foodstuffs

Chicken for Breakfast!

Most people I know do not eat chicken for breakfast. I wouldn't either, except that when I stay over at Mickey Rooney's house, my walk to the subway in the morning involves a trip by L'il Miss Muffin and Her Stuffin' -- a small storefront that hovers over the 7th Avenue Q stop.

Now, I've eaten L'il Miss Muffin's muffins, and I don't exactly rave about them. She offers an impressive selection, but they are some heavy, buttery suckers (you know, you can see the grease through the bag by the time you get to work).

But I WILL rave about her BBQ-chicken patty, kept warm in the glass cabinet on the counter. Similar in shape, size and concept to a Jamaican beef patty, these patties are wrapped in a flaky, buttery golden crust, and stuffed with moist, smoky chicken, swimming in savory, sweet barbecue sauce. The chicken is thankfully mostly composed of the more flavorful dark meat.

These patties stay warm for the duration of my subway ride (about 20 minutes), and are such a joy to scarf down in the morning. Your co-workers will in fact wonder what smells so freakin' good -- and you can just smile and say "That's my chicken for breakfast."

Note: I have also sampled the veggie patty, the beef patty and the jerk chicken from L'il Miss Muffin, and was less impressed. If you must have these items, I am a bigger fan of Christie's, located across Flatbush on the corner of Sterling Place. But I do not know if they are open for breakfast.

- a recipe for Jamaican beef patties
- This week's New York Times' Sunday magazine included a mouthwatering recipe for jerk chicken from Jimbojean's on Flatbush Ave.

Trinidadian Treat

One of my favorite "wrapped in dough" items is not quite wrapped in dough. Rather, it's two eggy pancakes mashed together around a dollop of curried chick peas, served warm. This is known as a "doubles", and is a snack that hails from Trinidad. I really don't think this photo does it justice. It even kind of looks unappetizing -- but trust me: it's delicious.

According to Chowhound, a doubles is "is called 'doubles' because it comprises two light mini bakes (baras) between which the vendor puts a few spoonfuls of the filling." Hmm, OK, well I guess that explains it. And it's a delightful, savory treat. You can usually get a doubles with hot sauce. Two doubles are definitely enough to fill you up for lunch.

I recommend washing your doubles down with Ting, the Jamaican grapefruit soda that is NOT sweet, and NOT like Fresca.

I get my doubles for $1.25 each from Nio's Roti truck, which is usually parked on the corner of Front Street and Pine Street in the financial district during lunch hours. The "mothership" of Nio's is in Flatbush, Brooklyn, on the corner of Church and Rogers. I've driven by it, but never stopped.

Another Trinidadian specialty is roti. Find some in your neighborhood.

Wrap Me In Dough

I am obsessed with any food wrapped in dough. It doesn't matter the cuisine -- just put a filling in dough, heat it up, and I want it! (I admit to being less keen on desserts/sweets). This is a broad genre of foods that reaches across cultural borders.

Here's a list of all the filling-wrapped-in-dough items that I can think of. Hardly an exhaustive list, either.

- Ravioli
- Empanadas
- Stromboli
- Calzone
- Tortellini
- Pot-stickers
- Shumai
- Pierogis
- Tamales
- Tagines
- Samosas
- Corn Dogs
- Blintzes (or are these more like crepes?)
- Dumplings
- Pasteles

Feel free to add to the list. I have decided that I am going to make "Wrapped in Dough" its own category on this site, because I love them so much. I will post specifically about these items as I discover them