NYC Wine & Food 2011: Sweet
As rain poured while I cabbed it downtown to the New York City Wine and Food Festival dessert showcase Sweet—I had pulled the ripcord on the fried chicken hoedown at Hill Country—this tune began to play on the stereo. OK, not true. But if I was some kind of film school student, I'd likely incorporate it into the opening montage. GIT IT.
Sweet was hosted by Food Network celebrity (and New York's sorta First Lady) Sandra Lee. I missed her in the cavernous Soho event space. I did spot Bobby Flay snapping photos and kissing babies. Also spotted: 40+ tables of pastries in all shapes and sizes—cake, cupcakes, cake push cops, spice cake, tiramisu, pudding, ice cream sandwiches, Sicilian tarts, aged goat cheese mousse and lots of booze (no milk).
My favorite dish hands down was from Bouchon Bakery pastry goddess Alessandra Altieri. Her peanut butter chocolate parfait was a layering of chocolate cremeux, peanuts, cream capped with a salted caramel dome. It was most certainly a big boy Snickers, leaning way to the salt end of the spectrum. Amazing.
Locanda Verde's Karen DeMasco did a great cranberry spice cake sandwich—with drippy mascarpone gelato in the center. Richard Leach from Park Avenue Autumn went bold with a goat cheesecake. Too much for me, though my head was spinning by then. And I hadn't had a drink in hours. I was crashing like the drops in that song. Here it is again if you forgot how it goes.
More coverage from the New York Wine and Food Festival 2011: