Category Archives: baking

Evelyn’s Kitchen in East Harlem taking food and dessert orders for Thanksgiving Holiday

Need help in the kitchen for the Thanksgiving holiday? We hear Evelyn’s Kitchen in East Harlem can assist in both the food and dessert area. They are taking orders now for the Thanksgiving Holiday. All orders for Thanksgiving must be placed by Monday, November 19th. A 48 hours notice is required for all orders and pickup will be available until 10 pm on Wednesday, November 21st.

Evelyn’s Kitchen (EK) is a baked goods and catering company located at 2317 First Avenue in East Harlem. EK bakery creates delicious goodies right in East Harlem that can be picked up or shipped anywhere in the US. And they also have a cafe where walk ins can purchase a variety of “dangerously delicious desserts.”

To view and order from the holiday menu, go here. And to learn more about Evelyn’s Kitchen based in East Harlem, check out their website or Facebook page.

Evelyn’s Kitchen
2317 First Avenue, NYC 10035
646-476-7906
goodies@evelyns-kitchen.com

Attend Manhattan Country School Farm Festival in East Harlem October 20

Every year Manhattan Country School (MCS) in East Harlem aims to bring a little bit of the Catskills to the streets and children of NYC during their annual Farm Festival. This Fall season is no different. MCS will host its annual Farm Festival for children ages 3 and up from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, October 20. This is when parent volunteers turn East 96th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues into an urban carnival, offering family friendly entertainment including rides, games, crafts, a silent auction, raffles and live music-all for FREE! The MCS Farm Festival also offers a selection of homemade baked goods, a wide variety of delicious ethnic cuisine and fresh produce from their farm in Roxbury, NY.

Admission is free and tickets for food, games and rides will be available for purchase. In the event of rain, festivities will take place indoors.

MCS Farm Festival – FREE
Saturday, Oct. 20, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
7 East 96 Street, NY 10128 (which is where Harlem begins on the East side)
Between Fifth and Madison Avenues, Near Central Park

Subway/Bus directions
Take the #6 to 96 Street or MTA bus M1, M2, M3, M4, M96

Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe opening soon in East Harlem


The folks behind Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe have reached out saying they are scheduled to open in East Harlem on October 22nd. Their new home is at 2248 First Avenue between 115th and 116th Streets. This new business is owned by “natives of East Harlem and they are excited to be opening in the area where they grew up.” Some of their featured desserts will a Red Velvet Doughnut, Bourbon Hazelnut Sticky Bun and out of this world Pumpkin Cake. Yum!

Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe already has a website up and ready to go. Check it out!

Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe
2248 First Avenue (between 115th & 116th Street)
New York, NY 10029
Phone: 212.360.0010
Fax: 212.360.0012

Beurre & Sel made in East Harlem

A reader from Battery Park City shared some sweet news with us about Beurre & Sel, which mean butter and salt, and it’s connection to Harlem. Beurre & Sel is a French cookie business owned and operated by a mother and son duo, Doris Greenspan and Joshua Greenspan, along with a business partner. The Greenspan’s recently opened up two Beurre & Sel locations: one on the Lower East Side and the other at La Marqueta in Spanish Harlem, 1590 Park Avenue and 115th Street to be exact! According to a New York Times article, all the baking is done in East Harlem. So when the hipsters are nibbling on a fancy French cookie from Beurre & Sel on the LES, they’re eating something that’s handmade in Harlem! Love it!

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Melba’s Restaurant returns to The View July 24

The ladies from ABC’s The View will be in the kitchen soon with Harlem’s Melba Wilson, the owner of Melba’s Restaurant on 114th Street and Frederick Douglass Blvd! On July 24, Melba returns to the morning talk show where she “will cook it up” with the ladies on The View. Way to go Melba! Details are below!

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Support East Harlem Cafe in their 10k in 30 days campaign

Remember how I told you about 67 Orange in Harlem creating a campaign to raise money for various items in the bar? East Harlem Cafe is taking the same approach by asking the community to join in helping them raise $10,000 in 30 days. The café needs kitchen storage, supplies and food prep equipment.  In order to purchase these items, East Harlem Cafe is turning to members of the local and global community for assistance, instead of going to big banks for a loan with high interest rates to expand.

If you would like to invest in East Harlem Cafe, go here from more details.

Watch Savoring Harlem on the Food Network Friday, February 24


This coming Friday (Feb. 24) at 8 pm our very own celebrity chef, Red Rooster owner, and Harlem local, Marcus Samuelsson, will give Food Network viewers a closer look at Harlem’s food revolution through a special TV program called Savoring Harlem.  In the TV special, Savoring Harlem will showcase the food culture of  several Harlem restaurants, such as Red Rooster Harlem, Melba’s, restaurant pioneer Sylvia’s and more.

Yum! This will be fun to watch and then go out to eat in Harlem afterwards. Turn your tube on at 8 pm to the Food Network!

Harlem’s restaurant row, Frederick Douglass Blvd., has its own map and alliance group

It’s official…again! Frederick Douglass Blvd in Harlem from 110th to 125th Street, also known as restaurant row, has its very own map, according to The New York Daily News. And the folks behind the map is an alliance group called Frederick Douglass Boulevard Alliance (FDBA). Check out the map below. It mentions all existing businesses from 110th to 124th Street. The map does not include up and coming places on FDB, such as the Harlem Food Bar or Marcos Leatherlab, the cobbler store.

Lia San Filippo, co-owner of 5 and Diamond Harlem restaurant and co-president of the recently formed FDBA, tells the Daily News “the map was created to help people know that Harlem is here and helps customers find us more easily.” Amen Lia!

Back in 2008, I wrote a blog posting asking if FDB is turning into Harlem’s restaurant row? Looks like we have our answer not only in a map but in the form of an alliance group!

Reminder: Harlem’s Lee, Lee’s Bakery to be featured on New York’s WABC

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About a month ago HarlemGal Inc. told you about Alvin Lee Smalls of Harlem’s Lee, Lee’s Bakery being interviewed by New York City’s WABC. Well, we know the dates on when the interview will air on Channel 7. Tune in this Saturday, December 17 at 7 pm and then on Sunday, December 18 at 5:30 am. After those air dates, the interview will be streamed on WABC’s website. Hope everyone will watch!
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Cook recipes from Chef Stephen Putnam from Lido Harlem, two recipes available

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Chef Stephen Putnam from Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar in Harlem recently participated in Macy’s Cellar Kitchen series cooking some of his recipes offered at Lido Harlem, located on the southeast corner of Frederick Douglass Blvd and 117th Street! If you’ve ever wanted recipes from Chef Putnam from Lido Harlem so that you can enjoy some of his creations at home, HarlemGal Inc has two recipes to offer up right now! And these recipes are simple too!

If you try these recipes below, let us know how the dish(es)came out! Bon appetit!

Spaghetti with roasted veal meatballs and San Marzano Tomatoes
6 cans San Marzano Tomatoes
1 bunch celery
2 Spanish onions
5 carrots peeled
¼ c. chopped garlic
Hand full of basil
¼ cup EVOO
Salt and pepper to taste
In a bowl of a Cuisine Art place the washed vegetables into the bowl and chop the vegetables fine. Place a medium size stainless pot on the stove and preheat pot over medium heat add olive oil and sauté garlic and vegetables until translucent. Place the tomatoes in a food mill and put the tomatoes in the pot and cook roughly an hour over low heat. Place in the refrigerator to cool. Sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week. Sauce can also be frozen.

Veal meatballs
5# ground veal
½ cup parmesan cheese
2 whole eggs
½ bunch basil
¼ artesian bread with the crust removed cut into small cubes and soaked in ½ cup milk
½ bunch Italian flat leaf parsley
1 TBL chopped garlic
4 shallots chopped fine
2 oz. EVOO
1 pinch red pepper flakes
Combine all ingredients. Mix by hand or use a kitchen aide with paddle attachment. Mix well or the ball will fall apart. Using a 2oz scoop make all the mixture and place on a sheet tray lined with parchment and bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes or until cooked through.

Octopus Salad with sausage, potato and orange
1-2-4 # octopus (I like the one’s from Spain)
1# peanut or fingerling potatoes
1# Fennel sausage (sweet or hot) ground
3 bunches Frissee cleaned and rinsed
1 ½ cups Orange juice
Pinch red pepper flakes
Red wine vinegar
¼ tsp. cumin
Olive oil
Gaetta olives

Fill pot with water and add salt until the water tastes like the ocean bring to a boil and add octopus and two corks from a wine bottle to the water. Place the potatoes also in salted water and cook until soft and cool in the fridge. Saute your sausage in a sauté pan until cook through and set aside. Meanwhile place your oj, cumin and pepper flakes in a small sauce pot and reduce until the oj is the consistency of syrup and set aside to cool.
To plate:
Heat a skillet on high heat when hot add olive oil and a pich of salt to the oil and place the octopus in the sauté pan and brown on all sides, you can brown you potatoes and heat the sausage at the same time. In a small mixing bowl put the vinegar, oil and reduced oj and mix well. Toss frissee, potatoes, olives, and sausage together and dress the salad place on plates and slice your octopus and place on top and drizzle a little more dressing on the octopus and serve.

Broccoli rabe pesto
2 bunch basil
16 oz. olive oil
1 tsp garlic
Handful parmesan cheese
1 qt. broccoli rabe
¼ cup lemon juice
S&P
Place everything in a bowl of your Cuisine Art and puree.

Onion Jam
6 Spanish onions
1 qt. white balsamic
½ cup sugar
Slice your onions and cook until lightly brown and all the vinegar has evaporated. Place everything in a bowl of your Cuisine Art and puree.