My name is Mr. Bloom and I'm from New Rochelle

My name is Mr. Bloom and I'm from New Rochelle

The late great song parodist Allan Sherman mentions New Rochelle in "Shine On, Harvey Bloom," his very funny take on the popular Tin Pan Alley song "Shine On, Harvest Moon."  And speaking of harvest moons, the one tonight (Sunday, September 27th) will also be the first super moon lunar eclipse in 32 years!

The American Dreamer

The American Dreamer

Congratulations to our very own media librarian Chris Poggiali, who wrote the 16-page booklet essay for the DVD/Blu-ray of the Dennis Hopper documentary The American Dreamer, available today from Etiquette Pictures!

The library currently has The American Dreamer on order and it will be available to our patrons next week!

The Ladies Man

The Ladies Man

Jerry Lewis appeared onstage at the RKO Proctor's theater here in New Rochelle on July 12th, 1961 for the opening of The Ladies Man, his second feature film as a director.  It was announced this week that Lewis has donated an extensive archive of his films, TV shows and other recordings to the Library of Congress, where the material will be available to researchers, historians and critics.

Find The Ladies Man in our collection, click here. 

Contributor: Chris Poggiali, Librarian @ NRPL.

What Have We Been Cooking Up at NRPL?

What Have We Been Cooking Up at NRPL?

In the last session of “Science and Cooking Experiments,” on August 10^th, instructor Jeremy Miransky provided a cool, sweet ending to a wonderful summer workshop series!

Chocolate Ice Cream in a Baggie

Ingredients and Materials:

2 quart-size freezer bags

1 gallon-size freezer bag

Crushed ice

Rock salt or kosher salt

Duct tape

1 pint (2 cups) half-and-half

3 tablespoons instant chocolate pudding

¹/₃ cup sugar

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla

Instructions:

1. Mix the half-and-half, the sugar, chocolate pudding and the vanilla together in a bowl.
2. Pour the mixture carefully into the quart size baggie and seal the bag after carefully squeezing out as much air as you can.
3. Put the bag into another quart size baggie, again squeezing out all the air and sealing it carefully.
4. Put the quart bags into the gallon bag.
5. Fill the gallon bag with ice and salt, alternating the ice and salt layers.
6. Make sure that the quart bag is completely surrounded with  the salt and ice layers.
7. Seal the gallon bag and put a towel around it.
8. Rock and shake the towel-wrapped bag  for 10 minutes.  Keep the bag moving but be careful not to drop the bag or let it open.
9. After 10 minutes, open the large bag and carefully take out the smaller bag. 
10. If the ice cream isn't yet frozen, add more salt and ice to the large bag, seal and roll for another 10 minutes.
11. Quickly rinse off the smaller bag so that salt doesn’t get into your ice cream.
12. Put the ice cream into small bowls and enjoy.

Your hands can get very cold while doing this, so wear gloves or put a towel around the bags.

We used half and half, but you can also use whole milk, light cream or heavy cream, depending on how rich you want the ice-cream to be.

Experiment with other flavors. Add crushed frozen fruit, chocolate chips, instant decaffeinated coffee, etc.

For the last six weeks Chef D’Amour, (Giovanni Green of Break Bread Not Hearts,) has created one fabulous dish after another, with the help of the teen and tween participants of “Cook Like an Iron-Rich Chef” workshops attendees participants. Each one has been created with fresh, healthy ingredients—often a mix of savory and sweet and always incredibly tasty. His grand finale was no exception!

Savory and Sweet: Summer Kale and Berry Zeppole

Ingredients:

2½ cups of flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 bunch of kale

1 small onion

1 bulb garlic

8 ounces shredded mozzarella

½ cup water

Thyme

Black Pepper

½ cup cane sugar

½ cup of grapeseed oil or 1 stick of butter

½ pound of mixed berries or other fruits

½ cup of raisins

½ cup water

Cinnamon

8 tablespoons of flaxseed with 1 cup of water

1 teaspoon of sea salt

Grapeseed or coconut oil for frying

Love

Yield: Serves 6-8 people

Directions:

1. Begin by giving thanks for the harvest of the food you are about to prepare.
2. Wash the berries and remove any stems depending on the types of fruits you are using. Cut fruit into small pieces. Most nutrients are found in the edible skins of fruits so be sure to use organic fruit if possible to avoid the risk of pesticides.
3. Wash the kale and rip into small pieces by hand.  Finely dice onions/garlic.
4. Sauté the onions, garlic, kale, and thyme with a pinch of salt and pepper until the kale is tender and set aside. 
5. After the kale mixture is cool enough to handle mix with 1¼ cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 4 tablespoons  of flaxseed, ½ cup of water, and mozzarella then form into small balls by hand or with a scooper.
6. In a saucepan add the oil, sugar, fruit, water, salt, and cinnamon and allow to come to a boil.  Once boiling remove from the heat.
7. Add in 1¼ cup flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 4 tablespoons of flaxseed, and 1 cup of water and stir to incorporate into fruit-sugar mixture. 
8. In a double boiler or small frying pan placed over a saucepan with boiling water, add the chocolate chips and ¼ cup grapeseed oil and stir continuously over low heat until the chocolate chips are completely melted.  Set aside.  If the mixture is too thick whisk in more oil one tablespoon at a time.
9. Add grapeseed oil to a large skillet to the depth of 2 inches and bring to medium-high heat.  Using a cookie/ice cream scooper, spoons, or your hands drop the kale zeppole dough into the oil and fry first followed by the fruit zeppole mixture.  Fry for approximately 4 minutes or until the zeppoles are golden brown.
10. Sprinkle the kale zeppoles with more cheese and drizzle melted chocolate over the fruit zeppoles and enjoy with love.

This dish is versatile and can be created to be savory, sweet or both depending on the additions of onions and other vegetables, herbs, spices, cheeses, maple syrup, jams, jellies, and anything the imagination will incorporate. With the fruits it is a delicious and light dessert. With the savory ingredients it can be a wonderful appetizer or side dish. These can also be baked instead of fried for an even healthier treat.

Be sure to use dark chocolate and organic berries and fruit, as it is higher in antioxidants and nutrients that support our brain and heart health along with other bodily functions and systems.

The kale is high in Vitamins A, C, K, iron, and a long list of nutrients to support your body. Adding the garlic and onions to the dish will boost your immune system and keep you healthy. The kale, garlic, and a variety of summer fruits are extremely fresh this time of year from a farmers market so try to eat local.

- Chef D’Amour

Librarian, Writer, Poet...

Librarian, Writer, Poet...

You may know Susan Moorhead, one of our Children's Librarians. Did you know that she is also a writer and a poet? Susan's stories, poems and essays have appeared in a variety of print and online publications and anthologies. Most recently, Susan's short story, Eva's Ocean, was published in the annual 2015 The Westchester Review! 

You can read some of Susan's works online. Click here to read The Exit, a wonderful short story which was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Loose Ends is a lighter, funnier story which you can read here. 

Life is Peachy Chicken Stir-Fry and Grilled Pineapple

Life is Peachy Chicken Stir-Fry and Grilled Pineapple

Ingredients

3 pounds Chicken Thighs/Breasts (bone-in preferably) or 3 pounds cooked chickpeas

3 pounds of Peaches

1 bunch of Kale

1 large Onion

1 Pineapple

¼ pound of fresh Ginger Root

1 bag of Dark Chocolate Chips

Toasted Sesame Oil

Sea salt, pepper, coriander, cinnamon

Lemon Juice

Love

Yield: Serves 6-8 people

Directions

1. Begin by giving thanks for the life of the chicken and all the ingredients you are about to prepare.

2. If using bone-in chicken thighs or breasts cut them into small pieces roughly the size of 1-inch. Mix the chicken with 1 cup of lemon juice, a large pinch of sea salt, pepper, and the coriander. You can do this step a day or two ahead of time to allow the chicken to absorb maximum flavor from the seasoned marinade. The reason for using the bone-in chicken is because the dish will have more flavor.

3. Slice the onion and mince the ginger and place aside in a bowl.  Slice each peach into 6 segments. Wash the kale well and shake free of any excess water.  Using your hands tear the kale from the stem into bite sized pieces.  Peel the pineapple and slice into 4 pieces.

4. In a large wok or sauté pan add 2 tablespoons of toasted sesame oil along with the sliced onions and ginger. Stir this mixture constantly over medium heat until the aroma of the ginger increases. This will take approximately 3-4 minutes.

5. At this point you can add 1/3 of the peaches and the chicken and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook stirring constantly allowing the chicken to brown and cook through and for peaches to become syrup like in consistency.

6. With the sliced pineapple you can light the grill or use a grill pan or sauté pan.  Brush the pineapple with the toasted sesame oil and cinnamon and place onto grill pan over high heat. Cook for about 3 minutes on each side to allow the pineapple to develop a slight char. You can also place the pineapples under the broiler in your oven for it to brown.

7. Once the chicken is cooked toss in the remaining peaches and kale and place immediately onto a serving dish.

8. Cut the pineapple into smaller pieces after being cooked and in a large bowl toss the pineapple with the dark chocolate chips. You can also sauté the grilled pineapple with the chocolate to allow it to melt.

9. Enjoy with love!

Life is peachy and thanks to Mother Nature and the season of summer we can enjoy the bounty provided during these warmer months.  Peaches come into season in the Northeast during the month of July.  This recipe combines the fuzzy and sweet peach into a stir-fry with kale, chicken, and ginger to create a dish with an Asian flair. If you would like to omit the chicken you can prepare the dish with chickpeas. Did you know that in ancient Chinese culture peaches signified the Tree of Life?

Pineapples provide a light delicious replacement for dessert requiring only some melted dark chocolate to enjoy. Pineapples are high in enzymes that aid our digestion as well. The enzyme bromelain is found mainly in the core of the pineapple.

The dish provides a high amount of fiber, protein, and a vast spectrum of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to support our overall health. Vitamins A, B, C, K, iron, potassium, magnesium are present along with many more.

Go ahead and plan a family trip to a local orchard and begin picking.

- Chef D’Amour

E.L. Doctorow 1931-2015

E.L. Doctorow 1931-2015

Everyone here at the New Rochelle Public Library is deeply saddened by the death of E.L. Doctorow.

A frequent and gracious patron while working on his historical novels, Mr. Doctorow was also an ardent supporter of the library.

We would like to share with you some images, including Mr. Doctorow's Walk of Fame sign that graces Library Green, and this quote from the great author:

“The three most important documents a free society gives are a birth certificate, a passport, and a library card.”

We offer our sincere condolences to his wife, Helen, and three children, Jenny, Caroline and Richard.