If I had to describe my favorite type of casual-restaurant fare, it might look something like Chris MacGillavray’s menu at Caveau Wine Bar on East 17th Avenue.
Caveau resembles the kind of small storefront kitchens you find in New York. It doesn’t have a full-use restaurant hood, so MacGillavray’s menu is ingeniously built around the kitchen’s limitations: he serves small, flavorful flatbread, cheese and salumi, and a number of light vibrant bites accented with whole herbs, citrus, olives and chiles.
One of my favorite dishes at Caveau comes from MacGillavray’s predecessor, Blake Edmunds, who is now at Stoic & Genuine: a small dish of spiced candied almonds, given a meaty flavor by the addition of smoked paprika.
Note: be sure to use real Marcona almonds, which are usually sold skinless.
Candied Marcona Almonds
Makes about 2 pounds (recipe can be halved)
Ingredients
2 pounds Marcona almonds
1 tablespoon kosher salt
½ tablespoon ground cumin
¾ tablespoon dried Mexican oregano
2½ teaspoons garlic powder
2½ tablespoons hot smoked paprika
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup water
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
Directions
In a large mixing bowl , toss nuts thoroughly with salt and all spices. Gently whisk sugar, water and corn syrup in a pot equipped with a candy thermometer and big enough to contain the almonds. Bring syrup to 285 degrees, and add the nuts immediately, stirring vigorously from the bottom of the pot so each nut is coated with syrup.
After about 10 seconds, pour nuts onto a sheet tray. Allow to cool slightly, and break apart any large clusters by hand.
When the almonds are cool, store in an airtight container at room temperature.
