EAT NYC: The Iconic Recipes that Feed the City, written by Yasmin Newman, features a memorable collection of 55 recipes inspired by restaurants, cafés, stands, and other eateries across New York City. A few highlights include Everything Bagels, Burnt Butter Pecan Donuts, Brooklyn Blackout Cake, Spicy Cumin Lamb Noodles, and Potato & Cheese Pierogi. I will also be sharing her recipe for New York Crumb Cake following the review.
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Smith Street Books in exchange for my honest review. All comments and opinions are my own. This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link, I may receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.
Yasmin Newman
Yasmin Newman is a food/travel writer and photographer. Her work has been featured in SBS Food, Delicious, MasterChef, National Geographic, Oprah, Vogue, and more.
Over the last twenty years, Yasmin has lived across the world from Paris and Los Angeles to Mexico and the Philippines. She is currently based in Australia’s Central Coast with her family and travels regularly to New York City, where her brother resides.
She is also the author of Under Coconut Skies, 7000 Islands: Cherished Recipes and Stories from the Philippines, and The Desserts of New York: And How to Eat Them All.
EAT NYC
Yasmin begins EAT NYC with a short introduction before jumping into the recipes, which are paired with engaging stories and vibrant photography. I especially enjoyed the interviews by locals found across the pages giving a closer insight into the people and memories behind the food.
Chapters are divided according to time of day: Morning: Breakfast + Brunch, Noon: Lunch + Street Eats, and Night: Dinner + Midnight Snacks. The contents page has a list of included recipes with page number for easy reference.
The photography is provided by Alan Benson. Every recipe is paired with a full-page photo of the finished dish. There are also beautiful photos of the city throughout the book.
Measurements are listed in US Customary and Metric. Each recipe has a headnote with background information, history, yield, helpful tips, and serving ideas. Titles are written in English.
New York Crumb Cake
To pair with this review, Claire wanted to make the New York Crumb Cake from the Morning chapter!
Inspired by the generous slices in bakeries, bodegas, and coffee shops, this decadent treat pairs a tender, buttery cake with a crumbly dark brown sugar cinnamon topping for a perfect accompaniment to coffee (or hot chocolate in Claire’s case).
The result is quite the incredible contrast in textures between the soft yellow cake and rich, crunchy topping. It also all comes together relatively easily using often pantry-staple ingredients. The longest part is the baking.
After pouring the prepared batter into the parchment-lined baking dish and fully covering with the crumb topping, the cake is baked in a 350˚F (180˚C) oven just until puffed and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 50 minutes to 1 hour.
Allow the New York Crumb Cake to cool before dusting generously with powdered sugar and cutting into individual slices.
A Few New York Crumb Cake Tips
Bring the butter to room temperature and make sure it is softened before beating with the superfine sugar.
Do not pack in the flour when measuring or you may end up with too much. To measure flour, gently spoon it into the measuring cup and level with a knife without pressing down. The most accurate way to measure is by weight.
Add the flour mixture to the liquid ingredients in batches, mixing just until combined with no streaks of flour remaining. Do not over-mix.
When crumbling the topping over the batter, don’t break up the mixture too finely. There should be plenty of larger clumps. The crumb topping should also fully cover the batter.
It will be difficult to tell when the cake is done due to the crumb topping. Take care to not over-bake. It should be done in 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
The New York Crumb Cake is best the day it is baked. Store leftovers at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2-3 days.
More from EAT NYC
We also made the Pancakes on Sundays, Street Cart Soft Pretzels, Smash Burgers, and Rigatoni alla Vodka!
Evan picked out and made the Pancakes on Sundays for a nice Sunday brunch at home the day before I left for Germany. It was such a wonderful treat before my trip! These buttermilk-based pancakes come together easily and are paired with a whipped honey butter along with maple syrup for serving.
The kids also enjoyed making the Street Cart Soft Pretzels. With options for either resting for 1 hour or a cold-fermentation overnight, these pretzels develop quite the soft and slightly chewy texture. The rich golden color comes from briefly boiling in a baking soda-based water before baking.
The Smash Burgers were another favorite with Evan. He especially loved “smashing” each ground beef patty in the pan before assembling in a soft potato roll with lettuce, tomato, and a homemade burger sauce. It was perfect for a quick, fun lunch.
The Rigatoni alla Vodka was another fantastic meal packed with flavor. The al dente pasta is briefly simmered in a creamy tomato sauce with just a bit of spice throughout due to the Calabrian chili paste. To finish, even more Parmesan cheese is scattered across the top before serving.
EAT NYC is a great pick for those wanting to hold onto a piece of New York City at home. The book is filled with such a diverse collection of recipes for any time of day and throughout the year. Some come together in as little as 30 minutes, while others are best for weekend projects.
Most of the ingredients are readily available in American grocery stores. A few items that may require further searching include “Everything bagel” mix, chipotle in adobo, char siu pork, Challah, hazelnut meal, matzo meal, arrowroot, masarepa, and kombu.
New York Crumb Cake Recipe
Excerpt from EAT NYC
New York Crumb Cake
Ingredients
- 6 1/2 ounces (180 grams) unsalted butter chopped, softened
- 1 1/2 cups (330 grams) superfine (caster) sugar
- 3 eggs
- 10 1/2 ounces (300 grams) sour cream
- 1/3 cup (80 milliliters) milk
- 1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups (335 grams) all-purpose (plain) flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Confectioners' (icing) sugar for dusting
Crumb Topping:
- 10 ounces (285 grams) all-purpose (plain) flour
- 10 1/2 ounces (300 grams) dark brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 6 1/2 ounces (180 grams) unsalted butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F (180˚C).
- Grease a 13 inch x 9 inch (32.5 centimeter x 23 centimeter) baking tin and line with baking paper.
- To make the crumb topping, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Pour in the melted butter and stir until well combined. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer or electric beaters, beat the butter and superfine sugar in a large bowl until light and creamy.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until well combined after each addition.
- Add the sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract and beat to combine.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl and stir to combine.
- In batches, add the flour mixture to the liquid ingredients, beating until just combined.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared tin and smooth the top.
- Using your hands, squeeze small handfuls of the crumb topping to compact it, then crumble into smaller and larger clumps over the batter. Press down gently to lodge the clumps in the batter and cover the top completely.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Leave to cool in the tin, then dust generously with confectioners' sugar.
- Cut into rectangles to serve.
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