Inspired by New York

THE MEAL

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So many foods came to mind when I was coming up with the menu for a New York-inspired meal—pizza, garbage plates, hot dogs, cronuts . . . The Empire State is such a melting pot of cultures that there are countless foods to choose from! But I’m very happy with what I settled on.

BAGELS WITH CREAM CHEESE AND HOMEMADE LOX

Bagels—ringed bread rolls boiled before they’re baked—originated in Jewish communities in Poland back in the 1600s and are popular in different varieties around the world. The kind most well-known in the United States, though, is the New York-style bagel, which originated in Jewish communities in Manhattan, New York, in the 1800s. What makes New York-style bagels distinct from other varieties is that they contain malt, are cold-fermented for a couple days to enhance the flavor, and are boiled in salted water before being baked in a standard oven.

Making bagels from scratch was a great experiment for me. The dough was so dense that it was difficult to knead, but it resulted in that classic chewy texture that I love. And I accidentally made mine huge because I didn’t think there was any way I had enough dough for 8, but they ended up puffing up A LOT after boiling and baking. The recipe I posted will easily make eight. I definitely want to try this again to work on my kneading and shaping and getting them just right.

Ultimately, though they were time-consuming, they were surprisingly simple to make. I buy bagels for breakfast often enough that I’m glad to know that I can successfully make them at home! I love their chewy texture, and even though I made plain ones, there are so many different flavors and toppings you can use to make them exactly what you want!

In New York, the topping of choice is lox. Lox is cured salmon originating in Scandinavia that Jewish people put on bagels with schmear as a kosher alternative to eggs benedict, which was hugely popular in New York in the 1930s.

Today, the traditional bagel with lox has cream cheese, red onion, and capers. I added cucumber and a sprinkling of dill. And now, after trying it myself, I completely understand the appeal! The combination is creamy, salty, and packed with flavor.

Lox is very expensive to buy, but it was shockingly easy to make at home! I had some salmon on hand when planning this meal, so I looked into how to make lox out of it to avoid buying any, and all it entails is covering the salmon with salt and letting it dry out for about 36 hours! I’ve had raw salmon with sushi, and I’ve had a lot of cooked salmon before, but cured salmon was new to me. I didn’t dare try it on its own—I don’t think I would have liked the strong fishy flavor—but on a bagel with cream cheese and onion, it was AMAZING.

I accidentally sliced mine wrong (because I’m not familiar enough with lox to know how it’s supposed to look), but it still tasted great. I’d love to try the real thing made by someone who really knows what they’re doing!

WALDORF SALAD

Purported to be the most popular salad in New York, the Waldorf salad was first made by Oscar Tschirky, the maître d’hôtel of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel from 1893 to 1943. His original recorded recipe only contained apples, celery, and mayonnaise, but many other iterations were written down in his lifetime, and now, there are countless variations depending on who makes it. Even in the Waldorf Astoria itself, not all the restaurants make the salad the same way. Generally, though, the main components are apple, celery, grapes, walnuts, and mayonnaise.

For mine, I left the walnuts out because I don’t love walnuts, and I used craisins because that’s what I had on hand, but a lot of people add raisins. In Utah, I’ve even seen it made with chopped-up Snickers mixed in!

If I were to make it again, I would probably just use a bit of whipped cream instead of mayonnaise. I didn’t mind the mayonnaise much (especially since it had a little sugar mixed in), but there were a couple times when I would get just a piece of apple and realize that the only other flavor with it was mayonnaise, and something about that just seemed wrong.

Overall, though, this salad is fruity and refreshing and has great flavor! I’ve had it at potlucks a lot during my lifetime, and I’m definitely a fan.

EGG CREAM

The only time I’d ever heard about egg cream was when Sidney Poindexter talked about it in an episode of Danny Phantom back in 2004. For some weird reason I thought it involved egg somehow, but nope! This beverage, originating in Brooklyn, New York, is literally just chocolate milk mixed with seltzer water. It’s something you can only find at soda fountains, because the most distinctive part is the white head, which only lasts for a few minutes after you make it.

There are a lot of theories about how the egg cream got its name. Some say it’s because the foamy top looks like whipped egg whites. Others say its original name was the French “chocolat et creme,” which was misheard as “chocolate egg cream.” Another popular explanation is that since it originated in Yiddish-speaking communities, people called it “echt,” meaning “genuine” or “good,” and the name evolved from there.

In any case, this drink was extremely popular in the early 1900s and is still considered a classic New York beverage, but its popularity is definitely dying out. I can kind of see why. It’s tasty enough, but I wasn’t the biggest fan of the combination of chocolate milk flavor and the texture of fizzy soda. I would have much rather just had one or the other.

CHEESECAKE

Ahhh cheesecake. One of my all-time favorite desserts! I was more than happy to make one for this meal.

Cheesecake was made thousands of years ago in ancient Greece, originally a savory recipe with just cheese, flour, wheat, and honey. Over time, the recipe evolved to become more of a dessert, and it was eventually brought to the Americas by European settlers. Cream cheese was invented by a New York dairy farmer in 1872, and it became an essential ingredient in the cheesecakes that we know today. Many different recipes have existed for a long time, but the classic New York style that most Americans know and love is said to have been invented by Arnold Reuben, the same guy who invented the iconic Reuben sandwich!

However it came to be, I’m just glad it’s here. I love all the varieties that you can find (that Cheesecake Factory dessert menu is a work of art), but I was also happy to just make it plain the way New Yorkers apparently prefer it.

I’ve made cheesecake before and was prepared with a springform pan and a steam bath. The top didn’t crack, but unfortunately I tried to tent the top with foil when it was starting to brown too much, and it stuck and came off when I uncovered it. I’m so sad that the top was broken up a bit, but really all that matters is the taste, and that was phenomenal.

This recipe made a HUGE cheesecake, completely filling my 9-inch springform pan all the way to the top, so I’m going to have a go-to dessert in the freezer for a good long while. Pro tip: Cheesecake slices a lot more cleanly and smoothly if you freeze it for a while before serving! It looks rough in the photos, but when I went for a freezer slice the next day, it came out smooth as glass!

So how do you think I did? Let me know in the comments if you have any suggestions for improvement, and be sure to tune in next time for my take on a meal inspired by Connecticut! If that’s where you’re from, what do you think I should make to represent your state? Bonus points if you have reliable recipes or pro tips before I make the attempt! Thank you for reading!