FLUFFY PASTRIES FLOURISH IN FLUSHING BAKERY

Sponge cake is a common pastry which can be a bit chewy or not even make a dent on your teeth, yet alone your jawbone.  Chinese bakeries tend to use egg whites to make the difference. According to Raymond Chen, owner of Maxin, the pastries have less butter and sugar as well. 

I visited one of three Maxin bakeries located in downtown Flushing at 136-76 Roosevelt Avenue.  This particular bakery, known as Maxin’s Café, is the largest of the three and where all the baking occurs.  Chen originally opened a bakery on 41^st Rd, near the corner of Main Street.  That was in the year 2003.  However, that location expanded to become a fast food Chinese restaurant featuring dim sum.  More about that in a later article!

Rush hour is the best time to see the lines of people.  In the morning, it’s a basic grab and go from the constantly stocked shelves of both savory and sweet pastries, many of which are inside of or topping a bun.

Hot and savory steamed buns rest an oven-like stand.  Here you have a choice of: roast pork, pork and vegetable, chicken, Chinese sausage, red bean or just plain.  Baked buns are also available and if you want something heated up…no problem.  

I first indulged in both the roast pork and chicken steamed buns.  They were tasty and had enough “filling”.  However, I prefer the baked ones as I find them less “doughy”. 

One of the biggest sellers is a box of almond cookies that are not the large ones with the almond in the middle.  Instead these “egg white” cookies are small with a sugar glaze and chopped almonds on the top. 

My taste buds were quite surprised when I introduced my teeth and tongue to the cheesecake.  There are two kinds. One rests inside a sponge cake bun that has a hint of lemon. The other was a square of a whole cake, sponge at bottom, lemon flavor.  Quite creamy, too.

I normally nix a Napoleon.  It was the combination of the flakey pastry and cream done their way that had me eating it layer by layer.  

Being steps away from the entrance to the #7 line, Chen told me breakfast grabbing tends to be a cup of coffee and a sandwich.  Not only do they make buns, white bread and whole wheat bread is baked in these kitchens.  Quick sandwich of perhaps scrambled egg and tomato, or turkey to take to work. A bun and pastry for lunch.  Another line forms in the pm as people stop in for a variety of pastries to take home for dessert. 

Sponge cakes come in whole or thick slices with various flavors such as banana and chocolate chestnut. Red bean pastries are always available.

A glass case holds another group of pastries where you can purchase a whole cake.  Here is where you get your drinks of various flavored teas and smoothies.  With the Lunar New Year approaching on February 8, expect some special cakes made from sweet rice, that come in four flavors which can be either sweet or savory.  

The other locations are: 134-24 40^th Rd. and 37-02 Main Street.  Oh, I must not forget the square of chocolate cake to go.  Another unexpected and satisfying to a chocoholic.  Went perfect with a glass of Ronnybrook Farm milk!!

LOTUS FOODS YEAR OF THE RAMEN

Have you ever heard of the company Lotus Foods or have cooked or tasted their rice before? This is no ordinary white rice out of a box that is starchy and grainy. No way!

My friends, Nancy and Barbra met one of the co-founders and co-owner Caryl Levine as she gave them a brief history on the start and foundation of Lotus Foods. She explained how her and husband (co-founder and co-owner) Ken Lee wanted to become entrepreneurs.

In 1993 they planned a market research trip through China. They had one idea but they came back with 90. Within two years they narrowed their search and went ahead launching Lotus Foods and produced their first product in 1995.

Their trip in 1993 brought them to a remote area of China where they met a villager who sat them down with a steaming bowl of black rice. To these people it was known as “longevity rice” or “tribute rice”. It was given to their Emperors to ensure good health and longevity. Caryl and Ken trademarked this rice as “Forbidden Rice”.

As Lotus Foods, Caryl and Ken’s first mission was to “keep biodiversity of rice alive while giving the poorest farmer the best possible price and fair trade value", said Caryl. These farmers never had an opportunity to be a part of the global market place and now they can be.

In 2005 Cornell University contacted both Caryl and Ken and introduced them to farmers who use the System of Rice Intensification (SRI). I asked Caryl to educate me in the simplest way about SRI versus the conventional ort. "In conventional farming the fields are flooded and the seeds are 30-40 days old. While in SRI farming the fields are kept moist like watering a garden and taking water on and off. The seeds in comparison are only about 8-10 days old. These younger seeds are very small and they are planted farther apart from each other. This allows the plant to produce more photosynthesis allowing stronger root growth. When roots grow stronger there is more organic matter in the soil allowing plenty of rice kernels to grow. Lotus Foods wants to support farmers who use the SRI and there is a chance we can change the world by the way we do business. How many companies can do that?”

Lotus Foods has many varieties of rice. One study showed their Forbidden Rice aides as a blood toner, improves circulation, invigorates the spleen, brightens the eyes, and the best part shows four tablespoons of rice equals one tablespoon of blueberries without the sugar.
Since 1998 their Forbidden Rice has been in the National Association Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) aka The Fancy Food Show. They have won awards in categories of Outstanding New Product and Outstanding Food Service Product to name just a few.

Forbidden Rice is just one of many products of which some can be purchased Organic. There's Carnaroli (a sort of Risotto), Jasmine, brown Jasmine, Jade Pearl (kind of like a sushi rice with a wildcrafted bamboo extract, Indonesian Volcano, Cambodian Mekong Flower and the one we had, Madagascar Pink and the one we had, Bhutanese Red.

Caryl prepared a Bhutanese Red Rice mixed with extra virgin olive oil, cranberries, orange zest, and onions that cooked for less than 30 minutes. What a surprisingly great taste! They actually visited the rice cooker for two more helpings.

They also felt relieved to know that their rice was prepared with an all stainless steel rice cooker another product Lotus Foods has designed. Forget about those rice cookers that have Teflon and are carcinogenic. Another great feature of their rice cooker is the steaming tray so while you are cooking your rice you can steam another dish. On the steamer tray you can prepare a secondary idea using shrimp, vegetables, fish, and even warm up tortillas.

I happened to be checking out a website, Jet.com to find that they are selling ramen noodles made by Lotus Foods.  There are two types of packaging, a four portion pack of simply the ramen noodles and ramen noodles with either a powdered vegetable broth or miso soup, for a nutritious meal in itself.  The soup mixtures are much lower in sodium that those regular ramen soups and ramen noodles are gluten-free.

Place a cake in boiling water and it’s done in 4 minutes. Place in a bowl and stir in the soup mix.  If you want, add your favorite veggies, or protein for an even fuller meal. 

Buckwheat Mushroom Rice Ramen, traditional Japanese-style noodles made from organic buckwheat, mushrooms and whole grain brown rice instead of wheat! Earthy aroma and nutty taste.

In addition to being gluten free, Forbidden Rice is one of the most nutritious ancient grains. Their Forbidden Rice Ramen has a delicious nutty taste and is a natural source of antioxidants.

Jade Pearl Rice is infused with chlorophyll-rich, wild-crafted bamboo extract. Their Jade Pearl Rice Ramen has a delicious light vanilla taste and enhanced nutritional value.

Millet and Brown Rice are some of the most nutritious and easily digestible grains. Their Millet and Brown Rice Ramen has a delicious nutty taste and is a good source of fiber and protein.

Purple Potato & Brown Rice Ramen, traditional Japanese-style noodles made from organic purple sweet potatoes and brown rice instead of wheat!  They have paired antioxidant-rich purple potato with the whole grain nutrition of brown rice for a mildly sweet taste you’ll love. The ramen may be mildly sweet but the soup mix had a kick of cumin and pepper. 

Wakame and Brown Rice! They have also paired wakame seaweed, a great natural source of potassium and fiber with the whole grain nutrition of brown rice for a delicious rich taste with a hint of sea vegetable.

I love preparing a stir fry dinner while cooking up a cake of noodles.  I then drain the noodles and toss into the pan just as the meal is fully cooked.  I’m thinking of doing a weight loss substituting the ramen with soup mixture as two of my meals.  Each of these packets lists as two meals.  One large and tummy filling bowl is about 300 calories. They are certainly more nutritious and  cheaper than a Subway sandwich. 

I’m going to take a chance on making a quick rice pudding by first preparing the noodles. There are two methods, one of which will allow a the raw egg to cook and need just one pan.  The other requires baking….not sure which one I’ll try using: the egg, half and half (from Ronnybrook Farms, of course), sugar, cinnamon, and ground cardamom.  

Visit www.lotusfoods.com  for further information and the best way to purchase the products.

PING PONG DIPLOMACY

"IN JACKSON HEIGHTS" SETTLES IN ASTORIA

Frederick Wiseman was a no-show at the New York Film Critics Circle Awards Jan. 5.
When Susan Sarandon, born in Jackson Heights, presented the award for best non-fiction film for Wiseman’s latest “In Jackson Heights,” the director was in Europe, shooting his next movie.

However, City Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights), who appears in the highly acclaimed project, was in attendance to do the accepting.

“I was extremely honored to be asked to accept the award for this documentary,” Dromm said. “I was very pleased to receive the award from Susan Sarandon. As Ms. Sarandon and I both stated at the event, ‘In Jackson Heights’ has a lesson of tolerance and acceptance to teach to the rest of the world. What an honor it was to be among so many important people.”

What makes this epic three-hour documentary different from most is noticeable within its first 10 minutes.

There is not any narrator, or anyone being interviewed. Wiseman simply takes his camera and travels around the area as if he is just dropping in, with everyone seemingly oblivious to the fact that being filmed is not something that happens to them every day.
Dromm calls Jackson Heights “the most diversified community in the whole world. We have 167 languages spoken here.”

In fact, so many languages are spoken in the film, that English subtitles are provided.
“There are communities of people from every country in South and Central America as well as large groups of people from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Nepal and Tibet,” Wiseman said in a statement. “They live together with the descendants of earlier immigrants to America — Italian, Jewish and Irish. The area is a true American melting pot reminiscent of the Lower East Side of New York City at the end of the 19th century.”

Those many languages are just one example of the wide variety of people and cultures who appear in the film. From Muslims praying and teaching, to Latino groups, East Indians, seniors and the largest LGBT community in Queens, the film examines the many sides of the neighborhood, as well as the issues that concern them.

Those issues, however, are not simply a Jackson Heights topic but one that much of America deals with.

There is no “town hall” here. In fact, it appears that the local Jewish Center is the largest gathering venue, particularly for seniors and the LGBT population.

A gay Latino bartender, Julio Rivera, was the victim of a brutal hate crime in 1991. It could have been brushed off by the police if the neighborhood hadn’t taken active steps to address this as a community.

Another issue involves a transgender Latina who launches a boycott of a Greek-owned pizzeria that she believes is guilty of discriminating against her and her transgender friends.
You may want to turn away when chickens at a live-poultry farm have their throats slit. You will hear the Muslim workers doing solemn prayers for the lives that are about to be taken. Business Improvement Districts become a hot topic as the livelihoods of Latino neighborhood residents are threatened by the effects of gentrification, with real-estate mongers buying out long-time “Mom and Pop” storefronts. Priced out of areas such as Long Island City, they see Jackson Heights appearing to be the next “trendy” neighborhood.

The immigrant experience is one of the largest topics of the movie. We become a part of a meeting held by a group called Make the Road, NY as its leader asks for someone to talk about their experiences of crossing the border. Celia, a middle-aged Mexican illegal immigrant, shares an approximately 10-minute-long narrative about how her daughter was abandoned in the desert by the coyotes, guides who help people cross the border, with the promise of helping her. If not for two “acts of God,” she says her daughter would have died in the desert. One of those acts involved a blinding white light in a hazy horizon; the other a sudden rainfall.

“In Jackson Heights” also has a less serious side, showing us concerts in the street, people playing instruments in a Laundromat as well as other uncommon venues, and the cheering or non-cheering of Latino groups as they watch soccer games.
“The Jackson Heights depicted in the film is a large part of the Jackson Heights that I know and love and is the Jackson Heights that people travel from around the world to visit,” Dromm said. “Jackson Heights is hot.”

If you Go
“In Jackson Heights”
When: Through Jan. 31
Where: Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35th Ave., Astoria
Cost: $12/adults, $9/seniors and students, $6/children
Contact: (718) 777-6888
Website: www.movingimage.us

AND HERE’S THE LATEST

Do children really look at the face of their snuggle toys?  One toy company has come out with Ugly Snuglies, “So ugly, they’re cute” or as they continue to say, “You don’t have to be perfect to be loved. It’s what’s inside that counts.”  Each of the extremely soft oversized “pets” has a built in surprise allowing kids to do more than simply snuggle.

Here is the lowdown on what’s in the Velcro pockets.  “Inside Porky Panda is a super soft blanket that’s perfect for sleepovers. Krazy Kitty has a light in its tail, so you can read at night, or in the car. Bizarre Bear has 5 secret pockets so you can hide all of your favorite stuff. Unusual Unicorn has an alarm clock, so you can wake up for school every morning by yourself. Rowdy Rabbit has a hidden FM radio, so you can listen to all your favorite music. Pouty Pig has a secret piggy bank inside…It’s the perfect place to save all your money.”  I guess it depends upon the age of the child as to whether they have money to put in there. 

I was able to sample three of the products with help from 3-year-old Quinn.  She was given Krazy Kitty and loved it.  Here dad told me, “She kept on insisting on putting it in the garbage can because I think it reminded her of Oscar the grouch and believed that it lived in the garbage.” After explaining that it’s not a character from Sesame Street, Quinn took it with her to bed.  

Unusual Unicorn is for an older child who needs to wake up for school.  It does take some manipulating to set a timer.   Of the three, Rowdy Rabbit would also work best for an even older child as the FM stations can be changed as well as the volume.   Then again, these days I have to ask a 6-year-old how to use my Smart TV.  Instructions come with the toy or you can go to their website of www.uglysnuglies.com

On the food scene…it appears that Joe’s Shanghai is not the only soup dumpling in town.  Flushing restaurants have added this delicious delicacy to their menu.  I’m just giving you a sneak peek at one that recently opened “softly”.  It’s called Shanghai You Garden, located at 133-33 40^th Rd. Unfortunately I popped in without my camera as I love taking food photos. 

My friend and I sampled a few of the items beginning with the dumplings.  One had pork, the other had crab (the real thing) and pork.  The skins are paper-thin with a good amount of “stuffing”. It comes with a vinegar-soy sauce-ginger dipping sauce although you don’t really need it as the soup is soooooo good! 

That would have been enough for lunch (6 dumplings per serving) but we became curious.  Laurie wanted to check out a cold dish, vegetarian appetizer, Braised Bean Curd.  Fortunately for me, Laurie does not like mushrooms so I was able to chow down on those and another fungus-like vegetable. 

We had a dessert called Sweet Rice Bowl.  In was warm and looked like gummy rice dumplings in an egg drop soup.  Different and pretty good. 

I got word that the owners of Shanghai You Garden own a few other restaurants in downtown Flushing.  One is a fast food eatery where you can get the more typical dim sum such as chicken feet and Peking duck in a bun.  Another has Szechuan cuisine and the other is a bakery!  Stay tuned for further articles.

On the movie scene.  I’ll simply give you a statement from Daniel Dromm.  "In Jackson Heights is a wonderful depiction of many communities within the community of Jackson Heights," said NYC Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights, Elmhurst).  "With the film already being three hours long, obviously not every community could get equal time on screen.  The Jackson Heights depicted in the film is a large part of the Jackson Heights that I know and love, and is the Jackson Heights that people travel from around the world to visit.  Jackson Heights is hot."

"I was extremely honored to be asked by In Jackson Heights Filmmaker Fred Wiseman to accept the New York Film Critics Circle Award for this documentary at an event held at Tao Downtown.  I had never been in a room full of so many movie stars, directors and other movers and shakers in the film industry.  I was very pleased to receive the award from Susan Sarandon who grew up in Jackson Heights.  As Ms. Sarandon and I both stated at the event, In Jackson Heights has a lesson of tolerance and acceptance to teach to the rest of the world.  What an honor it was to be among so many important people." 

Interested in seeing the movie?  Not sure if and when it will be shown at “the theatre nearest you” and expected to come out on DVD this year.  MOMI has it scheduled from January 15-21^st.   I hope there is an inter-pish-ion. 

PING PONG

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