

to walk out from 74th street train station

and not just focus on the bus I always have to catch

but instead, to emerge from the F train

to confront all the sights, the sounds, the pleasant congestion, and the assorted aromas

and watch the way the gold embellishments on saris

are complimented by the yellow of traffic lights

the way their jewel tones glint in the sunlight

and how the blaring Bollywood tapes and the clank of yellow-gold bangles

contrast the sounds of traffic, and the hurried conversations

so, out of the many days I spent in Jackson Heights

yesterday was the most special, because I was the most aware of its

raw, almost foreign beauty, although I had walked those streets

a million times

now, to the food,

anyone wanting to try deliciously authentic Indian fare

Jackson Diner is the place

I loved the eccentric array of plates, from rainbow ceramics to metal bowls and trays

I died for the cilantro and tamarind dipping sauces

and was literally eating spoonfuls (and fingerfuls)

of sauce between courses, not very ladylike

but who gives about manners when food is so delicious

I enjoyed vegetable pakora (battered & fried)

and malai kofta, croquettes in a curry sauce

which was more like a stew

a deliciously thick hearty bowl of everything amazing

and the rice, with its long, sticky grains,

topped with the dal (lentil stew)

was to die for, and let me tell you,

this Puerto Rican girl knows good rice & beans

anyhow, the best part of the whole day was dessert (of course)

and I enjoyed some burfi from Delhi Palace, a sweet, creamy,

neon pastry of milk & sugar

I picked it because of its beautiful florescent color

and found that the it tastes just as good as it looks,

I'm totally addicted, and it helped cool my mouth down

from all the preceding spicy greatness

all in all, it was a culinary adventure, in a familiar place: the best kind.

rows of beautifully bright pastries

obsession worthy burfi

pakora nom nom

I could eat this malai kofta every single day, more croquettes please!

such authentic presentation

it felt so homey, warm & comforting

I'm so smitten.