The Magazine: March-April 2012
Notable Edibles:
The History—and Mystery—of the City’s Best Cream Cheese
Most Edible readers have probably had Ben’s Cream Cheese—a spread so luxuriously thick it seems like it must literally be nothing but solidified cream; but no one seems to know anything about it.
Worth the Trip:
Earl’s Beer and Cheese
A slice of Williamsburg in East Harlem.
Back of the House:
Murray’s Cheese
The medium is the message.
Aftertaste:
New Yorkers Spent Centuries Crying Over Spoiled Milk
Members of clandestine raw milk clubs may think they are the first to thirst for a better milk supply. But in New York City, the search has been a struggle for centuries.
Notable Edibles:
The Greek Yogurt Gods Smile on Upstate Dairy Farms
“[Chobani] uses almost 3 million pounds of milk daily,” says Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. “This has allowed our upstate farmers to expand and grow.”
Liquid Assets:
Have a Cow, Man
In drinks, dairy is daring.
Didn’t We Almost Have It All:
Momofuku Milk Bar & Milk Thistle
A spectacular dairy’s unexpected demise ends a sweet partnership.
Taste of Home:
Skyr Tactics
An Icelandic expat brings New York a little culture.
Grist for the Mill:
Out of His Rind
These makers and mongers aren’t reviving old traditions. They’re building something entirely new.
Notable Edibles:
No Passport Needed: In the Supermarket Case, Queso.
Just step inside a supermarket. Sure, the awnings look like any other Met or Key Food, but uptown the dairy cases are carefully curated for Latino clientele, offering a small world of muy autentico Latin American and Caribbean cheeses.
Barn Again:
Cream of the Crop
Dan Barber brings cows back to his grandmother’s farm—without the herd mentality.
Ideas:
Milk Not Jails
This not-for-profit believes we can drink our way to prison reform.
Tastemaker:
Anne Saxelby, Dairy Queen
The biggest thing in American cheese since sliced bread.
Notable Edibles:
Uptown, a Dominican Confection Makes Life Three Times Sweeter
The classic cake called tres leches—literally “three milks”—features heavy cream, evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk. Bizcocho de Colores bakery in Inwood gilds the lily with whipped cream and dulce de leche.
Indigenous Industry:
Alleva Dairy’s Righteous Ricotta
America’s oldest Italian cheese store still stocks luscious lactic heritage by the tub.
Obsessions:
Illegal Substances
Raw milk might be great-tasting and good for your health, but it’s still seriously inconvenient.
The Foodshed:
The Nanny Diaries
New Yorkers lucked into local goat cheese when Coach’s founders got a brand new bag.
Urban Forager:
Knotweed
Noxious but nice, this invasive is delectable with dairy.